Archive for the 'A Cup Of Zen' Category
The Shambhala teachings are not based on converting the world to another theory. The premise of Shambhala vision is that, in order to establish an enlightened society for others, we need to discover what inherently we have to offer the world. So, to begin with, we should make an effort to examine our own experience, in order to see what it contains that is of value in helping ourselves and others to uplift their existence.
Chogyam Trungpa
The very moment is always the occasion.
The principle of nowness is very important to any effort to establish an enlightened society. You may wonder what the best approach is to helping society and how you can know what you are doing is authentic and good. The only answer is nowness. The way to relax, or rest the mind in nowness, is through the practice of meditation. In meditation you take an unbiased approach. You let things be as they are, without judgment, and in that way you yourself learn to be.
Let your wisdom as a human being connect with the power of things as they are. There is no fundamental separation or duality between you and your world. This discovery many arise as an extraordinary smell, a fantastic sound, a vivid color, an usual taste. Any perception can connect you to reality properly and fully. If you are able to relax-relax to a cloud by looking at it, relax to a drop of rain and experience its genuineness-you see the unconditionality of reality, which remains very simply in things as they are. There is some principle of magic in everything, some living quality. Something living, something real is talking place in everything.
Without arrogance, see the brilliance of the universe.
We can’t ignore the phenomenal world. We should always take the opportunity, seize it on the spot. Appreciate the world, which is so vivid and beautiful. Arrogant people are so involved with themselves and competing so much with others that they won’t even look.
Rest with gentle patience and strength.
This slogan is connected with realizing unconditional confidence. Here, confidence does not mean having confidence in something, but remaining in the state of confidence, free from competition and one-upmanship. There is no room for doubt; even the question of doubt does not occur. This confidence contains gentleness, because the notion of fear does not arise; sturdiness, because in the state of confidence there is an ever present resourcefulness; and joy, because trusting in the heart brings a greater sense of humor.
Appreciate the accomplishments of your ancestors
The failure to appreciate the resourcefulness of human existence-which we call basic goodness-has become one of the world’s biggest problems. However, we need to find the link between tradition and the present experience of life. Nowness, or the magic of the present moment, is what joins the wisdom of the past with the present. When you appreciate a painting, a piece of music, or a work of literature, no matter when it was created, you appreciate it Now. You experience the same nowness in which it was created. It is always now.
This is part 7 in a continuing series on Shambhala. Click here for Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, or Part 6.
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Tags: enlightened, kingdom, Shambhala, teachings
“Other legends say that the kingdom of Shambhala disappeared from the earth many centuries ago. At a certain point, the entire society had become enlightened, and the kingdom vanished into another more celestial realm.” Chogyam Trungpa
This is part 6 in a continuing series on Shambhala. Click here for Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, or Part 7.
The ultimate warrior protects the world
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You are willing to be awake in whatever situation presents itself to you. You feel that you can take command of your life, because you are not on the side of either success or failure. Success and failure are your journey. The warrior’s duty is to generate compassion and warmth for others, with complete absence of laziness. Your discipline and dedication are unwavering.
Don’t confuse letting go with arrogance or indulgence
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Letting go is relaxing within the discipline you have already developed, in order to experience freedom… …rather than getting away from the constraints of ordinary life, letting go is going further into your life. You understand that your life, as it is, contains the means to unconditionally cheer you up.
The Warrior’s awareness is like an echo
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When the warrior starts to lose track of discipline, by taking time off or indulging in a setting-sun mentality, a state of mind that is degraded and confused, awareness is like an echo that bounces back on you. At first, the echo may be fairly faint, but then it becomes louder and louder. You are constantly reminded that you have to be on the spot.
Take delight in others and propagate dignity
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People often say that it’s too difficult to work with others, that it’s impossible to help them, but that is not true; it has been done, and you can do so as well. Shambhala vision is not purely a philosophy.
Don’t freeze Windhorse into ice
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The self-existing energy that comes from letting go is called windhorse in Shambhala teachings. Wind is the energy of basic goodness, strong, exuberant, and brilliant. At the same time, basic goodness can be ridden, or employed in your life, which is the principle of the horse. When you contact the energy windhorse, you can naturally let go of worrying about your own state of mind and you begin to think of others. If you are unable to let go your selfishness, you might freeze the windhorse into ice.
