Sparks of Wisdom Glowing Brighter

    From a very young age, from before I could speak, I've had a calm, intuitive sense of what's right, true & meaningful, and felt a deep empathic connection towards suffering humans & animals. This same sense seems to have given rise to a few sporadic instances of my inexplicably knowing, with a quiet confidence, that an important, specific, future event would turn out well.
    Many get a glimpse of this unusual sense of intimate familiarity or oneness with the cosmos after a few drinks - the feeling of being "in love with the whole world." There's immediate pressure then to quickly dismiss it as "just the booze talking." After all, the only taboo remaining in our Western society is the one against anything that might be deeply meaningful!
    Indeed, by around age 2, we start being conditioned by the prevailing dogmatic belief that human beings & other living "things" are accidental, isolated lumps of matter, in a mechanical, meaningless universe. So, we spend much of our adult lives trying to be as happy as possible given this narrow, stunted worldview.

    “Our talent for division, for seeing the parts (reductionist left hemisphere), is of staggering importance – second only to our capacity to transcend it, in order to see the whole (right hemisphere).” Iain McGilchrist

    “Not only is the universe stranger than we think,
it is stranger than we can think.” Werner Heisenberg

    “There is but one cause of failure
And that is man’s lack of faith
in his true Self.” William James

    "All shall be well,
and all shall be well,
and all manner of things shall be well." Julian of Norwich, English Christian mystic

    “So long as one is merely on the surface of things,
they are always imperfect, unsatisfactory, incomplete.
    Penetrate into the substance
and everything is perfect, complete, whole.” Philip Kapleau

    "You learn about a thing ... by opening yourself wholeheartedly to it. You learn about a thing by loving it." Barbara McClintock - Nobel prize-winning geneticist

    "Anything will give up its secrets if you love it enough." George Washington Carver

    Fortunately, at least a small "spark" of early-childhood's innocent form of unity consciousness survives into adulthood, and many feel that at this pivotal time in human history, this spark is increasingly becoming fanned towards awakening.

    “Spiritual practices are methods that can begin to soften our stance toward our self, toward life in general, and to open us to what transcends the habitual. They are invitations to become intimate with the wisdom of silence & stillness.”
    Dorothy Hunt. “Ending the Search. From Spiritual Ambition to the Heart of Awareness.” Sounds True, 2018.

 Two (imho) EXCELLENT 15-minute Eckhart Tolle videos:

Deeper Dimensions of Acceptance

    We all keep the seriously-challenging & most meaningful aspects of life at a tolerable distance by exclusively relying on our left hemisphere. The left hemisphere can only undervalue & try to drown out the right hemisphere. The right hemisphere is open to the left hemisphere's valuable but limited role IN CONTEXT of the right hemisphere's infinitely broader & deeper perspective of life & our true nature.
    Most of us would do very well to immerse ourselves in psychiatrist Iain McGilchrist's decades of research findings, which skillfully update our understanding of how our two brain hemispheres profoundly affect our self-concepts, worldviews & our very survival: https://channelmcgilchrist.com/home/

    “I would define love very simply: as a potent blend of openness and warmth, which allows us to make real contact, to take delight in and appreciate, and to be at one with – ourselves, others, and life itself.
    ... love is the central force that holds our whole life together and allows it to function."
    John Welwood. "Perfect Love, Imperfect Relationships. Healing the Wound of the Heart." Trumpeter, 2006. POWERFUL

    "To be enlightened is to be intimate with all things." Zen Master Dogen

    "I was born
     when all I once feared
     I could love.” Rabia Basri

    "Once we are willing to be directly intimate with our life as it arises, joy emerges out of the simplest of life experiences." Roshi Pat Enkyo O'Hara

    These 3 documentaries are imho well worth watching: "Stories We Tell" (2012, Netflix); "Selena Gomez: My Mind and Me" (2022, Apple TV+); and "Stutz" (2022, Netflix). In each, a well-known celebrity: Sarah Polley, Selena Gomez & Jonah Hill, respectively, lovingly share intimate details about themselves, as if we were very close friends.
    These movies are gentle, indirect invitations for each of us to open our own hearts - classically - first to ourselves, which is the most challenging for many of us, and then to loved ones, 'neutral' folks we barely know, then folks we have a bit of difficulty with, and finally long-time 'enemies. Sharon Salzberg is the go-to meditation teacher for 'Loving-kindness meditation' eg https://www.mindful.org/a-guided-loving-kindness-meditation-with-sharon-salzberg/

