Sometimes just a little

makes a big difference.

 

 

Do good and move on...

 
Acting from a place of goodness is like life-giving water that nourishes everything it comes into contact with. It nourishes equally the giver and the receiver.

When acting from a place of goodness, don’t be concerned with being taken advantage of. That’s being obsessed with a result. If something is good to do, do it, move on, and don’t be concerned with results or what others are doing, saying, or thinking.

Childish things have their place, but...

I think the discourse below is well worth reading with the right frame of mind. It's not intended as fuel for antagonism of organized religion, but as a helpful explanation of organized religion's proper place in one's spiritual development. Paul, of New Testament fame, said it this way: "When I was a child, I spoke as a child, thought as a child. I reasoned as a child. When I became an adult, I put the ways of childhood behind me." (fwm) 

"Why do religions wither and become extinct? Because they are only the works of people. After all, religion and spirituality, though related, are not synonymous. Religion is the creation of people and cultures. Spirituality is the direct personal relationship with Tao (i.e. the Infinite and Eternal).
Religions often degenerate into convention, ritual, and corruption. They are imperfect. When their creators fade, even the holiest words gradually lose their power.

Our spiritual problems don't substantially differ from those of our ancestors, and today's truths still attempt to find the same spirituality as before. Why? Because all truths eventually point to the Infinite and Eternal, which has always existed latently, unbroken. We may begin our investigations in the realm of the religious, but once we clear away the distortions and interfering aspects of our own consciousness, we enter the realm of the Infinite and Eternal. Once that happens, there is no need for religions.

If we were to have a genuine spiritual experience, it would be lunacy to then go out and try to become religious leaders. We would only be repeating the same mistakes of countless other genuine seekers. It would be far better simply to be a nameless follower of the Tao (Infinite and Eternal)."

Deng Ming-Dao

365 Tao, #144

 

"Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens."

 

---Lord of the Rings

 

"The world is indeed full of peril and in it there are many dark places. But still there is much that is fair."

 

---Lord of the Rings

 

 

"There is more in you of good

than you know."

--- The Hobbit

 



The Wisdom of Marcus...

"Never forget, that all that is said and written is merely opinion. Just get out of it what you feel to be true."


"If it is good to say or do something, then it is even better to be criticized for having said or done it."

--- Marcus Aurelius

I wonder...

 

...what makes something a weed?

 

 

“Weeds are flowers, too, once you get to know them.”

 

Winnie-the-Pooh

 



Wahaha!!!

 

My appreciation to The Naked Chaplain for this astounding rendition of verse 1 of the Tao Te Ching: 

 

The TAO *that can be spoken of is not the infinite truth

The name assigned to the infinite truth is not its true name.

Nor does it represent even a fraction of what the name is meant to encompass

The name that can be named is only a splinter in the tree of the infinite truth

This splinter represents but a small fragment of what is (true)

Speaking of the infinite truth gave us an introduction to its origin and that origin is not its true beginning

The infinite truth was always here long before we named or discussed it

The truth is infinite having no beginning or end.

Free yourself from the desire to “know” all things and you open yourself to receive this message.

Succumbing to the knowledge of not knowing is truly enlightening.

Remaining lost in desire you will be closed to the truth and bound by limitations

Surrounded with human manifestations and false truths .

This desire is the root of the same tree, together in source they are one

They grow apart by distinction of name but remain the same in their essence.

The sameness that differentiates is the unknown

The unknown is part of the mystery.

This mystery is the gateway to finding the sublime in everything.

 
 

TAO*= Path, Way, Truth, Force, Eternal divine, Concept, Cosmic presence, Infinite.

 

How does "I love you" feel?

If nothing else, what we call God is evideently creative. Creation didn't begin and end in six days. It continues throughout the Universe, from the sub-sub-atomic (inner-space) and whatever's below that level, all the way out to the farthest reaches of outer-space. Creation continues. Whatever's behind that is what we call God. The Ultimate Mystery. The Ultimate Creator.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (from John's Gospel). If God is creative, and Word is God, one could conclude that words have creative potential.

