17th KarmapaThe Buddha taught that ultimately, the only true and lasting happiness in this world comes from changing our focus from ourselves to others. When we sincerely wish and work for the happiness and benefit of others, we create our own happiness and make our lives truly meaningful.
Shantideva expressed this very well in the Way of the Bodhisattva:
May I become at all times, both now and forever: a protector for those without protection; a guide for those who have lost their way; a ship for those with oceans to cross; a bridge for those with rivers to cross; a sanctuary for those in danger; a lamp for those without light; a place of refuge for those who lack shelter; and a servant to all in need.
A prison of our own making ~ 17th Karmapa
17th KarmapaWhen we seek happiness, it should not be just for ourselves. The self that wishes only for its own happiness is mistaken. From the Buddhist point of view, that self does not even exist in the way we think it does. Seeing ourselves as the centre of the universe is like being trapped inside a prison of our own making. It has a negative, distorting effect on all our relationships. But if we think carefully about how things really exist, we come to understand that essentially there is no difference between ourselves and others. They are a part of us, and we are a part of them.
Your own ignorance betrays you ~ Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche
Dzongsar Khyentse RinpocheIgnorance is simply not knowing the facts, having the facts wrong, or having incomplete knowledge. All of these forms of ignorance lead to misunderstanding and misinterpretation, overestimation and underestimation.
Suppose that you are searching for your friend and you see him in a distant field. When you approach, you discover that you have mistaken a scarecrow for your friend. You are bound to be disappointed. It is not as if either the mischievous scarecrow or your friend tried sneakily to mislead you, it is your own ignorance that betrayed you.
Living harmoniously with others ~ 17th Karmapa
17th KarmapaWhatever is good or bad for you is likely to be so for others. If you want to get along with people, apply your own experience and give others what they need. Use your common sense to live more harmoniously with others.
Enjoying the bliss of ignorance ~ Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche
Dzongsar Khyentse RinpocheThe only reason we have to feel confident that we will reach the top of the stairs or that our airplane will take off and land safely at our destination is that we are enjoying the bliss of ignorance.
But this bliss doesn’t last long, for the bliss of ignorance is nothing more than constant overestimation that the odds of probability will work in our favor, and an underestimation of the obstacles.
Of course, causes and conditions do come together and things do happen as we anticipated, but we take this kind of success for granted. We use it as proof that it should not be otherwise, that our assumptions are well-founded. But such assumptions are just food for misunderstanding.
Acceptance of what we have ~ Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche
Chagdud Tulku RinpocheYoung people think their lives will last a long time; old people think life will end soon. But we can’t assume these things. Our life comes with a built-in expiration date. There are many strong and healthy people who die young, while many of the old and sick and feeble live on and on. Not knowing when we’ll die, we need to develop an appreciation for and acceptance of what we have, while we have it, rather than continuing to find fault with our experience and seeking, incessantly, to fulfill our
desires.If we find ourselves worrying whether our nose is too big or too small, we should think, “What if I had no head – now that would be a problem!” As long as we have life, we should rejoice. If everything doesn’t go exactly as we’d like, we can accept it. If we contemplate impermanence deeply, patience and compassion will arise. We will hold less to the apparent truth of our experience, and the mind will become more flexible. Realizing that one day this body will be buried or burned, we will rejoice in every moment we have rather than make ourselves or others unhappy.
The union of clarity and emptiness ~ Padampa Sangye
Padampa SangyeClarity and emptiness united are like the moon reflecting in water;
People of Tingri, there is nothing to be attached to and nothing to impede.
Be yourself first ~ Thich Nhat Hanh
Thich Nhat HanhWe do so much, we run so quickly, the situation is difficult, and many people say, “Don’t just sit there, do something.” But doing more things may make the situation worse. So you should say, “Don’t just do something, sit there.” Sit there, stop, be yourself first, and begin from there.
Enjoying with awareness ~ Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche
Namkhai Norbu RinpocheIf we are spiritual practitioners we feel contempt for samsaric situations; we are not seriously or deeply interested in them. This does not mean that we feel disgust for or reject everything. In our life, all is relative. In our life, not everything is how it should be, nonetheless we continue to live. We accept and integrate the various circumstances of life. This is part of our awareness. To accept everything with awareness is different from being completely attached. Some people have an exaggerated liking for this or that: this is attachment. However, it does not mean that if you are a good practitioner you cannot have likings. You can like and enjoy with awareness. In the samsaric condition, we possess five or six senses, and with the senses we enjoy contact with objects. When we see an object, a flower for example, we may like it. We observe its beauty and smell its fragrance. We enjoy looking and smelling. To enjoy with awareness means to know the real nature of the object and not become attached to it. In this way, we enjoy without having negative consequences. If we are not aware, we become distracted with our liking for the flower; we want to possess the flower and attempt to have it. Thus, attachment increases, releasing all other emotions, with the ensuing negative karma. In brief, if one is aware and undistracted the enjoyment of the senses does not pose any problem. If one is distracted, enjoyment always bears negative consequences, even if things appear joyful and gratifying. For that reason, the teaching says that all is illusion. When we see a nice object and we become attached, we resemble a moth which, attracted by a flame at night, flies into it, burns, and dies.
