“The gray rain-curtain of this world rolls back and all turns to silver glass.”
(J.R.R. Tolkien)
Category: Zen and Tao
To be happy
“I often ask myself what is the purpose of our lives and I conclude that life’s purpose is to be happy. We have no guarantee what will happen in the future, but we live in hope. That’s what keeps us going.”
(Dalai Lama)
The world outside
“When you always do what you’ve always done, you will always get what you always got.”
(A friend)
Waking up
“Waking up to who you are requires letting go of who you imagine yourself to be.”
(Alan Watts)
Silence
“With one who does not speak his every thought I spend a pleasant evening.”
(Teramura Hyakuchi)
The Stream of Conciousness
“One thought follows another, without hesitation. The thought arises, it doesn’t wait to arise. As when you clap your hands, the sound issues, without hesitation. When you strike flint, the spark comes out. It doesn’t wait to come out. And that means, that there’s no block. So “thought, thought, thought” describes what we call in our world “the stream of consciousness”. Blocking consists in letting the stream become connected. Chained together. In such a way, that when the present thought arises, it seems to be dragging its past. Or resisting its future. Saying… “I don’t want to go!”. When then the connection… the dragging of these thoughts… drops, you’ve broken the chain of Karma.”
(by Alan Watts, The Taoist Way II from “The Essential Lectures”)
New Year’s Hopes and Wishes
“Interdependence is a fundamental law of nature. Even tiny insects survive by cooperating with each other. Our own survival is so dependent on the help of others that a need for love lies at the very core of our existence. This is why we need to cultivate a genuine sense of responsibility and a sincere concern for the welfare of others.“
(Dalai Lama)
Flow
Flow with whatever may happen, and let your mind be free. Stay centered by accepting whatever you are doing. This is the ultimate.
(Zhuangzi, Nan-Hua-Ch’en-Ching)
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