thecompassionateone

[thecompassionateone]

[thecompassionateone]

The Dhamma is not in India, China, Japan, Tibet or any other exotic country that the mind wants to take you to. The true Dhamma is in your heart and it is to this place you must travel to meet it.

Michael Kewley

May all beings be happy.

(via abiding-in-peace)

[thecompassionateone]

At Sāvatthī. 'Bhikkhus, this saṃsāra is without discoverable beginning. A first point is not discerned of beings roaming and wandering on hindered by ignorance and fettered by craving. 'There comes a time, bhikkhus, when the great ocean dries up and evaporates and no longer exists, but still, I say, there is no making an end of suffering for those beings roaming and wandering on hindered by ignorance and fettered by craving. 'There comes a time, bhikkhus, when the great earth burns up and perishes and no longer exists, but still, I say, there is no making an end of suffering for those beings roaming and wandering on hindered by ignorance and fettered by craving.'

SN 22.99: The Leash (x)

[thecompassionateone]

Sadhu, Sadhu, Sadhu! 

Dhammasara Nuns Monastery was established in 1998 but was recently renovated and the complex expanded. 

[thecompassionateone]

Here, venerable sir, wanderers of other sects ask us: ‘For what purpose, friends, is the holy life lived under the ascetic Gotama?’ When we are asked thus, venerable sir, we answer those wanderers thus: ‘It is, friends, for the full understanding of suffering that the holy life is lived under the Blessed One.

 SN 35.81 (via jayantha)

[thecompassionateone]

[thecompassionateone]

'Driven only by fear, do men go for refuge to many places—to hills, woods, groves, trees and shrines.' 'Such, indeed, is no safe refuge; such is not the refuge supreme. Not by resorting to such a refuge is one released from all suffering.' 'He who has gone for refuge to the Buddha, the Teaching and his Order, penetrates with transcendental wisdom the Four Noble Truths—suffering, the cause of suffering, the cessation of suffering, and the Noble Eightfold Path leading to the cessation of suffering.'

Dhp 188, 189, & 190 (x). 

[thecompassionateone]

When the noon hour sets in And the birds have settled down, The mighty forest itself murmurs: How fearful that appears to me!” When the noon hour sets in And the birds have settled down, The mighty forest itself murmurs: How delightful that appears to me!

SN 1.15 (x)

[thecompassionateone]

(via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USC5MJVZLy8)

[thecompassionateone]

Suppose a king or royal minister has never heard lute music before. But one day he does hear it and he says: 'Good man, tell me, what is that enchanting and delightful, intoxicating, ravishing and enthralling sound?' Then they say to him: 'That Sir, is the music of the lute.' So he says: 'Go, bring me that lute.' So they bring it to him but he says: 'Enough of this lute. Bring me the music.' Then they say to him: 'Sir, this lute consists of many parts; the belly, the skin, the handle, the frame, the string, the bridge and the effort of the player. And it makes the sound because of them. The sound is because of these various and many parts.' Then the king breaks the lute into a hundred pieces, splinters it again, burns it, puts the ashes in a heap and winnows them in the wind or washes them away in water in order to find the music. Having done this he finds no music and says: 'A poor thing indeed is a lute; whatever a lute may be. The world is deceived by such things.' In the same way, one investigating the body as far as the body goes, investigating feeling, perception, mental constructs and consciousness as far as they go, finds no 'I' , no 'I am', no 'Mine.

SN 35.246, alt. translation here. 

[thecompassionateone]

[thecompassionateone]

At Thanksgiving I am not at all inclined to revel in the blessings I have enjoyed this past year and in years further back. Instead, I believe the way I can best demonstrate thanks is by creating opportunities for others to enjoy blessings. This means bringing the light of wisdom into regions shrouded too densely in darkness, contributing to the emergence of a more peaceful world, a more just and respectful society, and a more equitable economy based on life values rather than naked market values.

Bhikkhu Bodhi (x)

[thecompassionateone]

A chariot... of faith and wisdom ... forever evenly-yoked. Moral shame, its brake, mind, the reins; mindfulness as watchful charioteer. Adorned by virtue, renunciation as chassis, its axle – meditation, Energy its wheels, equanimity balancing the chariot’s load. Its weaponry – loving-kindness, harmlessness, and seclusion, With forbearance as armour and shield, it rolls towards security from bondage. This divine vehicle, unsurpassed, originates from within oneself. In it, the wise depart from the world – victorious.