Appreciating the whole cycle of impermanence ~ Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche
Dzongsar Khyentse RinpocheWe usually appreciate only half of the cycle of impermanence. We can accept birth but not death, accept gain but not loss, or the end of exams but not the beginning. True liberation comes from appreciating the whole cycle and not grasping onto those things that we find agreeable. By remembering the changeability and impermanence of causes and conditions, both positive and negative, we can use them to our advantage. Wealth, health, peace, and fame are just as temporary as their opposites.
The play of illusion ~ Longchenpa
LongchenpaWithout the slightest trace of anything to cultivate or focus upon in meditation, don’t allow yourself to drift even for a single instant into ordinary confusion. Instead, remain aware and undistracted during all activities, and train to recognize all sights and sounds and sensory experience as the play of illusion. In so doing, you will gain experience for the bardo state.
To be truly happy ~ Khenpo Gangshar
Khenpo GangsharFrom time to time, contemplate the karmic law of cause and effect; take the suffering of others upon yourself, and offer whatever comfort and virtue you may have to others.
In the practice of the giving and taking of happiness and suffering, difficulty isn’t to be rejected, nor comfort sought. Simply relax. To be without ideas of good and bad, or hope and fear, enables you to be joyful in any company, to be cheerful wherever you may find yourself — surely this is what it means to be truly happy!
Relying on the instructions of your own qualified teacher ~ Chatral Rinpoche
Chatral RinpocheIt’s far better to eliminate your doubts and misconceptions,
By relying on the instructions of your own qualified teacher,
Than to receive many different teachings and never take them any further.
Preparing for the uncertainty of the time of death ~ Longchenpa
LongchenpaShould we fail to prepare for the uncertainty of the time of death, we will not accomplish the great purpose, that which we will surely need when we die.
No substitute for being guided by a guru ~ Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche
Dzongsar Khyentse RinpocheSadly, in recent years, the word guru has all but lost its original meaning. The deluded beings of this time are greedy for everything pure and stainless, so they grab at the principle of the guru, spoil it, reject it and then move on to another perfect treasure to lay waste. It has happened far too often and as a result gurus are now mistrusted in the modern world and often ridiculed in popular culture. Nevertheless, for someone serious about following a spiritual path there is no substitute for being guided by a guru.
This world ~ Ryokan
RyokanThis world
A fading
Mountain echo
Void and
UnrealWithin
A light snow
Three Thousand Realms
Within those realms
Light snow fallsAs the snow
Engulfs my hut
At dusk
My heart, too
Is completely consumed
What is the mark of enlightenment ~ Ryokan
RyokanMy life may appear melancholy,
But traveling through this world
I have entrusted myself to Heaven.In my sack, three quarts of rice;
By the hearth, a bundle of firewood.If someone asks what is the mark of
enlightenment or illusion
I cannot say –
wealth and honor are nothing but dust.As the evening rain falls
I sit in my hermitage
And stretch out both feet in answer.
Blending our own mind with the Dharma ~ Longchenpa
LongchenpaIf realization does not dawn from within, dry explanations and theoretical understanding will not bring the fruit of awakening.
To put it simply, unless we blend our own mind with the Dharma, it is pointless merely to adopt the guise of a practitioner.
The Three Defects when listening to the Dharma ~ Patrul Rinpoche
Patrul RinpocheNot to listen is to be like a pot turned upside down. Not to be able to retain what you hear is to be like a pot with a hole in it. To mix negative emotions with what you hear is to be like a pot with poison in it. The upside-down pot: when you are listening to the teachings, listen to what is being said and do not let yourself be distracted by anything else. Otherwise you will be like an upside-down pot on which liquid is being poured. Although you are physically present, you do not hear a word of the teaching. The pot with a hole in it: if you just listen without remembering anything that you hear or understand, you will be like a pot with a leak: however much liquid is poured into it, nothing can stay. No matter how many teachings you hear, you can never assimilate them or put them into practice. The pot containing poison: if you listen to the teachings with the wrong attitude, such as the desire to become great or famous, or a mind full of the five poisons, the Dharma will not only fail to help your mind; it will also be changed into something that is not Dharma at all, like nectar poured into a pot containing poison.
Freedom in Eating ~ 17th Karmapa
17th KarmapaIt is true that our cultural environment can affect our eating habits. Yet, we have the freedom to decide to change. We have complete freedom to eat meat or not.
Tibetans live on an arid plateau where herding livestock and eating meat have been central to our culture for millennia. If Tibetans can stop eating meat, so can anyone who lives in a place where vegetables and alternate sources of protein are readily available.
If you need more support against the pressures to eat meat, you could list the reasons why you shouldn’t eat meat, and compare them to the reasons in favour of eating meat.
The reasons individuals eat meat are mainly habit and the desire for pleasure. I am sure you will see that the reasons not to eat meat far outweigh such superficial, short-term reasons.
The reasons to be vegetarian are realistic and sensible, and based on long-term thinking. When we think seriously about the impact that our food practices have on our body, on the environment and on the animals themselves, it is clear that logic supports abstaining from eating meat.
If you decide you want to try to stop eating meat, you can fortify yourself in this way with reason. Empower your mind, and take responsibility for your body. Exercise your wisdom, strengthen your resolve and let your mind take good care of your body.