Tricycle Daily Dharma February 1, 2013

The Simple Act of Attention Empathy naturally leads to compassionate action. But simple inattention kills empathy, let alone compassion. So the first step in compassion is to notice the other's need. It all begins with the simple act of attention. - Daniel Goleman, “I Feel Your Brain”

Tricycle Daily Dharma January 31, 2013

Mature Wisdom The test of how far your wisdom has matured lies in the strategic skill with which you can keep yourself from doing things that you like to do but that would cause long-term harm, and the skill with which you can talk yourself into doing things that you don’t like to do but that would lead to long-term well-being and happiness. In other words, mature wisdom requires a mature ego. - Thanissaro Bhikkhu, “Hang On to Your Ego”

Tricycle Daily Dharma January 30, 2013

Unraveling Desire The truth is that we like our preferences and prejudices, we like defining ourselves in terms of what we like and don’t like. It is precisely desire’s entanglement with the sense of self that makes this all so difficult to unravel. Fortunately, there is a relatively easy and accessible way to counter the powerful forces of desire: the cultivation of equanimity. Every moment of mindfulness is also a moment of equanimity. - Andrew Olendzki, "The Buddha's Smile"

Tricycle Daily Dharma January 29, 2013

Understanding and Respect Learning about other faiths helps us to understand, and to live side by side with, differing views and belief systems. To remain in one tradition without absorbing the benefits of the others seems disrespectful to the gifts that the Buddha passed down to us. Only through mutual understanding and respect can we successfully implement what the Buddha taught. - Scott Hunt, “Scott Hunt’s Seaworthy Dream In Two Parts”

Tricycle Daily Dharma January 28, 2013

The Tyranny of Reaction When you aren’t run by reactions, you see things more clearly, and there is usually only one, possibly two courses of action that are actually viable. Freedom from the tyranny of reaction leads to a way of experiencing life that leaves you with little else to do but take the direction that life offers you in each moment. - Ken McLeod, “Freedom and Choice”

Tricycle Daily Dharma January 27, 2013

Deeper into Practice Many people are doing shamata meditation. This is a kind of resting meditation, also called 'calm abiding.' This is good, but in Buddhist training you must go deeper than this. It is important to go deeper into emptiness—not nothingness, but into understanding emptiness as the nature of mind. This is where wisdom and compassion come from. - Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, "Trust Through Reason"

Tricycle Daily Dharma January 26, 2013

Helping Each Other Through History's accelerating like technology's accelerated. Can't go back. We can blow the whole show up. Or we can calm fear, see the world is really changing, like a dream, & go explore & help each other through. It's all safe because as Einstein & the Buddhists secretly tipped everybody off long ago: the whole show is a harmless wave-illusion.  - Allen Ginsberg, “‘Letter to the Wall Street Journal,’ 1966”