L. Dwight Turner

Jesus Christ was not a man of compassion; he was a man of radical compassion. From his voluntary mission to this broken world, to his mysterious ascension back into the heavenly realm, there was no theme he stressed more in both word and deed. From his opening salvo quoting Isaiah about bringing release to they know not what they do,” Jesus exemplified a compassion far beyond what the world had seen before. Indeed, it was and is a radical compassion.the captives and good news to the poor, to his dying plea of, “Father, forgive them for

 Jesus’ stories about the Prodigal, the Good Samaritan, and his treatment of the woman caught in adultery all point to the need for a compassion that transcends the normal boundaries defined by contemporary culture, then and now. Indeed, it was and is a radical compassion.

 Five-hundred years before Jesus, another prophet of radical compassion graced our world. Gautama Buddha was an example of grace and perfect love incarnate. After finding his awakening under the Bodhi tree, the Buddha went about spreading the truth that he had discovered, a truth that when astutely applied to life, could liberate beings from endless rounds of suffering. Just as with Jesus who would come later, Buddha taught through sermons, informal talks, parables, and above all, his actions.

 Just as Christ would later set an example for his disciples to follow, the Buddha also would serve as the divine prototype for the essence of “metta,” or “loving-kindness.” In Metta, there is an internal manifestation and an external manifestation. Internally, increasing feelings of loving kindness give rise to a vital uuusense of compassion that is also based on the realization of the oneness of all things. These internal states of loving kindness and compassion result in the external manifestation, which is proactive service to the world.

 This eventually gave rise to the Mahayana Buddhist ideal of the Bodhisattva. On a theoretical level, one can accurately say that the ultimate goal of the Bodhisattva is enlightenment and to some extent this is true. However, on a highly practical level, the Bodhisattva’s highest goal is selfless service. Personal enlightenment takes a back seat to serving others, spiritually and materially. Perhaps no where in the sacred writings of the world is this reality presented so directly as in the 13^th Chapter of the Gospel of John.

 Radical compassion is compassion with legs; radical compassion is a verb. Just as the Bible tells us in the Letter of James that faith without works is dead, also, compassion without concomitant action is a lifeless phenomenon. Many sincere aspirants have the mistaken notion that the ultimate goal of the spiritual path is enlightenment. Although a sincere desire for motivation is one of our most treasured possessions, it is actually penultimate. The real aim of the spiritual journey is simply this – Sacred Service. All that we do is dedicated to the greatest good of all beings in all the worlds. Our gain is their gain, our loss is their loss, our advancement is their advancement, and it is to this sacred reality that we offer our benedictions at the end of our times of meditation and prayer.

 In the Christian faith especially, personal enlightenment takes a back seat to serving others, spiritually and materially. Perhaps no where in the sacred writings of the world is this reality presented so directly as in the 13^th Chapter of the Gospel of John.

 Imagine for a moment that you are one of Jesus’ twelve disciples and you, your band of rag tag friends, and the Master arrive at the Upper Room after a long, tedious, dusty day going about your business. You sit for a moment to catch your breath and unwind a few moments before you go wash up for the evening meal. You close your eyes for a few minutes, only to feel something or someone taking off your sandals. And to your utter disbelief, kneeling in front of you is the Master Jesus with a basin and a towel. Incredible….

 The Master taught his disciples, and all of us who have read of this amazing episode, a clear and concise example of the essence of spirituality: selfless service with a heart of humility. If only more of us, especially those who claim to be followers of Jesus, would take this lesson to heart, our world would have much less pain.

 The Kingdom of God is a divine realm of proactive compassion. This is the message that Jesus came to deliver and through his actions as well as his words, he delivered it consistently. In all that he did and he said, Jesus revealed to us the nature of God. This incarnational revelation was hinted at in the Master’s magnificent prayer in John 17. In the 21^st verse the Master says:

 I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one – as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.

 In the Bible’s most well known verse, John 3:16, it is stated that for God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish, but have eternal life. (NLT)

 Now, to make this even clearer, let’s look at one more verse in John 17. In verse three John records:

 And this is the way to have eternal life, to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth. (NLT)

 Putting all this together, Jesus gave us a powerful but very real theology in this prayer and his disciple, John, fully caught its significance by saying in 3:16 that God loved the world so much that he sent his Son to save it. On God’s part, this was a perfect example of “proactive compassion” or what we often call “grace.” Motivated by the purest form of love, God was moved to have compassion on we fallen creatures, even in our blind ignorance, and he literally gave that compassion flesh by sending us the Master Jesus.

  In order for compassion to become more than just a nice idea or a sentimental feeling, it must flow out of the internalized wisdom of the ages, particularly as related to the reality of “interconnectivity.” The idea of interconnectivity, now confirmed by the field of quantum physics, has been around for many centuries and is at the core of interspiritual mysticism, that one aspect of world religion that seems to transcend culture, time, and especially theology. It is a mystical connectedness that promotes compassion and engaged action to make the world a better place for all who dwell here. In essence, it is a deep wisdom that gives flesh to grace. The great spiritual writer Kahil Gibran spoke of this interconnected reality when he said:

 Your neighbor is your other self dwelling behind a wall. In understanding, all walls shall fall down. Who knows but that your neighbor is your better self wearing another body? See that you love him as you would yourself. He too is a manifestation of the Most High.

 In India, for example, we have the story of Indra’s Net, which is strung throughout the universe with a precious jewel at the places where the cords of the net intersect. These jewels, in turn, reflect all of the other jewels. Similar to the modern discovery of the hologram, the image of Indra’s Net is filled with symbolic wisdom depicting the interconnectivity of all that is. Gary Zukav, in his groundbreaking book entitled, The Dancing Wu Li Masters tell us:

 …the philosophical implications of quantum mechanics is that all things in our universe (including us) that appears to exist independently are actually parts of one all-encompassing organic pattern, and that no parts of that pattern are ever really separate from it or from each other.

 In the Christian tradition, the writings of the great mystic teachers echo these same truths, often in symbolic and metaphorical ways. Julian of Norwich especially comes to mind as well as Hildegard of Bingen and Madame Guyon. The writings of Saint Theresa of Avila and the life and work of St. Francis also point to the interconnectivity of all life and the necessity of having a heart of radical compassion.

 The great Romantic poets like William Wordsworth and Percy B. Shelley have voices that ring loudly with the sense of the interrelated aspects of the natural world and their American counterparts, the Transcendentalists, in the writings of Emerson, Thoreau, and Whitman, also echo this theme of divine connectivity. And then there is the work of that master of the arcane, William Blake who spoke of the mystic’s ability:

 To see a World in a grain of sand,

And Heaven in a wild flower,

Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand,

And Eternity in an hour.

 The world that we interact with each day only appears to be solid. In point of fact, it is an intricate dance of sub-atomic waves and particles that obey none of the traditional or expected moves of predictable choreography. At its core level, our apparently solid, material world is less like classical music and more like jazz. Just when we think we have a handle on how things are, these very things change, morphing into something totally unexpected and often totally mysterious. Someone wise, I forget who, once said the life is not a riddle to be solved but a mystery to be lived. How true, and the sooner a person grasps this fundamental truth, the less frustration will appear in his or her life.

 It is not my intention to travel too far down this road of quantum physics at this juncture. Suffice to say that contemporary science is increasingly coming to grasp the same fundamental truths that mystics and shamans have voiced for many centuries. Simply put: Everything is interrelated and interdependent and when one part is affected by something, at a very core level, every other part is also impacted.

 In teaching about the interrelated aspect of the universe, I often use a simple analogy that explains these principles in a basic way. I use the example of raisin Jell-o. Imagine you have concocted a delicious tub or raisin Jell-o. Choose your favorite flavor if you like. The raisins are the important thing, here. Now, what happens when you take your index finger and thump one of the raisins? All the raisins move. Crude as this metaphor is, it makes the point that all the raisins in the bowl are connected and if one raisin moves, they all move. This is what the mystics, and the quantum physicists, are talking about when they speak of interconnectivity.

 Christian writer and teacher Elizabeth Elliot, looking at God’s wondrous creation with both attentiveness and wisdom, grasps the profundity of this theme of interconnectedness and how it illustrates a foundation of commonality between humans and other species in God’s creation:

 The closer one comes to the center of things, the better able he is to observe the connections. Everything created is connected, for everything is produced by the same mind, the same love, and is dependent on the same Creator. He who masterminded the universe, the Lord God Omnipotent, is the One who called the stars into being, commanded light, spoke the Word that brought about the existence of time and space and every form of matter: salt and stone, rose and redwood, feather and fur and fin and flesh. The titmouse and the turkey answer to Him. The sheep, the pig, and the finch are His, at His disposal, possessed and known by Him…We too are created, owned, possessed, known.

 As the church moves into the second decade of the 21^st Century it has already become apparent that great changes are in the wind. I feel some of these changes are connected with an increased understanding of how God’s magnificent creation is put together in this incredible holographic manner in which each part contains the totality of the whole and every aspect of his world exists in an interdependent relationship with every other part. This is no romantic sentimentalism I am speaking of. Instead, it is a living, vibrant reality that, when one takes it to heart, changes everything. For the church, the message of the gospel become less of “let me show you the way,” and more of “What do you need?”

