Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ Shunryu Suzuki, "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	You cannot find Buddha nature by vivisection. Reality cannot be caught by thinking or feeling mind. Moment after moment to watch your breathing, to watch your posture, is true nature. There is no secret beyond this point. - Shunryu Suzuki, "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 31, 2012 ~ A Little "Aha!"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 31, 2012

A Little "Aha!"

Our whole spiritual transformation brings us to the point where we realize that in our own being, we are enough.
 
- Ram Dass, "Little 'Aha!'s"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/30/2012

Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	The creatures that inhabit this earth--be they human beings or animals--are here to contribute, each in its own particular way, to the beauty and prosperity of the world. - His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 30, 2012 ~ The Time is Now

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 30, 2012

The Time is Now

Awareness practice is like any other skill-building activity. It is not meant to be casual, or occasional, or reserved for only when convenient.
 
- Les Kaye, "The Time is Now"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 29, 2012 ~ The Power of Presence

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 29, 2012

The Power of Presence

Presence has no measurable product except positive feelings, feelings of support, intimacy, and happiness. When we stop being busy and productive and switch to just being still and aware, we ourselves will also feel support, intimacy, and happiness, even if no one else is around.
 
- Jan Chozen Bays, "The Gift of Waiting"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/28/2012

	Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	There is no fire like greed and no crime like hatred. There is no sorrow like being bound to this world; there is no happiness like freedom. - Dhammapada

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 28, 2012 ~ The Freedom of Generosity

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 28, 2012

The Freedom of Generosity

 "To act generously is to awaken a certain kind of freedom: freedom from the stranglehold of self-concern, and, consequently, freedom to choose a level of responsibility beyond the minimal charge most of us have for ourselves. To give unselfishly is at least momentarily to be free of ourselves, free of greed and attachments, resentments and hatreds, habitual and isolating acts of self-protection."
 
~Dale S. Wright, "The Bodhisattva's Gift"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 27, 2012 ~ Pursuing Happiness

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 27, 2012

Pursuing Happiness

It’s our nature to want happiness and not want suffering. Thus, Buddhists do not ask that one give up the pursuit of happiness, but merely suggest that one become more intelligent about how happiness is pursued.
 
- Jeffrey Hopkins, "Equality"

DAILY BUDDHIST WISDOM ~ 7/26/2012

	Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	And from all other cares released, the mind set on collecting my own spirit, to unify and discipline my spirit will I strive. - Buddha

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 26, 2012 ~ Overcoming Difficulty

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 26, 2012

Overcoming Difficulty

Your practice should be strengthened by the difficult situations you encounter, just as a bonfire in a strong wind is not blown out, but blazes even brighter.
 
- Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, "Teachings on the Nature of Mind and Practice"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/25/2012

Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	One should not imagine oneself to be one with the eye or independent of it or the owner of it. The same with the ear and all the other senses, including the mind. Nor should one imagine oneself to be identical with the world or contained in it or independent of it or the owner of it. In this way, free from imagining, one no longer clings to the things of the world. When one no longer clings, there is no more agitation, insecurity, and worry. Being no longer worried, one can reach into the depths of oneself and understand that where there has been loss there is now fulfillment. - Samyutta Nikaya

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 25, 2012 ~ Protecting Your Mind

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 25, 2012

Protecting Your Mind

Protect yourself and your mind from too much negativity. Not turning away from suffering doesn't mean wallowing in the horror of it all.
 
- Susan Moon, "Ten Practices to Change the World"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/24/2012

	Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	View all problems as challenges. Look upon negativities that arise as opportunities to learn and to grow. Don't run from them, condemn yourself, or bury your burden in saintly silence. You have a problem? Great. More grist for the mill. Rejoice, dive in, and investigate. - Bhante Henepola Gunaratana, "Mindfulness in Plain English"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 24, 2012 ~ The Thread of Stability

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 24, 2012

The Thread of Stability

A string of beads has a thread running through all the beads, keeping them together. What we need is a thread too—of sanity and stability. Because when you have a thread, even though each bead is separate, they hang together. When we have the teachings in us, stabilizing us, there’s a thread to keep our life together that prevents us from falling apart.
 