Take your seat in the warrior’s world
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The practice of meditation also allows you to be completely grounded in reality. Then, if someone asks, “How do I know that you are not overreacting to situations?” You simply reply, “My posture in the saddle, my seat on the Earth, speaks for itself.”
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Tags: buddhist, philosophy, Vision, warrior
“Quit, don’t quit, noodles, don’t noodles. You are too concerned with what was and what will be. There is a saying, “Yesterday is History, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift, that’s why it is called a present.” Kung Fu Panda
“Your heart is free, have the courage to follow it.” BraveHeart
“Accept me as I am. Only then can we discover each other.” 8 and a Half
“Real sharpness comes without effort. No growth without assistance. No action without reaction. No desire without restraint. Now give yourself up and find yourself again.” Couching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
“We die containing a richness of lovers and tribes; tastes we have swallowed, bodies we have plunged into and swum up as if rivers, characters we have hidden if as if caves, fears we have climbed up as if caves. I wish for all this to be marked on my body when I am dead. I believe in such cartography, to be marked by nature. Not just to label ourselves like the names of rich men and women on buildings. We are communial books, communial histories. All that I wished was to walk upon an earth that had no maps.” The English Patient
“I am no one special, just a common man with common thoughts. I’ve led a common life, there are no monuments dedicated to me and my name will soon be forgotten. But in one respect, I’ve succeeded as gloriously as anyone who ever lived…I’ve loved another with all my heart and soul and for me… that has always been enough.” The Notebook
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness which frightens us. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world, there is nothing enlightening about shrinking so other people don’t feel insecure around you. We were all meant to shine as children do, it’s not just in some of us, its in everyone. And as we let our own light shine we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated our presence automatically liberates others. …… Sir. I just want to say thank you.” Coach Carter
“Strange memories on this nervous night in Las Vegas, has it been 5 years? 6? It seems like a lifetime. The kind of peak that never comes again. San Francisco in the middle 60’s was a very special time and place to be a part of, but no explanation, no mix of words, or music, or memories can touch that sense of knowing that you were there and alive in that corner of time in the world. Whatever it meant. There was madness in any direction, at any hour, you can strike sparks anywhere. There was a fantastic universal sense that whatever we were doing was right, that we were winning, and that I think…was the handle. That sense of inevitable victory over the forces of old and evil. Not in any mean or military sense. We didn’t need that. Our energy would simply prevail. We had all the momentum. We were riding the crest of a high and beautiful wave. So now less than 5 years later, you could go up on a steep hill in Las Vegas and look west and with the right kind of eyes you can almost see the high water mark. That place where the wave finally broke….and rolled back.” Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
“We don’t read and write poetry because it’s cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for. To quote from Whitman, [O me! O life! of the questions of these recurring; of the endless trains of the faithless--of cities filled with the foolish; what good amid these, O me, O life? Answer. That you are here - that life exists, and identity; that the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse.] That the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?” Dead Poets Society
“I guess I could be pretty pissed off about what happened to me, but it’s hard to stay mad when there’s so much beauty in the world. Sometimes I feel like I’m seeing it all at once and it’s too much, my heart fills up like a balloon that’s about to burst, and then I remember to relax and stop trying to hold on to it and then if flows through me like rain and I can’t feel anything but gratitude for every single moment of my stupid little life. You have no idea what I’m talking about, I’m sure but don’t worry you will someday.” American Beauty
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Tags: Enlightening, heart, movie, quote
Where Did I Come From? Who Am I? How much money is enough? What is love?
I recently published a post containing, Tips on living a better life in 2008, which sparked some serious debate over number 28, “God heals almost everything”. With over 12,000 views in one week and 30 comments, I was pleased this post had such a great response. I allowed all the comments, both negative and positive, to fly as I watched the debate progress. Very few chose the middle ground, but those comments happened to be my favorite. What I loved most about the post was that I learned a little something from its publication. Notably, the following comment seemed to strike a cord with me by JM, “It’s as though #28 ruined the day for everyone who read it. I’m agnostic or atheist or I don’t really know what, but it’s really irrelevant. I’m just blown away by the negativity that one comment can provoke in people who are logging on to a website based on “enlightenment.” My personal advice would be to “F&*$# lighten up.” But perhaps more sage advice would be what a Buddhist monk once told me when I struggled with one of the teachings: “Ignore that teaching. If it is a roadblock to accepting the good parts in the other passages, then you must discard it. Maybe one day you will feel differently about it, maybe not, but don’t let it get in the way of the parts which are helpful to you.” That’s my two cents. Feel free to get angry, I won’t.” So as a follow up to this post, I am asking the following question and I hope that my readers will continue this debate and we can all learn a little something from each other. What are the most important questions in life? Are they about religion, happiness, freedom, love, etc? Can any answers satisfy everyone, or are the answers only personal ones shape by ones experience in life? So what are the questions that are most important in life? Have you found any answers? What answers? To start things off, I have listed some questions to get the ball rolling. I hope you will share your knowledge, love, hate, wisdom, or whatever you feel like ranting about. I will allow everything except personal attacks on others to be published. What are the most important questions in life? Is it………………
- What is the meaning of life?