 This move toward proactive compassion is a move of grace. Perhaps you are not accustomed to looking at grace that way, but grace is what we are dealing with. As stated earlier, a major part of Christ’s incarnation and our ongoing mission is to give flesh to grace. Caroline Myss makes this cogent observation in her book, Invisible Acts of Power:

 What really happens inside you when you respond to someone in need? Why do some people jump out of their seats to help another person, while others look the other way? No doubt, some people have been taught to be kind and others may be naturally thoughtful. But I think something greater than compassion or good manners is at work, something beyond the motivation of the strong to help the weak or the wealthy to help the poor. I think it is the invisible power of grace, moving between the open hearts of give and receiver. The action itself, the lifting of a heavy piece of luggage or the drink of water offered to the thirsty man, may be small. But the energy that is channeled through that action is the high-voltage current of grace. It contains the power to renew someone’s faith in himself. It even has the power to save a life.

 It should not be too difficult of an intellectual jump to see why this concept of interrelated reality should lead to a true and radical sense of compassion. What happens to me in the ultimate sense, happens to you and vice versa. When a child dies of hunger or disease in a poverty stricken nation, some part of each of us dies. We may not feel it, understand it, or even recognize it. Still, it is a fundamental spiritual and quantum truth. It is wise to remember the words of the 17^th Century poet John Donne as he spoke of the custom of the time which involved ringing the town’s bell whenever someone died:

 Any man’s death diminishes me, for I am involved in mankind;

Therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls;

It tolls for thee.

 © L.D. Turner 2009/All Rights Reserved

When a person is not enlightened yet, he needs a faith or belief to rely on as his guidance in life. Even when a person thinks that he doesn’t need a guidance in life, he still has a certain type of characteristic or personality of his own. These characters and personality are in fact his guidance for him to think, act and speak, and he has certain point of view about himself, his life and the world.

He is being moulded into certain types of behavior and being ”trained” to have certain types of thinking – by the people and all the happenings in the world that he comes in contact with, without him being aware of it. He doesn’t know that actually he is always being affected or influenced by the surrounding. This surrounding with all the people and happenings in it, is ever changing without a true characteristic and there is no certainty at all. He will think that he is independent and intelligent enough to have his own ideas and he is different from any other people.

But this is not really true.

We were always being told about many things, teachings, stories, cultures and beliefs by our elders, our school teachers, our friends, our medias, and the leaders in our society, from the moment when we were being born until now. We are full of fears and worries. We are being influenced by all the stories and ideas that was told by all these people. We have certain likes and dislikes. We all only want happiness and don’t want unhappiness. We all want to be a special individual and being different from other people. We all are being manipulated by so many things in the world. But we still think that we are very smart and are better than other people.

Even Buddha said that he is not different from all other living beings and all other living beings are not different from him.

Why did he say this? What did he mean?

It is because he realized that when he had become selfless, He realized that he and all other living beings have one same nature and have no differences at all whether we know about it or not. And we all have the same needs for the maintenance of life, the same ignorance, the same wisdom, the same anger, the same ego, the same hunger and thirst, the same sadness, the same compassion, the same impermanence and the same enlightenment. All living beings have the same equal rights to be happy or sad, to be enlightened or to be in delusion; having equal painful sorrow and suffering; same functionings of the mind, the ego, the intellect and the subconscious mind. And we all have to go through birth, growth, old age, illness and death. No one can avoid any of these impermanence of existence until the moment we become absolutely selfless.

If a person has no faith or a belief to rely on, he will fall apart when he encounters some difficulties or disappointments in his life. He will be lost in the ocean of lust, greed, anger, ignorance and selfishness.

And so it is important that we have a faith or belief to rely on. Although it is not a necessity, but it does help us to go through many trials and turbulence in life.

But how do we choose a faith or belief? And where can we find it? Because there are so many different beliefs in the world, including good practices and evil practices as well. How are we going to be sure that which one is really good for us and will benefit all living beings? Which one will lead us to know the Truth?

”Whatever actions and speech that are bringing peace and happiness to oneself and others as well, are good and are right conducts; and whatever actions and speech that are bringing disharmony and unhappiness to oneself and others, are not good and are wrong conducts.”

“Whatever actions and speech that are promoting loving kindness and harmony, we should support and promote them. Whatever actions and speech that are promoting hatred, violence and disharmony, we should not support nor promote them.”

This basic phrase from the teachings of the ancient saints and sages should be our initial guideline to look for a correct path in life and a belief to rely on. Although it may not be a certainty under some special circumstances. Because sometimes when a person thinks that his actions and speech are good for himself and others but actually it’s not. While something which is good for himself and everyone may be being misunderstood that it is bad. All these confusions are derived from ignorance.

The power of ignorance is so great that we always under estimate it and think that we are very smart and intelligent. Most of the time we are being influenced by our jealousy and lust, but we have no idea about it at all, and we will do things and say things that is coming from the big ego and ignorance which bring us and others so much conflicts and unhappiness.

If we find that we are in competition with somebody, or we are comparing ourselves with somebody, and we want to be better than somebody or trying to get recognition and praise from others, or feel that we are not good enough, then know that we are under the influence of the ego and ignorance. Beware… always watch the changes and arises of thoughts in our mind, before they influence us, over power us and control our actions and speech.

When jealousy, arrogance and selfishness take over us, we cannot see ourselves clearly anymore. Even when we are being told that we are under the influence of jealousy, arrogance and selfishness, we will become more irritated and will deny such accusation and continue being influenced by the ego and ignorance.

This is a common obstacle for everyone in any path of beliefs, in Yoga or in Buddhism.

It is nothing wrong but we need to recognize this obstacle and correct ourselves, let go and move on.

Never say that we will never be influenced by the ego, the anger, the jealousy, the arrogance and lust, unless we have attained full enlightenment and are totally selfless and detached from everything. Because all these things will keep on troubling us and try to stop us from our practice of purification and towards selflessness. “They” don’t like that. “They” get very irritated when we want to become selfless, because that means they will have to disappear if we become selfless. We should be always very watchful for all these elements in us.

Keep practicing detachment whenever the thoughts of anger, hatred, arrogance, jealousy, greed, despair, sadness, selfishness and lust come up to the surface. Learn to detect their presence and learn to let them go instead of suppressing them back into the heart. Sometimes we will be confused whether we are actually letting go or we are just suppressing those negativities in us.

If we will be troubled by the same situations or emotions on and off repeatedly, know that we didn’t letting go, but have been suppressing our feelings of negativity.

If the intensity of the negative feelings is becoming less, and even when the same situation is happening again, but we will not be troubled by these negativities anymore, then know that we are practicing letting go.

We might need somebody who is wise and honest – a good guardian, or a good teacher, or a good friend to point out the defects or negativities in us. They can help us to realize our faults and make us take a deep look at our own self from time to time through their eyes of wisdom. And they also can uplift us with their compassionate loving kindness. We shall learn all the good qualities from them, but not to pick up anything negative from them and not to criticize anyone when we see some defects in other people. No one can be perfect for everyone or can please everyone, unless we are fully enlightened and are not conditioned by the world of names and forms. Even Buddha had received criticisms from the people who didn’t understand him, and didn’t like him and his teachings.

But we can not totally rely on the people who can uplift us or guide us as well because they are also under the circumstances of uncertainty. No one can avoid uncertainty as long as we still have this physical body, this life existence, this mind, this ego, this intellect, and being conditioned by all the names and forms.

If someone tells us that he or she loves us very much today, but tomorrow he or she might not loves us anymore. If someone tells us that he or she doesn’t love us now, but tomorrow he or she might love us very much. Everything is uncertain. Even a wise person can be deluded sometimes.

Unless we have attained enlightenment and are free from all sorts of names and forms. And we are identified with the unchanging bliss, the pure consciousness that without a beginning and without ending; has no birth and no death, all existing, all pervading, all wisdom and all compassion. The one pure consciousness that has no qualities, no intention, neither good nor bad, and “that” which is neither this nor that. It is beyond name and form, beyond all good and bad, negative and positive, existence and non-existence.

If we rely on somebody who has a specific name and form, and who is being limited and conditioned by the image of that name and form; or if we rely on certain beliefs which has such and such conditions and qualities; then we will be easily losing our faith in that person or that belief in case of their personalities and policies have changed. Or we will be very disappointed and lost, if we found out that there are some imperfections in that person or in that belief. Any person or any belief that is being conditioned by a certain name and form, can never be permanent unchanging and can not be all perfect. We can not find perfection in any human beings or in any beliefs that is organized and supervised by human beings. Because everything is uncertain. Even ”this” is also uncertain. Because everything that we perceive and understand through this conditioned body, limited mind and the senses has a beginning and an ending. The mind of everyone and the condition of every being is ever changing without a certainty.

So, who can we really rely on? Ultimately it is our true Self.

No one can see what is going on in our mind, but only our own Self.

We need to find out or to know this true Self – which is always here with us, from before the very beginning of life existence and also beyond the end of life existence. It is not our body; not out life; not our thinking mind; not our senses; not our knowledge and learning; not our experiences; not our achievements; not our memories; not our breathing; not our heartbeats; not our everyday Yoga practices; not our feelings; and certainly not our ego. It is nameless and formless, without qualities, without intentions, without beginning, without ending, without birth, without death, without happiness, without unhappiness or suffering.

