| Thought for the day: November 1, 2007 Undue attention to diet while treading the path to self discovery can become more of a distraction than an aid if one is not careful. There is very little in Buddhist literature concerning the specifics of what to eat, while some attention is given to the importance of silence while eating, eating less, performing correct contemplation, and not seeking fine flavors. The idea is to consider eating a form of meditation and not entertainment. A good diet is a support to a much broader path and should be viewed as such. Within the broad context of Buddhist practice, a diet that supports a healthy body supports a healthy practice, as well. But, outside of this context, diet in and of itself, can hardly be viewed as "spiritual." |
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| Thought for the day: November 2, 2007 All disturbing emotions can be brought into the path by asking oneself, "To whom do these emotions arise." Anger, jealousy, lust, and many other emotions can be turned around very effectively by this means. Hatred only hurts the hater. In similar manner other disturbing emotions only hurt the one hosting them. But, with a little effort and discrimination, these emotions can be used to fuel self-inquiry. Simply thinking "I will let go of disturbing emotions" and pretending that by doing so one is practicing profound Mahamudra is not enough. One must practice analytical meditation to truly be able to uproot the link that bonds these emotions to oneself. If one inquires, "I feel anger now; what is it that is feeling this way." The answer may be, "It is my mind." One then further inquires, "have I always felt this way about the target of my anger?" One may reply, "No." Then one may further inquire, "Then the mind I am taking to me is the mind that is conditioned by love and hate; but sutras teach that the true mind is unconditioned. What is that mind?" If inquiry is continually practiced disturbing emotions will gradually lose their support, which is the false view of a personal self. Now, we must realize an important fact. That is, by eliminating that "false view of a personal self" we are only eliminating that; we are not saying the self does not exist. The "personal self" does exist, but it is not all that we are. As`we break up the strong association that causes us to view the personal self as all that we are, we will gradually be less affected by disturbing emotions that connect us to this self. |
| Thought for the day: November 3, 2007 Pranayama, breath mastery, is an excellent discipline to integrate into one's meditation practice. Because breath and thought are closely linked, where one is so is the other, where one is not the other ceases, as well, practicing pranayama supports quieting the mind. I practice it before every meditation session. Care should be taken when controlling the breath. Among books on the subject, Light on Pranayama, by Iyengar, and Mahamudra: The Moonlight -- Quintessence of Mind and Meditation by Dakpo Tashi Namgyal, The Dalai Lama, and Lobsang P. Lhalungpa, are among the best. Usually it is the mind that first becomes absorbed followed by the breath. We notice this frequently in our daily lives. As our interest becomes absorbed in something, a book, a conversation, writing a letter, our breath slows. Pranayama is a conscious and deliberate slowing of the breath through regulating it. However, like meditation, great care should be taken that it is done correctly. This method should not be confused with merely holding the breath. Pranayama's aim is to absorb thought into the breath---so there is no holding or force. Practiced properly, however, it is an excellent tool that yields many physical benefits, while at the same time strengthening the minds ability to focus and remain focused and deeply penetrate beneath superficial thought patterns. |
| Thought for the day: November 4, 2007 Mindfulness of breath, is a very different practice than pranayama, discussed yesterday. It is much easier to practice and has far fewer dangers that warrant precautions. Mindfulness of breath is simply bringing one's awareness to the breath and keeping it there. When awareness wanders it is brought once again to rest on the breath. Conceptually easy to understand, it is very difficult to practice. In the beginning, the mind is continually hijacked by thoughts that distract its attention away from the breath. This is called being in the "guest" position. Once we become aware of the mind's wandering away from the topic of meditation, the breath, we place it once again on the breath and assume the "host" position host and guest position. As we progress, gradually the mind will cease alternating between the host and guest positions and remain more firmly placed on the breath. At this point we are like a fish in the sea that may occasionally start after a fisherman's lure, but realizing what it is before taking a bite, gives up the chase. This intermediate stage requires constant vigilance if we don't want to end up in a fisherman's tummy. As we continue our practice of Mindfulness of breath an attraction will emerge hidden within the breath itself. Wandering thoughts cease to arise and the mind naturally and with little effort rests on its target. |