- Where Did I Come From?
- Who Am I?
- Where Am I Going?
- How much money is enough?
- What is love?
- Is there a Supreme Being and is his name really God?
- How far does space go? Is there life on other planets?
- ”What is the meaning of life?
- How much is it?…Are you married? Will there be an open bar?
- “What kind of job will I have in the future or even right now”? “Where will I live?” “Who will I marry?”
- “WHAT DOES GOD WANT ME TO DO WITH MY LIFE?” “What do I want to do with my life?”
- “What are the most important questions I need to figure out to be happy?”
- “What is happiness and how do I achieve it?”
- “Why is an all-knowing God not naturally known by His human creation?”
- Is there real proof that God cares for you?”
- What is life all about?”
- “Is there life after death?”
- “Why does God allow pain and suffering?”
- “Can we know God?”
- Does God choose sides?”
- Does God want freedom?
- Why does God let war happen?
- Whom should we pray for?
- Is my life significant?
- What really matters in life?
- Why should I get up in the morning?
- Is there life after death?
- DO I have free will?
- Why are we here?
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Tags: debate, important, Life, questions
“Shambhala vision teaches that, in the face of the world’s greatest problems we can be heroic and kind at the same time.” Chogyam Trungpa This is part 5 in a continuing series on Shambhala. Click here for Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 6, or Part 7.
Daring to let go, the warrior is great in friendliness.
- We are attracted to our cocoons, our selfishness, and afraid of stepping beyond ourselves. To overcome hesitation and to commit oneself to others’ welfare, the student warrior has to jump. A leap is necessary. This occurs in the practice of meditation when you step beyond the ups and downs of your thinking process and let yourself go with your breath. Let it dissolve. By letting go, you develop trust in the strength of your being. Then, you also find that you have tremendous willingness to give selflessly to others.
The humble warrior is Supreme.
- You need to cultivate gentleness, so that you remain humble, soft, and open. Allow tenderness to come into your heart. Renounce putting on a new suit of armor or growing thick skin. The warrior who has accomplished true renunciation is completely naked and raw, without even skin or tissue. You are able to be, quite fearlessly, what you are.
You cannot possess basic goodness.
- The goal of warriorship is to express basic goodness in its most complete, fresh, and brilliant form. This is possible when you realize that you do not possess basic goodness, but you are the basic goodness itself.
The warrior’s discipline is like the sun.
Join the arrow of intellect with the bow of skillful means.
- With the sharpness of your intelligence, the arrow of intellect, you can clearly see the setting sun, or any degraded tendencies in yourself or the world. Then, you need to harness your insight with skillful action, which is the bow. When the arrow of intellect is joined with the bow of skillful means, you are never tempted by the seductions of the setting-sun world. Temptation here refers to anything that promotes ego and goes against the vision of egolessness and basic goodness. Together, the principle of the bow and arrow allows you to say “no” to ungenuineness, to carelessness, crudeness, or lack of wakefulness.
This is part 5 in a continuing series on Shambhala. Click here for Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, or Part 4.
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Tags: heroic, humble, kind, Vision, warrior
It is said that Buddhism played an important role in the development of the Shambhala society. The legends tell us that Shakyamuni Buddha gave advanced tantric teachings to the first king of Shambhala, Dawa Sangpo. These Teachings, which are preserved as the Kalacakra Tantra, are considered to be among the most profound wisdom of Tibetan Buddhism. Chogyam Trungpa
This is part 4 in a continuing series on Shambhala. Click here for Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 5, part 6, or Part 7 The warrior delights in heedfulness
- Heedfulness here refers to paying attention to what is taking place in your world. For the warrior, interest happens spontaneously. You feel that the world is naturally full of interest: the visual world, the emotional world, whatever world you might have. So interest or heedfulness manifests as raw delight, delight together with rawness or tenderness.
