Philosophy 05 (Aug 25 - Dec 26)

[winston]

The Ultimate Truth

The ultimate truth transcends all kinds of notions including notions of being and nonbeing, birth and death, coming and going.

If you don’t let go of these notions, you can never touch the ultimate.

- Thich Nhat Hanh, “Birth and Death in Every Moment”

[winston]

The Gift of Freedom

The script is not fixed. It has infinite possibilities, albeit each with varying probabilities.

And we have an incredible gift: the freedom to choose our perspective, the way we see.

- Nikki Mirghafori, “Dreaming Together”

[winston]

Nothing Is Sacred

To say that nothing is sacred is sacrilegious and it also means at the same time that we should revere nothing, from the vast empty expanses of the universe to the void within ourselves.

- Viet Thanh Nguyen, “On the Joy of Otherness”

[winston]

Choose Your Path

Appreciate that I have a path to follow in the world.

There are great works that were laid out by great beings and I can follow that.

I can go on the right path if I choose to.

Again, this is the freedom to choose your path. Appreciate that.

- Yongey Mingyur, “The Antidote to Self-Criticism”

[winston]

Generating Hope

We don’t choose to meditate only when despair is defeated, we meditate so hope can be generated from the process itself.

- Mary Fuoco, “The End of Times or the First Day”

[winston]

Honoring Our Pain

Honoring our pain, is about turning to face the fear, grief, anger, numbness and all the feelings that emerge for us, when we look out and see what’s happening in our world.

- Jess Serrante, “Building the Great Turning”

[winston]

The Wrong Desire

Many of us on the spiritual path, are driven to experience something other than what we’re experiencing right now.

That’s not a desire for enlightenment. That’s a desire to escape.

- Andrew Holecek, “The Two Biggest Problems with the Spiritual Path”

[winston]

Framing the Past

We’re told that you can’t change what happened in the past but you can change how you frame it.

And we’re offered a range of different lenses: acceptance, forgiveness, gratitude.

- Noelle Oxenhandler, “What Is the Shape of My Life?”

[winston]

A Peaceful Mind

When you are aware of a peaceful mind, it continues to be peaceful.

It becomes more and more peaceful.

When you aren’t aware of the peaceful mind then the mind starts breaking down into chaos.

- Sayadaw U Tejaniya, “Mindfulness Is a Lifestyle Change”

[winston]

Freedom in Mindfulness

When we resolve something with mindfulness, we can let it go and free ourselves from its power.

- Ajahn Sumedho, “The Gift of Gratitude”