Someone asked recently whether we would grow spiritually without struggle. Good question. The Tao Te Ching describes a life in harmony with Tao as effortless, without conflict or strife. In martial arts, we train with the slogan “Don’t insist. Don’t resist.” We know that trying to force something or someone might work sometimes but there […]
You are the author of your own life story. ~Unknown Someone asked me if I write fiction. No, I replied, and thought to myself, I don’t write fiction. I live it. We all do. We tell ourselves stories and then believe them. Our emotions are rooted in the narrative. We react and make choices, live
Start with “I don’t know.” Why not just start with where you’ll end up anyway? ~Adyashanti I was never a legit Trekkie but I did enjoy and was inspired by two of the series – Next Generation, and Voyager. Each series had a crew member characterized by intellectual and logical prowess – Data, the android
The Tao Te Ching has been a source of inspiration in my life for many years. I don’t remember how I first encountered it in my young life, but I do remember that its simple wisdom resonated in my soul and I have loved it ever since. Several years ago, I gathered various translations with
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These apparently contradictory statements are at the heart of spiritual awakening, representing the two practices of release and acceptance. “Neti, neti” is a Sanskrit expression from ancient Hindu texts. It can be translated as “Not that, not that.” It reminds me to not grasp onto my beliefs and opinions, my judgments and fears. “This too,
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You can’t organize truth. That’s like trying to shape a pound of water in wrapping paper. ~Bruce Lee I was having a discussion with a friend about a particular theological concept, one that has defied any sort of sensible explanation for centuries. We had read various scholars’ analyses; we had listened to podcasts interviewing well
Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls. ~Psalm 42:7 For the last six weeks, my usually busy schedule has been emptied. I suspended my martial arts classes, my piano lessons, my Chinese tutor. I made a choice to devote my mornings to a writing project. (Mornings, I’ve discovered, are really the only
The story is told of Milarepa, an 8th century Tibetan Buddhist, who came back to his cave one day to find it filled with demons. He didn’t know how to get rid of them. He got angry and shouted at them to leave. They just laughed. He regained his composure and tried to teach them
The chapter opens with the recurring theme of wu wei, or non-action.Tao is ever without actingYet without not acting Generally translated as “Tao does nothing yet nothing is left undone,” this concept causes much confusion when we interpret wu wei as static passivity. Rather, it is a dynamic energy of harmony with the basic order
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The 1950 Japanese film Rashomon is the story of a murder told from the perspective of four witnesses, each of whom tells a very different tale. As you watch the movie, you are caught up in each version, thinking “Oh, this is what really happened.” But then a new witness begins to speak, and you
The heart listensAt the speed of lightWhere time stands stillAnd thus has no needOf memoryThe heart hears Only truthWhich is beyond thoughtAnd thus has no needOf words
In pursuit of knowledge, every day something is acquiredIn pursuit of Tao, every day something is released~Tao Te Ching We read or listen to the words of spiritual teachers. We takes notes. We study. We try to remember, hoping that the memory of words spoken or written in the past will somehow lead to awakening
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I was sitting by the creek last weekend watching the light play on the dancing water. When I looked downstream, there was a beautiful cluster of snow white flowers blooming on a tall stalk leaning out over the creek. As I got closer I could see that the cluster was made up of tiny star
The ocean has one taste, the taste of saltTruth has one taste, the taste of liberation~Buddha There is not your truth and my truth. There are not variations of truth or shades of truth. There is truth. Truth is truth. There is nothing else. And, as Jesus promised, it will set us free. We cannot
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Quit trying. Quit trying not to try. Quit quitting. ~zen saying I want to be awakened. I want enlightenment. How do I get it? Where are the instructions? If I read this book, practice these techniques, listen to this podcast, attend this workshop, devote myself to this teacher, read another book, breathe a certain way,
This sweet little chapter carries forward from Chapters 22 and 23 the encouragement to release the ego. Here the emphasis is on the limitations of holding onto the ego. One who stands on tiptoes is not steadyOne who strides cannot go far The wisdom of these first two lines is made clear to me in
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Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. ~Marianne Williamson Science has proved what mystics have known for millennia – we are all connected through a network of energy, physical as well as consciousness energy. The Avatamsaka Sutra describes this interconnectedness as the “jeweled
Today seems like a good day for a story. This is the story of when I fell off the roof. Some of you already know this story, but I’d like to tell it again. I have a cabin in the mountains, my little forest retreat, with no phone, TV, or internet. It nestles under huge
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Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow. ~Steve Jobs’ last words That these were Steve Jobs’ last words, or really anyone’s last words, captures our imagination. A message from the threshold of death, from one perhaps seeing something marvelous, unable to describe it, simply expressing wonder. We might think that what is being seen is what
I think; therefore I am. ~Descartes There is no such thing as a true thought. ~Adyashanti These two quotes represent contrasting concepts of thought. The first reveals thought as the source of our very existence. The second knocks thought off its pedestal. We reflected on these statements during the last in person gathering of the
Thinking about Thinking Read More »