Philosophy 03 (May 24 - Dec 25)

[winston]

Why Change Shouldn’t Surprise Us

There’s no reason to be surprised by change. In fact, we should be suspicious of its absence, not surprised by its presence.

- Malcolm Gladwell, “Why Change Shouldn’t Surprise Us”

[winston]

Healing Within

The moment when you are truly present and you touch something so deeply, the truth of it shakes.

- Dang Nghiem, “Healing Within”

[winston]

This Is a Practice

Attachment to outcomes is absurd.

Resistance is futile.

The practice, says Mazu, is “exactly this here right now.”

- Leath Tonino, “Flying with Mazu”

[winston]

Let the World Happen

This is how the world runs: Everything we need is already there.

All we have to do is trust and let things happen.

- Wang Ping, “Riprap”

[winston]

Let the World Come Forward



Seeing things as equally present . . . is to cease seeing things through the lens of their meaning and usefulness to myself.

And when we are able to do this, it makes room for the world around us to come forward, with extraordinary vividness.

Birds sing, the wall meets the floor, and even a mound of stinking garbage shimmers in the sunlight.

Noelle Oxenhandler, “Everything Is Buddha”

[winston]

No Need to Be Busy

There’s no need to be busy. We should of course fulfill our obligations and responsibilities.

The Buddha always gave guidelines in that direction. But to be overly busy cannot possibly bring peacefulness.

It cannot bring contentment. It cannot bring a heart full of love; it cannot bring a heart that can actually bring the mind to meditation.

- Ayya Khema, “There’s No Need to Be Busy”

[winston]

Do Not Waste Even One Grain

As tenzo [head cook] you should not be away from the sink when the rice for the noon meal is being washed.

Watch closely with clear eyes; do not waste even one grain.

Wash it in the proper way, put it in pots, make a fire and boil it.

An ancient master said, 'When you boil rice, know that the water is your own life.'

- Eihei Dogen Zenji, “Instructions for the Tenzo”

[winston]

Solitude Fosters Awareness

For me, solitude is not loneliness but a space where I can be fully aware of the myriad ways that all things, myself included, are connected. 

- Lauren Krauze, “Not Alone During the Holidays”

[winston]

Feel Deeply

You don’t get part of a human life without feeling all of it.

You don’t get to love without knowing that you are going to lose the one you love or they will lose you.

- Jane Hirshfield, “Don’t Despair of This Falling World”

[winston]

Everything We Encounter Is Our Life

The 'world' is not some entity that exists apart from us; the 'world' is where we function.

Likewise, the life of the true Self is not some entity apart from our functioning and working. Everything we encounter is our life.

- Kosho Uchiyama, “Everything You Encounter Is Your Life”