St. Francis - Prayer

Beloved,

all polarity is perfectly

resolved in Your Peace --

hatred and love, injury and pardon,

doubt and faith, despair and hope,

darkness and light, sadness and joy

are complementary expressions of

essential unity functioning as

Your Play in time and space.

Divine Friend, by Your Grace

all seeking to be consoled,

to be understood,

to be loved

is surpassed by the natural

motive to comfort, heal, and bless,

for it is in relinquishing our demand to be

consoled, understood, forgiven, and loved that

we become true to Love, just as it is

in the death of our willfulness that we are

born to the eternal life of Thy Will.

“Happiness" ~ Lama Guendun Rinpoche

Happiness is not to be found with
many efforts or will.

It is here, nearby, in
your relaxing and surrendering.

Don’t worry,
there is nothing to be done.

Everything that comes up to your mind
has no importance because it
has no reality.

Don’t conceive
any attachment for it.

Don’t judge yourself.

Let it be.

Let it come up and down
without changing a thing.

It all vanishes and begins again,
Endlessly.

Nothing but the quest for happiness
prevents us from seeing it.

It is like a rainbow that
one is always chasing without ever
reaching it.

It is because it has no existence.

It has always been here and
goes with you all the time.

Don’t believe in
the reality of experiences,
good or bad.

They are like rainbows.

Because we want to grasp
what is not to be grasped,
we exhaust our strength in vain.

As soon as we relinquish our hold,
space is here, open, welcoming &
comfortable.

So, do enjoy it.

Everything is yours already.

Stop searching.

Don’t go into the jungle to
look for the elephant that
is quietly waiting for
you at home.

There is nothing to do.

There is nothing to force.

There is nothing to desire.

And all comes by itself.

Life of Lama Guendun Rinpoche

from the Dhammapada Sutra

 “The thought manifests as the word;
The word manifests as the deed;
The deed develops into habit;
And the habit into character.

 So, watch the thought and its ways with care
And let it spring from love
Born out of concern for all Beings.
As the shadow follows the body,
As we think, so we become.”

Dhammapada Sutra   PDF

The Practice of Non-Dwelling - Bob O’Hearn

Photo Alex Shar

“Just let things happen without making any response and keep your minds from dwelling on anything whatsoever; for they who can do this thereby enter nirvana.”

~Ta-chu Hui-hai, Zen Teaching of Instantaneous Awakening

It is an extremely rare one indeed who, upon hearing the truth, is immediately able to drop all their accumulated stories of preference and separation, grasping and aversion, “me and mine”, and fully open their eyes to the real. This is why the old masters, the ones who themselves have awakened and are moreover fit to serve as authentic guides, typically recommend certain preliminary practices that bring one’s whole being into such an available condition that they are then prepared and ready to make the leap beyond the confines of duality and awaken to their own true identity, nature, and condition.

These recommendations include attending to the healing and balancing of the “food” body, the mental body, and the emotional body, for starters. It is also understood that, unless one has gotten straight with “the basics” first, it would be ridiculous to presume that one is capable of fully engaging a practice which requires the pristine concentrative skill and self-mastery (and not just for an hour on a cushion, but 24/7) that a teacher such as Dogen Zenji prescribes:“Do not think of good and bad. Do not care about right and wrong. Stop the driving movement of mind, will, and consciousness. Cease intellectual consideration through images, thoughts, and reflections.”

Just as an athlete might have outstanding potential, but nevertheless must rigorously practice to fulfill that potential, so too are we all born with the innate capacity to realize our prior nature as powerful immortal spiritual beings of the highest order, but few are willing to undertake the preparations necessary to fashion a diamond-pointed arrow of consolidated attention and intention, which can then be summoned to pierce through mind’s habitual overlay of delusions that obscure who and what we truly are.

Among the various time-tested recommendations in this regard, I would offer that the practice of “non-dwelling” is one of the most effective. It is one practice that can transcend any conceptual ideology, sectarian dogma, or religious bias and directly reveal our fundamental innocence.

Essentially, it consists of a sustained refusal to grant reality to that which is not real, or to fixate attention on any of what changes, including one’s transient moods, hopes, desires, fears, memories, schemes, or regrets. In other words, it is refraining from clinging to any mental or emotional formations which would lead to the fabrication of a separate and enduring self-sense.

This practice, when applied with sincerity and consistency, gives the ego-mind (including the “spiritual” ego) no place to land. When starved for attention, the “me-story” begins to disintegrate, and what emerges in its place is free and clear attention, as well as our innate compassion and capacity for true recognition.

