17th KarmapaRecognizing our intimate dependence on the natural environment allows us to see its true value and treasure it. One reason that people living in cities nowadays need to be told so much about the importance of caring for the earth is because they did not grow up feeling direct, unmediated connections to it. For them, nature is something that one visits in city parks or on excursions out into the countryside. When we are raised in urban environments, our sense for the natural environment is more remote because we rarely witness our fundamental reliance upon it. Nature seems like a pretty backdrop to our lives, something that adds to the scenery but is basically optional. We are obstructed from seeing how the natural environment is the very stage on which our lives play out. Without the conditions that arise from our environment, nothing whatsoever can take place.
Buddha never created any kind of religion ~ Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche
Namkhai Norbu RinpocheIn general, people say, ‘We are following Dharma”, and speak of it as a kind of religion created by Buddha Shakyamuni. That is not a correct point of view. Buddha never created any kind of school or religion. Buddha was a totally enlightened being, someone beyond our limited point of view. The teaching of the Buddha is to have presence in that knowledge.”
Bowing ~ Shunryu Suzuki
Shunryu SuzukiBowing is a very important practice for diminishing our arrogance and egotism. It is not to demonstrate complete surrender to Buddha. This practice is to help get rid of our own selfishness
Not rooted in anything ~ Thrangu Rinpoche
Thrangu RinpocheWhat is clinging to a self rooted in? Actually, it is not rooted in anything. If we see that, then naturally ego-clinging will not happen. The reason it has no root is that when we look for the object that we are clinging to as “me,” as a self, we cannot find it.
Assuring a good future ~ Thich Nhat Hanh
Thich Nhat HanhThe future is made up of only one substance and that is the present moment. By taking care of the present, you are doing everything you can to assure a good future.
He is called bhikkhu ~ Buddha Shakyamuni
Buddha ShakyamuniHe who does not take the mind-and-body aggregate (nama-rupa) as “I and mine”, and who does not grieve over the dissolution (of mind and body) is, indeed, called a bhikkhu.
Just another concept ~ Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche
Namkhai Norbu RinpocheBut it can happen that a phrase intended to indicate a state beyond concepts just becomes another concept in itself, in the same way that if you ask a person their name and they reply that they have no name, you will then perhaps mistakenly call them ‘No name’.
A practicing Buddhist ~ Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche
Dzongsar Khyentse RinpocheAs long as you accept and practice these four truths (all compounded things are impermanent, all emotions are pain, all things have no inherent existence, nirvana is beyond concepts) you are a “practicing Buddhist.” You might read about these four truths for the sake of entertainment or mental exercise, but if you don’t practice them, you are like a sick person reading the label on a medicine bottle but never taking the medicine. On the other hand, if you are practicing, there is no need to exhibit that you are Buddhist. As a matter of fact, if it helps you to get invited to some social functions, it is totally fine to hide that you are a Buddhist. But keep in mind that as a Buddhist, you have a mission to refrain as much as possible from harming others, and to help others as much as possible. This is not a huge responsibility, because if you genuinely accept and contemplate the truths, all these deeds flow naturally.
Just a single speck of dust ~ Saigyo
SaigyoOn the clear mirror,
just a single speck of dust.
And yet, looking
closely, we see it before
all else — people thinking thus.
Touching the core of our equality ~ 17th Karmapa
17th KarmapaEmpathy enables us to reach across differences and connect as equals. It does so by cutting straight through the walls that we build up around us and allowing us to touch the core of our equality: the ability to experience pain and joy
Practicing loving kindness meditation ~ Thich Nhat Hanh
Thich Nhat HanhPracticing loving kindness meditation is like digging deep into the ground until we reach the purest water. We look deeply into ourselves until insight arises and our love flows to the surface. Joy and happiness radiate from our eyes, and everyone around us benefits from our smile and our presence. If we take good care of ourselves, we help everyone. We stop being a source of suffering to the world, and we become a reservoir of joy and freshness. Here and there are people who know how to take good care of themselves, who live joyfully and happily. They are our strongest support. Whatever they do, they do for everyone.
Don’t focus on it ~ Bodhidharma
BodhidharmaIf, as in a dream, you see a light brighter than the sun, your remaining attachments will suddenly come to an end and the nature of reality will be revealed. Such an occurrence serves as the basis for enlightenment. But this is something only you know. You can’t explain it to others.