Our true Self is the one and only reliable and truthful guardian, teacher or friend that will never leave us, judge us, condemn us, or harm us, even though when we are so deluded, evil and ignorant.

Because it is beyond speech and words, our true Self is not easy to be grasped or recognized by us. But if we keep on purifying ourselves, purify our thoughts, actions and speech, develop self control, calmness and peacefulness, then very soon we will realize this all wise and all compassionate Self. It is when we empty ourselves, let go of selfishness; let go of all attachments and eradicate all the lustful desires; let go of the past and the future; and reside at the present moment, we will know this Self.

We are the Self. It is not separate from us and will never be separated from us. But we feel the separateness and are separated from it and ignorant of it, when we have lots of impurities and are identifying with the selfish ego.

Look at nature, the universe, the sun, the earth, the air, the water, and the space…
They always accept every living beings and everything, and allow everyone and everything to be in it, to be on it, to torture it, to utilize it resources, to consume it, to pollute it and it doesn’t matter if anyone is being ungrateful towards their contributions for all to be exist here. They embrace all, treat all equally and see no differences of good and evil. They constantly give without any expectations of receiving goodness or rewards in return. Our true Self is the same as all these elements of nature. If we want to be able to understand what is this true Self, and want to know or realize it, we need to purify ourselves until we are the same as this nature, and are not any different from the absolute selflessness of nature.

Expand our heart; open our mind; embrace everything in different names and forms.

May we all reunite with our true Self and be free.

There are a few reasons why vegetarianism (non-meat eating) is being promoted strongly by Buddhism and Yoga practice.

It is supporting the idea of non-harming or non-killing and compassion towards all beings including animals and insects.

It is more healthy to eat lots of fruit, nuts, beans and vegetables than to eat meat especially nowadays the meat is not really as healthy as before because most of the animals that are being breed for food consumption are not healthy physically and mentally due to poor living environment under the mass productivity in factories and farms. These animals are being treated badly and being fed with unnatural food and being injected with hormones. Even though most of the fruit and vegetables that we get from the market are not really healthy either due to chemicals and pesticides that farmers are using nowadays for their farms to induce growth and to protect their crops from insects. But still meat eating is causing more harmful effects to our body and the mind than non-meat eating.

There are lots of unhealthy food (meat or non-meat) in the market nowadays contain substances which can cause illnesses and cancers, such like colourings, preservatives, conditioners, artificial flavourings, MSG, sugar and so much more other chemicals that is in the food and drinks. Even in all the daily personal cleaning products or housing cleaning products are full of harmful chemicals. As well as all the high-tech electrical products and conveniences are bringing so much pollutions and damages into the nature and the living environment.

No doubt that vegetarianism is more environmental friendly. By supporting non-meat eating can help to maintain the nature as healthy as possible because massive meat productions do contribute to the global warming through lots of lands had been used to produce corn to feed the animals instead of having plants and trees that work as a filter system for the air that we breath in.

Vegetarianism is also conducive for controlling the mind and to control the strong lustful passionate desires. Anyhow not only meat eating can stimulate the passionate desire, violence and anger in us, but even some non-meat products like alcohol, garlic, onion and chive also have the substances that can stimulate the passionate desire and anger in us. While drugs that are plants origin is having the substances that can affect the mind and the body, causing psychology and physical health problems in us such like addiction, dullness and depression. No doubt that the energy that comes from fresh fruit and vegetables have the calming effects in the body and the mind.

But most important in Buddhism and yoga practice for supporting and promoting vegetarianism is for people to develop compassion and non-harming towards all beings and to have control over the mind to achieve tranquility and sharpness in the mind to allow wisdom to arise within us.

In Buddhism and yoga practice, the main practice is to deal with the strong desire of cravings and aversions towards what we see, hear, smell, taste, feel and think. It is the sensual pleasure enjoyments of likes and dislikes that is over powering most of the people’s mind, that creates greed and attachment in us which contribute to the unhappiness, frustration, dissatisfaction, irritation, disappointment and painful suffering in us.

Because most of us are still being influenced and affected strongly by the food and drinks that we consume as well as other inputs that we are receiving through our eyes, ears, nose, tongue, skin and thinking faculty which influence the energy fields in our body and affect the state of our mind, either agitating, stimulating or depressing. As long as we are still being influenced by all these substances, we need to choose what type of inputs that we put into our system in order to achieve control of the mind.

At the end, it doesn’t matter if it is vegetarian or non-vegetarian food that we eat, it is the non-attachment towards the taste of the food that matters most. And no matter what type of food that we eat, we should eat with appreciation and should show gratitude that these food are providing energy for us to survive and to maintain this body and to have the life for us to be here to learn, to experience and to become enlightened.

When we are not being influenced by the energy fields in our body anymore, and we are free from duality and are fully mastering our mind; have eliminated the ego and ignorance, and we have gone beyond all the names and forms; and there is no more differences between birth and death; and we are one with the universal consciousness that is without any attributes or intentions, and then we will know that the true self in all living beings are not touched by names and forms, and are beyond birth and death, good and evil. Until then we can go beyond “vegetarian” and “non-vegetarian”.

If we eat with our taste of likes and dislikes and being influenced by our cravings and aversions towards all the objects that we get in contact with through the senses, then we are still bound by names and forms, there is still a huge difference between meat eating (non-vegetarian) and non-meat eating (vegetarian). And by eating meat we are directly or indirectly involved in harming and killing the animals and caused fears, hatred and pain onto these animals’ minds.

But for someone who is truly enlightened and had gone beyond all names and forms, the entire world is nothing but just a projection of his own mind, and then what is “live” and “death”? What is “cravings” and “aversions”? What is “meat” and “not meat”? What is “vegetarian” and “non-vegetarian”? What is “healthy” and “not healthy”? What is “good food” and “bad food”? What is “hunger” and “survival”? What is “pure” and “impure”? What is “energy” and “elements”? What is “limitations” and “conditions”? What is “past” and “future”? What is “actions” and “karma”? What is “existence” and “non-existence”?

But for many of us who are still not at that level of enlightenment yet; still have lots of impurities and ignorance of anger, hatred, jealousy, arrogance and greed; still being influenced by energy and elements; still being affected by all the inputs that we received through the senses, and still have strong cravings and aversions; still have lots of needs and wants; still have fears and worries; still have the differences of happiness and suffering, success and failure, birth and death; and still being bound by the duality in all the names and forms, then know that we are still bound by what we should do and should not do.

Vegetarianism is one of the steps of purification for the body and the mind. But if we still have the idea that “this is good, and I like it” and “that is bad, and I don’t like it”, know that we are still not even at the first step of the real practice of non-attachment and non-dualism of namelessness and formlessness, but no doubt that eating good and healthy food that is bringing harmony to the body and the mind will still be a good purification process for the body and mind to move towards non-attachment and namelessness and formlessness.

Most important is the practice of self-control and eradication of anger, hatred, jealousy, arrogance, lust and greed. And also non-harming in thoughts, actions and speech towards all beings. And if this physical body is dead, “who” will mind that the worms and germs will be eating the flesh of this body and feed whatever animals that are in hunger. At least there is still a contribution towards other living beings and allowing other living beings to have the opportunity of life to evolve spiritually and be free from the conditions of life existence.

Merely by eating vegetarian will not guarantee a person to become enlightened or being happy in life and will be free from suffering. Neither by eating meat will stop a person from attaining enlightenment, being unhappy and unkind, or cannot be free from suffering. It is all in the mind.

Nowadays the system of the education and work-field is depending very much on the term ‘certification’.

Of course in most of the works that require specific knowledge and skill in the job, need people who are trained in that knowledge and skill to perform the specific work.

There’s nothing wrong at all for the requirement to have some sort of certification to show that the person who are doing the job is eligible and is qualified to do the job.

But when come to Yoga practice, are we going to be given a certificate by God or from an enlightened one, to certified us and to show it to other people telling everybody that ‘we are enlightened person’ or ‘we are good human beings’ or ‘we are real Yogis’ or ‘we are Yoga teacher’ or ‘we are Dharma teacher’, if we had did our practice and developed insight, or even had attained enlightenment?

It is ridiculous!

Does an enlightened being need a piece of paper stating ‘certificate of enlightenment’ and carrying it to wherever he goes and show it to other people telling them that he is enlightened? What do you think?

There’s nothing wrong of having a piece of paper to show that we have gone through some training in such and such practice but certainly it is not a statement of qualification for us to be recognized as a real practitioner or a good teacher.

Does having a certification from a famous school of Yoga is a guarantee of a fine Yogi or a good and genuine Yoga teacher? Certainly not.

Does a real Yogi who had perfected in his practice and have full knowledge of the Truth is not allowed and not qualified to teach Yoga and Dharma to anyone who desire to learn from him because he did not go through a recognized school or Ashram and not having any ‘certifications’? Certainly not.

Did Buddha have a certificate from somewhere or somebody to enable Him to teach Dharma to the people? Certainly not.