| Thought for the day: November 5, 2007 Meditation has been described as ecstatic equilibrium, a term that well reflects a fundamental key aspect to every level of meditation, "balance." Meditation is not a process of adding a new state of awareness with all new materials, but rather making good use of what is already there. A first step requires the use of a neutral meditation topic that will help us to realize that the same energy that fuels anger, jealousy, doubt, lust, and other disturbing emotions can be redirected to fuel liberating awareness. Negative energy is brought to bear on the topic of meditation and absorbed there. As the meditation becomes stronger it balances out and neutralise disturbing emotions. Gradually they will subside and no longer be a distraction. |
| Thought for the day: November 6, 2007 As a young boy, once while swimming under water in our pool beside our desert home, the hand of my father's friend prevented me from surfacing. While he no doubt was laughing, I was struggling and beginning to panic. Suddenly I realized there was no need to panic, and simply gave in and went under and came up beyond his reach. If we feel we are against a wall in our meditation practice, falling away from it, rather than leaning against it, may be best. This is all a matter of attitude, of course, as is much of meditation. If for example, we make ourself like a stone, absorbing nothing, we are far less likely to succeed than one who makes himself like a sponge, absorbing everything. Fearlessness, is after all, a key component of meditative practice. The "stone" approach is motivated by fear; and as long as the drops of disturbing thoughts are splashing off the stone they will continue to do so. However, as soon as the "sponge" approach is adopted, they will be absorbed. This is the correct method for dealing with disturbing thoughts. Always be open while meditating, never closed. |
| Thought for the day: November 7, 2007 Confession: Yesterday my virtue lapsed and I feel ashamed. I went to the bank to cash three checks, $1000, $30, and $169. The teller asked me for $1, "to make it an even two." I thought he was referring to the $200 part of the $1200; little did I know he meant an even $2,000. But, he soon counted out two thousand and was placing it in the envelope I requested and in the process of handing it over to this astonished and bemused and all too eager recipient when he suddenly caught himself. Often throughout the day I guard against lapses in my virtue and integrity as a dharma practitioner by always keeping the question, "Who is being mindful of the Buddha?" before my mental eye. But, a momentary lapse was all it took to miss an opportunity to strengthen my virtue and integrity (by quickly bringing the tellers attention to his error) and instead suffered a setback. |
| Thought for the day: November 8, 2007 Mahamudra teaches the art of "letting go." Often this is looked at in the narrow concept of letting go of disturbing thoughts and emotions, not holding on to them. But, letting go has its positive aspect as well. It is the positive aspect that manifests itself as not revelling in one's success and accomplishments, but rather looking at them with humility and humbleness. Freely giving one's wealth and possessions, not inwardly owning or clinging to material things, is another positive aspect of Mahamudra practice. There are numerous other examples that may come to the readers mind. Often practitioners complain that negative thoughts and disturbing emotions persist and they have difficulty "letting go." If the positive aspect of 'letting go" were cultivated in balance with the negative aspect it is unlikely that this difficulty would arise. Letting go of our good fortune by sharing it with others and serving them will create the causes that will ease our own burden when misfortune visits us. |
| Thought for the day: November 9, 2007 "The Buddha grows a foot, and the demon is already ten feet tall," is a saying that illustrates the fact that increased awareness brought about by meditation can seemingly increase obstructions. This is often a source of discouragement, especially for beginners. However, there is no cause for discouragement because obstructions do not really increase through meditation and only "seem" to because we are growing more and more aware of them as our meditation skill develops. This new awareness brings to our attention our faults and points to the work that lies ahead, thereby making the goal achievable. Real practice is going to be "bitter practice," and requires a good deal of patience. |
