Metta

The teachings of the Buddha go beyond the basic morality which is common to all religions. He taught METTA - selfless love, a love that goes beyond family, friends and countrymen, AND includes those of different religions, beliefs, creeds, sexual orientation, and even INCLUDES our enemies as well, no matter how difficult the circumstances may appear to be.

“He was angry with me, he attacked me, he defeated me, he robbed me”—those who dwell on such thoughts will never be free from hatred.
For hatred can never put an end to hatred. Love alone can. This is an unalterable law. —Dhammapada 1:3-5

Passion

In German, the word passion is made up of 2 words: create and suffering.

Passion in German is leidenschaft.

leiden means to suffer and schaft (root word is schaffen) means to create.

And there is this saying, Leidenschaft ist die Eifersucht, die Leiden schaft. Passion is the enthusiasm that creates suffering.

RIGHT!

AS WE NOTE AND NOTE

Reality as it is becomes the right view of the meditator.

Thinking of it as it is becomes the right thought.

Awareness of it as it is becomes the right awareness.

Concentration on it as it is becomes the right concentration.

Actions of the body and speech are then aligned to reality as it is.

In this way the meditator develops and is fulfilled.

Friends

Even if we do not find such friends in our life, let's strive to be such a friend to others!

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If for company you find a wise and prudent friend
who leads a good life,
you should, overcoming all impediments,
keep his company joyously and mindfully.

Dhammapada

Insight instead

In practicing concentration, there's no way everyone will get results at the same speed. Some people get fast results, others get slow results. There are even those who never seem to gain a taste of stillness at all.

Still, they shouldn't get discouraged.

The act of making an effort in the area of the Mind is, in itself, a higher form of merit and skill than the act of giving gifts or observing the precepts.

Many have been trying to practice concentration for a long time, but the mind has never been still.

When the mind isn't still, we can at least make sure it does­n't wander off far. Use our mindfulness to stay mindful of the body. Look to see it as inconstant, stressful, and not-self. Develop the perception of its being unattractive, with nothing of any substance to it at all. When the mind sees clearly in this way, it will give rise to a sense of dismay, disenchantment, and dispassion. This, too, can cut through the clinging-aggregates.

PEACE

"I WANT PEACE" we say......

First let go of the "WANT"

then break the delusion of "I"

what is naturally left is "PEACE!"

In our meditation, first note the Impermanence of ALL,
see how unsatisfactory it all is.....
and we will see the futility of Craving, Wanting, Clinging.....

Then see the absence of Self, of control, of anything concrete within,
see the ceaselessly changing process that we had deludedly thought was 'I',
and then we will see NonSelf....
and the "I" disappears....

Now when we don't hold, or grasp, or want.... IT JUST IS

and when we no longer view things as "I", "My", "Mine" ....
then we have PEACE.

Images

The biggest obstacles

to settling back are

attachments

to self-images and concepts

of who we are and how we want to be

They complicate unneccessarily the

very simple experience of what it is

that's happening.

Often people on the spiritual path

get

trapped by an image

An image of what they think it

means to be a yogi or a meditator

or a spiritual person,

creating for

themselves

that struggle of trying to

live up to a certain preconceived

way of action or behaviour