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Issue #1320 - Wednesday, January 15, 2003 - Editor: Jerry
Queen Latifah's Party Douglas Bourgeois
http://www.crt.state.la.us/arts/visual/FellowsCatalog/bourgeois.html
Harsha
NDS
Nonduality by its nature does not involve rejection of
duality.
One starts where one already is, one travels where one
already is, and one ends up where one already is, but
this need not imply that there is never a journey from
any perspective. In the journey of life, faith and
trust in the Guru can play and do play a role. The
Guru may be Jesus, or Krishna, or Buddha, or Ramana or
someone of your choice. You need not have a social
relationship with the Guru. The Guru is always the
Self and is reflected in outer gurus.
My teacher used to say that a real teacher is like an
ice cube. He cools your consciousness and then
disappears leaving no trace. Self-Realization is like
that. It leaves no trace of the path, but road maps
are drawn anyway. They are not bad, these road maps,
so no need to discount them. They may not be perfect,
but perfection is not required, because perfection is
already inherent in us.
A True Guru is like a bridge. One end of the bridge
invites one to use one's energy and start walking
(that is the method). The other end of the bridge
invites one to rest (that is the goal). The last step
is not easy and so there is the Guru existing as the
bridge inviting us to take it. Faith and trust are
helpful at some stage. To allow for that faith to
flower is Grace. Guru is Grace.
Once the bridge is crossed, the method and the goal
merges and the bridge disappears in Pure
Consciousness. The ancients called It Sat-Chit-Ananda.
That being the Self-Nature or the Heart. Sat means
that which is Self-Existence, Chit means Consciousness
which is fully aware of ItSelf as Self-Knowledge.
Ananda means that which is Self-Bliss. One monolithic
whole described as three from the perspective of the
mind, but One simultaneously. Fully empty of all
things and yet Fullness It Self. That is the sheer
beauty of It!
One can enjoy words and philosophy and still remain
indifferent to rigid positions and views. To be easy
and natural is the way. What is easiesterst thing to
do for you. Perhaps it's just breathing in and
breathing out and blessing the whole cosmos with each
breath.
Love to all
Harsha
Avocado
The Dharma is like an Avocado!
Some parts so ripe you can't believe it,
But it's good.
And other places hard and green
Without much flavor,
Pleasing those who like their eggs well-cooked.
And the skin is thin,
The great big round seed
In the middle,
Is your own Original Nature --
Pure and smooth,
Almost nobody ever splits it open
Or ever tries to see
If it will grow.
Hard and slippery,
It looks like
You should plant it -- but then
It shoots out thru the
fingers --
gets away.
-- Gary Snyder, contributed to NDS by Joseph Riley
Gill Earley
Allspirit
Four Reliances
When Sakyamuni was about to enter nirvana, he said to the
bhiksus,
"From this day on, rely on dharma, not on people who teach
it. Rely
on the meaning, not on the words. Rely on wisdom, not on the
working of the mind. Rely on the sutras that fully express the
meaning,
not on those that do not.
http://www.shinranworks.com/majorexpositions/kgssVI-68_72.htm
To abide in the dharma and not the person
To abide in Sutras of Ultimate Truth and not in Sutras of
Incomplete Truth
To abide in the meaning and not the word
To abide in Wisdom and not in Consciousness
http://www.buddhistdoor.com/passissue/9602/sources/teach2.htm#t4
Rely on the message of the teacher, not on his personality;
Rely on the meaning, not just on the words;
Rely on the real meaning, not just the provisional one;
Rely on your wisdom mind, not on your ordinary, judgmental mind
Michael Read
NDS
http://www.terebess.hu/english/gateless.html
CASE 30. BASO'S VERY MIND
Daibai asked Baso, What is the Buddha?"
Baso answered, "The mind is the Buddha."
Mumon's Comments:
If you fully understand Baso's meaning, you are wearing Buddha's
clothes, eating Buddha's food, speaking Buddha's words, doing
Buddha's deeds, that is to say, you are Buddha himself. But Baso
misled not a few people into erroring the principles of Zen. He
does not realize that if we explain the word "Buddha"
we must rinse our mouths for three days afterwards. If he is a
man of understanding, he would cover his ears and run away
hearing Baso say, "The mind is the Buddha!"
Under blue
sky, in bright sunlight,
One need not search around,
Asking around what Buddha is,
is liking the stolen goods in one's pocket and declaring oneself
innocent.
The Journey
Mary Oliver
One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice--
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
"Mend my life!"
each voice cried.
But you didn't stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do--
determined to save
the only life you could save.
contributed by Gill Eardley to Allspirit
Joseph Riley
Panhala
If It Is Not Too Dark
Go for a walk, if it is not too dark.
