This week marks 15 years of writing this blog. A lot of changes in that time. I said 5 years ago that the reason I post is to remind myself to begin anew every day and that has not changed. Thanks to all who follow and I continue to hope that the thoughts selected help you also to see the world in new and fresh ways.
Without accepting the fact that everything changes,
we cannot find perfect composure
Shunryu Suzuki, roshi
As long as we are breathing, there are infinite possibilities. A good
starting point is with a question: What if I completely let go of the fear
body and were released from the gloomy future it predicted? And
then another question: In the absence of fear, what would I want my
life to be about? And then another: In the absence of fear, what
would motivate me toward that life?
Tim Burkett, Nothing Holy about it
Very like the warm Indian Summer weather we have been having in Ireland this last week, along with a full moon, as the Autumn Equinox approaches:
The rain has ceased, the clouds have passed away, and the weather is bright again.
If your heart is clear, all things in your world become clear.
Hold this passing world lightly, hold yourself lightly
and then the moon and the flowers will guide you along the way
Ryokan, 1758 – 1831, Japanese Zen monk and poet
The 14th-century Tibetan master Longchenpa said there are five characteristics we should cultivate in order to practice the four immeasurables:
(1) A fundamental attitude as vast as space;
(2) A mind as constant as the depths of the ocean;
(3) Seeing all occurrences, inner and outer, as mist floating in the sky;
(4) A compassionate attitude as even as the rays of the sun;
(5) Sensing negativities to be like specks of dust in our eyes.
Buddhadharma: The Practitioner’s Journal, 2019 The Four Immeasurables Leave Nothing Untouched
All that’s visible springs from causes deep inside you
While walking, sitting, lying down
The body itself is the complete truth
Dogen
The giant pine tree
grows from a tiny sprout.
The journey of a thousand miles
starts from beneath your feet.
Rushing into action, you fail.
Trying to grasp things, you lose them.
Forcing a project to completion,
you ruin what was almost ripe.
Therefore the Master takes action
by letting things take their course.
Tao Te Ching, 64
Mindfulbalance 