Do it

in helping others
you forget yourself,
and in a way
you Empty yourself.

do it
and feel the Empty
and see
how it feels.

I like to walk alone on country paths, rice plants and wild grasses on both sides, putting each foot down on the earth in mindfulness, knowing that I walk on the wondrous earth. In such moments, existence is a miraculous and mysterious reality.People usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth. Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don't even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child--our own two eyes. All is a miracle

all Buddhas

All Buddhas are alike All Buddhas have one purposeand one purpose only:to save the sentient beings from useless sufferings.But because human beingshave different temperaments,even after they become Buddha , each Buddha has his own unique wayof appealing to people.Because the Gautama or Sakyamuni Buddhais the last Buddha to appear on this earth, it is through himand through him only that we get to knowof the existence of other Buddhasand Buddha lands.It is therefore most appropriate that we master and honor all the basic teachings of Gautama Buddha first and foremost,even if we are attracted to theways of other Buddhasin alleviating and stopping suffering.It is like, no matter how much we love an uncle or an aunt,our parents are still our parents, first and foremost,then comes our uncle or aunt.May all have the right priorities.

My baby Lacie

She is a English ShellieS

Daily Mugshot

belive

Believe nothing.No matter where you read it,Or who said it,Even if I have said it,Unless it agrees with your own reason And your own common senseA kind man who makes good use of wealth is rightly said to possess a great treasure; but the miser who hoards up his riches will have no profitFull of love for all things in the world, practicing virtue, in order to benefit others, this man alone is happyDelusions, errors and lies are like huge, gaudy vessels, the rafters of which are rotten and worm-eaten, and those who embark in them are fated to be shipwrecked.Your body is precious. It is our vehicle for awakening. Treat it with care.

Wise proverd

WISE PROVERB

An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck.One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walk from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water.Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments.But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do.After 2 years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream."I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house."The old woman smiled, "Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?""That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them.""For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house."Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding.You've just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.SO, to all of my crackpot friends, have a great day and remember to smell the flowers on your side of the path

love where is it

We live in the modern age Where love is fast like a turning page In a magazine, we’ve hardly seen The friends we used to know They disappear, they come and go Like the times we’ve hadIt’s kind of sad Whatever happened to old fashioned love The kind that would see you through The kind of love my Momma and Daddy knewYeah, whatever happened to old fashioned loveThe kind that would last through the years Through the trials Through the smiles Through the tearsToday is all we’ve plannedWe say tomorrow we’ll understandIf it all should end We’d be alone again Ohh, whatever happened to old fashioned love The kind that would see you through The kind of love my Momma and Daddy knew Yeah, whatever happened to old fashioned love The kind that would last through the years Through the trials Through the smiles Through the tears For now the tenderness Has been replaced With something less And it’s hard to find What we left behind Ohh, whatever happened to old fashioned love The kind that would see you through The kind of love my Momma and Daddy knewYeah, whatever happened to old fashioned loveThe kind that would last through the years Through the trials Through the smiles Through the tears. love is something i dont have at this time hoping I can find it

Love

We live in the modern age Where love is fast like a turning pageIn a magazine, we’ve hardly seenThe friends we used to know They disappear, they come and goLike the times we’ve hadIt’s kind of sadWhatever happened to old fashioned love The kind that would see you through The kind of love my Momma and Daddy knewYeah, whatever happened to old fashioned loveThe kind that would last through the years Through the trials Through the smiles Through the tearsToday is all we’ve plannedWe say tomorrow we’ll understandIf it all should end We’d be alone againOhh, whatever happened to old fashioned loveThe kind that would see you throughThe kind of love my Momma and Daddy knewYeah, whatever happened to old fashioned loveThe kind that would last through the yearsThrough the trials Through the smiles Through the tearsFor now the tendernessHas been replaced With something lessAnd it’s hard to find What we left behindOhh, whatever happened to old fashioned loveThe kind that would see you throughThe kind of love my Momma and Daddy knewYeah, whatever happened to old fashioned loveThe kind that would last through the years Through the trials Through the smiles Through the tears.

Buddha Teachings

Buddhism is a philosophy of life expounded by Gautama Buddha ("Buddha" means "enlightened one"), who lived and taught in northern India in the 6th Century B.C. The Buddha was not a god and the philosophy of Buddhism does not entail any theistic world-view. The teachings of the Buddha are aimed solely to liberate sentient beings from suffering.