- Sogyal Rinpoche, "The Stability of Ease"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 23, 2012 ~ Our Self is Our World

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 23, 2012

Our Self is Our World

To forget the self is to be enlightened by all things. Buddhist teaching suggests that the Self is an illusion, and identity is an ongoing confluence of forces. That means that, very literally, our sense of self is shaped by the world around us.
 
- Richard Eskow, "DNA Sutra"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 22, 2012 ~ Everything in a Moment

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 22, 2012

Everything in a Moment

Somewhere this very moment, babies are born, fathers are dying, mothers are grieving. Yet, pervading all is a groundless awareness, delicate and strong at the same time. Everything becomes we, a beating heart with a transparent, radiant smile.
 
- Judith Simmer-Brown, "Insomnia"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 21, 2012 ~ This is Reality

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 21, 2012

This is Reality

What feature does all experience have in common? All experience is groundless, open, empty. You can say, 'Well, this floor doesn’t feel empty,' and you are right. It feels very solid. But emptiness refers to a way of experiencing things. And when you experience things this way, it is such a powerful experience that you almost always come out of it saying, 'Oh! This is how things really are, this is reality.'
 
- Ken McLeod, "The Way of Freedom"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 20, 2012 ~ Holding Views Gently

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 20, 2012

Holding Views Gently

Truth is best served by recognizing a viewpoint as only a viewpoint, and refraining from taking that extra step of regarding it as true to the exclusion of all other views. In other words, all views—even correct views—are best held gently, rather than grasped firmly.
 
- Andrew Olendzki, "Blinded by Views"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/19/2012

Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	It is my belief that whereas the twentieth century has been a century of war and untold suffering, the twenty-first century should be one of peace and dialogue. As the continued advances in information technology make our world a truly global village, I believe there will come a time when war and armed conflict will be considered an outdated and obsolete method of settling differences among nations and communities. - His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 19, 2012 ~ Finding an Authentic Teacher

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 19, 2012

Finding an Authentic Teacher

Just as it is only the real Self that can see the real world behind the appearances, so it may be that it is only the real seeker who can recognize a genuine man or woman of wisdom.
 
- Jacob Needleman, "Bread and Stone"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/18/2012

	Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	Someone asked T'ou-tzu, "How is it when subject and object are both forgotten?" T'ou-tzu said, "No such thing. Don't entertain such an understanding."

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 18, 2012 ~ Against the Stream

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 18, 2012

Against the Stream

The unflinching light of mindful awareness reveals the extent to which we are tossed along in the stream of past conditioning and habit. The moment we decide to stop and look at what is going on (like a swimmer suddenly changing course to swim upstream instead of downstream), we find ourselves battered by powerful currents we had never even suspected—precisely because until that moment we were largely living at their command.
 
- Stephen Batchelor, "Foundations of Mindfulness"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/17/2012

	Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	Having cut every fetter, he doesn't get ruffled. Beyond attachment, unshackled: he's what I call a brahmin. Having cut the strap & thong, cord & bridle, having thrown off the bar, awakened: he's what I call a brahmin. - Dhammapada, 26, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu.

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 17, 2012 ~ Taking control of our karma

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 17, 2012

Taking Control of Our Karma

When we ask, 'Why did this happen to me?' it is because of our limited view. If we throw a stone up in the air and forget about it, when it falls down on our heads, we shouldn’t complain, although we usually do. We have this notion that what happens to us is somehow independent of our own actions. We can ask, 'why did this happen?' But the more important question is, 'what we are going to do about it?'
 
- Matthieu Ricard, "Karma Crossroads"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/16/2012

Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	No flower's scent goes against the wind not sandalwood, jasmine, tagara. But the scent of the good does go against the wind. The person of integrity wafts a scent in every direction. - Dhammapada, 4, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu.

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 16, 2012 ~ Clear Compassion

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 16, 2012

Clear Compassion

One of the things that most nourishes true compassion is clarity—when we know what we are thinking and know what we are feeling. This clarity differentiates compassion from shallow martyrdom, when we are only thinking of others and we are never caring about ourselves.
 