Did all the saints and sages, Yogis in the past before this existence of ‘certification’, attained any so called ‘Internationally recognized’ and ‘certified by an association of spiritual practice’ kind of certificate to prove that they are graduated from a school or Ashram and are at ’such and such’ level of spiritual enlightenment? Nope.

Did they sit for an exam, got the passing marks and the certificate, and thus they are qualified to spread the teaching to other people and the people who learn from them will achieve excellent results as well? And if they did not sit for an exam, did not have a certificate, does this mean they are not allowed to teach Yoga and spread Dharma? Nope.

Are we going to be guaranteed enlightenment after we have attended many hours of courses, passed the exam and attained a piece of paper? Maybe yes, maybe not, depend on our real practice, but certainly has got nothing to do with certification.

Do we need a special place or classroom and special timing to spread Dharma? Certainly not.

Are we a ‘Yoga teacher’ if we are teaching a group of people doing all the poses of Asana in a classroom? Not really unless it is developing insight and selflessness.

Does spiritual practice and spiritual evolution or self realization has got anything to do with the knowledge of the anatomy of the physical body or sports science? What does knowledge of the bones and muscles has to do with meditation and insight?

When we cut open our body, can we find where the mind is and know how the mind looks like?

Maybe by understanding that after taken away our skin, what left is some ugly smelly disgusting flesh underneath the beautiful skin. And after we died, the muscles and organs will decomposed and what left is some bony structure, and this will help us to realize the truth of a physical body is nothing but bones, flesh, blood, nerves, glands, internal organs, urine and shit.

And this will help us to develop strong detachment towards our physical body and detachment towards beautiful physical appearances.

A real Yogi or a Dharma teacher or an enlightened being doesn’t need this product of worldly minded business of so called ‘certificate’ to recognized him or enable him or allowing him to share this beautiful knowledge with anyone who are sincere to learn about the Truth, to practice in life what they have learnt, and they are developing right understanding and moving towards self realization.

God, Buddha, Saints, Sages and all the Yogis are smiling at us knowing what is happening now in the world of so many so called ‘Yoga schools’, ‘Yoga teachers’ and ‘recognized certifications’.

It is not the qualification or certification that assure us to be enlightened, to attain wisdom, to share love with others, to know the Truth, to be compassionate, to be noble, to be sincere and honest, to spread Dharma in the world.

It is the real practice of detachment and self control in us every moment in everyday life experiences which is invisible or not knowing to other people at all, that enable us to improve in our own practice and thus to be able to share the knowledge attained from our own practice with other people out there without the notion of ‘I am a teacher’, ‘I am teaching’, ‘I am qualified’, ‘I am compassionate’, ‘I am helping those who are in despair’, ‘I am earning money from teaching’.

There is nothing wrong to receive money from the students as an appreciation from them and to be able to support our living and enable us to continue our own practice without worrying of livelihood. But certainly not to greed for money in order to attain worldly enjoyments and to satisfy our worldly desires. And the appreciation is not necessary to be money, but anything that is coming from the heart of the student to show his gratitude and is affordable in his ability.

Certainly we can not refuse to teach or not to share Yoga with anybody who has no money or has nothing to give us. Unless the reason that we can not teach Yoga to someone is due to something unavoidable, such like we need to be at somewhere else or we need to do something else or we are not able to teach due to sickness or we need to concentrate on our own practice. Not because of the person can not give us some money in return.

Doesn’t matter if there is only one student learning under a Yoga teacher. A good Yoga teacher is not determined by how many students he has, or he is famous or not, or he is getting high pay or not.

Every beings whether wise or ignorant, are their own Dharma teacher doesn’t matter going to a school or not, learning from a teacher or not, understood Dharma or not.

We don’t need this piece of paper to prove that we are good or not good, qualified or not qualified. Because we all are the students of Dharma whether we know about it or not, are having a teacher or not.

If there is a real ‘certificate’ approved by God or the enlightened one, it will be something invisible without name and form coming from deep inside our heart.

No one else can see this ‘certificate’ with their eyes but they will know it with their heart.

No one else but our own self, always know that whether we are sincere in our own practice, whether we are compassion in sharing this knowledge of Yoga practice with other beings (not out of the ego wants to teach other people for gaining respect and reputation, and getting money to fulfill our selfish worldly desires), whether we are experienced in the path, whether we can share the wonderful Dharma with people who are in painful sorrow and suffering.

A real Yoga practitioner who is detached from name and form doesn’t need to tell everyone that ‘I am a real Yogi’, ‘ I am perfected in Yoga practice’, ‘I am a good Yoga teacher or Dharma teacher’, or ‘I am a qualified and certified Yoga practitioner’.

He is what he is. He does what he needs to do. He doesn’t need any worldly recognition and approval from any organization to spread Dharma.

What is Yoga and Dharma if it is limited by this small piece of paper produced by the worldly minded people in the world of business?

What is enlightenment and wisdom if it is limited by the perception of dualism about qualified or disqualified, certified or non certified?

Everyone are qualified Yoga practitioners from the first moment of existence and are qualified Yoga teachers when they share this knowledge with others out of compassion and sincerity whether they had went to a formal school or Ashram or not, whether they had attained a so called ‘recognized certificate’ or not, but they had know the Truth and they are practicing Yoga sincerely, they know the path and they are selfless and full of wisdom and compassion.

Without wisdom, compassion and sincerity, Yoga classes are just a product of the world of business, physical fitness, physical challenge, competition and empowering the egoism and ignorance.

May we all develop right understanding and achieve real happiness and true freedom in this precious life span.

It’s Christmas Day. The headlines of the L.A. Times read:  “Woman arrested in death of newborn found in trash bin.” “Man charged with murder in stabbing death of ex-girlfriend.” “Bus driver gets 151 years for molesting girls.” “Girl, 11, missing; man charged.” “Gunmen kill West Bank settler.” “As many as 30 reportedly slain in strikes.”

What all these headlines have in common is one thing. Believe it or not, they are all about people calling out for love. Granted, they are calling out for love in extremely disturbed, twisted ways, but, nonetheless, that’s what they’re doing. They are people calling out for love by doing horrific things to others.

Most of us, obviously, do not behave in such sadistic and violent ways in our relationships with others. We are, nonetheless, oftentimes calling out for love in ways that are inappropriate, hurtful and destructive, such as attacking our loved ones with verbal assaults when we feel threatened, rejected or invalidated.

Underneath our attacks, including those that are passive-aggressive, is a deep fear of abandonment and a deep desire to be nurtured and loved.

When we are small children who feel neglected and unloved, we do things that get ourselves in trouble just to get our mother’s attention.  Getting negative attention, in terms of incurring Mom’s wrath and possibly getting punished, is better than no attention at all.

We seek to gain negative attention, but the underlying motive is to get the mother’s love. Our bad behavior generating our negative attention from Mom is a call for love.

It is, indeed, ironic that when we call out for love in this maladaptive way we are actually pushing away the object of our attention.

In any event, as we grow older and mature from infant to adolescent to adult, nothing really changes. We still tend to act out our hurts, our resentments, and our frustrations, leaving significant collateral damage in our wake. We’re still calling out for love in misdirected ways that are doomed, that will never give us what we really want.

Ultimately, everything we encounter is either love or a call for love that is wrapped in fear and attack.

If this is true, if everything is either love or a call for love, then the appropriate response, regardless of what is happening, is to extend love. Be loving. End of story.

So, on this Christmas Day, celebrating the birth of Christ, who represents unconditional love, acceptance and forgiveness, we remind ourselves that, indeed, everything is either love or a call for love and therefore the only appropriate response is to extend love, regardless of what is going on.

On this Christmas Day, we choose to be loving in all our actions and we make this our New Year’s Resolution.

We make the decision to behave in loving ways every day and in every way regardless of what’s going on and who’s doing what.

It doesn’t mean we condone bad behaviors. It doesn’t mean we accept abuse, allow ourselves to be doormats, or place ourselves in harm’s way.

It means holding in our minds and hearts the ideals of compassion and acceptance. It means releasing judgments and resentments.

It means desiring to understand, to give the benefit of the doubt, to share, to care, to be considerate of the needs of others.

It means forgiving, letting go of the past. It means role modeling right thought and action for others.

This New Year’s Day, if we embrace this one resolution, to respond to the call for love from others with unconditional love, and we practice this every day to the best of our intention, over time we will see benefits in our lives.

Love is all there is. Everything else is a bad dream. If we each do our part to be as loving as we possibly can, to put aside pride, ego, arrogance and self –entitlement, to be of service to others, to put our needs last instead of first, and to find ways to compromise for the greatest good of all concerned, our lives will work better and yield greater rewards, and our world will reflect these changes sa well.

My Christmas gift to all is this wonderful explanation of The Four Immeasurables from the wonderful Naljor Prison Dharma Service, located in Boulder, Colorado. Metta is one of the four sides of the Four Immeasurables, and though this site’s emphasis is on metta, or loving-kindness, you can no more separate metta from compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity than you can separate the Buddha from the Dharma.  May your practice of the Four Immeasurables grow without limit, blessing all beings everywhere.

