…Each one of us lacks one thing or another. I am not exactly sure what we lack, but I can feel we lack something. In the West, even if at the moment you are going through a crisis, you actually have everything, or at least you think you do; all kinds of material goods are there, and are no doubt distributed better than they were in the past. But it seems to me that you are living in a constant state of tension, in an atmosphere of never-ending competitiveness and fear. And those who are brought up in such an atmosphere will find themselves lacking all their lives: they will not know that wonderful quality of depth and intimacy that is the richness of life. They will stay on the surface of the troubled sea, without ever knowing the calm that lies beneath.
may the long time sun shine upon you all love surround you and the pure light within you guide your way on guide your way on
***
a week or so ago walking my iPhone in the backlanes ~ Etown ~ Amiskwaciwâskahikan ᐊᒥᐢᑲᐧᒋᐋᐧᐢᑲᐦᐃᑲᐣ ~ December 2021
In the state of love, no matter what you do, it’s going to be good.
decisions as i go, to anywhere i flow
sometimes i believe, at times where i should know
i can fly high, i can go long
today i got a million, tomorrow, i don’t know
decisions as i go, to anywhere i flow
sometimes i believe, at times where i should know
i can fly high, i can go long today i got a million, tomorrow, i don’t know
***
Edmonton, Alberta ~ random downtown ~ December 2015.
When we learn to stop and be truly alive in the present moment, we are in touch with what’s going on within and around us. We aren’t carried away by the past, the future, our thinking, ideas, emotions, and projects. Often we think that our ideas about things are the reality of that thing. Our notion of the Buddha may just be an idea and may be far from reality. The Buddha outside ourselves was a human being who was born, lived, and died. For us to seek such a Buddha would be to seek a shadow, a ghost Buddha, and at some point our idea of Buddha would become an obstacle for us.
If in our daily life we can smile, if we can be peaceful and happy, not only we, but everyone will profit from it. This is the most basic kind of peace work.
got my hands on the wheel
got my foot on the pedal
gonna drive ’til i drop
’til the tires turn to metal
gonna sleep when i’m dead
gonna laugh like the devil gonna find some place where no one knows me
It is for the betterment of both man and woman that the woman should be given every freedom and equal opportunity for her individuality. Then there will be a sense of humour. And the woman can laugh more gracefully than man, she has every potential for it – but it is repressed, condemned, criticized. She has lived a life of such misery that you cannot hope that she will show some sense of humour.
Now, Kalamas, don’t go by reports, by legends, by traditions, by scripture, by logical conjecture, by inference, by analogies, by agreement through pondering views, by probability, or by the thought, ‘This contemplative is our teacher.’ When you know for yourselves that, ‘These qualities are skillful; these qualities are blameless; these qualities are praised by the wise; these qualities, when adopted and carried out, lead to welfare and to happiness’ — then you should enter and remain in them.
No light is comparable to the light of wisdom. The light of wisdom awaits all those who learn and put into practice the teachings of taming the mind. It shines everywhere without discrimination, like the light of the Buddha’s Dhamma which never discriminates against anyone.
old man lyin’ by the side of the road
where the lorries rollin’ by
blue moon sinkin’ from the weight of the load
and the buildings scrape the sky
red lights flashin’ through the window in the rain
can you hear the sirens moan
cold wind rippin’ on the valley at dawn
and the morning paper flies
don’t let it bring you down
it’s only castle’s burning
find someone who’s turning
and you will come around you will come around
*** NYC ~ E 42nd Street ~ room with a view + Audrey Hepburn ~ February 2015.
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