The great sage Nisargadatta Maharaj put it succinctly when he said: “Leave your mind alone, that is all. Don’t go along with it. After all, there is no such thing as mind apart from thoughts which come and go obeying their own laws, not yours. They dominate you only because you are interested in them. It is exactly as Christ said ‘Resist not evil’. By resisting evil you merely strengthen it.”

In Zen practice, it is called “no-mind”, or non-abiding mind, which is the true spontaneous condition of one’s own mind when freed of all obscuration and distraction. In Tibetan Buddhist practice, the contemporary Dzogchen teacher Tsoknyi Rinpoche depicts true meditation as “not dwelling in any way whatsoever, and yet totally present throughout everything.” In a nutshell, it is simply self-existing awareness itself.
Another great Dzogchen teacher, Dudjom Rinpoche, put it like this: “Whatever thoughts arise, let them arise. Do not follow after them and do not suppress them. If you ask “In that case, what should I do?” Whatever objective phenomena arise, whatever appears, do not grasp phenomena’s appearing aspect as you rest in a fresh state, like a small child looking inside a temple. When all phenomena are left as they are, their appearance is not modified, their color does not change, and their brilliance does not diminish. If you do not spoil phenomena with clinging and grasping thoughts, appearances and awareness will nakedly manifest as empty and luminous wisdom. Simple recognition of thoughts as they arise breaks their flow. Release thoughts within that recognition. When you remain in that state, arising thoughts will all be liberated equally within awareness.”
In the Christian mystical tradition, John of the Cross shared a similar insight when he wrote, “Beyond human knowledge and understanding, in order to come to union with the wisdom of God, the soul has to proceed rather by unknowing than by knowing. When thy mind dwells upon anything, thou art ceasing to cast thyself upon the All. This perfection consists in voiding and stripping and purifying the soul of every desire. In order to be free and void to that end, (the soul) must in no wise lay hold upon that which it receives, either spiritually or sensually, within itself.”

Essential to the practice of non-dwelling is surrender. That is, all of one’s most cherished beliefs, ideals, and self-images must be released, until there is nothing left to let go of. At that point, insight or recognition into one’s true nature may become spontaneously evident. As the contemporary Theravandin teacher Ajahn Amaro wrote, “The practice of nonabiding is the process of emptying out both the objective and the subjective domains, truly seeing that both the object and subject are intrinsically empty. If we can see that both the subjective and objective are empty, if there’s no real ‘in here’ or ‘out there’, where could the feeling of I-ness and me-ness and my-ness locate itself?”

Nevertheless, even after one experiences a first revelatory awakening to the truth of emptiness, as life-changing as it may be, there usually must follow a substantial period of integration, while all the various “bodies” are brought into full alignment with the truth realized in the initial glimpse. Remarkable mental clarity and insight alone are still not fully indicative of real liberation, as long as the chronic emotionally reactive contraction has not been dealt with sufficiently enough to awaken the heart of unconditional compassion.

If the resulting insight that arises from perseverance in non-dwelling mind is to be truly worth anything, then genuine compassion and humility will shine through in one’s life, filtering into every nook and cranny of one’s being. For that light to manifest, sincere effort is necessary, or as Suzuki Roshi noted, “You are all perfect the way you are, and you could use a little improvement.” Such effort involves consciously creating a life of impeccable integrity, in which every trace of greed, envy, hatred, contrivance, judgmentalism, and emotional/sexual contraction is seen through and transcended, and all relations harmonized.
The good news is that this is all possible, people can and do awaken at the heart, and they do find liberation from the afflictive states of emotional contraction (in so far as such awakening is possible on a relatively low-level war planet such as this realm we are currently touring).

Does this constitute true “Enlightenment”? No, but it does represent a substantial deepening and clarification of vision, as well as an increasingly skillful embodiment of the conscious principle, thus enabling effective adaptation to successively more profound vibrational frequencies of Light.

“You don’t have to do anything with your mind, just let it naturally rest in it’s essential nature. Your own mind, unagitated, is reality. Meditate on this without distraction.

Know the Truth beyond all opposites. Thoughts are like bubbles that form and dissolve in clear water. Thoughts are not distinct from the absolute Reality, so relax, there is no need to be critical.

Whatever arises, whatever occurs, simply don’t cling to it, but immediately let it go. What you see, hear, and touch are your own mind. There is nothing but mind.