    Here's my humble suggestion for the 'BEST PRESENT EVER.' I promise that this will make you feel happier & more 'in control of your life' - in the best possible ways - than from any present you've ever received or given.
    START TODAY! Take 15 minutes to sit quietly by yourself. Bring to mind one person whom you've had a difficult relationship, and whom you'll be meeting within a week or so. This could be a family member, someone you work with, client, etc. I now warmly encourage you to do loving-kindness meditation specifically for this person. For just a few minutes, intentionally replace your usual adversarial self-talk about this person with kind wishes – at least once a day, for a week. With heart-felt sincerity, offer these wishes for this person, silently, 3 times slowly:

        May you be safe.
        May you be as healthy as possible.
        May you be happy.
        May you live with ease.

NOTICE how:
    • First, YOU are transformed as your heart de-armors, relaxes, opens & warms up a bit;
    • Then HOW you engage with this person, pleasantly surprises them, because you're now naturally embodying more balance, kindness, relatability & approachability; and less armoring / anxiety / anger / aggression.
    • This puts THEM at ease,
    • Then YOU find them surprisingly more pleasant & enjoyable to be with.

    You’ve just performed a miracle - transformed a hellish relationship into at least a neutral one, but perhaps a real friendship! You've ended a 'hurt child's' adversarial cycle & intentionally nurtured a wise elder 'tend & befriend' cycle! ENJOY your best present ever! Now you may well be motivated to continue with loving-kindness meditations for others - INCLUDING yourself.

    “It never hurts to think too highly of a person (OUR SELF INCLUDED!!!); often they become ennobled & act better because of it.” Nelson Mandela

 

Treasure Yourself ... by Mollycules www.BuddhaDoodles.com

EVERYTHING is Workable

     The only real tragedy in life is clinging to the deadening dogma that life is mechanical & meaningless. 

 

     “We are human beings, endowed with an incredible dignity; but there’s nothing more undignified than forgetting our greatness & clutching at straws.” Peter Kingsley

 

    “When I allow myself to hope that the world will emerge from its present troubles, and that it will someday learn to give the direction of its affairs not to cruel mountebanks, but to men possessed of wisdom and courage, I see before me a shining vision: a world where none are hungry, where few are ill, where work is pleasant and tolerable, where [kindness and connectedness to others] is common, and where minds released from fear create delight for eye and heart. Do not say this is impossible. It is not impossible.” Bertrand Russell

    “… awakened living involves the boundless embrace of our precious, messy human experience in all its subtlety & complexity – the pain as well as the laughter, the confusion as well as the clarity – without either identifying with it or pushing it away. This unconditional openness is not a practice, it’s our natural state, our inherently awake nature, the timeless presence that welcomes reality just as it is because it is essentially not separate from whatever arises. … embodied awakening is the seamless marriage of form & emptiness, human & transcendent, vulnerable & indestructible, which meet right here & now – as you!” Stephan Bodian

 

    “The body is only an effect, of which Love is the cause. As I realised this I could release myself from the need to validate my being through any body or personality identity. Who or what I had been or am in body is truly an insignificant mirage next to the knowing of myself as Love. Knowing this, and what that love was to do, was the only thing that mattered.
    And that pointed me to one place alone. The past, memories of identity, or the searching of future attainments, are all the ego’s clinging to that which is not real. The place of love was and remains the being I AM, eternally NOW.” Isira “Buddha on the Dance Floor.” Living Awareness, 2015.

 

Approaching the Mystery of Life

            “Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.
             Absolutely unmixed attention is prayer.” Simone Weil

    Can I allow myself to be deeply curious?
    Can I reserve time to sit down, be still, silent, and simply observe what spontaneously arises; only to observe - no judging, pushing away, hanging onto, or otherwise getting entangled with the words, images & sensations that arise?
    My interest is not in what arises - not the content, but the source of all this stuff. This is a radical shift from automatically identifying with the content of 'self talk.' 