SN 45.4, alt. translation here. 

[thecompassionateone]

Theragatha 16.3: Telakā­ni

”For a long time, unfortunately, Though I ardently contemplated the Dhamma, I didn’t have peace of mind; So I asked ascetics and holy men:

‘Who has crossed over the world? Whose attainment culminates in the deathless? Whose teaching do I accept, To understand the highest goal?

I was hooked inside, Like a fish swallowing bait; Bound like the demon Vepaciti In Mahinda’s trap.

Dragging it along, I’m not freed From grief and lamentation. Who will free me from bonds in the world, So that I may know awakening?

What ascetic or holy man Points to the perishable? Whose teaching do I accept To wash away old age and death?

Tied up with uncertainty and doubt, Secured by the power of pride, Rigid as a mind overcome by anger; The arrow of covetousness,

Propelled by the bow of craving, Is stuck in my twice-fifteen ribs— See how it stands in my breast, Breaking my strong heart.

Speculative views are not abandoned, They are sharpened by memories and intentions; And pierced by this I tremble, Like a leaf blown by wind.

Arising inside me, My selfishness is quickly tormented, Where the body always goes With its six sense-fields of contact.

I don’t see a healer Who could pull out my dart of doubt, Without a lance Or some other blade.

Without knife or wound, Who will pull out this dart, That is stuck inside me, Without harming any part of my body?

He really would be the Lord of the Dhamma, The best one to cure the damage of poison; When I had fallen into deep waters, He would give me his hand and bring me to the shore.

I’ve plunged into a lake, And I can’t wash off the mud and dirt, It’s full of fraud, jealousy, pride, And dullness and drowsiness.

Like a thunder-cloud of restlessness, Like a rain-cloud of fetters; Intentions based on lust are winds That sweep along a person with bad views.

The streams flow everywhere; A weed springs up and remains; Who will block the streams? Who will cut the weed?’

‘Venerable sir, build a dam To block the streams; Don’t let your mind-made streams Cut you down suddenly like a tree.’

That is how the teacher whose weapon is wisdom, The sage surrounded by the Saṅgha, Was my shelter when I was full of fear, Seeking the far shore from the near.

As I was being swept away, He gave me a strong, simple ladder, Made of the heartwood of Dhamma, And he said to me: ‘Do not fear.’

I climbed the tower of the establishment of mindfulness And looked back down, At people delighting in identity, Which in the past I’d obsessed over.

When I saw the path, As I was embarking on the ship, Without fixating on the self, I saw the supreme landing-place.

The dart that arises in oneself, And that which is caused by attachment to future lives; He taught the supreme path For the stopping of these.

For a long time it had lain within me; For a long time it was fixed in me: The Buddha cast off the knot, Curing the poison’s damage.”

Source

[thecompassionateone]

Happy Kathina!

May you be well.

[thecompassionateone]

#SanghaSunday

In the same way that Twitter has ‘#FollowFriday’, it seems only fair (and indeed, appropriate) to acknowledge the teachers and organizations that further the study of Buddhism and the practice of mindfulness. 

The first shoutout goes to the Barre Center For Buddhist Studies, the somewhat unknown sister organization of the Insight Meditation Society (IMS). BCBS is a wonderful organization in that it aims to create a foundation of textual study to support meditation and Buddhist practice. 

The second shoutout goes to Hugh Byrne, a meditation teacher at the Insight Meditation Community of Washington (IMCW). Hugh is an excellent teacher in part because he incorporates anecdotes and snippets of poetry into his guided meditations and Dhamma talks. He is also a wonderful and genuinely kind person. 

The third and final shoutout goes to the Alliance for Bhikkhunis, an organization that promotes the continued flourishing of a Bhikkhuni (female monastic) Sangha in the United States and throughout the world. 

If you have any recommendation for the next #SanghaSunday, send me a message. 

Sabbasattā bhavantu sukhitattā.

[thecompassionateone]

Please consider giving to the UN Refugee Agency to lessen the suffering of thousands of people. 

May all beings be well.