| Thought for the day: November 10, 2007 "Be ordinary and nothing special," is a Chinese saying exhorting dharma practitioners to keep their practice inside and not put it on display. The caution is warranted as attachment to the roll of dharma practitioner undermines the very aim of the effort, even as attachment to any other goal undermines the joy of achieving it (or prevents it altogether.) This danger is much less likely if we are living under the guidance of a qualified master, but for those of us who are not, we must be on constant guard. One who learns music for the sake of creating beautiful sound derives happiness from that; but if that motivation gets hijacked by the notoriety it attracts, unhappiness is sure to follow. We see abundant evidence in the destroyed lives of many otherwise talented people. And , those who don't make it to a level that warrants recognition, it is often ego motivation rather than creating music for its own sake, that is the reason why. Because the same dangers lurk beneath every effort to practice the dharma, is it any wonder that the Buddha warned his disciples of the dangers of "name and fame." These dangers are active on both gross and subtle levels and apply equally to beginners as well as advanced practitioners. By constantly checking and maintaining correct motivation, we can avoid many of the pitfalls of the path. |
| Thought for the day: November 11, 2007 The conditioned mind is the everyday mind that guides our actions. As such, what one views as "right" and "wrong" is only a matter of how one has been conditioned to think. This mind is influenced by cultural, social, and family influences. It is also rooted in desire and views what is pleasant to the body and mind as good, and what is unpleasant as bad. Because we can be conditioned to think what is harmful is good and what is good is harmful religious teachers have taught guidelines to help us condition our minds to adhere to a way of life that is beneficial rather than harmful. Paradoxically, it is only through right conditioning that the unconditioned state of liberation can be realized. As we deepen our dharma practice we will become more keenly aware of the fact that truly good basic human qualities are very difficult to achieve. We will become aware of the distinction between a person who acts in a righteous way and a person who is righteous. Acting in a way that is in accord with higher principles for that sake alone is not the same as embodying those same principles as one's own---but it is a start. While unconditioned awareness may be the goal, until we have arrived there we must condition our minds through study, meditation, and reflection. |
| Thought for the day: November 12, 2007 Every time you say to yourself, "I know better than that," realize that what you really mean is, "I wish I knew better than that." The occasion of the former would not arise at all if you knew better. Precision in our thinking is an aid to overcoming weaknesses in our practice. Ludwig Wittgenstein says, "philosophy is a battle between words, their meaning, and their use in language." Considered the greatest philosopher of this century, his entire life was devoted to linguistics, and in doing so arrived at conclusions about language and its influence that Robert Thurman, who many consider the greatest Western Buddhist scholar of our time, says touched upon the highest principles of Buddhist thought. This is even more remarkable when one considers he had no known Buddhist influences. A good deal can be learned by constantly observing how we frame our world in words, our actions in words, and all our emotions in words. In doing so we are constantly conditioning our mind to think about things a certain way, so it behooves us to recognize what that is. |
| Thought for the day: November 13, 2007 Last evening I pulled Enlightened Courage, by HH Dilgo Khyentse, off my daughter's bookshelf. In it he spoke of relative compassion and absolute compassion, concentrating on the relative as that is more attainable for most of us. I found that these pages underscored some of the ideas discussed a couple of days ago regarding the difference between being kind because you know that it is the right thing to do, and being kind. While genuine kindness and compassion is the aim, for it is after all our true nature, relative kindness and compassion is necessary until we arrive at that goal. HH Dilgo Khyentse says that one of the most effective practices for developing kindness and compassion is exchanging self and others. In other words, make the effort to put others first, to treat others as yourself. If we can do this gradually our kindness will come from the heart and a genuine interest in the welfare of others will arise. When this happens our power to serve will dramatically increase and we will be more effective in what we do and expend less effort in the process. It is a goal worth striving for. |
| Thought for the day: November 14, 2007 A few evenings ago I saw a big banner hanging from an office window advertising meditation classes. I could not help but think how clever it was to take a basic skill that everyone uses everyday, focusing ones attention on an object, and repackaging it as meditation and selling it. Of course we all know that focusing one's attention is the easy part, but rightly focusing it is the aim. A blind eye is turned to this crucial fact all to often. But, in an appearance driven world, I cannot help but wonder if anyone cares, and unqualified teachers certainly hope that they don't. To study meditation without studying Buddhism first is like buying gas before owning a car. Knowledge of meditation alone won't get anyone anywhere. A monk I know once told me about a bumper sticker he once saw while driving on the freeway; it read, "I don't know where I am going; but I am going like hell." You don't want to be like that guy. |