Or if, while you’re walking, standing, sitting, or lying in a quiet grove, you see a light, regardless of whether it’s bright or dim, don’t tell others and don’t focus on it. It’s the light of your own nature.
Of if, while you’re walking, standing, sitting, or lying in the stillness and darkness of night, everything appears as though in daylight, don’t be startled. It’s your own mind about to reveal itself.
Or if, while you’re dreaming at night, you see the moon and stars in all their clarity, it means the workings of your mind are about to end. But don’t tell others.
Free from the extreme of existence and that of nonexistence ~ Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche
Dilgo Khyentse RinpocheThis empty nature, the lack of intrinsic existence in phenomena, does not imply a blank naught in which there is nothing at all, as we find in the view of the nihilists. According to relative truth, all phenomena arise as a result of the interdependent conjunction of causes and conditions. This enables us to explain not only how samsara is formed but also it is possible to progress toward nirvana. There is no contradiction between the absolute nature and its infinite display and, because of this, one is free from the extreme of existence and that ofnonexistence,
The essence of afflictions ~ Thrangu Rinpoche
Thrangu RinpocheWhen a strong affliction such as anger arises, we have the unbearable feeling that we need to hurt someone or say something mean, but where is the affliction? What is its essence? When we examine it and meditate, we see that its essence is by nature empty. If we realize this, it automatically has no power and disappears.
We can’t ignore our reality ~ Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche
Namkhai Norbu RinpocheSomeone who begins to develop an interest in the teachings can tend to distance themselves from the reality of material things, as if the teachings were something completely apart from daily life. Often, at the bottom of all this, there is an attitude of giving up and running away from one’s own problems, with the illusion that one will be able to find something that will miraculously help one to transcend all that. But the teachings are based on the principle of our actual human condition. We have a physical body with all its various limits: each day we have to eat, work, rest, and so on. This is our reality, and we can’t ignore it.
The roots of Buddhist practice ~ 17th Karmapa
17th KarmapaHumans are set apart from other types of sentient beings by their ability to naturally connect with sharp intelligence and with nonviolence, loving-kindness, and compassion. From the moment we are born, we are constantly chasing after happiness, thinking of ways we can become happy and free from suffering, and we actively try to bring those desires to fruition. The propensities toward loving-kindness, compassion, and nonviolence we display in following this quest for happiness demonstrate what makes human beings unique.
For any species of sentient being to continue existing, the members of that species must have affection for each other and they must support each other. In order for our human community to survive, we must nurture and sustain connections of love, compassion, nonviolence, and altruism. These connections are what will allow us not only to survive, but to make our lives meaningful. If we concentrate on ensuring that these connections are present, that in itself will be enough.
All of the Buddha’s teachings are based on refraining from harming others and engaging in helping others. It is therefore of great importance for Buddhists to have these two principles as the ground of their practice. The roots of Buddhist practice are the attitudes of altruism and non-harm. In other words, the roots of Buddhist practice are loving-kindness and compassion.
I like suffering ~ Patrul Rinpoche
Patrul RinpocheI don’t like happiness, I like suffering:
If I am happy, the five poisons increase.
If I suffer, my past bad karma is exhausted.
I don’t value high positions, I like low ones.
If I am important, my pride and jealousy increase;
If I am lowly, I relax and my spiritual practice grows.
The lowest place is the seat of the saints of the past.
A Buddhas love ~ Thubten Chodron
Thubten ChodronWe ordinary beings see love as a limited commodity; it’s a fixed pie and we feel we only have a limited amount. “If I give some to you, I can’t give as much to others. And if I give it to everybody else, I can’t give it to you.” That kind of love has strings and conditions attached. It’s a narrow and limited understanding of what love means; it’s not the kind of love Tara has. A Buddhas love remains constant. It is shared with everyone, no matter how they treat that Buddha. Tara’s love and compassion do not depend upon whether other people like her or not, whether others praise her or not, whether they go along with her ideas or not.
Attention and relaxation ~ Alan Wallace
Alan WallaceMeditation is a balancing act between attention and relaxation.
Our concepts about our world ~ Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche
Nyoshul Khen RinpocheOur perceptions and thinking process are very limited. We see our world as something huge, and we think it is permanent and stable, indestructible like a diamond, immovable like a great mountain. But in fact this way of thinking is only our concepts about it.