Bits and Pieces

Stop, stop, no need to speak!
My Law is wonderful and difficult to ponder.
Those who are overbearingly arrogant
When they hear it, will never show reverent belief.

Dynamic Meditation, to physically dramatize thoughts,
is taught by the Osho community--
Step One: Deep fast chaotic breathing for up to ten minutes;
Step two: Playfully act out all your madness or anger;
Step Three: Jump straight up and down for five minutes or so, and shout ‘Hoo!’
Step Four: Stop, freeze exactly as you are in an extended vertical position;
Step Five: Celebrate and rejoice through dance. (Active Meditation)

Here is proof that we can all live a better life:
In Nargajuna’s Examination of the Four Noble Truths,
he succinctly explains the message of Buddha’s lesson
about the abstract nature of suffering:
“If suffering had an essence,
Its cessation would not exist.
So if an essence is posited,
One denies cessation.” (Nargajuna, pg. 70)

So the conclusion is -- that suffering is "empty,"
an optional or unnecessary experience.

Far more Western people experience Yoga, and embrace part of those teachings than engage in buddhism. But what is the difference?

Yoga is not a theoretical system but a practical one,
in which the practice must lead to an end result:
a new way of looking at the world…”
and includes the following
(and if it doesn not include all of these aspects,
it is a shallow, superficial exercise routine...)

“(Ethical and spiritual practices)
1. Yama (self-restraint)
2. Niyama (personal observances);

(Physical Practices)
3. Asana (physical training)
4. Pranayama (breath control);

(Meditation Practices)
5. Pratyahara (withdrawing the senses)
6. Dharana (Concentration)
7. Dhayana (meditation)
8. Samadhi (absorption).” (Forstater, pp, 58-71)
(Compare to The Eight-fold Path.)
There is a popular symbol of a multiple armed dancer,
that symbolism is a frequent feature of Indian and yoga iconography.
Rational Buddhists can certainly embrace the goal
of changing an individual’s perspective on the world,
and benefit from the practices and discipline taught by Yoga...

But Buddha’s perspective on the world,
once he experienced enlightenment, sounds quite different;
the Buddha said: “...The other extreme to be avoided
is devotion to ascetic practices that punish the body.
This is nothing but empty suffering
and does nothing for the sake
of attaining the ideal of enlightenment.” (Mizuno, pg. 32)

Can Enlightenment be the result of progress in former lives?
— who knows and does it matter?
– but for sure in this life
– as a result of cleansing, virtuous living,
calm meditation, showing compassion and faith
all this makes life important and worth living and sharing.
“The brilliance of his [her] wisdom
will be like the shining of the sun;
Even in his [her] dreams
he [she] will see only wonderful things.” (Watson, pg. 210)

I have no wings, yet
I fly across the ocean
An albatross, a gull. (IHJ, 18/5/09) Written in route to Thailand.

My Pain talks to me
About growing old, slowly
But I ignore it. (IHJ, 18/5/09)

Perhaps, if we wish to loose weight, for example,
we have to learn to gain our comfort from other than eating.
Sit well rooted
In the tree’s shade daily
Birds- sing nirvana. (IJ, 2007)

There is one idea
That dwells in my mind each day
Happiness to all.

Everyone has the key to happiness…
you just have to choose the right lock.

You can’t have rosy thoughts about the future
when your mind is full of blues about the past. (wellpage.com)

This is a special day if you make (or listen to) music!

Samahito names a flower
When our colorful clothing shines
as the gleam in our eyes. (IJ 2007)

We cannot direct the wind,
but we can adjust our sails.

Spreading happiness is like painting…
you can’t help but get a few drops on yourself.

Life is the greatest bargain,
we get it for nothing.

The seeds of happiness are free,
so plant them often. (wellpage.com)


One image of a person is their shadow
except at noon it is emptiness
then at night it is fullness. IHJ

Thich Nhat Hanh once wrote:
‘If you are a poet,
you will see that there is a cloud
in this sheet of paper.
Without a cloud, there will be no rain;
without rain, the trees cannot grow;
and without trees, we cannot make paper’.” (Chan, pg. 119)
(This chain of causality is what we see as anatta.)

“Waking up this morning, I smile.
Twenty-four brand new hours are before me.
I vow to live fully in each moment
And to look at all beings with eyes of compassion.” (Hanh, pg. 102)


“May the merit of this action
be shared by all beings everywhere,
so that they may come to the end of suffering.”