é™æ€è¯ Readings For Silent Reflection
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Sometimes, my mind goes a mile a minute. It’s like I can’t stop overthinking every little thing. It’s like I’m an excited five year old from time to time. But over the years, I’ve learned to quiet my mind when I overthink things. What do I do?
1. Repeat positive, calming mantras.
Sometimes I just have to tell myself to chill out, but not in a self-hating kind of way. Usually I’ll just repeat peaceful words like “calm,” “peace,” and “tranquility.” It helps me set the stage for being calm and not overthink anything the rest of the day.
2. Meditate regularly.
Each day, I spend 15 minutes in meditation. But I do it without any kind of an agenda. I don’t sit down and force myself to clear my mind. Instead, I consider everything. I let thoughts roll through, but let them move on once they’re done. Focus on deep breathing and relax.
3. Live in the present.
When I overthink things, it’s because I’m thinking about the future. Instead of thinking about the future, I take time and think about the present and how good I really have it. Important goals go on post-it notes on my desk. They don’t belong jumbled up in my brain.
4. Get into nature.
When all else fails, I go for a camping trip. I get out in nature and let the Earth cleanse my overactive mind. Nothing like the sound of wind blowing through trees to make you chill out. -
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Develop the mind of equilibrium.
You will always be getting praise and blame,
but do not let either affect the poise of the mind,
follow the calmness, the absence of pride.
~ The Buddha ~
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Try to cultivate this attitude in life:
if I can have what I want, that's good;
if I can't, that's fine too.
This will help you turn your suffering into joy, and live a happier life
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Picking up and letting go; one must learn to do both with ease.
�得起，放得下，�能�放自如。
---Venerable Master Hsing Yun
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All phenomena are conditional;
Don’t try to force events.
Only if causes and conditions exist,
Will everything be fulfilled.
万法相互缘起，世事ä¸�必強求；å�ªè¦�å› ç¼˜å…·è¶³ï¼Œè‡ªèƒ½æ°´åˆ°æ¸ æˆ�。
—— 星雲大師 Venerable Master Hsing Yun -
Dear Dharma brothers & sisters, If you wish Shifu or Shifus to chant 地�� on the death anniversary (忌日) of your ancestors, blessings (延生) or dedicate merits to your karmic creditors (超度冤亲债主) please send me a private message.
It is stated in the 地�� that if you chant or ask someone to chant 地�� to your ancestors etc, they will liberate from sufferings.
å¤�次普广，若未æ�¥ä¸–诸众生ç‰ï¼Œæˆ–梦或å¯�，è§�诸鬼神，乃å�Šè¯¸å½¢ï¼Œæˆ–悲或啼，或æ„�或å�¹ï¼Œæˆ–æ��或怖。æ¤çš†æ˜¯ä¸€ç”Ÿã€�å��生ã€�百生ã€�å�ƒç”Ÿè¿‡åŽ»çˆ¶æ¯�ã€�男女弟妹ã€�夫妻眷属，在于æ�¶è¶£ï¼Œæœªå¾—å‡ºç¦»ï¼Œæ— å¤„å¸Œæœ›ç¦�力救拔，当告宿世骨肉，使作方便，愿离æ�¶é�“。普广，æ±�以神力，é�£æ˜¯çœ·å±žï¼Œä»¤å¯¹è¯¸ä½›è�©è�¨åƒ�å‰�，志心自读æ¤ç»�，或请人读，其数三é��或七é��。如是æ�¶é�“眷属，ç»�声毕是é��数，当得解脱，乃至梦å¯�之ä¸ï¼Œæ°¸ä¸�å¤�è§�。
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People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.....
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.....
If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway....
The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.....
Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.....
The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway...
What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.....
People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.....
Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway...”
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Here is what Buddha said about good luck and fate
What did the Buddha teach about magic and fortune telling?
The Buddha considered such practices as fortune telling, wearing magic charms for protection, finding lucky sites for buildings, prophesising and fixing lucky days to be useless superstitions and he expressly forbade his disciples to practise such things. He called all these things ‘low arts’.
“Whereas some religious men, while living off food provided by the faithful make their living by such low arts, such wrong means of livelihood as palmistry, divining by signs, interpreting dreams, bringing about good or bad luck, picking the lucky site for a building, the monk Gotama refrains from such low arts, such wrong means of livelihood”.
Then why do people sometimes practise such things and believe in them?
Because of greed, fear and ignorance. As soon as people understand the Buddha’s teachings, they realise that a pure heart can protect them much better than bits of paper, bits of metal and a few chanted words and they no longer rely on such things. In the teachings of the Buddha, it is honesty, kindness, understanding, patience, forgiveness, generosity, loyalty and other good qualities that truly protect you and give you true prosperity.
But some lucky charms do work, don’t they?
I know a person who makes a living selling lucky charms. He claims that his charms can give good luck, prosperity and he guarantees that you will be able to pick three numbers. But if what he says is true then why isn’t he himself a multi-millionaire? If his lucky charms really work, then why doesn’t he win the lottery week after week? The only luck he has is that there are people silly enough to buy his magic charms.
Then is there such a thing as luck?
The dictionary defines luck as ‘believing that whatever happens, either good or bad, to a person in the course of events is due to chance, fate or fortune’. The Buddha denied this belief completely. Everything that happens has a specific cause or causes and there must be some relationships between the cause and the effect. Becoming sick, for example, has specific causes. One must come into contact with germs and one’s body must be weak enough for the germs to establish themselves. There is a definite relationship between the cause (germs and a weakened body) and the effect (sickness) because we know that germs attack the organisms and give rise to sickness. But no relationship can be found between wearing a piece of paper with words written on it and being rich or passing examinations. Buddhism teaches that whatever happens does so because of a cause or causes and not due to luck, chance or fate. People who are interested in luck are always trying to get something,usually more money and wealth. The Buddha teaches us that it is far more important to develop our hearts and minds. He says:
Being deeply learned and skilled; being well-trained and using well-spoken words – this is the best good luck. To support mother and father, to cherish wife and child and to have a simple livelihood – this is the best good luck. -
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Ajahn Chah, one of the great Thai teachers of the 20th century, gave the following practice instruction:
" Put a chair in the middle of a room.
Sit in the chair.
See who comes to visit ".
-Ajahn Chah
... Open yourself and be willing to receive, not control, whatever arises - that is, not only allow but embrace every sensation, feeling, and thought, everything we experience. In this approach, we allow our experience to challenge our assumptions. Here, there are no fundamental or eternal truths, and some things cannot be explained; they can only be experienced. Be willingness to open to whatever arises internally or externally.
... "This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all" !
- Rumi