Let the Great Eastern Sun illuminate the way of discipline
- The Great Eastern Sun, sun of human wakefulness, creates an atmosphere in which you can constantly move forward, recharging energy all the time. It provides the means to take advantage of your life in the fullest sense. This discipline is an organic process that expands naturally from your own experiences…You don’t need an architect or a tailor to redesign your world.
When doubt arises, contemplate warriorship
- Absence of doubt comes from trusting in the heart, trusting yourself. Being without doubt means that you connect yourself, that you experience mind and body being synchronized together. When mind and body are synchronized, then you have no doubt.
Propagate health as a basic discipline of warriorship
- The Great Eastern Sun is wakefulness and genuineness reflected in every aspect of your being. Physically, psychologically, domestically, spiritually, you feel a gut-level sense of health and wholesomeness in your life, as if you were holding a solid brick of gold. When you feel healthy and wholesome, then you cannot help projecting healthiness to others.
Celebrate the feast of faith and joy
- Faith is based on genuineness, trusting in yourself and your vision. You are not faking anything, and you are not trying to impress anybody. Faith inspires discipline. Here, discipline is not based on punishment or arbitrary rules and authority, but rather on becoming thoroughly gentle and genuine. When the warrior has unwavering discipline, he or she takes joy in the journey and joy in working with others. The joy is like music, which celebrates its own rhythm and melody. The celebration is continuous, in spite of ups and downs of life.
Chogyam Trungpa Click here for Part 1, Part 2, or Part 3.
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Tags: buddhist, Dawa Sangpo, Shambhala, teaching
This is part 3, in a continuing series on Shambhala by Chogyam Trungpa. Click here if you missed part 1 or part 2, Part 4, or Part 5. In Tibet, as well as many other Asian countries, there are stories about a legendary kingdom that was a source of learning and culture for present-day Asian societies. According to the legends, this was a place of peace and prosperity, governed by wise and compassionate rulers. The citizens were equally kind and learned, so that, in general, the kingdom was a model society. This place was called Shambhala. Chogyam Trungpa Synchronize mind and body
- When you are completely mindful in the present moment, mind and body are synchronized. Here, synchronizing mind and body is connected with developing fearlessness, in the sense of being accurate and direct in relating to the phenomenal world. You begin to realize that you have a perfect right to be in this universe. You can uplift yourself and appreciate your existence as a human being. This discovery is the first glimpse of what is called the Great Eastern Sun, which is the sun of human dignity, the sun of human power.
By the dance of the setting sun, the entire world becomes cowardly
- The warrior’s vision of how to lead a sane and dignified life, is based on celebrating life. It is contrasted to the setting sun what is going down and dissolving into darkness. Setting-sun vision is based on trying to ward off death. It is based on fear. In the world of the setting sun, we are constantly afraid of ourselves, ashamed of who and what we are.
The food of the setting sun fills everyone with grease and fat
- In the setting-sun or degraded approach, you have a giant vision, beyond anything you can consume, and you get bloated and end up throwing things away. Great Eastern Sun vision is that the world is very sacred, so you have to constantly serve your world and clean it up. It’s not necessary to overindulge. Also, because you appreciate the world, you don’t leave a mess in it.
Always return to the primordial ground
- In this world, there are always possibilities of original purity, because the world is clean to begin with. Similarly, our physical and psychological existence is originally clean. We may smear the situation with our conflicting emotions, but fundamentally, our existence is all good, and it is all launder able. This is what we mean by basic goodness: the pure ground that is always there, waiting to be cleaned. We can always reconnect with the primordial ground.
All-Victorious, you have nothing to conquer
- Being all-victorious is not a matter of talking yourself into believing that everything is okay. Rather, if you actually look, if you take your whole being apart and examine it, you find that you are genuine and good as you are. In fact, the whole of existence is well-constructed, so that there is very little room for mishaps. There are, of course, constant challenges. But for the true warrior, there is no warfare. You are never at war with your world.
These passages are taken from Chogyam Trungpa’s book Shambhala: the sacred path of the warrior.