Mind transcends birth and death. The essence of mind is pure Consciousness that never leaves reality, even though it experiences the things of the senses. In the equanimity of the Absolute, there is nothing to renounce or attain.”

~Niguma

 Source: Bob O’Hearn 's web site  http://theconsciousprocess.wordpress.com/

Mark Nepo - A conversation with the elements

"We are so close to the Earth that we often forget—it is alive. 

And the language of its aliveness is what we call nature. 

When we listen to nature, we are listening to the Earth. 

Of course, such a conversation takes time, 

because we are too small to readily grasp what the Earth has to say. 

The vast Earth has carried us our whole lives. Can we thank it? 

 It has held up and endured everything for thousands of years.

Can we ask it how? 

It speaks with a thousand tongues, none of which uses words. 

 Yet, to build a relationship with that which holds us up seems essential.

But what can we hear? 

As the smog we’ve created prevents us from seeing the sky, 

the noise of machinery we’ve created prevents us 

from hearing the wind and birds and quiet teachers 

that have always been there. 

When I leave the mechanical hive, even briefly, 

I can tell that the horse runs to know its father, the wind. 

Just the other day, I took a walk where there is no pavement. 

I lost my way and followed two geese 

 until I reached the end of my small logic.”

 http://www.marknepo.com/

Sant Jñāneshwar - Disappear into silence

A flower fades
After it gives birth to the fruit;
The fruit is gone
After it gives up its juice;
And the juice is gone
After it gives satisfaction.

A hand is often drawn back
After the offering of oblations;
A melody ends after giving enjoyment.

A mirror is put aside
After showing to a face its reflection;
And a person goes away
After having awakened one who is asleep.

Similarly, these three,
Chit, Sat, and Ananda,
After awaking the seer to his Self,
Disappear into silence.

William Samuel - The Holy Mountain

PROLOGUE

      There is a story to tell
      but I am the only one here to tell it
      and the only one to listen.
      There is a picture to paint
      but I am the only one here
      with canvas and oil,
      the only one who will see it.
      There is a symphony to play
      yet there is only one here
      to draw the bow.
      This one, the Alone One,
      is the only one here to listen.
      This is as it should be, however,
      for it allows the picture to be painted,
      the symphony sounded
      and the story told as it truly is.
      Then, if there seems an angry word
      in the telling,
      my Listening will never hear it.
      If there seems a distorted scene,
      The Seeing I am will understand it,
      because one alone is here to listen
      to the symphony on this page.
      This one, the Only One,
      Understands His melody! 

 ✿•*¨`*•.༺♥༻ .•*¨`*•✿

 THE HOLY MOUNTAIN

      My son,
I said to the woodman,
      there is a mountain in my kingdom
      from which the universe
      may be surveyed as it really is.
      I will take you there
      as my Father has taken me before.
      From the high place
      the gates of the Heart are flung open,
      the scales drop from the eyes,
      the land is seen in its wholeness
      and the questions that were asked before
      remain silent.
      Look! Even now it is before you!
      This instant it is here!
      Tell me what you see, dear one;
      tell me what you hear.

The woodman answered,
      I see a high mountain with many plateaus
      and a great multitude walking up many paths
      that wind long distances toward the top.
      On each path a herald is proclaiming
      his way the only way,
      and on the many plateaus
      are many ministers shouting,
            "Rest here! View this vista,
            the most beautiful of them all!"

      Yet there is no happiness there
      They curse each other on the different paths
      and stand on every plateau
      in condemnation
      of the higher plateaus.
      I hear judgments of those
      whose vision is not as wide,
      and from the highest plateaus
      come the sermons of those
      who decry duality and deny it—
      in the day they deny,
      but in the night, as I,
      they still cut wood in their jungle:
      they still search the crevasses
      for sustenance;
      they still stagger through their thickets
      and slash.

      Tell me, Father.
      Which path must I follow?
      On which plateau may I rest?

      My son,
I answered the woodman,
      to climb o'er the ground
      from plateau to plateau
      is not the way to go.
      There is no path on the mountain
      that leads all the way to the top
      nor a single place where a woodman
      may let go his axe.
      There is no plateau on any slope
      where one may stop contending with opposites;
      for to climb o'er the ground from goal to goal
      creates the original twoness—
      a climber and the goal.

      Then how, Counselor?
the woodman asked.
      How can I climb the mountain?
      How may I reach the throne?

