When you meditate, do not try to have good thoughts, do not try to keep away bad thoughts,
do not try to stop thoughts, and do not try to go after them.
Rather, rest in a state of being aware of the thoughts as they arise.
Kalu Rinpoche
Tag: Be fully present
Not knowing but loving
The lesson of spiritual life is not about gaining knowledge,
but about how we love.
Are we able to love what is given to us,
love in the midst of all things,
love ourselves and others?
Jack Kornfield, After the Ecstasy, the Laundry
A real miracle
I like to walk alone on country paths, rice plants and wild grasses on both sides, putting each foot down on the earth in mindfulness, knowing that I walk on the wondrous earth. In such moments, existence is a miraculous and mysterious reality. People usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth. Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don’t even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child – our own two eyes. All is a miracle.
Thich Nhat Hanh, The Miracle of Mindfulness
photo richard webb
Sunday Quote : When we stay quiet
Silence is the closest thing to God we know.
Meister Eckhart
photo briyyz
Right here, right now
It [our way] is never apart from this very place;
what is the use of traveling around to practice?
Dogen, General Advice on the Principles of Zazen
Without a trace
It is completely natural that thoughts keep on arising. The point is not to try to stop them, but to liberate them. This is done by remaining in a state of simplicity, which lets thoughts arise and vanish again without stringing onto them any further thoughts. When you no longer perpetuate the movement of thoughts, they dissolve by themselves without leaving any trace. When you no longer spoil the state of stillness with mental fabrications, you can maintain the natural serenity of mind without any effort. Sometimes, let your thoughts flow and watch the unchanging nature behind them.
Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche
