Someone once asked a Zen teacher, “What is Buddha?” The teacher replied, “What is not Buddha?” — unknown origin (quoted in Nothing to Grasp by Joan Tollifson)
Blog
The Mystery of Life
A Path with Heart
My daily burden
Is to follow my heart,
Wherever it may lead.
“A path that is not
For the faint of heart,”
Replied a friend who agreed.
It’s not easy following our heart, our passion, that which gives us joy and fulfillment. When breaking new ground, fear and excitement go hand in hand, as with diving off the diving board for the first time. Once we begin on a path with heart, internal and external obstacles arise. It takes courage to go on. Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the ability to go on in the face of fear. The notion of fearlessness is a myth. A soldier without fear is a dead soldier. Fear is essential to survival and meeting our needs. We need to listen to the wisdom of our fear and identify the valid, important need underneath, while staying true to our heart. Remember Eleanor Roosevelt’s advice, “Do one thing every day that scares you.” I recommend that thing be what we love, what gives us joy and fulfillment.
Endarkenment
Endarkenment:
The flip-side of enlightenment.
Light and dark,
No dark: no light.
Carrying a lantern,
We unwittingly explore darkness in vain.
To know darkness we must
Enter into,
Be present with,
Experience,
Be
The dark,
Unknown,
Hidden,
Painful,
Fearful
Places within ourselves
And our world.
Know dark: know light.