      Listen softly,
I said to the woodman,
      Listen gently with the heart.
      There is no way there but to BE there.
      This way soars above the ground,
      above the landmarks, above the plateaus,
      swiftly, silently, immediately
      on wings of Love.
      This is how I shall take you there, Beloved—
      in an instant
      in the twinkling of an eye
      on the Wings of the Morning.
      Indeed, the Way there is to be there.
      Then need you not at each plateau
      proclaim it the goal for all
      nor whisper longer of those above
      or admonish the ones below.

      You see, Love is the Key to the mystery.
      Love alone sounds the melody
      heard at the immortal Height.
      Love is the wing that lifts thee there
      and there hands thee the scepter.
      Love has beckoned Me, thy Comforter,
      because you and I are One.
      You and I are Love.

Immediately the measured moment ended
and we stood atop our timeless mountain. 

✿•*¨`*•.༺♥༻ .•*¨`*•✿

excerpt from

The Melody of the Woodcutter and the King
An Account Of An Awakening
by William Samuel (1924-1996)

http://www.williamsamuel.com/

Rumi - The Secret

If your concern is a loaf of bread
then that’s what you are.
If you run after golden treasures
you are going that far!
My friends! To this secret,
open your heart's door:
“Whatever you look for
- will become your core!”

ღ

مولانا

گر در طلب لقمه نانی نانی
گر در طلب گوهر كانی كانی

این نكته رمز اگر بدانی دانی
هر چیز كه اندر پی آنی آنی

Amir Khusraw - Master of the Ceremony

I know not of this lofty place, the night in which I was,
Sacrificial disciples whirling in elation, the night in which I was,
With a nymph-like beloved with cypress-like form 

and tulip-like face,
Playing total havoc with the hearts of the lovers, 

the night in which I was,
God himself was the Master of the Ceremony, 

in His timeless court, O Khusraw!

Rumi - Hidden music

HIDDEN MUSIC

“Rumi: Hidden Music” translated by Maryam Mafi & Azima Malita 

With love you cannot bargain
there, the choice is not yours.
Love is a mirror, it reflects
only your essence, if you have the
courage to look in its face.

To the parched lips of those who
are willing to surrender
Love will bring the wine that
changes darkness into vision,
cruelty into compassion and dust
into precious incense.

Love means to reach for the sky
and with every breath to tear a
hundred veils. Love means to step
away from the ego, to open the eyes
of inner vision and not to take this
world so seriously. 

Like a thief, reason sneaked in and
sat amongst the lovers
eager to give them advice.
They were unwilling to listen, so
reason kissed their feet
and went on its way.

When you plant a tree
every leaf that grows will tell
you, what you sow will bear fruit.
So if you have any sense my friend,
don’t plant anything but love, you
show your worth by what you seek.
Water flows to those who want
purity. Wash your hands of all
desires and come to the table of love. 

If you can’t smell the fragrance
don’t come into the garden of Love.
if you are unwilling to undress
don’t enter into the stream of
Truth. Stay where you are, don’t
come our way. 

From the heart of the lovers, blood
flows like a vast river. Our body is
the windmill, and love, the water.
Without water the mill cannot turn.

Can the essence and the scent
be separate?
Whisper to me intimately, like a
lover for tenderness is rare in this
world.
It is difficult to convey the magic of
love to those who are made of dust.

When you see the face of anger
look behind it and you will see the
face of pride. Bring anger and pride
under your feet, turn them into a
ladder and climb higher. There is
no peace until you become their
master. Let go of anger. It may taste
sweet but it kills. Don’t become it’s
victim, you need humility to climb to
freedom. 

There is a thread from the heart to
the lips where the secret of life is
woven. Words tear the thread
but in silence the secrets speak. 

Do you want me to tell you a
secret? The flowers attract the most
beautiful lover with their sweet
smile and scent. 

To find a pearl dive deep into the
ocean, don’t look in the fountains.
To find a pearl you must emerge from
the water of life always thirsty. 

Do not be flattered by reason,
reason is only the child of the
mind. But true friendship
in born out of love and is the water
of life. 

My dear heart, never think you are
better than others. Listen to their
sorrows with compassion. If you
want peace, don’t harbour bad
thoughts, do not gossip and
don’t teach what you do not know. 

Those who think the heart is only
in the chest take two or three steps
and are content. The rosary, the
prayer rug, and repentance are
paths that they mistake for the
destination.

Seek the wisdom that will untie
your knot. Seek the path
that demands your whole being.
Leave that which is not, but
appears to be, seek that which is,
but is not apparent. 