- Sharon Salzberg, "A Quiver of the Heart"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 15, 2012 ~ Enlivening the Ordinary

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 15, 2012

Enlivening the Ordinary

Through art, a painter can make the ordinary come alive. As Zen students, we try to bring this kind of relevance into each moment of our lives, into this one moment that contains all moments. In this way, we allow the ordinary to enliven us. Sometimes this is successful, sometimes not, but the work itself goes on. Persistence is one of the major virtues in both the artist and the unenlightened.
 
- Gary Thorp, "The Dust Beyond the Cushion"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 14, 2012 ~ Happy Birthday, Pema Chödrön!

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 14, 2012

Happy Birthday, Pema Chödrön!

The ground of renunciation is realizing that we already have exactly what we need, that what we have already is good.
 
- Pema Chödrön, "Renunciation: Like a Raven in the Wind"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ Extra

Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	Speak not harshly to anyone. Those thus addressed will retort. Painful, indeed, is vindictive speech. Blows in exchange may bruise you. If, like a cracked gong, you silence yourself, you have already attained Nibbana: no vindictiveness will be found in you. - Dhammapada 133-134

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/13/2012

Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	Knowing this body is like foam, realizing its nature --a mirage-- cutting out the blossoms of Mara, you go where the King of Death can't see. - Dhammapada, 4, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu.

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 13, 2012 ~ Local Love

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 13, 2012

Local Love

Why do I consider it so crucial to balance the outer aspects of nonviolence and compassion with the inner support of contemplative practice? Because in the end, all politics are local, and we cannot love life and humanity if we do not love each other, one on one.
 
- Lama Surya Das, "Why Sit?"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 12, 2012 ~ Memento Mori

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 12, 2012

Memento Mori

To acknowledge that you are dying is to recognize that you are alive.
 
- Dean Rolston, "Memento Mori: Notes on Buddhism and AIDS"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ Extra _/|\_

	Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	What does the spring wind have in mind, Coming day and night to these groves and gardens? It never asks who owns the peach and damson trees But blows away their crimson without a word. - Ch'i-chi, "Clouds Should Know Me By Now"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/11/2012

	Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	Even if you are a monk, if your practice of the Way is not intense, if your aspiration is not pure, how are you any different from a layman? Again, even if you are a layman, if your aspiration is intense and your conduct wise, why is this any different from being a monk? - Hakuin, "Zen Master Hakuin"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 11, 2012 ~ Discipline and Joy

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 11, 2012

Discipline and Joy

Without spiritual discipline we are never going to wake up or advance on our journey through this life. But our discipline must be wedded to joy, and we must find pleasure in the myriad wonders that this life offers.
 
- Joan Gattuso, "The Balancing Buddha"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 10, 2012 ~ Living a Life of Practice

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 10, 2012

Living a Life of Practice

We need to revive appreciation for the traditional model of a practitioner who lives a life of simplicity and humility, sincerity and endeavor, kindness and compassion. We must choose teachers with these qualities, cultivate these qualities in ourselves, and guide our students in developing them.
 
- Bhikshuni Thubten Chodron, "Shopping the Dharma"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/9/2012

Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	I often see students who are narrow-minded, who gain a little bit in a limited context, with a limited perspective, and consider this enough, immediately insisting on stopping and resting. Eating their fill and sleeping, not taking care of anything at all, they consider themselves lively, but they are destitute ghosts. - Hui-k'ung

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 9, 2012 ~ In It Together

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 9, 2012

In It Together

Hang out with people who are capable of making a commitment to you and your life, and who require that you make a commitment to theirs. Hang out with people who care about you, with people who need you to develop and who say so. Make such a commitment and don’t break that bond until you and all beings are perfect.
 
- Reb Anderson, "In It Together"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 8, 2012 ~ The Principles of Zazen

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 8, 2012

The Principles of Zazen

Cast aside all involvements and cease all affairs. Do not think good or bad. Do not administer pros and cons. Cease all the movements of the conscious mind, the gauging of all thoughts and views. Have no designs on becoming a buddha. Zazen has nothing whatever to do with sitting or lying down.
 
