photo by Alan Larus
Diana Being_One
Between the banks of pain and pleasure
the river of life flows. It is only when
the mind refuses to flow with life, and
gets stuck at the banks, that it becomes
a problem. By flowing with life, I mean
acceptance - letting come what comes
and go what goes. Desire not, fear not,
observe the actual, as and when it
happens, for you are not what happens,
you are to whom it happens. Ultimately
even the observer you are not.
- Nisargadatta Maharaj
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Gabriele Ebert SriRamana
Samsara is nothing but our thought.
Those who live spontaneous and thought-free
May seem to dwell in a body bound
And moved by Fate, but they in freedom
Roam in the boundless space of true Awareness.
~~~~~~
Muruganar: The Garland of Guru's Sayings, v. 616
~~~~~~
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Claire Being_One
It [the dream] appears to be beginningless, but in fact it is only now.
From moment to moment you are renewing it. Once you have seen
that you are dreaming, you shall wake up. But you do not see
because you want the dream to continue. A day will come when you
will long for the ending of the dream, with all your heart and mind,
and be willing to pay the price; the price will be dispassion and
detachment, the loss of interest in the dream itself. Wanting it to
continue is not inevitable. See clearly your condition, your very
clarity will release you.
Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
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Michael Being_One
Several weeks ago, my wife and I traveled to Las Vegas for a
clothing trade show.
For years, black youth have inspired the fashion industry. Much of
American fashion comes from the inner city.
As we passed the main entrance, I noticed a group of models. There
were ten or twelve black youth still-posing, all wearing this years
latest statement.
They were hardly noticed by the on-rush of convention goers.
We walked past like the rest, but then I returned and stood in front of
them.
"Oh my........You're all so beautiful".
I hadn't intended to say those words out loud.
It felt a little awkward.
I watched for any reaction from the group.......................
three seconds..............six seconds...... nothing............no one
moved.........no one blinked.......
damn.............that was a stupid thing to say..........
I was about to turn away when the young lady, third from the left,
looked into my eyes..........and broke out in the most wonderful smile.
You know........like sometimes when the sun breaks free from the
clouds and rushes over you with warmth.
I was familiar with The Smile, but everytime It comes...........the
world disappears.........
My wife returned to where I was standing and put her arm under
mine.
We turned into the crowd...
"Did you see that smile?" I asked.
"Oh yes" she said........and smiled at me.
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Gloria Spiritual-Friends
It is too clear and so it is hard to see.
A dunce once searched for a fire with a
lighted lantern.
Had he known what fire was,
He could have cooked his rice much sooner.
- Joshu Washes the Bowl, The Gateless Gate #7
Zen Flesh, Zen Bones, p. 176
Translated by Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki
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Diana Being_One
A leaf on the river cannot dictate the rivers course.
If nations are destined to collide......individual puppets have no
power to intercede.
--Michael
And yet we act, Michael. Puppets, or instruments? Your 'involuntary'
remark, heard by that child, who can say how that smile will
reverberate through her life and that of those she touches?
A very long time ago, i read a story "complete on these two pages,"
in Reader's Digest. It was about a lady and a skunk. The skunk had
trapped its head in a discarded Yoplait container. You know the ones
that narrow at the top? And the lady had all the reluctance and fear of
dealing with it. She called around to all the places she could think of,
to no avail. With no assistance forthcoming, she steeled herself and
went out and by holding the container, allowed the skunk to wiggle
itself free. She wrote there was that moment, in which they regarded
one another. And then the skunk turned and made its way back to the
woods. And she realized that sometimes, you are the agent God has
placed to do what must be done.
In all these years, never have i forgotten this story, complete on those
two pages.
All love
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Jerry Katz NDS
Enough Day
from Vyoma: <http://www.livejournal.com/users/vyoma/>
(i learned about this from fireceremony and iamom):
September 11: Enough Day. Dubya, acting upon a joint
resolution of Congress, has declared September 11 to be
Patriot Day. According to his proclamation, we're
supposed to "...observe this day with appropriate
ceremonies and activities..." and to "...display the
flag at half-staff from their homes and observe a moment
of silence at 8:46 a.m. EDT," this in honor of the
Americans who died in the terorist attack.
You know, personally I think this just stinks to hell. I
have a better idea, so I'm making a proclamation of my
own, which of course is completely unendorsed by any US
politicians I'm aware of.
I'm declaring September 11 "International Enough Day."
Enough flag-waving, enough violence, enough nationalism.
Enough already. September 11 was not an American
tragedy, it was a human tragedy. It was a tragedy not
just for the people in the US who died, but for every
innocent person killed as a result of the US reaction to
the attacks as well. It was a tragedy for the human
spirit, regardless of nationality, religion, and
anything else.
On September 11, let's say "Enough." No more killing.
Let's remember not only the victims of the hijacked
airplanes in the US, but of the embassy bombings in
Kenya and Tanzania in 1998. Let's remember all the
Israelis killed by Palestinian bombers and all the
Palestinians killed by Israeli troops. Let's remember
all the innocent people slain by Union Carbide in
Bhopal, India in 1984. Let's take the day to contemplate
the people who've been victims of genocidal warfare in
Africa, and the ones who've starved to death because of
political games as well. Let's remember the victims of
the Holocaust and of the firebombing of Dresden, too.
Let's not forget those who were slain in the Mai Lai
Massacre. Instead of waving the flag of one nation and
thinking only about our own dead, let's make September
11 a day to remember all the people who've died at the
hands of someone else's political agenda through no
fault of their own, and let's say enough. We should
stand up and disavow this, no matter what country we're
in, no matter what religion we are, no matter our
political affiliation or status or race or anything
else.
If we had a moment of silence marking the time of every
attrocity ever committed in the name of nationalism,
religion... every attrocity committed in the name of the
artificial borders that try to make us forget that we're
all human, all in this together, all fragile creatures
whose lives can be snuffed out in an instant through no
fault of our own... then we would never speak again.
So we here in America should, I think, observe September
11 as the day when the nightmares that humans around the
world have been living with for decades came lumbering
ashore on the East Coast of the US. We should see it for
what it is; the day the US truly experienced the horror
that rings like a bell around the globe, from South
America to the Middle East to Micronesia, the day we
joined the human race at a most profound and fundamental
level.
There should be no "Patriot Day," no day to further
emphasize thaty we're different. Instead, let's say
"Enough." Enough of putting the interests of any one
nation above the interests of the human race. Enough
dwelling on our small differences. Enough killing each
other over them. Enough hate, enough fear, enough
hunger, enough violence, enough bombing, enough enough
enough ENOUGH.
We should each find our own way of expressing this. A
moment of silence... or perhaps a day of silence.
Meditation, art, whatever it is that you do... do it.
Take the day to celebrate the lives of all of us --
wherever we're from and whatever we believe -- who are
still here, and think on those -- wherever they were,
whenever they were and whatever they were -- who weren't
so lucky. Take the day to remember the fragility of
human life and all the nightmares wrought by those who
wanted to impose their will upon the whole of humanity.
Commit no act of violence, however small. Let go of any
hatred and prejudice and thirst for revenge and, for one
day, see yourself in the other and the other in
yourself.
Do whatever you do, and do it to say ENOUGH.
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John Metzger NDS
David Loy - Nonduality of Good and Evil, Buddhist Reflections, New Holy War
http://www.algonet.se/~d58155/features/2002/Loy_NondualityGoodEvil.html