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 7 Jul 2005 @ 21:41, by scotty. Spirituality
So much violence when peace is all we crave ..
let go the horror - don't feed any more energy to it ..
let your hearts and lives be filled with another vision .. we really are eternal beings and once we realise this and know that we are divine then in time we will have reached our starting point to being really alive ....... More >
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 22 Jun 2005 @ 10:49, by rcarratu. Spirituality
I was going to write a little essay on the Oil problem, but, you know, I suddenly realized it was irrelevant. Sure, it will cause all kinds of hassle and probably a lot of death and destruction, and maybe as the level of living drops in 3rd world countries they will swarm up to the places they believe have all the resources, like the USA, and destroy everything in their march path, and the militaries in their way will pull out all their worse weapons to kill them en mass, and yet that won't stop them and eventually humans will be as rare as dodos.
But never less, all of that is still irrelevant. They are all symptoms, not the cause.
Because if it is not the oil, or the global warming, or radioactive pollution, or world wide war, it will be something for sure. And the only solution has nothing to do with any of the threats. The only solution is a change in what is called 'common sense'. A sense which is common. It's almost as rare as dodos, I think, and frankly, what most people call 'common sense' is merely their particular blinders keeping them from paying attention to anything but what they were taught to notice.
But the world is not made up of our 'common sense'. The world is common, but we don't really make any sense out of it. If it was really what we sensed, physically sensed, which is common, and not what we filter our senses with, then we would, en mass, change the world quite quickly. But we are, as a species, very habitual. We have these blinders called 'practicality' and 'rationality' and other variable sense filters which obscure almost everything that would really work.
It's not about thinking outside the box... It's about not seeing the box at all, and going with what we do see... which is undivided and undifferentiated.
I see that there is no separation between Humanity and Nature. I see no separation between people. I see that we are totally interdependent, relying on each other, no matter what we think. I see that we do better when we take care of each other than when we don't. I see that the hassle is in our minds, not in Nature.
We live in Paradise. The only thing wrong with this place, this world, is what people have in their minds. It is said we use only 10% of our brains... but I say we use only 10% of the interdependence which keeps us all alive and flourishing. It is the loss of that 90% of potential interdependence that is destroying the environment, killing people for resources, causing horror upon horror, both personally in people's lives and socially, in the world en mass. That is the cause of the terminal illness.
That common sense, that perception, of interdependence is what is relevant. Only that. More >
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 15 Jun 2005 @ 20:11, by jerryvest. Spirituality
In this web log, I am introducing some thoughts and observations about my meditation practice as a living experience. I also am including some quotations from Openness Mind by Tarthang Tulku. Professor Tulku has been a leader in the field of human development and while serving as a teacher in the profession of Social Work, I have extensively drawn on his books and practices for my integrative health courses and workshops. [link]
I am beginning to appreciate and become even more aware of these teachings and the meaning of Open Mind now that I am experiencing arthritic pain in my body-mind during this past year. While turning 70 years of age, I’ve learned that I have some serious arthritis problems in my L4&5 vertebrae, left shoulder joints and some other places. As we all know, pain in the body is also experienced in our mind and takes precedence over all other feelings, blurs our perceptions, affects our relations, and often prevents us from being as open, flexible, strong and balanced as we’ve been during our earlier life.
I’ve also recently learned that I have a cancer lesion in my prostate gland and will undergo surgery shortly. I realize that most men, 75% or more over 65, will have prostate cancer. But, this isn’t something we’ve planned for so it came as a shock to me. I am choosing to have this removed because the other alternatives don’t look so good either. I’ve even thought and meditated on the idea of just observing this cancer for awhile and wait and see how it changes.
This brings me to the point of this discussion – Openness Mind and meditation as introduced by Tarthang Tulku. The following excerpts may serve to assist others experiencing pain and surgery while learning to maintain an open mind. In this book, Tarthang introduces us to meditation as an experience of living that can aid us in developing our whole being.