- Zen Master Dogen, "The Principles of Zazen"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 7, 2012 ~ Warrior Mind

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 7, 2012

Warrior Mind

Fear diminishes me, makes me no bigger than that part of me which fears. Fearful, I am too small to contain thought, too small to hold real compassion. Protecting myself, I will hurt others.
 
- Sallie Tisdale, "Warrior Mind"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/6/2012

Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	He goes to hell, the one who asserts what didn't take place, as does the one who, having done, says, "I didn't." Both—low-acting people— there become equal: after death, in the world beyond. - Dhammapada 306, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 6, 2012 ~ Think Not Thinking

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 6, 2012

Think Not Thinking

The trick to not thinking is not adding energy to the equation in an effort to forcibly stop thinking from happening. It’s more a matter of subtracting energy from the equation in order not to barf the thoughts up and start chewing them over again.
 
- Brad Warner, "Think Not Thinking"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/5/2012

	Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	Whoever, abandoning sensual passions here, would go forth from home-- his sensual passions, becomings, totally gone: he's what I call a brahmin. Whoever, abandoning craving here, would go forth from home-- his cravings, becomings, totally gone: he's what I call a brahmin. - Dhammapada, 26, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu.

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/5/2012

	Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	Real Love is not based on attachment, but on altruism. In this case, your compassion will remain as a humane response to suffering as long as beings continue to suffer. - His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 5, 2012 ~ Cutting the Heads Off Our Ideas

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 5, 2012

Cutting the Heads Off Our Ideas

Whether we’re looking inside our outside ourselves, we need to cut off the head of whatever we meet, and abandon the views and ideas we have about things, including our ideas about Buddhism and Buddhist teachings.
 
- Thich Nhat Hanh, "Simply Stop"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 4, 2012 ~ Happy Interdependence Day

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 4, 2012

Happy Interdependence Day

As we open and empty ourselves, we come to experience an interconnectedness, the realization that all things are joined and conditioned in an interdependent arising. Each experience and event contains all others.
 
- Jack Kornfield, "No Self or True Self?"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/4/2012

Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	Arouse your will, supreme and great, Practice love, give joy and protection; Let your giving be like space, Without discrimination or limitation. Do good things, not for your own sake But for all the beings in the universe; Save and make free everyone you encounter, Help them attain the wisdom of the way. - Prajnaparamita

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 3, 2012 ~ The Limited Mask of Self

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 3, 2012

The Limited Mask of Self

Of all the words we use to disguise the hollowness of the human condition, none is more influential than 'myself.' It consists of a collage of still images—name, gender, nationality, profession, enthusiasms, relationships—that are renovated from time to time, but otherwise are each a relic from one particular experience or another. The defining teaching of the Buddhist tradition, that of non-self, is merely pointing out the limitations of this reflexive view we hold of ourselves. It’s not that the self does not exist, but that it is as cobbled-together and transient as everything else.
 
- Andrew Olendzki, "Self as Verb"

Daily Buddhist Wisdom ~ 7/2/2012

Daily Buddhist Wisdom
	Everywhere, truly, those of integrity stand apart. They, the good, don't chatter in hopes of favor or gains. When touched now by pleasure, now pain, the wise give no sign of high or low. - Dhammapada, 6, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu.

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 2, 2012 ~ Uprooting the Seeds of Anger

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 2, 2012

Uprooting the Seeds of Anger

We all know anger from experience, but when we are asked to pause and consider, ‘What is this anger?’ it’s not always so easy to see what it is. Yet when we approach our feelings of anger with awareness, with mindfulness, it becomes a productive part of our practice. We find, after all, that anger has something to teach us.
 
- Jules Shuzen Harris, Sensei, "Uprooting the Seeds of Anger"

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 1, 2012 ~ Being Unafraid of Pain

Tricycle Daily Dharma July 1, 2012

Being Unafraid of Pain

You don’t have to be afraid of pain. If it’s going to be there, you can let it be there—but don’t let the mind be in pain with it.
 
- Upasika Kee Nanayon, "Tough Teachings to Ease the Mind"