Advertisements
Latest
The rainmaker
“There was a great drought where the missionary Richard Wilhelm lived in China. There had not been a drop of rain and the situation became catastrophic. The Catholics made processions, the Protestants made prayers, and the Chinese burned joss sticks and shot off guns to frighten away the demons of the drought, but with no result. Finally, the Chinese said: We will fetch the rainmaker. And from another province, a dried up old man appeared. The only thing he asked for was a quiet little house somewhere, and there he locked himself in for three days. On the fourth day, clouds gathered and there was a great snowstorm at the time of the year when no snow was expected, an unusual amount, and the town was so full of rumors about the wonderful rainmaker that Wilhelm went to ask the man how he did it.
In true European fashion, he said: “They call you the rainmaker, will you tell me how you made the snow?” And the little Chinaman said: “I did not make the snow, I am not responsible.” “But what have you done these three days?” “Oh, I can explain that. I come from another country where things are in order. Here they are out of order, they are not as they should be by the ordinance of heaven. Therefore the whole country is not in Tao, and I am also not in the natural order of things because I am in a disordered country. So I had to wait three days until I was back in Tao, and then naturally the rain came.”
From The Nature Writings of Carl Gustav Jung
Love is not a thing of the mind
A flower that has perfume is not concerned
who comes to smell it or who turns his back on it.
So is love. Love is not a thing of the mind or the intellect.
It comes into being naturally as compassion,
when this whole problem of existence
— as fear, greed, envy, despair, hope —
has been understood and resolved.
Nothing to report
My hut lies in the middle of a dense forest;
Every year the green ivy grows longer.
No news of the affairs of men,
Only the occasional song of a woodcutter.
The sun shines and I mend my robe;
Every year the green ivy grows longer.
No news of the affairs of men,
Only the occasional song of a woodcutter.
The sun shines and I mend my robe;
When the moon comes out I read Buddhist poems.
I have nothing to report my friends.
If you want to find the meaning,
stop chasing after so many things.
I have nothing to report my friends.
If you want to find the meaning,
stop chasing after so many things.
Ryokan
Just a movie
This endless film show is being played in our mind – moment to moment mind states – and that is projected out in front of us as our external reality. Now as long as we are fascinated by the movie in front of us, then we believe it and we become deeply involved in what appears to be happening. But if we look back and realize it’s just a mind-show that we are projecting, then even though we can still enjoy it, we are not going to be totally devastated if it’s a tragedy or completely engulfed if it’s a romance. We know it’s just a movie.
Every one of us is precious
Every one of us is,
in the cosmic perspective, precious.
If a human disagrees with you, let him live.
In a hundred billion galaxies, you will not find another.
Carl Sagan
Methods to tame your own mind
All the teachings of the victorious ones, all the different kinds of teachings given by the Buddha – if we condense them into one point, it is that they are the methods to tame your own mind. They bring peace to a mind that is not peaceful. They clear away the confusion, or bewilderment, in your own mind.
– Khenpo Tsultrim Rinpoche
from the book “Creation and Completion: Essential Points of Tantric Meditation”
With thanks to Just Dharma Quotes
Thinking
Now that all thoughts have subsided
off I go, deep into the woods,
and pick me
a handful of shepherd’s purse.
Just like the stream
meandering through mossy crevices
I, too, hushed
become utterly clear.
– Ryokan
quoted in the book “The Longing In Between: Sacred Poetry From Around The World”
With thanks to Just Dharma Quotes
Contemplation of Death
It is crucial to be mindful of death – to contemplate that you will not remain long in this life. If you are not aware of death, you will fail to take advantage of this special human life that you have already attained. It is meaningful since, based on it, important effects can be accomplished.
Analysis of death is not for the sake of becoming fearful but to appreciate this precious lifetime during which you can perform many important practices. Rather than being frightened, you need to reflect that when death comes, you will lose this good opportunity for practice. In this way contemplation of death will bring more energy to your practice.
– 14th Dalai Lama
from the book “Advice on Dying: And Living a Better Life”
The road is the goal and we are always on the road
“Once you realize that the road is the goal and that you are always on the road, not to reach a goal, but to enjoy its beauty and its wisdom, life ceases to be a task and becomes natural and simple, in itself an ecstasy.”
~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj ~
Recent Comments