Get some fresh air, try to smile.
Say something kind
To a safe-looking stranger, if one happens by.
Always exercise your heart's knowing.
You might as well attempt something real
Along this path:
Take your spouse or lover into your arms
The way you did when you first met.
Let tenderness pour from your eyes
The way the Sun gazes warmly on the earth.
Play a game with some children.
Extend yourself to a friend.
Sing a few ribald songs to your pets and plants -
Why not let them get drunk and wild!
Let's toast
Every rung we've climbed on Evolution's ladder.
Whisper, "I love you! I love you!"
To the whole mad world.
Let's stop reading about God -
We will never understand Him.
Jump to your feet, wave your fists,
Threaten and warn the whole Universe
That your heart can no longer live
Without real love!
("I Heard God Laughing - Renderings of Hafiz" by
Daniel Ladinsky)
Temple of Life
We sat by the fire
United in song
Under the moonlight
All night long
We sang hall
For the joy of it all
And out on the water
A caroling moon
Sings just a sweet
Heavenly tune
There's peace in God's forest
The temple of life
Halleluyah
Halleluyah
We looked to the sky
Deep into heaven's eyes
Halleluyah
And back in the city
I'm losing control
I need a place
To ease my soul
There's peace in God's temple
The temple of life
Halleluyah
Halleluyah
We looked to the sky
Deep into heaven's eyes
Halleluyah
Halleluyah
Halleluyah
We looked to the sky
Deep into heaven's eyes
Halleluyah
Halleluyah
Halleluyah
Praise your name, God
Halleluyah
We looked to the sky
Deep into heaven's eyes
Halleluyah
Thank you, Jesus
We praise your name
Thank you Lord
Halleluyah
We looked to the sky
Deep into heaven's eyes
Halleluyah
We praise your name, Lord
We love you.... (fade out)
Avril Lavigne, submitted to NDS
Freyja
NDS
Walking the tightrope
of more-better-new-improved
Taking care not to fall
into the pit of
All is not as it should be
J.P.
NDS
Found on ancient Sumerian tablets:
"The esoteric significance of the Nondual Waffle is to be
found somewhere between the butter and the crust - between the
syrup and the knife - between the Yum! and the Ah!"
Nina
NDS
journey through an abandoned insane asylum
I have often taken buildings as appearing in dream and
imagination as
clues to the inner structures.
http://www.sundanceonlinefilmfestival.com/shorts01_03.html#
Michael Read
NDS
{sent to me by my dear friend, jan. Thanks}
Things It Takes Most Of Us 50 years to learn:
The badness of a movie is directly proportional
to the number of helicopters in it.
You will never find anybody who can give you a
clear and compelling reason why we observe
daylight-saving time.
You should never say anything to a woman that
even remotely suggests you think she's pregnant
unless you can see an actual baby emerging from
her at that moment.
The one thing that unites all human beings,
regardless of age, gender, religion, economic
status or ethnic background, is that, deep down
inside, we ALL believe that we are above-average
drivers.
There comes a time when you should stop
expecting other people to make a big deal about
your birthday. That time is: age 11.
There is a very fine line between "hobby" and
"mental illness."
People who want to share their religious views
with you almost never want you to share yours
with them.
If you had to identify, in one word, the reason
why the human race has not achieved, and never
will achieve, its full potential, that word would
be "meetings."
The main accomplishment of almost all organized
protests is to annoy people who are not in them.
If there really is a God who created the entire
universe with all of its glories, and he decides
to deliver a message to humanity, he will NOT use
as his messenger a person on cable TV with a bad
hairstyle or in some cases, really bad make-up too.
You should not confuse your career with your life.
A person who is nice to you, but rude to the
waiter/janitor, is not a nice person.
No matter what happens, somebody will find a way
to take it too seriously.
When trouble arises and things look bad, there is
always one individual who perceives a solution and
is willing to take command. Very often, that
individual is crazy.
Your true friends love you, anyway.
Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up
and dance.
AgAyam pOla vakilaththi nuLveLiyAn
sAgAdhAn sarva samansiddhan - drEgAdhi
yAvatRum patRatRA nendRumama lansaliyA
nAvanA nendRE yaRi
Transliteration
"(1) He (the Self), the One (abiding) within and
outside the universe, like
the sky,
(2) He, the undying, He, the One equal to All, He,
the Ever-Liberated -
(3) He, the One unattached to everything beginning
from the body,
He, the Ever-Blemishless,
He, the Immutable,
(4) He is I," know thus.
Translation
of Sri Bhagawan's Tamil Atma Bodha verse 35
Yours in Sri Bhagawan
RK Shankar
from the I Am list