Heart of the Pine, Joints of Bamboo

. . . Acquiring the bitter along with the sweet, able to lead and able to follow, accepting both life and death, always responsive yet always tranquil, not moved by things, firm of heart and strong in discipline, one can thereby handle ease, one can thereby rest, one can thereby change adaptively without hindrance, unfixed to any given pattern, uninhibited in any way . . .

Liu I-ming, Awakening to the Tao

What are you doing for others?

Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 

“What are you doing for others?” 

~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

Prayer

If prayer does not change our destiny, it changes our feelings -- which is no less useful.

~ Joseph Joubert

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Hiding from responsibility...

"I’m thinking about the subtle moments that some of us experienced, when there’s a dissonance between what I hear and what I see, and I withdraw and remain silent rather than ask uncomfortable questions. This goes both ways. I’ve watched teachers hide behind authority, and I’ve also seen students let go of responsibility. I’ve watched many practitioners, including me, seek in a like-minded group a refuge from living responsibly in the world, learning how to deal with money and each other, and accepting the consequences of our decisions and our actions. A place where we won’t have to grow up. Who has lived or practiced for years in a dharma center without witnessing some of these patterns?"

~ from It Takes a Village by Roshi Eve Myonen Marko

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benefits of gratitude

Some of the benefits of gratitude:

Stronger immune systems and lower blood pressure...

More joy and pleasure, more optimism and happiness...

More forgiving and outgoing outlooks, less lonely and isolated feelings...

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infinite life, infinite light

Although my eyes, blinded by passions, 

Do not see the brilliant light which embraces me, 

The Great Compassion never tires, 

Always casting its light upon me. 

~ Shinran Shonin

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