| Thought for the day: November 15, 2007 I once visited a yogi in a cave in Nepal and arrived just as he was preparing his meal. It consisted of three small potatoes. He dropped the first two in the pot without hesitation, but agonized over the third for some time before releasing it with the words, "not too much." As he later sat dipping them in chilly powder and salt and slowly eating them, his deep appreciation and thanksgiving were evident with every mouthful. This attitude probably nourished him as much as the food. In life we often project needs that get in the way of appreciating what we already have. Our consumer society with all the marketing that oils its gears makes it difficult to step away from constantly seeking. It is this very seeking that blocks seeing that what we have already might be enough. This is true for both rich and poor. In my own life, I have gotten to know a few individuals of great wealth who found yogi-like simplicity in their lifestyle and derived a good deal of joy from that. They have realized that freedom to get what one wants, is not as good as freedom from want. |
| Thought for the day: November 16, 2007 Small chores around the house provide excellent opportunities to deepen meditation practice. While many texts advise labeling movements, reciting mantras, counting paces and many other techniques for keeping mindfulness in check, these are not always necessary. See if you can get absorbed without any of these supports. For myself, ordinary activities of daily life are often great meditation topics, particularly neutral one's that are not interesting. The challenge is to get into it and enjoy the activity for its own sake. Doing so not only keeps my place in order, but develops meditation skill. |
| Thought for the day: November 17, 2007 A genuine concern for the welfare of others is the best indication that our practice is pointing in the right direction. Bliss and absorption in meditation are not reliable indicators when not accompanied by understanding. Endless chanting and other such practices are little better than self-hypnosis and can produce almost any state one desires, including those that will further bind one up in the darkness of ignorance. |
| Thought for the day: November 18, 2007 An athlete focuses his attention to be the best in his field, a ballet dancer wishes to develop her skills, a businessman wishes for success. In all cases, the focus of attention is to succeed. But, all these aspirations also reinforce the false sense of "I" and "other," a sense of separateness from other living beings with whom we share this planet. To counter this Buddhism teaches to always try and balance out one's aspiration for success by cultivating a genuine wish that others succeed as well, and helping them to do so. We should never take advantage of situations if it unfairly harms another. While we may move forward, our integrity is weakened. If one wishes to create a medicine for the sake of healing people, the motivation is different from one who is seeking great wealth. In both cases the medicine achieves it aim, but the merit of having altruistic ambitions will serve to diminish the "I" sense in the one researcher, and reinforce it in the other. In everything we do, motivation should be examined, or the cost of success may outweigh its benefits. |
| Thought for the day: November 19, 2007 Sutras teach us, "all living beings have the Buddha nature, and it is only because of false thinking and attachments that they fail to realize it." The Buddhas is instructing us here to understand that self-realization is not an "add-on" and to concentrate on discovering what is already there rather than adding something new. Seeing our true Buddha Nature is obscured by a sense of "I" whose focus is limited by desires that wrongly conceptualize the self as confined to the physical body and mental activity limited to the view of an individual self. While not ignoring the conventional, everyday reality of the personal self, Buddhism teaches us to control desires associated with this viewpoint so that we can make ourself vulnerable, or worthy of the realization of that which is not confined to a personal view of self. When attachment to the confining view of a personal self is gradually dismantled, a greater sense of interconnectedness with others is gradually realized and their welfare becomes as important as our own. As this is achieved through persistent practice we will become more aware of our Buddha Nature and less bound up by false views and attachment that wrongly confines us to the self as the individual. Thus, while not losing the sense of individuality, it is pervaded by a more all encompassing awareness. |
