The Dalai lama speaks...

H.H. arrives to speak to the tibetan youth.

We post up under a shady tree to absorb his presence, engage his words, and smile with his laughter.

We listen half the time in English and the other in Tibetan.

Even though i can not understand the tibetan, i prefer to listen to his voice directly.
I sit up tall, close my eyes, and practice absorbing the vibration of his words.

And with this I feel the great calm.
As expansive as the Ocean.

For a moment all time ceases.

And I just am, no beginning
no end.
just am apart of it all.

and with this I find release.

before the curious thoughts exhaust my mind again.

Ah, it is these moments that recharge my spirit

in this time of waiting.

ease and release

Waiting waiting, ambiguous waiting. Will he get the visa or will we be faced with collecting more papers to prove our love? Ah, bureaucracy---US combined with Indian might be our worst night mare. Slow and overly diligent, with a dash of corruption makes this process well one that takes super human power patience.
The tension rises like waves, coming and going, the breathe is my one grounding force.

Yet then with space to reflect i feel this ease and release when I simply let go...
let go of any and all delusional ideas of reality, i.e. that I can change this fucked up process, and just let go of this need for control
this need to plan my life ahead.
just let go and flow with it, accepting the process ...
as it is, in all its fucked upness.
And just see it AS IT IS.

The light is there,
shining through from the end of this narrow
dark tunnel.

It is our choice to aggravate the time by stressing the mind with what ifs and whys and hows
OR to release this tension and just be present with the darkness of this tunnel--
By just being here now.

Standing from the feet up.
grounding down so that the mind may be lifted up.

And realign your emotional balance.

Accept it.
Bureaucracy sucks. But IT IS.

oh magical visa,
we wait patiently.

may all those awaiting the bureaucratic process find peace through
this art of patience.

may all beings be happy.
may peace prevail on earth, and
may bureaucracy embrace logic one day.

june 16, 2009

My mind is refreshed by these words illuminating what yoga IS. It strikes a chord in my chest as I embark on a new teacher, a new day, a new breathe.

"Yoga itself is based on the interaction of physical, spiritual, and psychic phenomena,
in so far as the effects of breath control (pranayama) and posture (asana) are combined
with mental concentration, creative imagination, spiritual awareness, and
emotional equaanimity."
--Lama Anagarika Govinda,
The Way of the White Clouds

IN honor of the Buddha...

This year the full moon day, May 9th, brought great peace of mind to this being. As soon as the peace came upon me, I sent it equally out to all other beings. doing my best, with every breathe for the sake of all beings. KNowing that we are all part of ONE. It is my sincere wish that we all awaken to this great potential to care for one another, rather than just the self.
The first full moon day of May, the day to recognize the Buddha, and recall to mind his great birth, path to enlightenment, and profound passing. A day to altruisitcly pray. recognize the power of thought as the power of prayer.
H.H. the Dalai Lama returned to Dharamsala on this great day. Being at the right place at the right time, karmically, I was present at the temple to greet this living Buddha...
with hands folded and smile gleaming he waved to us and us to him.
And so today, the day after I reflect on a great text, one of the most profound...
The way of the bodhisattva, the great text, our blessed gift from Shantideva--the great indian master.
the excellence of bodhiccitta, this profound compassion for all beings, and the wish for all beings to be free from suffering. The way. The path.
words to arise, aspire, and with great practice activate bodhiccitta with in you...

"By contrast ( to those minds filled with malice),

good and virtuous thoughts will yield abundant fruits in greater measure.

Even in adversity, the bodhisattva

never brings forth evil---only an increasing stream of goodness.

IN whom this precious sacred mind is born, to them I bow!

I go for refuge in that source of happiness...

That which brings its very enemies to

Perfect Bliss."

(from the first chapter of the Way of the Bodhisttava)

This potential is latent within us.

each and every sentient being.

AWAKEN!

And recognize that true courage lies in the being

whom feels not anger or hatred for his/her enemy or oppressor,

but only compassion rooted in profound wisdom and understanding

of the reality of existence.

To be truly couragious. Truly compassionate. Truly happy. And to wholeheartedly

want all others to obtain this is the true work here on earth.

good luck, tashi delek

wishing you great courage on this path.

may peace prevail on earth.

may our collective consciousness continue to rise, so that we may all evolve and

finally live harmoniously with this earth.

words from a wise yogi...

"May I embrace all space,

just as space embraces...

earth

water

fire

wind..."

A smile should arise

from the depths of your core.

Not to be forced.

effortlessly arising with joyful effort.

Like the smile of a Buddha,

awakened being shall insprie you too

to open your eyes so wide that you see inside

and there you see the mind

so clear so pure

consciousness.

no beginning

no end

ever flowing stream of being.

so look with in, smile at this great potential and free yourself from yourself.

clean up your mind.

detoxify dillusion.

and feel a smile arise from the depths of your being.

Awaken to reality, as it is.

smile.

do not waist this breath, this opportunity, this chance at life.
The teachings of the Buddha ask one to really understand the preciousness of human life.
Quite often human life can feel more like a curse than a blessing.
BUT alas---it is so precious. And it is your choice, and has always been your choice how you want to live. If you are blessed to have basic freedoms, are able to sustain yourself, and are healthy take a deep breathe and set an intention to live a life of positivity. This may seem idealistic, but no lets think about the law of nature, the dharma, quantam physics...all are in line...all speak about how like attracts like. Karma. The seeds you sow, so you may reep. So watch yourself, develope your own inner witness, and learn how to catch yourself before you plant a negative thought, speech, action, reaction. Catch yourself, and liberate yourself. Slow down the mind, navigate life.
Meditate, become familiar with yourself...
Do you react? Or do you respond?
When others are doing positive things do you think negatively about yourself, or feel jelousy towards them...
AH! We must start at home, with our minds.
We must learn to rejoice in our own good efforts, but most importantly in the positivity of others.
You do not have to be Buddhist to practice such.
You do not have to be anything...but honest with yourself. YOU do have a choice.
YOUR thoughts DO not control you...
AWAKEN!
ARISE....
all those emotions are lies.

stop. take refuge in silence even for 10 minutes a day.
gather the self with the breathe. And begin from this source. This peace will begin to direct your flow.

Don't waiste this precious opportunity. Each breath an opportunity to think positively, and maybe even to feel love and compassion for all sentient beings. For when we are stripped of everything all we want is love, nourishment, and genuine happiness. So recognize the you in I and the I in you. Invert your me, and you will feel the we. All connected.
empty of inherent existence.
interdepedent.
co-dependent.
when you recall to mind this oneness...
a smile from the depths of your being will begin to rise.
And you will begin to embody all those teachings, not just for you...but for all.

just a bit of a buddhist inspired rant from the Tibetan Library in Dharamsala India...to you sitting there...maybe now smiling.