January 4th, 2010, posted in Prose
Welcome to 2010.
So according to the movies I grew up watching, we are supposed to have interplanetary travel, contact with alien life, flying cars, and personal robots. Well it hasn’t come around at this point, but some goods things have, for me at least.
I just completed my first year trying to live a vegan life. It hasn’t been one hundred percent successful, I did have a few days where I consumed dairy products, but overall things are going well. I lost nearly 35 pounds just by eating vegan. I find myself more compassionate towards others, calmer, and thoughtful. I also completed my third year without a cigarette. This is awesome.
With 2010 here, I thought it might be a good idea to jot down some things I’d like to accomplish. These aren’t resolutions, but focal points of my time. So without further ado….
- Write more. The plan right now is to write one article every two weeks. Starting with this one. Some will be on tech/web issues. Others will be philosophical musings, Buddhist or vegan oriented. (Although I will post any recipes I come up with on my other site http://www.veganseat.info)
- Up my creative game. This one is a little tougher, but also a little broader. I want to produce one piece of creative content (not tied to a job) per week. This could be HTML/CSS, Javascript, a Wordpress theme, a full site, or a poster/wallpaper. The point is to push my personal envelope creatively and develop my skills.
- 365 self portrait. This is pretty straight forward: take a self portrait every day. See my progress on flickr – http://www.flickr.com/photos/urothane/sets/72157622992286695/
- Bike more. Do yoga more. I am trying to do one or both each day, along with meditating. I want to get fit, have more energy and maybe try to bike a century ride this year.
- Get more tattoos. If you happen to have a tattoo studio and need some web work, lets talk trade.
April 23rd, 2008, posted in Buddhism, Enlightenment, Parenting, Philosophy, Quotes
I read AmidaBuddha.org daily. It is always refreshing to learn something new or to see how others view the world. Sometimes I am inspired and other times I am confused and contemplative of the quotes they produce. Typically they will quote a great Buddhist author or teacher. Occasionally the reference people like Einstein. Today we have one from one of the greatest thinkers of the 20th century. He is an author and illustrator that everyone in my generation grew up with. He has a musical that was produced about his work. And there have been several very successful conversions of his work into movies on both the large and small screens.
From there to here, from here to there, funny things are everywhere… If you never did, you should. These things are fun and fun is good. – Dr. Seuss, One Fish two fish red fish blue fish, 1960
For me this quote touches base with something the Dalai Lama said yesterday in his speech at Colgate University. Everything can be viewed from different perspectives. In some of these perspectives the situation or object is good and others it is bad. If you take the time and practice to release yourself from the fears and preconceptions you have about all the time and carefully examine everything from all possible angles, you will be able to enjoy more things.
April 9th, 2008, posted in Buddhism, Enlightenment, Prose, Quotes
The purpose of a fish trap is to catch fish, and when the fish are caught, the trap is forgotten. The purpose of a rabbit snare is to catch rabbits. When the rabbits are caught, the snare is forgotten. The purpose of words is to convey ideas. When the ideas are grasped, the words are forgotten. Where can I find a man who has forgotten words? He is the one I would like to talk to. -Chuang Tzu
Last night I spent nearly an hour meditating with the group up at the Milwaukee Shambala Center. Every Tuesday they offer meditation lessons or a group sit followed by tea and a lesson and discussion on Buddhism. This week they covered the third of the Four Noble Truths: Cessation of Suffering. The key to focus on as presented last night is the suffering we generate within ourselves once our basic needs are met.
The first truth is the recognition that suffering exist or the nature of suffering. Like all problems you can not solve them without acknowledging it. The second is the origin of suffering. Our desire to be right or to crave things leads to suffering. Cessation of suffering comes when we begin to let go of the desire to be right or crave. By releasing the thought, we can prevent the speech. Preventing the speech can prevent the action. Without the action there will be no suffering. In many cases there are more than one way to accomplish a task or goal. Instead of sticking to your guns and ideas on how it should be done, be open to all possibilities. You will feel less frustrated reducing your internal suffering. By being open and accepting of others ideas you will also cause less suffering for them.
April 7th, 2008, posted in Enlightenment, Philosophy, Quotes
With the current conflicts around the world…some wars, some environmental, and some simply nonacceptance of others, this particular quote seems rather important.
It is our earth, not yours or mine or his. We are meant to live on it, helping each other, not destroying each other. – J. Krishnamurti
Let’s all take a moment and try to understand each other. If you can not understand, ask for an explanation and do not judge, just listen and inquire. If you disagree, simply state that you understand but disagree and respect the other opinion. If everyone were to take time to do this we can achieve world peace and eradicate racism.
Related: The Right View
March 14th, 2008, posted in Enlightenment, Philosophy, Politics
I truly do try and stay away from politics, but as I have mentioned here before and quote often, I hold the Dalai Lama in particular and Tibetan Buddhists in general in high regard. This week while commemorating the 49th anniversary protest that ousted the Dalai Lama from his home and his people, Buddhists monks during a peaceful protest in Lhasa, Tibet were met with resistance from Chinese soldiers.
Tibetan citizens, not holding to the monks non-violent protest began rioting. There are reports coming from the region that monks have self-inflicted wounds upon themselves (a sign of protest), people are looting, fires are being set to vehicles and shops, and some are dying during this time. Gunfire has been heard throughout the city. The political and religious turmoil occurring on the “Roof of the World” has forced the Chinese government to actually shut down Mt. Everest at the very beginning of the climbing season. It will be shut until May 10th when a Chinese team is expected to summit with the Olympic torch. The government of Nepal is attempting to negotiate so that the southern route of Everest is still climbable as this is a massive source of income for what is the world’s second poorest country. However they are under great pressure from the Chinese government which is concerned about meeting pro-Tibetan protests during the climb.
Just 5 months before the Olympic games in Beijing, the world should be holding China accountable for their oppressive and genocidal actions (yes I used the “g” word as they are killing off the Tibetan Buddhist people and culture). I hope the major governments of this world, including my own boycott the Olympics in hopes that China backs off the devastation they are creating.
March 3rd, 2008, posted in Enlightenment, Philosophy, Politics, Quotes
Another great quote from the AmidaBuddha.org website:
War can only be understood and put an end to if you and all those who are concerned very deeply with the survival of man, feel that you are utterly responsible for killing others. What will make you change? – J. Krishnamurti
February 19th, 2008, posted in Enlightenment, Philosophy, Quotes
Here is another great quote from the AmidaBuddha.org site:
There are two mistakes one can make along the road to truth — not going all the way, and not starting. – Buddha
By the way, if you are near the Wisconsin area this coming July there is a great opportunity to learn from the Dalai Lama at an event sponsored by the Deer Park Buddhist Center in Madison.
January 25th, 2008, posted in Enlightenment
I found this quote on the Amida Buddha website quite interesting:
Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense. – Buddha
If you like quotes, like me, there are are lots of great quotes produced daily on this site and not just from Buddhism. They quote everyone from Buddha and Confucius to Groucho Marx and Churchill if the statement is pertinent to the Buddhist mindset. It is a nice little dose of inspiration. They have a widget for your iGoogle page as well.