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Tags: , buddhist, Eastern sun, Shambhala, tradition
The Shambhala teachings are founded on the premise that there is a basic human wisdom that can help to solve the world’s problems. This wisdom does not belong to any one culture or religion, no does it come only from the West or the East. Rather, it is a tradition of human warriorship that has existed in many cultures at many times throughout history. Chogyam Trungpa Each week I will be posting 5 principles for living a life with fearlessness and gentleness. This is part 2 of the Shambhala teachings by Chogyam Trungpa Don’t assume the posture of a wilted flower.
- When you slouch, you are trying to hide your heart, protecting it by slumping over. Through the practice of sitting still and following your breath as it goes out and dissolves, you are connecting with your heart. By simply letting yourself be, as you are, you develop genuine sympathy toward yourself. When you sit erect, you proclaim to yourself and to the rest of the world that you are going to be a warrior, a fully human being.
Hope and Fear cannot alter the seasons.
- The four seasons occur free from anyone’s demand or vote. The natural law and order of this world is not “for” or “against” you. There is a natural law and order that allows you to survive, which is basically good. We often take for granted or reject this basic law and order in the universe, but we should think twice. We should appreciate what we have. We should feel that it is wonderful to be in this world.
Awaken the genuine heart of sadness.
- Awakened heart comes from being willing to face your state of mind. It is a natural situation of fullness. The genuine heart of sadness comes from this feeling that your nonexistent heart is full. Your experience is so raw, tender, and personal that even if a tiny mosquito lands on you, you feel its touch.
To experience fearlessness, it is necessary to experience fear.
- The essence of cowardice is to not acknowledge the reality of fear. Fear takes many forms. Fear is expressed as restlessness: how we move, how we talk, how we chew our nails, how we sometimes put out hands in our pockets uselessly. We have to realize our fear and reconcile ourselves with fear. However, acknowledging fear is not a cause for depression. Because we possess such fear, we can potentially experience fearlessness.
Go beyond Fear.
- When you examine your fear, if you look beneath the veneer of your nervousness, you find sadness. Nervousness is cranking up, vibrating all the time. When you slow down, when you relax with your fear, the sadness is calm and gentle. In the Shambhala tradition, discovering fearlessness comes from working with the softness of the human heart.
Click here if you missed part 1 on Shambhala: The Sacred path of the Warrior, Click here for Part 3, Part 4, or Part 5.
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Tags: , Chogyam trungpa, path, sacred, Shambhala
Today, I will begin a new series on Shambhala; The Sacred Path of the Warrior. Each week I will post 5 new Warrior Slogans on living a life of bravery and gentleness taken from Chogyam Trungpa book Shambhala. The Slogans are posted for your contemplating pleasure and will present the basic principles and wisdom of Shambhala. Don’t be afraid of who you are.
- Examine your experience to see what it contains that is of value in helping yourself and others. Warriorship is the opposite of selfishness. Even in the face of great problems, we can be heroic and kind at the same time.
Goodness is the ground of all.
- You are exposed to heaven above and earth below, sandwiched between heaven and earth. You can’t reject your atmosphere, the sun and the moon, sidewalks and skyscrapers, the landscape or the sea. This goodness is that basic, that unconditional. It is not good versus bad. It is not a “for” or “against” view, just as sunlight is not “for” or “against”.
Goodness dawns like the sun.
- The human potential for intelligence and dignity is attuned to experiencing the brilliance of the bright blue sky, the freshness of green fields, and the beauty of the trees and mountains. We have an actual connection to the reality that can wake us up and make us feel basically good.
Never give up on anyone or anything.
- In the wakeful vision of Shambhala, which we call the vision of the Great Eastern Sun, no human being is ever a lost cause. We are always willing to give things a chance to flower.
To overcome uncertainty is utterly good.
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When you don’t punish or condemn yourself, when you relax and appreciate your body and mind, you begin to contact goodness in yourself. Existence is wonderful and precious. We don’t know how long we will live. While we have our life, why not make use of it? Before we even make use of it, why don’t we appreciate it?
This is a continuing series on Shambhala. Click here for Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, or Part 5.
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Tags: , Lesson, Shambhala, warrior, wisdom
The Shambhala teachings are not based on converting the world to another theory. The premise of Shambhala vision is that, in order to establish an enlightened society for others, we need to discover what inherently we have to offer the world. So, to begin with, we should make an effort to examine our own experience, in order to see what it contains that is of value in helping ourselves and others to uplift their existence. 