With affection for all,

Steve Goodheart

The Four Immeasurables: Sublime Qualities of True Love

Compassion and love are not mere luxuries. As the source both of inner and external peace, they are fundamental to the continued survival of our species. His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama

The Four Immeasurables—Loving-kindness, Compassion, Sympathetic Joy, and Equanimity—are the sublime expressions of love: the essential nature and radiance of the enlightened heart. They are also known as the Four Limitless Ones, The Four Sublime States, and the Brahmaviharas or Divine Abodes. These four qualities of true love are said to be sublime, lofty, noble, and most excellent for they are the right and ideal way of relating with all living beings. These sublime qualities of love provide the answer to all situations we may encounter in our lives. They are the great removers of tension, the great peace-makers in social conflict, and the great healers of wounds suffered in the struggle of existence. These noble qualities of love level social barriers, build harmonious communities, awaken the slumbering generosity within us, and revive the joy and hope long abandoned.

These four qualities of love are called immeasurable because their capacity to purify the heart and generate positive energy is beyond measure. In addition, as this sublime love grows within us through sincere practice, it extends immeasurably to all living beings throughout all realms of existence.

Through deep contemplation and dedicated practice of The Four Immeasurables, we transform our delusion, greed, self-centeredness, and negativity. We heal the afflictions of anger, hatred, loneliness, sorrow, and unhealthy attachments. In this way of practice, we develop a noble heart filled with the abundance of wisdom, compassion, and love. In time, these sublime qualities of love become natural and spontaneous—a constant life-affirming attitude radiating from our heart bringing benefit and happiness to all. These immeasurable qualities of love are also called abodes (vihara) because they should become the constant dwelling places of the heart and mind; where we feel at home. They should not remain merely places of rare and short visits, soon forgotten. In other words, our minds should become thoroughly saturated by these qualities of love. They should become our inseparable companions, and we should be mindful of them in all our daily activities. The Buddha tells us: “Cherish all living beings with a boundless heart, radiating kindness over the entire world.” He suggests we remain in this loving state of being at all times. This he calls the “sublime abiding” (divine abode).

May all beings have happiness and the causes of happiness

In this first verse, we generate the mind of Love (Loving-kindness). From the very depths of our heart, we radiate in all directions the sincere wish for all living beings to have happiness and the causes that bring happiness. The immeasurable quality of Loving-kindness is boundless, open, and pure—an all-embracing love, dedicated to serving the highest welfare of all beings. Like a nurturing mother who protects and cares for her children, this sublime Love brings comfort, tenderness, warmth, and understanding to those in need. Always unconditional, free of self-interest, attachment, or expectation, Loving-kindness seeks no reward or compensation. This Love is the very heart of generosity, sympathy, and benevolence. In this way, Loving-kindness opens the heart and dissolves resentment, anger, hatred, possessiveness, and selfish desire. Our Loving-kindness—our sincere wish for all beings to have happiness—must extend even further than those to whom we feel close. Our Loving-kindness must extend to and embrace all living beings throughout all realms of existence for it to become sublime, limitless, and immeasurable.

May all beings be free from suffering

and the causes of suffering

In this second verse, we generate the mind of Compassion. From the very depths of our heart, we radiate in all directions the sincere wish for all living beings to be free from suffering and the causes that bring suffering. The immeasurable quality of Compassion (Mercy) is a wise heartfelt motivation to relieve the pain, sorrow, and suffering of others. This sublime Compassion arises from our genuine concern for others and manifests as selfless acts of physical and spiritual charity. With true Compassion we have deep insight into the causes of human suffering. Therefore, we are able to serve others in wise, loving, calm, and skillful ways without being overwhelmed by our feelings of pity, grief, or sadness. In this way, Compassion opens the heart and dissolves cruelty, selfishness, and narrow-mindedness. Our Compassion—our sincere wish that all beings be free from suffering—must extend even further than those to whom we feel close. Our Compassion must extend to and embrace all living beings throughout all realms of existence for it to become sublime, limitless, and immeasurable.

May all beings never be separated from the

supreme joy that is beyond all sorrow

In this third verse, we generate the mind of Sympathetic Joy. From the very depths of our heart, we radiate in all directions the sincere wish that all living beings never be separated from the supreme joy that is beyond all sorrow. The immeasurable quality of Sympathetic Joy is our genuine ability to rejoice and delight in the happiness, success, and good fortune of others. With this sublime quality of Joy we are able to truly appreciate and be inspired by the positive qualities and virtuous deeds of others. In this way, Sympathetic (Altruistic) Joy opens the heart and dissolves envy, jealousy, aversion, self-centeredness, and dualistic views that create separation between people. Our Sympathetic Joy—our sincere wish for the unceasing joy and good fortune of others—must extend even further than those to whom we feel close. Our Sympathetic Joy must extend to and embrace all living beings throughout all realms of existence for it to become sublime, limitless, and immeasurable.

May all beings abide in equanimity

free from attachment and aversion

In this fourth verse, we generate the mind of Equanimity. From the very depths of our heart, we radiate in all directions the sincere wish that all living beings may abide in Equanimity free from attachment (self- centered desire) and aversion (hatred/hostility). The immeasurable quality of Equanimity is an imperturbable composure of heart—a love that embraces all living beings and circumstances with equality, wisdom, and serenity. With this sublime Equanimity, our love is impartial, rightly discerning, balanced, not carried away by emotion, and free of attachment. We do not distinguish between friend, enemy, or stranger, but regard every sentient being as equal. In this way, Equanimity opens the heart and dissolves prejudice, attachment, aversion, uncaring indifference, anger, and hostility. Equanimity is the culmination of The Four Immeasurables; it is the most essential yet difficult to cultivate, the guide of the other three. Our Equanimity—our sincere wish for all beings to abide in Equanimity—must extend even further than those to whom we feel close. Our Equanimity must extend to and embrace all living beings throughout all realms of existence for it to become sublime, limitless, and immeasurable.

Naljor Prison Dharma Service PO Box 7417, Boulder CO 80306-7417

Please consider supporting Naljor’s wonderful healing ministy!

There are a few reasons why vegetarianism (non-meat eating) is being promoted strongly by Buddhism and Yoga practice.

It is supporting the idea of non-harming or non-killing and compassion towards all beings including animals and insects.

It is more healthy to eat lots of fruit, nuts, beans and vegetables than to eat meat especially nowadays the meat is not really as healthy as before because most of the animals that are being breed for food consumption are not healthy physically and mentally due to poor living environment under the mass productivity in factories and farms. These animals are being treated badly and being fed with unnatural food and being injected with hormones. Even though most of the fruit and vegetables that we get from the market are not really healthy either due to chemicals and pesticides that farmers are using nowadays for their farms to induce growth and to protect their crops from insects. But still meat eating is causing more harmful effects to our body and the mind than non-meat eating.

There are lots of unhealthy food (meat or non-meat) in the market nowadays contain substances which can cause illnesses and cancers, such like colourings, preservatives, conditioners, artificial flavourings, MSG, sugar and so much more other chemicals that is in the food and drinks. Even in all the daily personal cleaning products or housing cleaning products are full of harmful chemicals. As well as all the high-tech electrical products and conveniences are bringing so much pollutions and damages into the nature and the living environment.

No doubt that vegetarianism is more environmental friendly. By supporting non-meat eating can help to maintain the nature as healthy as possible because massive meat productions do contribute to the global warming through lots of lands had been used to produce corn to feed the animals instead of having plants and trees that work as a filter system for the air that we breath in.

Vegetarianism is also conducive for controlling the mind and to control the strong lustful passionate desires. Anyhow not only meat eating can stimulate the passionate desire, violence and anger in us, but even some non-meat products like alcohol, garlic, onion and chive also have the substances that can stimulate the passionate desire and anger in us. While drugs that are plants origin is having the substances that can affect the mind and the body, causing psychology and physical health problems in us such like addiction, dullness and depression. No doubt that the energy that comes from fresh fruit and vegetables have the calming effects in the body and the mind.

But most important in Buddhism and yoga practice for supporting and promoting vegetarianism is for people to develop compassion and non-harming towards all beings and to have control over the mind to achieve tranquility and sharpness in the mind to allow wisdom to arise within us.

In Buddhism and yoga practice, the main practice is to deal with the strong desire of cravings and aversions towards what we see, hear, smell, taste, feel and think. It is the sensual pleasure enjoyments of likes and dislikes that is over powering most of the people’s mind, that creates greed and attachment in us which contribute to the unhappiness, frustration, dissatisfaction, irritation, disappointment and painful suffering in us.

Because most of us are still being influenced and affected strongly by the food and drinks that we consume as well as other inputs that we are receiving through our eyes, ears, nose, tongue, skin and thinking faculty which influence the energy fields in our body and affect the state of our mind, either agitating, stimulating or depressing. As long as we are still being influenced by all these substances, we need to choose what type of inputs that we put into our system in order to achieve control of the mind.

At the end, it doesn’t matter if it is vegetarian or non-vegetarian food that we eat, it is the non-attachment towards the taste of the food that matters most. And no matter what type of food that we eat, we should eat with appreciation and should show gratitude that these food are providing energy for us to survive and to maintain this body and to have the life for us to be here to learn, to experience and to become enlightened.

