"My life is over. I have hit the bottom. I don’t know what to do. Please help me." And here is the advice Trungpa Rinpoche gave me. He said, “Well, it’s a lot like walking into the ocean, and a big wave comes and knocks you over. And you find yourself lying on the bottom... Continue Reading →
If victory is the notion of no enemy, then the whole world is a friend. That seems to be the warrior's philosophy. The true warrior is not like somebody carrying a sword and looking behind his own shadow, in case somebody is lurking there. That is the setting-sun warrior's point of view, which is an... Continue Reading →
Spiritual Warrior
#Boddhisatva Warrior #Courage
Being a bodhisattva warrior means being fearless and willing to tread the Buddhist path. It’s different from saying, “I’m not afraid of rattlesnakes” or “I’m not afraid of dogs.” When we talk about basic warriorship on the Buddhist path, we are talking about being willing to include everything, and willing to work with everything without... Continue Reading →
All the promises we have heard are pure seduction. We expect the teachings to solve all our problems; we expect to be provided with magical means to deal with our depressions, our aggressions, our sexual hangups. But to our surprise we begin to realize that this is not going to happen. It is very disappointing... Continue Reading →
In a world where everyone wants you to be someone else, staying true to your call is almost an act of rebellion. Walking the path of authenticity, of what is true to your heart is by no means an easy task. Daily responsibilities and chores begin gnawing at us the moment we open our eyes... Continue Reading →
The trust expressed by Ajahn Chah comes whenever our consciousness rests in the eternal present. “From where I sit,” he said, “nobody comes and no one goes.” “In the middle way, there is no one who is strong or weak, young or old, no one who is born and no one who dies. This is... Continue Reading →
Authenticity is a collection of choices that we have to make every day. It's about the choice to show up and be real. The choice to be honest. The choice to let our true selves be seen...I want to be in the arena. I want to be brave with my life. And when we make... Continue Reading →
The opposite of samsara is when all the walls fall down, when the cocoon completely disappears and we are totally open to whatever may happen, with no withdrawing, no centralizing into ourselves. That is what we aspire to, the warrior’s journey ― Pema Chödrön
When we are distracted by a strong emotion, do we remember that it is part of our path? Can we feel the emotion and breathe it into our hearts for ourselves and everyone else? If we can remember to experiment like this even occasionally, we are training as a warrior. And when we can’t practice... Continue Reading →
Sometimes people find that being tender and raw is threatening and seemingly exhausting. Openness seems demanding and energy-consuming, so they prefer to cover up their tender heart. Vulnerability can sometimes make you nervous. It is uncomfortable to feel so real, so you want to numb yourself. You look for some kind of anesthetic, anything that... Continue Reading →
Stop walking through the world looking for confirmation that you don’t belong. You will always find it because you’ve made that your mission. Stop scouring people’s faces for evidence that you’re not enough. You will always find it because you’ve made that your goal. True belonging and self-worth are not goods; we don’t negotiate their... Continue Reading →
Being civil often has an element of acting. However, in the hinayana, you are behaving rather than acting. Acting is trying to manifest yourself for the sake of display, whereas behaving is how you feel. Acting is the way you dance, and behaving is the way you sneeze or hiccup. You know if you are... Continue Reading →
“The essence of bravery is being without self-deception. However, it’s not so easy to take a straight look at what we do. Seeing ourselves clearly is initially uncomfortable and embarrassing. As we train in clarity and steadfastness, we see things we’d prefer to deny—judgmentalness, pettiness, arrogance. These are not sins but temporary and workable habits... Continue Reading →
The notion (of kingdom) here is that your life is potentially wealthy and good. There is a great deal of misunderstanding about wealth. Generally being wealthy means that you have lots of money, but the real meaning of wealth is knowing how to create a goldlike situation in your life. That is to say, you... Continue Reading →
Practicing renunciation doesn't always mean leaving world affairs and retreating to a forest. Renunciation can also mean dropping your opinion, views, prejudices & having the ability to drop your problems, lowering your guard & emptying your mind - even momentarily Lotus Seed
Fearlessness is not like a wild tiger or brown bear that is locked up in a cage and growls every time you open the door. Fearlessness is powerful, but it also contains gentleness and constant loneliness and sadness. Wisdom and consideration for others are also part of fearlessness....The more fearlessness evolves, that much more available... Continue Reading →
