“You may be motivated by your conviction and faith, but meditation is not at all goal oriented. You may be somewhat goal oriented, but your concept and understanding of the goal is uncertain. The fact that you have no idea what is going to happen, no real idea about the Read more…
These before-and-after photos of participants on a 30-day retreat at Shambhala Mountain Center speak to the subtle yet powerful quality of having practiced mindfulness meditation thoroughly. While a 30-day retreat is not for everyone, those that have done it know that deeper and deeper layers of emotion and sensation are Read more…
“…Tuesday’s gunman incident at an elementary school near Atlanta ended with no injuries or deaths. This is mainly thanks to Antoinette Tuff, a school clerk who spent about an hour calmly persuading the gunman to put his rifle down and surrender.” This is an extraordinary example of a real human Read more…
A sharpness is on the Summer’s tail, The healing breeze of Summer yields To the bitter wind of Wintertime. If this was a signal to you, bird, Then you would know the seasons not Themselves, but as a turning wheel*. The night before last, getting off my bicycle after Read more…
” He who knows nothing is nearer the truth than he whose mind is filled with falsehoods and errors.” Thomas Jefferson When I came across this quotation my first thought was: ” how do I know which one is me? ” When my mind is filled with falsehoods and error Read more…
Mindful conversation is naturally ‘we-first’, which means that the relationship between speaker and listener is valued. Whether we agree or disagree, it still matters that our listener can hear what we have to say. And, when we’re listening, we try to understand what the speaker is trying to convey. This Read more…
I appreciate how the view of ‘we-first’ is streaming into our culture. For example, author, psychologist and researcher Dr. Kristen Neff focuses her work on self-compassion, which ( in the following excerpt from her website) she describes as including the following three elements: Self-kindness. Self-compassion entails being warm and understanding Read more…
Book signing is new to me but I’m discovering I enjoy it. Sharing a few minutes with someone I’ve never met before– or, in some cases, with an old friend I haven’t seen in years–is what I call a ‘heart snap shot’. Whatever I end up writing feels like Read more…
” To become awakened we must give up identifying with the melodramas that surround us.” Swami Ajaya Whenever I hear teachings like this, part of me nods in agreement but another part mutters ‘easier said than done‘. So today I’m contemplating the word ‘identify‘. Practicing mindful communication is training Read more…
Think back. What was going on in your life twelve years ago, in 2000? How about 1988? One way to structure a spiritual autobiography is to use the twelve year cycle of the Asian calendar as a way to reflect on our lives. This is the year of the Read more…