When we are not being influenced by the energy fields in our body anymore, and we are free from duality and are fully mastering our mind; have eliminated the ego and ignorance, and we have gone beyond all the names and forms; and there is no more differences between birth and death; and we are one with the universal consciousness that is without any attributes or intentions, and then we will know that the true self in all living beings are not touched by names and forms, and are beyond birth and death, good and evil. Until then we can go beyond “vegetarian” and “non-vegetarian”.

If we eat with our taste of likes and dislikes and being influenced by our cravings and aversions towards all the objects that we get in contact with through the senses, then we are still bound by names and forms, there is still a huge difference between meat eating (non-vegetarian) and non-meat eating (vegetarian). And by eating meat we are directly or indirectly involved in harming and killing the animals and caused fears, hatred and pain onto these animals’ minds.

But for someone who is truly enlightened and had gone beyond all names and forms, the entire world is nothing but just a projection of his own mind, and then what is “live” and “death”? What is “cravings” and “aversions”? What is “meat” and “not meat”? What is “vegetarian” and “non-vegetarian”? What is “healthy” and “not healthy”? What is “good food” and “bad food”? What is “hunger” and “survival”? What is “pure” and “impure”? What is “energy” and “elements”? What is “limitations” and “conditions”? What is “past” and “future”? What is “actions” and “karma”? What is “existence” and “non-existence”?

But for many of us who are still not at that level of enlightenment yet; still have lots of impurities and ignorance of anger, hatred, jealousy, arrogance and greed; still being influenced by energy and elements; still being affected by all the inputs that we received through the senses, and still have strong cravings and aversions; still have lots of needs and wants; still have fears and worries; still have the differences of happiness and suffering, success and failure, birth and death; and still being bound by the duality in all the names and forms, then know that we are still bound by what we should do and should not do.

Vegetarianism is one of the steps of purification for the body and the mind. But if we still have the idea that “this is good, and I like it” and “that is bad, and I don’t like it”, know that we are still not even at the first step of the real practice of non-attachment and non-dualism of namelessness and formlessness, but no doubt that eating good and healthy food that is bringing harmony to the body and the mind will still be a good purification process for the body and mind to move towards non-attachment and namelessness and formlessness.

Most important is the practice of self-control and eradication of anger, hatred, jealousy, arrogance, lust and greed. And also non-harming in thoughts, actions and speech towards all beings. And if this physical body is dead, “who” will mind that the worms and germs will be eating the flesh of this body and feed whatever animals that are in hunger. At least there is still a contribution towards other living beings and allowing other living beings to have the opportunity of life to evolve spiritually and be free from the conditions of life existence.

Merely by eating vegetarian will not guarantee a person to become enlightened or being happy in life and will be free from suffering. Neither by eating meat will stop a person from attaining enlightenment, being unhappy and unkind, or cannot be free from suffering. It is all in the mind.

It is snowing outside this beautiful morning.  Even my teenagers were up at 7 a.m.  I placed this miracle on the calendar.  Mass was great with the super music.  Our parish is blessed with an enthusiastic music ministry director.  I pray all have a nice day, and a great year to come.  The Christmas Season has just started, and will continue till January tenth.  

MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY BIRTHDAY to JESUS!

Jesus' Birth!

Quote or Joke of the Day:

 Every ten seconds, somewhere on this earth, there is a woman giving birth to a child. She must be found and stopped.

 http://www.oneliners-and-proverbs.com/

Today’s Meditation:

So they went in haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger.  When they saw this, they made known the message that had been told them about this child.  All who heard it were amazed by what had been told them by the shepherds.  And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.  Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, just as it had been told to them.  (NAB Lk 2:16-20)

These verses are from the Mass at Dawn for Christmas Day.  The shepherd’s, and all others present were amazed, joyous, excited, and possibly even bewildered to some extent at what the angels have told them, and for the future of their Jewish race.  Though the shepherd’s were illiterate and outcasts; they were probably devout in the Jewish religion, and knew what ’savior’ and ‘messiah’ meant when said by the angels appearing to them.

 The shepherd’s ran to town, and to anyone willing to listen,telling others of what happened to them, and about the birth of a baby that would be king over the entire world.  I wonder how many took these shepherd’s, dressed in rags, seriously?  Were they mocked and ridiculed, as Jesus will be later in life?  Were the temple priests ‘in the know’ of what happened in a cave in their town; and were they concerned?

No one present that day fully understand what is happening with Jesus’ birth. Even 2000 years later, it is still impossible to fully understand all the ramifications and surprises in store for us through Jesus’ birth in that cold, dank cave.  God joined mankind in a human birth, so we can join him in His deaths; and eventual rising to eternal life in eternal paradise with the Lord..

Mary’s journey of faith, reflection, and glorifying of God is a model for our behavior.  We need to take Jesus into our hearts, minds, and bodies.  We need to die to Him, and allow His Holy Spirit to work through us. 

Pax et Bonum

Dan Halley, SFO

*****

Secular Franciscan Order (SFO) Rule #25:

Regarding expenses necessary for the life of the fraternity and the needs of worship, of the apostolate, and of charity, all the brothers and sisters should offer a contribution according to their means. Local fraternities should contribute toward the expenses of the higher fraternity councils. 

Here’s the answer to last post’s last riddle:
A ghoul and his bunny are soon parted

I hope you enjoyed my riddle gifts and that all of you who celebrate Hanukkah and Solstice have had lovely celebrations, and those of you celebrating Christmas and Kwanzaa have a wonderful holiday as well.

As I get older, I find myself full of mixed emotions around the holidays. There is such an expectation to be happy and fulfilled at this time of year, and yet we all know that plenty of people cannot participate in the hyped up gift-giving and celebration, especially during a recession, and this makes for disappointment, frustration, fear, and sadness, even if they may intellectually reject that very hype. This is part of the reason why I offered MOGO gift-giving tips earlier this month.

There are people laid off before the holidays, or who have just received a cancer diagnosis. And others whose marriages may have ended, or who have lost a loved one. The holidays are a stark reminder of what is gone. There are those without any place to go on the holidays, and those without homes at all.

This week is the darkest of the year in the northern hemisphere. It is not surprising that during this darkest time our society makes every effort to encourage celebration, generosity, and community. These stave off the dark emotions that can accompany the physical darkness. Singing, gathering, and candlelight bring us together and warm our spirits as well as our bodies. And at the very moment we celebrate in the darkness, the days are already getting longer, bringing light and hope even as we enter the coldest season.

So for those of us fortunate enough to be surrounded by love and who are safe, housed, well fed, and well clothed, my hope is that each of us will find a way to give of ourselves and ease some suffering, bring some joy, and kindle some light for those who may be struggling this holiday season.

Remember, as Philo of Alexandra said, “Be kind for everyone is fighting a great battle.”

Bring light,

Zoe Weil
Author of Most Good, Least Harm, Above All, Be Kind, and The Power and Promise of Humane Education

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I have always held the view that nursing is a profession that is held by women and men who are compassionate to a fault with their patients. I have had it up here in my head that they perform one of the most praise worthy duties in life i.e. take care of us when we are at our most vulnerable state.

However, recently when I had to be at the hospital for a couple of days I have realized that the word compassion has to take on a new meaning if it is to be applied to the nurses working at our hospitals. I have always noticed that Indian nurses who work in the Maldives tend to be bitches, well most of them anyway and I have always had the opinion that this must be because we aren’t really of their blood and culture so who are we to receive their compassion and care eh? But then to my ultimate horror I have come to know that most Maldivian nurses aren’t that better off. I was with a patient admitted to the surgical ward, and I guess anyone would realize just how much care patients at such a ward would require without me laying it out for them. I found that people who didn’t have attendants either family or friends to be with them had a really hard time at the ward. With the nurse station just within hearing distance from the beds, nurses tended to ignore those who didn’t have the guts to go up to them and give them a piece of their mind. And to hear the pain that the patients are in just broke my heart bit by bit. No nurse saw it fit to come to the patient and show him a bit of care and compassion that eases our minds when we are sick.

It made me sick to the bone to identify this trait and wondered what had happened to the current generation of nurses that have come out. Are they being bred from a factory where they are automatically wired to just do the bare minimum to earn their paychecks at the end of each month and just leave everything else  be? I have heard my mother talk about nurses who cared for her when she underwent labor to bear each of us, and she always talked about gentle touches on the forehead, quiet words of encouragement etc. which I guess was one of the reasons why my head has been up in the clouds for quite a number of years. To the contrary, one of my colleagues who gave birth around a month back had a different story to report. Nurses were callous to the point of being rude and a time where a woman needs encouragement from her fellow beings, she found it to be something straight out of a badly plotted horror movie which tends to leave your mouth with a bad taste once you have seen it.

Right after the IGMH surgical ward experience, I flew to Bangalore and there I experienced first hand how nurses should really be. They were considerate, kind and caring while effectively giving the care necessary for the patient’s survival even when at times the patient may not really be of the most gracious behavior.

I believe that compassion and care should go hand in hand and urge people of the nursing profession in our country to give compassion a whirl sometime. They might just gain a bit of satisfaction of a job well done and received to go along with the paycheck at the end of the month.

Click through to see the videos.