I can see how that could be --- the mental tapes that go on in our mind all the time (in the form of words, sentences, and paragraphs) create emotions. Those emotions drive hormones. Those hormones generate bodily activity. That bodily activity leads to thoughts (in theform of words, sentences,...) and so the cycle goes.

If words creat emotions, what emotions do the words, "I love you," create?

Let's put a twist on it, though.

Have you ever said to yourself, "I love you?" (not out of an arrogant, I'm-more-important-than-you mind set, but humble and authentic love of self).

Have you ever said to yourself, "I love you," and really, really, meant it?

Have you ever said to yourself, "I love you," and really, really, meant it, and felt that love?"

Maybe it's time for us to start.

 

Maybe we should...

Maybe we should do this more often:

 

Sit in the bushes

half naked and laugh.

 



"The Clear mind listens to a bird singing, the Stuffed-Full-of-Knowledge mind wonders what kind of bird is singing."

The Tao of Pooh



To those who know...

 

 

 

 

Unevolved people are eager to act out of strength,

but a person of Tao values peace and quiet.

He knows that every being is born of the

womb of Tao.

This means that his enemies are his enemies

second, his own brothers and sisters first.

 

Thus he resorts to weapons only in the direst

necessity; and then uses them with

utmost restraint.

He takes no pleasure in victory, because

to rejoice in victory is to delight in killing.

Whoever delights in killing will not find

success in this world.

 

Observe victories as you observe a

death in the family; with sorrow and mourning.

Every victory is a funeral for kin.

 

 

Tao Te Ching, 31, Tr. Brian Brown Walker

"Doing the right thing" is like water.
It's good for all living things, and flows without thinking about where it's going

...just like Tao.

Keep your feet on the ground.
Remember what's important.
Be there when people need you.
Say what you mean.
Be prepared for anything.
Do whatever you can,
whenever it needs doing.

If you don't
compare yourself to others,
nobody can compare to you.

Ron Hogan, A Modern Interpretation
of the Tao Te Ching, Verse 8

 

Anger is useless.

It makes us unhappy.

It creates a groove in the mind

so that it arises more and

more easily.

 

 

 

If we plant peach seeds,

peaches is what we get.

 

 

 

Treat them kindly because...

His religion is...

The Dalai Lama says that his religion is kindness. Kindness breeds kindness. We can make kindness the basis of our spiritual practice.

 

"Don't underestimate the value of doing Nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can't hear, and not bothering."

 

---A.A. Milne (author of Winnie-the-Pooh)

 

 

Wisdom of Pooh...

"Rivers know this: There is no hurry. We shall get there some day."


"A little Consideration, a little Thought for Others, makes all the difference."


"When possible, try to find a way to come downstairs that doesn't involve going bump, bump, bump, on the back of your head."

--- Winnie the Pooh

 

 

"Fear leads to anger,

anger leads to hate,

and hate leads to the dark side."

 



Who's accountable?

 

We're the ones making the decisions,

and regardless of everything that influences them,

we're the ones who need to be accountable.

 

"The truth, as messy as it sounds, 

is that the only way out is through."

 

Progressing or withdrawing...

"We are wise to pay conscientious attention to the waxing and waning of truth in ourselves and others. When truth predominates, we can progress. When it is eclipsed, we are obligated to withdraw and surrender the matter to the Higher Power."

--- I Ching, #21, tr. Brian Brown Walker

Te --- what's left when...

There's a Chinese character translated by the two letter word "te." Every creature, every rock, every blade of grass, and every human being has, or is filled with, its own te. Te is its true nature, its real character. It's what remains after the baggage has been thrown overboard.

I want to believe...

I want to believe that peace, harmony and cooperation are better than conflict.
 
I want to believe in love, faith, hope, beauty, and Spirit.

I want to believe that trust, hope, and love triumph.

I want to believe that Spirit is mightier than matter.

I want to believe that love and forgiveness overcome all.
 
The truth is, I don't know if "good" conquers "evil" or not. It seems there's always been both.

Whether good conquers evil or not, I can still choose which side I want to be on.