| Thought for the day: November 20, 2007 Observing the mind in post meditation is a better indicator of how a meditation went than trying to make a judgement based on the meditation itself. |
| Thought for the day: November 21, 2007 A sense of carrying your meditation with you when you get off your cushion and get on with your day is good post-meditation experience. It is an indication that a degree of effortless engagement with the topic of meditation occurred during the meditation period. It is difficult to maintain this thread of meditation as the day wears on, but that should be the goal. Gradually a sense of continuity will arise between meditations and this will allow one to become focused more quickly and with less effort each and every time one sits down to meditate. |
| Thought for the day: November 22, 2007 Believe is a word to be used with caution and mindfulness. I was told this once in a warning tone by one much wiser than myself after using it to express my belief in the Buddha. His caution stuck and I am very mindful now when I use the word believe. Take for example the expression, "I believe in the bible." I would guess that more often than not the one expressing this is assuming that what he believes is what is said in the bible, rather than what is said in the bible is what he believes. In other words, he has little knowledge of what the bible says. On the surface this seems rather harmless, but if examined further, the assumption of knowledge might and often does obscure the need to study and internalize what the bible says. Now, since forty years have lapsed since I was cautioned, I realize that I was expressing a belief in the Buddha while having little knowledge of Buddhism. I was assuming that my viewpoints were in line with the Buddha's teaching without understanding what those teachings are. This assumption was obscuring the need to study and I was being urged to develop an understanding of Buddhism first and then put forth the effort to bring my viewpoint into alignment. The use of the word "believe" and its various cases in connection with God is probably the best example of words used without meaning in the English language. Certainly those who have deeply contemplated God are outnumbered by those who haven't, and yet those that haven't are often the most frequently professed "believers." Certainly it behooves us all to better understand the objects of our "beliefs" so that we may express our beliefs with greater meaning and precision. |
| Thought for the day: November 23, 2007 Often we do what we know to be wrong, get angry, for example, because we have not contemplated deeply the truths we have learned. Study must be accompanied by deep contemplation of the benefits of right action and the consequences of wrong action, or we will be limited with a mere intellectual understanding that will not serve us in a meaningful way. But, the cultivation of what the Chinese call, "Still Consideration," which is defined by the term and needs little elaboration, can empower us to make the truths that we learn, truths that we express in our life. |
| Thought for the day: November 24, 2007 Enlightenment and desire don't mix very well; where there is one the other is not. While this is true and affirmed by the scriptures, as common people we are immersed in desire and must work with them. While blocking desire may seem the simplest way, it is the least effective. Blocking desire is using force rather than wisdom and accomplishes little. Desire blocked will manifest in other, often more negative ways. Desire must be dealt with by transformation first. If we look at desire as a form of energy, we will be able to turn it around to become our servant rather than us its slave. This is accomplished through analytical meditation that enables us to develop a philosophical perspective that views ourselves as part of a totality rather than a separate individual. As the energy associated with desire becomes less focused on the individual, it mingles more with the universal energy of the impersonal life force. This change of focus from the personal self to the impersonal self is a gradual process that takes years and lifetimes to achieve as the ignorance associated with the personal "I" is so deeply rooted----if it weren't so we would not be here. |
| Thought for the day: November 25, 2007 In Chan Buddhism emphasis is made on the importance of, "not being turned by conditions" or "not being turned by states." It is relatively easy to maintain an even mind when everything is going well, but when conditions change, become unpredictable, distracting, and unexpected, etc, we often lose our focus and become "turned upside down by conditions." During these moments our weaknesses are often exposed, and the importance of a well balanced practice is realized. |
| Thought for the day: November 26, 2007 The world is a mandala of opportunity. Everyday there are opportunities for growth concealed within the myriad interactions we have with people and events in our lives. Meditation should be expanded beyond the meditation cushion and integrated into every aspect of our lives. The flow from meditation to post meditation should be as seamless as possible and gradually disappear. To view meditation as one thing and one's active life as another, is a misguided notion that hampers one's understanding of the nature of meditation itself. This viewpoint should be dismantled as it hampers the development to the proper viewpoint conducive to growth. |