This is where I find myself this Christmas. Apalled at the commercialism and greediness of so many.  Why buy gifts for people you never see and you have no idea what they want, but you feel compelled to buy some kind of junk because they got you something last year. It’s not too late to do something about it. Won’t  you consider either of these two gift options? Our family has. Spend less, Give more!

Hey Lisa Barone, the 1980’s called — they want their values back.

And so this is Christmas, a time for compassion and kindness, for thinking well of people, for hope, for encouragement, for love.  How sad then, that at such a time of year I stumble onto the blog [ref] of young, arrogant, internet marketer Lisa Barone. In an ugly rant Lisa berates the unemployed for being, well, unemployed. “You suck” she says, from her ivory tower of Entrepreneurship. “Most people are lazy and a waste of your time” she continues, so shut up, stop whining, get out there and get a job, become an entrepreneur like me! And so on.

It isn’t that Lisa is wrong. There are indeed many opportunities for those who truly seek them, and Lisa’s black-and-white view of the unemployment situation can be put down to youthful excitement about making it big in a tough economy, and I say congratulations to her for that.  The worrisome thing is her arrogance, her sheer lack of understanding or compassion.  Lisa’s categorization of “the unemployed” as one mass of wasted space is both lamentable and shocking.  The values Lisa espouses are a throwback to the bleak and dismal era of Thatcher and Reagan, an era characterized by self-interest, competition and screw-thy-neighbor.  My entire 20s were spent in Thatcher’s Britain where the advice to the unemployed was “price yourself into a job”, “don’t shop when you are hungry” and other such gems, only just falling short of “let them eat cake”.  The rich got richer… and more fearful, as poverty and crime exploded onto the streets. Cardboard sub-cities of broken, rejected people grew up in industrial wastelands, railway sidings and deserted archways. Misery was tangible.

This is not the world I want to live in today, and this is one reason I gravitate towards the Agile community.  In the Agile community I find intelligent thinkers, change agents and social warriors who prioritize collaboration over competition, sustainable living over wealth, listening to over shouting at, and understanding over judgment.  This is not partisan politics, this is simply the embracing of our humanity.

There is no such group as “the unemployed” there are just people, just us.  Sometimes we work, sometimes we seek work — and it is not the work that defines us.  There are no doubt  many people currently working who suck too.  One’s employment status is irrelevant; one’s attitude to life and other people is likely a better gauge of “suckiness”.

That Lisa can write such a smug diatribe perhaps says something about where she might be on this scale.  And sad as it is to read an article like hers, it is made all the more upsetting by the number of her loyal followers who cheer her on.  It is to be expected that those reading her blog would be like-thinkers, but reading praise after praise for this attitude was really quite distressing.  Happily there were a few who called her on this, as I am doing here.  Her response?  Close down comments “before things take a nonproductive turn”.

No surprise there then. Arrogance has its usual sycophants close by: Cowardice and Fear.  Lisa’s response was to censor and silence her critics.  But hey, Lisa, as an internet marketer you of all people should know you can’t gag the internet.  It lives and breathes, and while it does expect to see opposition to your self-righteous stance.  Perhaps sometime you’ll take a moment to listen.

Meanwhile, Merry Christmas everyone. I wish you a day of laughter and hope.

Hey Lisa Barone, the 1980’s called — they want their values back.

And so this is Christmas, a time for compassion and kindness, for thinking well of people, for hope, for encouragement, for love.  How sad then, that at such a time of year I stumble onto the blog of young, arrogant, internet marketer Lisa Barone. In an ugly rant Lisa berates the unemployed for being, well, unemployed. “You suck” she says, from her ivory tower of Entrepreneurship. “Most people are lazy and a waste of your time” she continues, so shut up, stop whining, get out there and get a job, become an entrepreneur like me! And so on.

It isn’t that Lisa is wrong. There are indeed many opportunities for those who truly seek them, and Lisa’s black-and-white view of the unemployment situation can be put down to youthful excitement about making it big in a tough economy, and I say congratulations to her for that.  The worrisome thing is her arrogance, her sheer lack of understanding or compassion.  Lisa’s categorization of “the unemployed” as one mass of wasted space is both lamentable and shocking.  The values Lisa espouses are a throwback to the bleak and dismal era of Thatcher and Reagan, an era characterized by self-interest, competition and screw-thy-neighbor.  My entire 20s were spent in Thatcher’s Britain where the advice to the unemployed was “price yourself into a job”, “don’t shop when you are hungry” and other such gems, only just falling short of “let them eat cake”.  The rich got richer… and more fearful, as poverty and crime exploded onto the streets. Cardboard sub-cities of broken, rejected people grew up in industrial wastelands, railway sidings and deserted archways. Misery was tangible.

This is not the world I want to live in today, and this is one reason I gravitate towards the Agile community.  In the Agile community I find intelligent thinkers, change agents and social warriors who prioritize collaboration over competition, sustainable living over wealth, listening to over shouting at, and understanding over judgment.  This is not partisan politics, this is simply the embracing of our humanity.

There is no such group as “the unemployed” there are just people, just us.  Sometimes we work, sometimes we seek work — and it is not the work that defines us.  There are no doubt as many people in work who suck, as there are those not working.  One’s employment status is irrelevant; one’s attitude to life and other people is likely a better gauge of “suckiness”.

That Lisa can write such a smug diatribe perhaps says something about where she might be on this scale.  And sad as it is to read an article like hers, it is made all the more upsetting by the number of her loyal followers who cheer her on.  It is to be expected that those reading her blog would be like-thinkers, but reading praise after praise for this attitude was really quite distressing.  Happily there were a few who called her on this, as I am doing here.  Her response?  Close down comments “before things take a nonproductive turn”.

No surprise there then. Arrogance has its usual sycophants close by: Cowardice and Fear.  Lisa’s response was to censor and silence her critics.  But hey, Lisa, as an internet marketer you of all people should know you can’t gag the internet.  It lives and breathes, and while it does expect to see opposition to your self-righteous stance.  Perhaps sometime you’ll take a moment to listen.

Meanwhile, Merry Christmas everyone. I wish you a day of laughter and hope.

All our good thoughts, actions and speech (good deeds) will be flowering and bear the fruit of merit and virtue. No matters we intentionally or unintentionally, directly or indirectly did some wholesome, beneficial and kind deeds to ourselves or to other beings or to nature, they all are merits and virtues whether we recognize them as merits and virtues or not.

People who are having bad luck, bad karma or having a lot of unhappiness and obstacles in their lives, and they wish to change their luck, karma or their lives, they can work on accumulating merits and virtues by doing lots of good deeds whether in their thoughts or actions or speech.

The practice of patience, loving kindness, generosity, charity, sharing, tolerance, forbearance of heat and cold, forbearance of insults and harms, forgive, respect, gratitude, appreciation, loyalty, faithfulness, truthfulness, responsibility, humility, self-control over lustful desire and greed, self-improvement, observance of morality and refrain from generating harmful thoughts, actions and speech, having courage, positive thinking and cheerfulness are all merits and virtues.

The real merits and virtues is formless and nameless, intentionless, without expectations, without likes and dislikes and without the differentiation of good beings or bad beings to whom we want to show kindness and compassion to, and renounce from the fruit of our actions without longing for any merits and virtues.

Even though we did not do anything so called good deeds but we refrain ourselves from doing evil deeds, it is already a great merit and virtue of being self-controlled and non-harming to other beings and to ourselves as well.

The great merits and virtues are the forbearance of all insults, humiliations and harms from other beings while remain compassionate and forgiving towards all who were unkind to us, and will continue to show love, kindness and compassion towards all beings who had intentionally or unintentionally, directly or indirectly being unkind to us.

By remaining content, peaceful and happy all the time not being affected, influenced or disturbed by all the phenomena that is happening in the world outside our body or within our body and the mind, eliminating the ego and being indifference towards the duality of likes and dislikes, comfort and discomfort, heat and cold, praise and censure, success and failure, birth and death, and all the good and evil happenings upon us are the real merits and virtues.

Promoting peace and harmony among all beings and allowing other beings to develop selflessness, loving kindness, peace, compassion and wisdom is great merit and virtue. Not generating obstacles for others who want to do good and be good and want to walk in the path towards self-realization, and give supports and encouragements to all beings who are in distress, painful sorrow and suffering, and to those who want to walk the path towards self-realization are the great merits and virtues.

Giving dharma to all without any discrimination towards any beings is the best merit and virtue.

And the greatest merit and virtue above all is attaining self-realization or enlightenment.

When a being is enlightened, there is no more merits and virtues in name and form, but the consciousness itself is the embodiment of merits and virtues of compassion and wisdom, namelessness and formlessness, beginningless and endless – Satchidananda.

It is that time of the year again

Where hearts swell and gifts rain

It is the day when upon the northern sky

Lit a star twinkling bright and high..