    So I gently, patiently keep accepting that the focus of attention keeps getting drawn to content, and refocus by silently wondering who is hearing this? Who is seeing this? Who is feeling this? 

    This 'self-inquiry' process is how meditators have, for a very long time, become acquainted, and gradually intimate with authentic self. This is the basis for shifting from our common mistaken identity of a fearful powerless child, abandoned in a hostile meaningless universe, to authentic self: wise, still, silent, peaceful, joyous, kind, nurturing powerful elder. Ramana Maharshi. "How to Practice Self Inquiry." 2014.

    After a lifetime of studying & practicing Buddhism, Sandy Huntington wrote as he was dying of pancreatic cancer: “I am learning the hardest of lessons: to no longer want more than what I am given, and to allow what I have been given to guide me through the purifying flames of love and grief into the brilliant darkness of unknowing.” C.W. Huntington Jr. “What I Don’t Know About Death. Reflections on Buddhism and Mortality.” Wisdom Publications, 2021. Deep & Excellent

    Investigate how everything changes when you shift from fear to love, embodying your authentic self, intimately engaging with & nurturing all you deal with, in each present moment.

            “To not be stingy with my life, with myself,
             is to fully express myself at every moment —
             fully express everything that I am.” Nancy Mujo Baker  


            "There is but one cause of failure
             and that is man's lack of faith
             in his true Self." William James

 

Calling All Wise Elders

    Most of our thoughts are just echos of our conditioning. Remaining identified with the stream 'self-talk' or internal narrative - 'normal' level of thinking - is choosing to continue living a nightmare.
    “We are here to find that dimension within ourselves that is deeper than thought.” Eckhart Tolle
    We can access, & can integrate, a far deeper, far more evolved level of consciousness than the ordinary discursive (egoic) thought level that got us into the global mess we're in. We must re-discover, integrate & embody our authentic, mature, evolved Self and become the change we so desperately need right now.

    "The most important question a human being needs to answer according to Einstein: " 'Is the universe a friendly place or not?' ... If we believe that the universe is unfriendly ... peace will be elusive at best." Joan Borysenko. “Fire in the Soul. A New Psychology of Spiritual Optimism.” Warner Books, 1993.

    "A human being is part of the whole, called by us 'universe,' a part limited in time and space.
    We experience ourselves, our thoughts & feelings, as something separate from the rest - a kind of optical delusion of consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us.
    Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures & the whole of nature in all of its beauty.
    The true value of a human being is determined primarily by the measure and the sense in which s/he has attained liberation from the (separate) self....
    We shall require a substantially new manner of thinking if humanity is to survive." Albert Einstein 1934

    "Without a global revolution in the sphere of human consciousness, nothing will change for the better in the sphere of our being as humans, and the catastrophe towards which this world is headed - be it ecological, social, demographic or a general breakdown of civilization - will be unavoidable. . . The salvation of this human world lies nowhere else than in the human heart, in the human power to reflect, in human meekness and in human responsibility." Vaclav Havel, President of the Czech Republic, in his historic address to the U.S. Congress many years ago

    "When a system is far from equilibrium, small islands of coherence in a sea of chaos have the capacity to lift the system to a higher order." Illya Prigogine, physical chemist & Nobel laureate 

    "Never cease to stand like curious children before the Great Mystery into which we were born.” Albert Einstein  

      “I would define love very simply: as a potent blend of openness & warmth, which allows us to make real contact, to take delight in and appreciate, and to be at one with – ourselves, others, and life itself.
      ... love is the central force that holds our whole life together & allows it to function." John Welwood. "Perfect Love, Imperfect Relationships. Healing the Wound of the Heart." Trumpeter, 2006. 

     "To be enlightened is to be intimate with all things." Zen Master Dogen 

      "I was born
       when all I once feared
       I could love.” Rabia Basri 

     "Once we are willing to be directly intimate with our life as it arises, joy emerges out of the simplest of life experiences." Roshi Pat Enkyo O'Hara

      During meditation “you are not escaping the world; you are getting ready to fully embrace it.” Christine Skarda  

 

 We really can do better!