The Basic Teachings of Buddha which are core of Buddhism are-

The Three Universal TruthThe Four Noble TruthThe Noble Eightfold Path
In Buddhism, the law of karma, says "for every event that occurs, there will follow another event whose existence was caused by the first, and this second event will be pleasant or unpleasant according as its cause was skillful or unskillful." Therefore, the law of Karma teaches that responsibility for unskillful actions is born by the person who commits them.

After his enlightenment, he went to the Deer Park near the holy city of Benares and shared his new understanding with five holy men. They understood immediately and became his disciples. This marked the beginning of the Buddhist community. For the next forty-five years, the Buddha and his disciples went from place to place in India spreading the Dharma, his teachings. Their compassion knew no bounds, they helped everyone along the way, beggars, kings and slave girls. At night, they would sleep where they were; when hungry they would ask for a little food.

Whenever the Buddha went, he won the hearts of the people because he dealt with their true feelings. He advised them not to accept his words on blind faith, but to decide for themselves whether his teachings are right or wrong, then follow them. He encouraged everyone to have compassion for each other and develop their own virtue, "You should do your own work, for I can teach only the way."

Once the Buddha and Ananda visited a monastery where a monk was suffering from a contagious disease. The poor man lay in a mess with no one looking after him. The Buddha himself washed the sick monk and placed him on a new bed. Afterwards, he admonished the other monks. "Monks, you have neither mother nor father to look after you. If you do not look after each other, who will look after you? Whoever serves the sick and suffering, serves me."

BASIC TEACHINGS OF BUDDHA
The Three Universal Truth
1. Nothing is lost in the universe
2. Everything Changes
3. Law of Cause and Effect

The Four Noble Truths

1. Life is suffering;
2. Suffering is due to attachment;
3. Attachment can be overcome;
4. There is a path for accomplishing this.

The Noble Eightfold Path
1. Right View is the true understanding of the four noble truths.

2. Right Aspiration is the true desire to free oneself from attachment, ignorance, and hatefulness. These two are referred to as Prajña, or wisdom.

3. Right Speech involves abstaining from lying, gossiping, or hurtful talk.

4. Right Action involves abstaining from hurtful behaviors, such as killing, stealing, and careless sex

5. right Livelihood means making your living in such a way as to avoid dishonesty and hurting others, including animals. These three are refered to as Shila, or morality.

6. Right Effort is a matter of exerting oneself in regards to the content of one's mind: Bad qualities should be abandoned and prevented from arising again; Good qualities should be enacted and nurtured.

7. Right Mindfulness is the focusing of one's attention on one's body, feelings, thoughts, and consciousness in such a way as to overcome craving, hatred, and ignorance.

8. Right Concentration is meditating in such a way as to progressively realize a true understanding of imperfection, impermanence, and non-separateness.The last three are known as Samadhi or Meditation.

However, there are many sects of Buddhism and there are different kinds of Buddhist monks all over the world. The life and customs of Buddhist monks are not only different and unique but consists of a spiritual meaning and their daily life follows a strict schedule that revolves around meditation, study of scriptures, and taking apart in the ceremonies. There are Buddhist shrines, Buddhist monasteries, where monks live, Gompas and Buddhist Stupas all over the world. However, Tibet is perhaps the only Buddhist country which has Dalai Lama, the Buddhist monk and a spiritual leader, as its political leader too. All monks have special uniform called robes, the color of which can tell you about his status in the monastery such as the brownish orange robe is the color of wise, elderly monks.
Though originated in northern India, Emperor Ashoka helped to spread Buddhism into South East Asian counties such as Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand and Indo-China, from where it moved on to influence people in the Himalayan kingdoms of Sikkim, Bhutan, Nepal, Tibet, Mongolia, Central Asia along with China, Korea, Vietnam and Japan. Today, Thailand has 95% of Buddhist population, the highest in the world with Cambodia, Burma, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Tibet, Laos, Vietnam, Japan, Macau and Taiwan following soon behind
.
Devotees reaffirm their faith in the five principles called Panchsheel:

1. Do not to take life

2. Do not to steal

3. Do not to lie

4. Do not to consume liquor or other intoxicants

5. Do not to commit adultery.