You are searching the world for
treasure but the real treasure is
yourself. If you are tempted by
bread, you will find only bread.
What you seek for you become. 

Your earthly lover can be very
charming and coquettish but never
very faithful. The true lover is the
one who on your final day
opens a thousand doors. 

First, lay down your head,
then one by one let go of all
distractions. Embrace the light and
let it guide you beyond the winds of
desire. There you will find a spring
and nourished by its sweet waters
like a tree you will bear fruit
forever. 

Why are you so afraid of silence,
silence is the root of everything.
If you spiral into its void
a hundred voices will thunder
messages you long to hear.

You have woken up late,
lost and preplexed
but don’t rush to your books
looking for knowledge.
Pick up a flute instead and
let your heart play. 

Do not look back my friend,
no one knows how the world ever
began. Do not fear the future,
nothing lasts forever. If you dwell
on the past or the future you will
miss the moment.

The Bhagavad Gita - Living in Wisdom

Arjuna:

Tell me of the man who lives in wisdom,
Ever aware of the Self, O Krishna;
How does he talk, how sit, how move about?
  Sri Krishna:

He lives in wisdom
Who sees himself in all and all in him,
Whose love for the Lord of Love has consumed
Every selfish desire and sense-craving
Tormenting the heart. Not agitated
By grief nor hankering after pleasure,
He lives free from lust and fear and anger
Fettered no more by selfish attachments,
He is not elated by good fortune
Nor depressed by bad. Such is the seer.

Even as a tortoise draws in its limbs
The sage can draw in his senses at will.
An aspirant abstains from sense-pleasures,
But he still craves for them. These cravings all
Disappear when he sees the Lord of Love.
For even of one who treads the path
The stormy senses can sweep off the mind.
But he lives in wisdom who subdues them,
And keeps his mind ever absorbed in me.

When you keep thinking about sense-objects,
Attachment comes. Attachment breeds desire,
The lust of possession which, when thwarted,
Burns to anger. Anger clouds the judgment
And robs you of the power to learn from past mistakes
Lost is the discriminative faculty,
And your life is utter waste.

But when you move amidst the world of sense
From both attachment and aversion freed,
There comes the peace in which all sorrows end,
And you live in the wisdom of the Self.

The disunited mind is far from wise;
How can it meditate? How be at peace?
When you know no peace, how can you know joy?
When you let your mind follow the Siren call
Of the senses, they carry away
Your better judgment as a cyclone drives a boat
Off the charted course to its doom.

Use your mighty arms to free the senses
From attachment and aversion alike,
And live in the full wisdom of the Self.
Such a sage awakes to light in the night
Of all creatures. Wherein they are awake
Is the night of ignorance to the sage.

As the rivers flow into the ocean
But cannot make the vast ocean o'erflow,
So flow the magic streams of the sense-world
Into the sea of peace that is the sage.

He is forever free who has broken out
Of the ego-cage of I and mine
To be united with the Lord of Love.
This is the supreme state. Attain thou this
And pass from death to immortality.

These are the closing verses of the second chapter of the Bhagavad Gita (“Song of the Lord”), India’s best-known scripture, a masterpiece of world poetry on which countless mystics have drawn for daily practical guidance. The Gita is a dialogue between Sri Krishna, an incarnation of the Lord, and his friend and disciple Arjuna, a warrior prince who represents anyone trying to live a spiritual life in the midst of worldly activity and conflict. This translation is by Eknath Easwaran, from his Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living (Petaluma, California: Nilgiri Press, 1975–85).

Hafiz - For no reason

And
For no reason
I start skipping like a child. And
For no reason
I turn into a leaf
That is carried so high
I kiss the sun's mouth
And dissolve.

And
For no reason
A thousand birds
Choose my head for a conference table,
Start passing their
Cups of wine
And their wild songbooks all around.

And
For every reason in existence
I begin to eternally,
To eternally laugh and love!
When I turn into a leaf
And start dancing,
I run to kiss our beautiful Friend
And I dissolve in the Truth
That I Am.

Alan Wilson Watts - Oh, congratulations!

“Jesus Christ knew he was God. So wake up and find out eventually who you really are. In our culture, of course, they’ll say you’re crazy and you’re blasphemous, and they’ll either put you in jail or in a nut house (which is pretty much the same thing). However if you wake up in India and tell your friends and relations, ‘My goodness, I’ve just discovered that I’m God,’ they’ll laugh and say, ‘Oh, congratulations, at last you found out.’”