Wise Hope

    Many today feel hopeless & try not to think about the desperate state our world is in. This is entirely understandable, but like many of our other behaviours, hopeless resignation is recklessly unsustainable.

    We must remember that we are no longer unloved, abandoned, afraid & helpless children. We may appreciate how that feels BUT now realize we are so much more than that! We are the wise, peaceful, spacious source of safety & unconditional love, and are now in the powerful, privileged position to join together to nurture & help ourselves & others flourish in this critical time in human history.

    Messages of wise hope:

    “Wise hope includes the aspiration to manifest our full potential, individually and collectively, and the trust that this is possible. Especially in stressful times, this hope gets clouded over by fear. When it is alive, wise hope energizes and guides all spiritual transformation. Three practices help us nurture hope:
    Aspiration for what we love,
    Attending to what we love, and
    Actively serving what we love.” Tara Brach - please watch her wonderful short video below.

    “The very least you can do in your life is figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope. Not admire it from a distance, but live right inside it, under its roof. What I want is so simple, I almost can’t say it. Elementary kindness.” Barbara Kingsolver, quoted by Tara Brach

 

"Notes from My Couch this Morning" by Joan Benner

"Let me hold you said the couch
    As you re-member yourself into loving awareness.
No more than this is needed.
    You, present to this moment is enough.
It has always been this way.
    You just forget,
And allow confusion, delusion, and frustration move you
    Into the false dreams of who you are.
The very presence of loving awareness is so much more than the illusions
    You so often crave.
Sink into this now
As you honor yourself by not getting caught in your thoughts.
Treasure them, then let them fly by,
    Refusing to allow yourself to be dragged or tossed by their fleeting visits.
Welcome the truth that this awesome awareness itself is more than enough.
    Embrace the expansiveness of clear boundless loving awareness.
Rest in the truth of this, my precious love.
    Rest, only rest will lead you to your healing.
The need to shine outward is over.
    Melt yourself back into the timeless space of loving awareness,
And dance in the knowing that you have come home.

Breathe in the comfort of this place,
And when ready, circle back as a wave in the ocean.
Rest here in this new place where the shimmering hologram of life shines though.
Take the hands offered by those who know this seamless mandala of wholeness,
And acknowledge together the beautiful core of loving awareness you all share.
    Nod to your sameness in suffering when you forget who you truly are.
Reach out to all as you bow to the deep equality you share.
    And pray as one that all beings truly awaken
And live fully in the joy that is beyond sorrow.
    The dance of loving awareness is meant for all.
May this be so…

    Terry Patten inspiring, energizing (62min) interview, author of “A New Republic of the Heart: An Ethos for Revolutionaries - A Guide to Inner Work for Holistic Change.” : https://drmichaelwayne.com/leadingedge/terry-patten-author-a-new-republic-of-the-heart/

    Steve McIntosh (63min) a bit scholarly but excellent interview, author of “The Presence of the Infinite - The Spiritual Experience of Beauty, Truth, and Goodness.” : https://drmichaelwayne.com/leadingedge/interviews-with-the-leading-edge-steve-mcintosh-author-the-presence-of-the-infinite/

 

“Please may I live from love.” Tara Brach’s prayer

 

 Tara Brach's WONDERFUL (50min) video : Three Practices for Nurturing Wise Hope

 

Mysterious Power

The Magic Man

Holder of mysterious power, the tools and intelligence of creation,
he contains all knowledge of how to create. 

He is the bridge between consciousness and form. 

He moulds the world in the image of his choosing.
The world is the work of one great Magician – the play of the real and unreal. 

One is the Master; 

the other is his own trick, the illusion that one is not the Master.
Alert and watchful, I looked closely for the signs and tools of creation.

Isira “Buddha on the Dance Floor.” Living Awareness, 2015.

"Try to be mindful, & let things take their natural course.
Then your mind will become still in any surroundings, like a clear forest pool.
All kinds of wonderful, rare animals will come to drink at the pool,
and you will clearly see the nature of all things.
You will see many strange & wonderful things come & go,
but you will be still.
This is the happiness of the Buddha*."

Ajahn Chah

*one who is realized, awake