Lesson for Monday Morning

"The best things in life are nearest: Breath in your nostrils, light in your eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of right just before you.

Then do not grasp at the stars, but do life's plain, common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things in life." --Robert Louis Stevenson

Be well and enjoy this present moment.

Alone Time

In the United States, and perhaps the world, it is my observation that people, and men especially, do not do a good job of creating space and time to be alone. It is important, whether one is buddhist or not, to set aside at least 20 minutes a day without a television, radio, or any contact with others. It can be a walk alone, a sit in the park, etc. Being alone allows one to relive stress, clear one's mind, and be truly present.

Just Exist

Don't try to become anything. Just realize that you already are.

Practicing Mindfulness

Have you ever watched a baseball game mindfully? It is an incredible experience. Having practiced it for the first time, I saw deeply the wondrous things around me.

The fresh-cut, green grass. The bright lights under the moonlit sky. The smiling faces of fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, grandparents and grandchildren. Families spending time together; with no one in a rush and no clock to stop the game.

In the game itself I saw competition in a new way. Is competition negative? Does it produce negative feelings because one wins and one loses? The answer depends on the point of view of each person and their state of mind. In competition, the winner experiences the thrill of victory and the loser suffers the agony of defeat. However, if one is to look deeply, they will see that the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat inter-are. The winner and the loser inter-are. The winner cannot understand the ecstasy of victory if he has never experienced the feeling of loss. If one is not attached and does not crave the thrill of victory or abhor the defeat, that person can see the moment for what it truly is. Competition is wonderful. It pushes us to do better. It is human. It requires mindful living for it to be experienced as the miracle it is.

Transform Negative Feelings

People are often taught to breathe in deep, and breathe out all the stress and negative energy.

However, the Buddha taught that we should breathe in all the negative stimuli around us. Be mindful of the negative and harmful speech, media, actions, and circumstances around you. Breathe in all that is truly present in your universe.

Then transform the negative feelings into something positive. Use a person's negative speech as a mindfullness bell to remind yourself how you do not want to act.

When you breathe out, breathe out the positive feelings that you have cultivated within you. It seems selfish to breathe out stress for others to breathe in? Transform that stress into peace and breathe out a feeling of calm for others to receive.

Rebirth

There is alot of focus on rebirth or reincarnation and its place in Buddhism.

Many think that the attainment of Nirvana results in the cessation of samsara -- life on this earth. They believe that if Nirvana is not reached, you are reborn, or reincarnated, until you reach this holy state.

However, samsara is not a word that describes where we are on Earth; it describes how we live on earth. Nirvana is not a place where we go when we die, it is a state of mind that is reached when we understand the interdependent-coexistant nature of our universe. To stop rebirth is to understand that one does not exist in the absence of all other matter. It is the understanding of anatma (non-self) and practice of mindfullness that allows one to end samsara (wandering). Of course, those seeking nirvana may never reach it. It is the practice and not the theory will provide the path.

A finger pointing to the moon is not the moon.