“How we live, what is happening in our lives, how we are affected by our experience—this is the ground of reality, and the source of spiritual awareness.”(TT)
I remind myself that I am not my body, I am not my mind, I am not this pain. I observe my breathing and let everything inside and out become as one, with total acceptance.(JV)
“As our awareness develops, our entire frame of reference slowly becomes transformed. We see the interrelationships of thought and action, and consequently become more sensitive in our communication with others. Our observations penetrate to deeper levels—we discover how feelings are produced, and how thought functions. As our awareness deepens even further, we can even perceive the link between past, present, and future, and therefore learn to pattern our actions so that our lives are satisfied and fulfilled.”(TT)
I am beginning to see how I respond, even before I react, to circumstances or persons that do not appear to be serving my best interests. (JV)
When patience is strongly developed, awareness appears even from within our negativities, and from that awareness come our meditation. We see that everything that occurs is a manifestation of energy, which itself is a form of our awareness, and we realize that all experience, each of the twenty-four hours of the day, is a part of the enlightenment nature.(TT)
Openness mind to me means that I am open to all that I experience without judgment or label. Seems that I am learning to become more open minded and especially enjoy life fully when playing and being as one with my grandchildren and other free spirits. And the pain no longer becomes the center of my universe. Everything and my entire experience is now my meditation(JV)
The dream and the waking states aren't so very different from each other. When we realize that all existence is like a dream, the gap between sleeping and waking no longer exists. Experiences we gain from practices we do during our dream time can then be brought into our daytime experience....Thus we can use our dream experiences to develop a more flexible attitude.(TT)
I remember an axiom that hit home with me several years ago while attending an Arica workshop...."All is my own dream." I love this dream and am very happy that we are in this one together, my friends.(JV)
Note:
Tarthang Tulku, formally educated in the Buddhist tradition in Tibet, is a pioneer in introducing the benefits of meditation. As founder of the Nyingma Institute, he is well known for his innovative programs in Human Development. His writings include Gesture of Balance; Skillful Means, Gentle Ways to Successful Work, Time, Space, and Knowledge; Kum Nye, and Love of Knowledge.[link]
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5 Jun 2005 @ 13:20, by swanny. Spirituality
Well at long last I can see "clearly"
enough to "realize" that I am not seeing
clearly.....!
sir More >
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20 May 2005 @ 12:08, by vector8. Spirituality
"You bring me joy
When I'm down
Oh, so much joy
When I lose my way your love comes smiling on me" Anita Baker More >
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 13 May 2005 @ 14:06, by dorps. Spirituality
Must it be ever so?
The drift from youth to age?
The final snuffing of a candle only dimly glowing?
Not as long as there is hope in our hearts and breath in our bodies!!Oh let not the flame die out!!! More >
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11 May 2005 @ 09:34, by vector8. Spirituality
The other day, on the bus, I saw a man at a bus stop who was so eager to catch the bus I was in, he hit his head against the post. I wondered if the man had seen me snigger because he avoided coming in through the front door, near where I was sitting, and sneaked in through the other door. Hehe! More >
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 10 May 2005 @ 16:07, by scotty. Spirituality
Forrest Gump died and went to heaven. When he got to the Pearly Gates,
Saint Peter told him that new rules were in effect due to the advances
in education on earth. In order to gain admittance a prospective
Heavenly Soul must answer three questions.
1. Name two days of the week that begin with "T".
2. How many seconds are in a year?
3. What is God's first name?
Forrest thought for a few minutes and answered..
1. The two days of the week that begin with "T" are Today and Tomorrow."
2. There are 12 seconds in a year."
3. God has two first names: Andy and Howard."
Saint Peter said, "OK I'll buy Today and Tomorrow, even though
it's not the answer I expected, your answer is correct. But how
did you get 12 seconds in a year and why did you ever think that
God's first name was either Andy or Howard?" Forrest responded,
"Well, January 2nd, February 2nd, March 2nd, etc......" OK, I
give" said Saint Peter, "but what about the God's first name stuff?"
Forrest said "Well, from the song... Andy walks with me, Andy talks
with me, Andy tells me I am his own...? and the prayer... Our Father
who art in Heaven Howard be thy name...." Saint Peter let him
in without further ado.
Some of us really are quite unique - we don't see things the same way as most other people !
Doesn't mean though that we don't have the answers to lifes questions - nor that we won't get to where we're going ! More >
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 29 Apr 2005 @ 00:21, by bombadil. Spirituality
Those who say religion has nothing to do with politics do not know what religion is.
—Mohandas Gandhi
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19 Apr 2005 @ 18:04, by vector8. Spirituality
God is the intelligence behind the Internet.
Each website is a portal leading to collective portals that make up the World Wide Web. In the ideal world, each portal represents God manifesting as that experience; while the World Wide Web represents Infinite Mind. In the human reality this is not the case. The human idea of Infinite Mind is a fragmented one consisting of conflicting beliefs; while each portal is a distorted representation of the Real. More >
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