| Thought for the day: November 27, 2007 One of the greatest advantages of studying Buddhism with a genuine teacher is that he will help to make an otherwise abstract understanding of the dharma a subjective one. A teacher (with accomplishment) will never allow scholarly understanding to develop in isolation; and that is the primary and all important difference between studying Buddhism at a university or on one's own and studying with a teacher. Bearing this in mind, as lay people who often do not have the opportunity to draw near a "Good Knowing Advisor," we must exert extra effort to avoid being satisfied with a mere intellectual understanding, and exert ourselves in meditation, both analytical and quiescent, to see how the application of our study in our own lives can give life to the words on the page. |
| Thought for the day: November 28, 2007 A child psychologist once remarked to me that I should never begin a sentence with the word "don't" when instructing my children. The reason she said is that children simply remove it. For example, "Don't go near the fire," becomes "Go near the fire," "Don't play with Jimmy?" "Play with Jimmy," "Don't go in the forest," "Play in the forest," etc. She said the better way to instruct children was by using "consequences." Instead of "Don't go near the fire," one questions: "What do you think would happen if you went near that fire? Etc. The use of "consequences" is a common feature of one of Tibetan Buddhism's most important branches and is known as prasankika. This branch, Madyamika, does not say that a viewpoint is wrong, but rather explores the consequences (which generally become absurd) if it was right. But, while Madyamika arguments tend to focus on the highest philosophical tenants, as ordinary people we can use the same principles to help us work on our more mundane disciplines and viewpoints. I once attended a lecture by HH Dali Lama and he was asked about sexual desire. He explained that a mosquito once bit him on the neck and his Tibetan doctor told him not to scratch it. He listened for a few days, but the itch started to bother him so much that he could not resist. But, the more he scratched it the more it itched, until he had an infection so bad he had to see his doctor again." Had his doctor used prasankika instead of telling him "Don't" HH Dali Lama may well have thought more deeply and left it alone. Disciplines have their reasons and when these are lost sight of the burden of keeping them can become impossible. For this reason we should always be mindful of the consequences of our action and knowingly walk the path. |
| Thought for the day: November 29, 2007 The world turns at face value or it wouldn't turn at all. The struggle for success, both individually and collectively as a nation, is a mold so strong that few can break away, or ever even think to do so. Failure in the game of life causes some to break away, or at least think they are, but this is a case (as the yogi Sri Yukteshvar once remarked) of the world renouncing them, rather than them renouncing the world. It is interesting that life's game is played as if it exists as it appears and how few ever question if that is really the case. However, within this game, everything is subject to investigation. When we buy a car, for example, we doubt we are being told the truth about its condition, we doubt the loyalty of friends and relations, we investigate all options when seeking employment, but we don't tend to doubt the game itself and question its aim. Most move through life "in a dream and die in a stupor." Breaking away from the mold need not mean no longer being a player, but rather assuming the attitude of being an actor. In other words, we gradually dismantle the assumption that the life is as it appears and begin to look beneath appearances. If we do this we will begin to realize that our life is governed by many assumptions that may rest on very inadequate philosophical basis'. While not removing ourselves from the world we know, we will doubt it more and more. This questioning mind is will add a new dimension to our familiar world and give it more meaning. Gradually, as Christ has said, we will, "live in the world, but be not of it." |
| Thought for the day: November 30, 2007 It is better and far more difficult to sail smoothly through life's storms, than to attain blissful meditative states. Change for the better in the ordinary acts of daily life better reflect deepening understanding through meditation, than 'experiences" on the meditation cushion itself, which are often little more than mind induced psychic phenomena. Fewer desires, less anger, greater compassion, more generosity, these are the kind of indicators that demonstrate a meditation practice that is moving in the right direction. |