The Angels came to bless the earth

And showered a couple with child birth

The Lord was to come to them as a Son

Kindness and care He would spread in ton

On 25^th of December at midnight

It was the coldest wintery fright

And yet in a small barn in Bethlehem

Was born our Christ Savior to them

It is the day when the Lord was born

The evil earth with compassion He came, to adorn

The day our hearts rejoice and bloom

Cos the Lord was here to do away gloom

He showered all with benevolence

Taught them to expel all violence

To tread a path of truth and love

The Lord was sent from heaven above

Vile he was many did condemn

And yet he took the cross for them

They are His Children he would say

He suffered but let none astray

To Him all his children are one

Prejudiced He was to none

He showed them the path of light

Protected them with all his might

To this day we celebrate his birth

For compassion here is in Dearth

Joy to the world he gave

But love he was a slave

Anyone who loved he loved them back

To this day for His children nothing lack

He taught us all to love and give

To live in harmony and forgive

to Christ our Savior, Here’s an ode

Bless all souls in this life’s tedious road..

Rise and shine

On a day so Divine

Lets spread love compassion and cheer

Live in harmony with everyone here..!!!

Merry Christmas to Ye All..!!

Christmas Eve Prayer 2009

Family Minister                         UU Society of Sacramento, CA

I invite you to take a deep breath with me and let it out.   Now please join me in the spirit of reflection and hope as I offer these words of prayer.

Eternal Source of Love and Grace, bless us this night and bless our world with peace.  With dark skies and a chill in the outside air, we draw near for warmth and fellowship.  We gather to hear the story of a babe in a manger, sing songs about angels and shepherds, and notice one another’s beautiful faces reflected in the light of candles.  We give thanks for the children among us.  May their anticipation cheer us to open our hearts to wonder,  and to gratitude for the gifts of life.  We give thanks for the grownups, who not only bring rich memories of years past but also help us build new memories.

We give thanks for the blessings that give the season its texture:  music, literature, and other arts; special food and lots of it, and the personal donations of time and money that make a difference in the world.  Let us remember those who are working this night at various jobs, and care for those who are out of work and hoping for better times.

Many of those we love are traveling in this season; may they be safe and have good experiences.  On Tuesday our member Cxxxs Bxxxx had a car accident and now is in intensive care, as she recovers from neck surgery.  We send our love to Cxxxx.  May we send healing prayers to all those who suffer in body, mind or spirit.    For many of us, this season brings to mind those we have lost.  In our sadness may we find comfort in precious memories.  Among us are those with “sorrows unrelated to the season but which feel all the more pointed now.”[i] May we find ease in the embrace of community.  .

Given that we all have lonely times, may we strive to reach out so that we might give and receive the gifts of warmth, attention, and understanding.

On this night we call to mind those who are hungry, homeless or without stable housing.  Let us be grateful for people who extend the hand of compassion, generosity and hospitality, and who know how much it means to share with others.  We extend our care to those in zones of war, occupation and other places of violence, those who serve there and those who call such places home.  Let us pray for justice and reconciliation–and for enough courage to achieve such holy aims.

We give thanks for the abundance of this earth—for its gifts of food, water, wilderness, and countless dazzling forms of life whose claim to existence is no less worthy than our own.  May we grow in stewardship of the gifts of our precious planet.

While we observe Christmas tonight, we know that we live in a land of many faith traditions, each with its own gifts of wonder, wisdom, and compassion.  Let us call forth all the good will of humanity to share these gifts, and move toward the vision of an earth made fair.

Spirit of Life, bless us this night and bless our world with peace.  So may it be.

Now let us take a half-minute of silence to be present in our bodies and our breathing, to feel ourselves fully here, together on this night.

All our good thoughts, actions and speech (good deeds) will be flowering and bear the fruit of merit and virtue. No matters we intentionally or unintentionally, directly or indirectly did some wholesome, beneficial and kind deeds to ourselves or to other beings or to nature, they all are merits and virtues whether we recognize them as merits and virtues or not.

People who are having bad luck, bad karma or having a lot of unhappiness and obstacles in their lives, and they wish to change their luck, karma or their lives, they can work on accumulating merits and virtues by doing lots of good deeds whether in their thoughts or actions or speech.

The practice of patience, loving kindness, generosity, charity, sharing, tolerance, forbearance of heat and cold, forbearance of insults and harms, forgive, respect, gratitude, appreciation, loyalty, faithfulness, truthfulness, responsibility, humility, self-control over lustful desire and greed, self-improvement, observance of morality and refrain from generating harmful thoughts, actions and speech, having courage, positive thinking and cheerfulness are all merits and virtues.

The real merits and virtues is formless and nameless, intentionless, without expectations, without likes and dislikes and without the differentiation of good beings or bad beings to whom we want to show kindness and compassion to, and renounce from the fruit of our actions without longing for any merits and virtues.

Even though we did not do anything so called good deeds but we refrain ourselves from doing evil deeds, it is already a great merit and virtue of being self-controlled and non-harming to other beings and to ourselves as well.

The great merits and virtues are the forbearance of all insults, humiliations and harms from other beings while remain compassionate and forgiving towards all who were unkind to us, and will continue to show love, kindness and compassion towards all beings who had intentionally or unintentionally, directly or indirectly being unkind to us.

By remaining content, peaceful and happy all the time not being affected, influenced or disturbed by all the phenomena that is happening in the world outside our body or within our body and the mind, eliminating the ego and being indifference towards the duality of likes and dislikes, comfort and discomfort, heat and cold, praise and censure, success and failure, birth and death, and all the good and evil happenings upon us are the real merits and virtues.

Promoting peace and harmony among all beings and allowing other beings to develop selflessness, loving kindness, peace, compassion and wisdom is great merit and virtue. Not generating obstacles for others who want to do good and be good and want to walk in the path towards self-realization, and give supports and encouragements to all beings who are in distress, painful sorrow and suffering, and to those who want to walk the path towards self-realization are the great merits and virtues.

Giving dharma to all without any discrimination towards any beings is the best merit and virtue.

And the greatest merit and virtue above all is attaining self-realization or enlightenment.

When a being is enlightened, there is no more merits and virtues in name and form, but the consciousness itself is the embodiment of merits and virtues of compassion and wisdom, namelessness and formlessness, beginningless and endless – Satchidananda.

Every year in Plum Village, France, my heart teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh, celebrates Christmas with his sangha, the community of students and practitioners there. Usually, he gives a talk about Jesus and about his meaning to us today, whether we are Christians or Buddhists or any other faith or non-faith.

Now, it may seem strange to many people that a Zen Buddhist monk would celebrate Christmas but it’s not really, if you understand how open Thay (his students’ affectionate name for their teacher) is to light, love, and goodness, wherever it appears.

One only has to read Living Buddha, Living Christ or Going Home—Jesus and Buddha as Brothers to understand how deeply Thay has looked into where Buddhists may find common ground and join hands with Christians in genuine brotherhood and love.

If we don’t get caught up in words and dogma, and think about living practice, I think we get closer to the true spirit of Christmas. As Thay writes: “On Christmas Eve, we speak about faith, about energy about the Holy Spirit. To me, the Holy Spirit is faith, the Holy Spirit is mindfulness; the Holy Spirit is love. The Holy Spirit is already there within us. If we are able to touch it within ourselves and help it to manifest in us, we can cultivate the Holy Spirit the way we cultivate mindfulness.”

So, in Buddhist celebration of Christmas, I’d like to share part of a talk Thay gave on Christmas Eve, 1996, entitled “Let the Child Be Born to Us.” May it help and inspire whoever reads, whether Christian, pagan, Buddhist, Muslim, Sufi, wiccan, Sikh, atheist, or agnostic.

Let the Child Be Born To Us

“Christmas is often described as a festival for children. I tend to agree with that because who among us is not a child or has not been a child? The child in us is always alive; maybe we have not had enough time to take care of the child within us.

To me, it is possible for us to help the child within us, to be reborn again and again, because the spirit of the child is the Holy Spirit, it is the spirit of the Buddha. There is no discrimination. A child is always able to live in the present moment. A child can also be free of worries and fear about the future. Therefore, it is very important for us to practice in such a way that the child in us can be reborn.

Let the child be born to us.

Beginning Anew

Tonight, we celebrate the birth of a person who is very dear to humanity, a person who has brought light to the world, Jesus Christ. We hope that children like him will be born to us very moment of our daily lives.

In the Buddhist tradition, we practice Beginning Anew; it is a very important practice. To begin anew means we are reborn fresh and new and able to start again. This is really good news. The teaching of the Buddha offers us ways to be reborn in each moment of our daily life and to learn to love again.

There are those who are so discouraged that they no longer have the courage to love. They have suffered a great deal just because they have made an attempt to love and have not succeeded. The wounds within them are so deep that it makes them afraid to try. We are aware of the presence of these people among us, all around us. We have to bring them the message that love is possible, because our world desperately needs love…

True love is made of understanding—understanding the other person, the object of your love, understanding their suffering, their difficulties, and their true aspiration. Out of our understanding there will be kindness, there will be compassion, there will be an offering of joy. There will also be a lot of space, because true love is without possessiveness. You love and still you are free, and the other person is also free…”

On Donner, on Blitzen, on Barak and Dmitry! On Angela, on Herman, on George and Nouri! On Shimon, on Nicolas, on Abdel, and Hu!

Fly! Fly! Let your Good Wishes Go to Heart and let your Hearts fly to all. No one or no thing is not deserving of your Good Wishes Gone to Heart. Let your Good Wishes Go To Heart and let your hearts fly to all!

To Earth, and to all her inhabitants in their many forms, Peace and good will to all.

Happy Holidays everyone,
with love,
Bruce