A famous middle-aged Buddhist monk, who was suffering from a terminal disease, was interviewed by the press. “How does it make you feel, knowing you are dying?” the interviewer asked. “How does it make you feel to know you are dying?” the monk replied. “I mean, soon, before your time,” came the reply. “Whenever we … Continue reading Life’s potential
Tag: fear
Dreams
Waking life wallows in the indulgencies of the word-hoard. Words spin webs of deception and delusion. They shape and falsify our experience...serving human masters of fear and vanity.* We are captives of our own intelligence. We label everything in a bid to master it, under the guise of understanding. There is nothing we experience which … Continue reading Dreams
Cherish
The sun is streaming through the window, warming my outer and inner body alike. There are daffodils and swathes of greenery, with the still stark branches of slowly budding trees fanning the blue sky. This is a mere snap-shot of what there is to be seen from my window. Ivy trailing its feelers along a … Continue reading Cherish
Crisis
Remember the balance. Where there is black, there is white. Where there is bad there is good. Opposites can only exist together and we should let that be a source of comfort in times of trouble and worry. There has never been a more poignant moment in humankind’s recent history for us to be truly … Continue reading Crisis
Trust
It seems to be a trait of the 'civilised' Western tradition that control is of upmost importance. Our days are timetabled and scheduled, down to the last minute and if we are not seen to be being efficient, then we are' lazy'. We fill our time with jobs and appointments, distractions and even time itself … Continue reading Trust
Karma
Far from being some mythical force of fear, that is waiting around the corner to catch up with us eventually, karma is concept, and often a resulting factor of the need to control. When we feel we need to control a situation rather than just allow it to be what it is, we are starting … Continue reading Karma
Sleep walking
What is it to be aware? To be awake? We believe that at night we fall asleep and dream, and when the light comes we wake and are conscious beings, interacting with the world around us. We use our senses and feel emotions, we reason and use our intelligence to solve problems, or grow our … Continue reading Sleep walking
Rough seas, still waters
Imagine yourself cast adrift in nought but a small rowing boat in the middle of a vast ocean. A storm whips up and the tiny vessel is tossed mercilessly, waves rising like immense walls down which you tumble, only to be churned then crashed down upon at the bottom. Where would your thoughts be? They … Continue reading Rough seas, still waters
Fear
Have you ever noticed how one single person who does something differently from the rest of the crowd is often labelled as strange, eccentric, bohemian? The crowd, who all do the same thing, the same way, give it validation and acceptance. If we, each of us, contain the whole universe within our beings, then it … Continue reading Fear
At your peril…
Why do we suffer? We love and lose, we toil and sweat blood, each experience brings with it an opposite and fear is the opposite of love. Fear is born of suffering, and we learn, like the child with a match. It is how we respond to the suffering that dictates if it brings fear. … Continue reading At your peril…
Zen musings 