One thing which has come to me over and over again in recent days is the profound ‘is-ness’ of things. By this, I don’t mean the ‘suchness’, to use Buddhist terminology. What I mean is that when I look at a leaf, it is extraordinary how ‘leafy’ it is …. the texture ripples with extraordinary […]
The ‘Is-ness’ of Things Read Post »
….. my two old boy, sitting on my lap, clasped to me with his little hug, whilst I gently chant and meditate. Moments before, he was mid-tantrum, screaming and kicking … lost in his pain. How beautiful to share those precious moments with him, 5 minutes together, with peace in our hearts. …. how beautifully
I was re-reading one of my favourite blogs this morning – Willow’s ‘Life as a Dervish‘ (blog no longer available). Her blog resonates really strongly, I guess because I’ve also lived abroad for many years in a totally different culture from the one that I was born into. And for me, that experience was just
My Identity is Portable Read Post »
The supreme peerless vehicle of the secret Dzogchen, the Great Completeness, functions to bring you directly into the Sphere of that which is spontaneously there. This sphere, which is the foundation, is unchanging…. It need not be sought for because it is spontaneously present from time immemorial. No trying or effort is required. This path
Longchenpa – Four Themed Precious Garland Read Post »
I have been thinking a lot this last few days about how pretty much any statement you make about approaches to Dharma can be contradicted. I was reflecting on Al’s post the other day: Seated meditation is the arena in which the meditator practices his own fundamental skills. The game the meditator is playing is
Never Absolutely So … Read Post »
The last few days (whilst ill) I’ve been reflecting on how painful it is watching other people suffer. And how hard it is to help them to see the causes of their suffering. So often when we suffer we can see what is going on, where the attachment is, where the resistance to how things
The Compassion Gap Read Post »
I was reflecting this morning on how certain things seem to reach out to me from beyond time and space. They are so deep, so closely connected to me, indeed, they seem to be me in a sense, in the sense that I cannot separate or distinguish between them and me. For example, some dharma
Echoes Beyond Time Read Post »
I will wait. Waiting in the face of the unpleasant, the difficult, the challenging. Waiting in the face of uncertainty, confusion and disorientation. Patience – bearing with that which is hard to bear. Allowing things to be, however they are. Not trying to grasp it and force it to be other. Allowing a young plant
That’s what I would do …. I would wait. One of my strongest memories of Hermann Hesse’s novel Siddhartha, is of a part where the character Siddhartha is asked what can he do … what skills does he have. And Siddhartha’s reply was: I can fast, I can think, and I can wait. SiddharthaHermann Hesse
What do you do when your future disappears like a mirage, and all your plans lie broken ? Years of work, moving forward, step by step, … then gone. The road ahead disappears … but will another take its place? Imagined future gone … but did it ever exist? All that’s left is ‘don’t know’
When Dreams Lie Broken Read Post »
