And Yet We Still Ignore It

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The following is respectfully quoted from “What Makes You Not Buddhist” by Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche:

Two thousand five-hundred thirty-eight years after Siddhartha walked out the palace door–at the time of year when many millions of people are celebrating, making merry, and anticipating a fresh start, the time to remember God for some, the time to take advantage of discount sales for others–a catastrophic tsunami shook the world. Even the most coldhearted of us gasped in horror. As the story unfolded on television, some of us wished that Orson Wells would interrupt to announce that it was all fabrication, or that Spiderman would sweep down to save the day.

There is no doubt that Prince Siddhartha’s heart would have broken to see the tsunami victims washed ashore. But his heart would have been even more broken by the fact that we were taken by surprise, proof of our constant denial of impermanence. This planet is made of volatile magma. Every land mass–Australia, Taiwan, the Americas–is like dew, about to drop from the grass. Yet construction of skyscrapers and tunnels never stops. Our insatiable deforestation for the sake of disposable chopsticks and junk mail only invites impermanence to act more quickly. It should not surprise us to see signs of the end of any given phenomenon, but we are very difficult to convince.

Yet even after a devastating reminder like the tsunami, the death and devastation will soon be camouflaged and forgotten. Luxurious resorts will be erected on the very spot where families came to identify the corpses of their loved ones. The people of the world will continue to be caught up in compounding and fabricating reality with hopes of achieving long-lasting happiness. Wishing for “happily ever after” is nothing more than a desire for permanence in disguise. Fabricating concepts such as “eternal love,” “everlasting happiness,” and “salvation” generates more evidence of impermanence. Our intention and the result are at odds. We intend to establish ourselves and our world, but we forget that the corrosion begins as soon as creation begins. What we aim for is not decay, but what we do leads directly to decay.

At the very least, Buddha advised, we must try to keep the concept of impermanence in mind and not knowingly conceal it. By maintaining our awareness of assembled phenomena, we become of aware of interdependence. Recognizing interdependence, we recognize impermanence. And when we remember that things are impermanent, we are less likely to be enslaved by assumptions, rigid beliefs (both religious and secular), value systems, or blind faith. Such awareness prevents us from getting caught up in all kinds of personal, political, and relationship dramas. We begin to know that things are not entirely under our control and never will be, so there is no expectation for things to go according to our hopes and fears. There is no one to blame when things go wrong because there are countless causes and conditions to blame. We can direct this awareness from the farthest regions of our imaginations to subatomic levels. Even atoms cannot be trusted.

 

Astrology for 3/14/2017

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3/14/2017 Tuesday by Norma

Mental alertness is highlighted today. Thinking is razor sharp: you know exactly what you plan to do and how you’ll do it. Watch your tone as you speak, words come out harsher than intended. If someone cringes, apologise and make your point in kinder terms. Intellectual acuity more than makes up for
the mental torpor of the recent past. Manual and physical dexterity is outstanding today: surgeons, welders, dentists, boxers, and tailors do excellent work, as do golfers, jugglers, drivers and writers. Piscean energy is still strong, so do your best to consult your intuition before taking action. W. H. Murray said, “The moment one definitely commits oneself, providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would have not otherwise occurred.” Avoid name calling, driving too fast or using rude hand gestures today.

Impermanence: From “Treasury of Precious Qualities” by Jigme Lingpa

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The following is respectfully quoted from “Treasury of Precious Qualities” by Jigme Lingpa, with commentary by Longchen Yeshe Dorje and Kangyur Rinpoche, as translated by Padmakara Translation Group:

Impermanence

1. The stable world with all its moving occupants is said to last a kalpa.
Which, by its nature, has four ages: forming, dwelling, ruin and the void.
It is disparaged with the name of Basis of Decay,
For it will be assailed by seven conflagrations and one flood.
2. The teachers of gods and humankind perceive our trust in permanence
And therefore, though they have supreme and adamantine forms,
Relax their hold on indestructibility
And joyfully display their passing into peace.

3. Those perfect in samadhi may sustain great spans of life,
But all to no avail, they must endure mortality.
Brahma, Shiva, Ishvara and all the Chakravartins
Find no way to flee the demon Lord of Death.

4. For those who flock so carefree in the wholesome vales of higher realms,
The hunter lies in wait, his weapon in his hand,
Conspiring how to rob them of their lives.
He thinks and thinks of it and has no other thoughts.

5. Tormented by the summer’s heat, beings with pleasure
In the clear light of the autumn moon.
They do not think, and it does not alarm them
That a hundred of their days has passed away.

6. A powerful bowman’s shaft is swift indeed,
But not as swift as pretas moving on the earth.
The pretas in the air are swifter still,
And swifter yet the gods of sun and moon.
But swiftest of them all is human life.

7. The prime of youth is ravaged and brought low by age.
Disease disturbs health’s equlibrium
And perfect situations are all ruined by decay.
So soon does death lay siege to life!

8. Defeated in their struggle with the Lord of Death,
Beings plunge protectorless and friendless down in the abyss.
The glow of life is dimmed; the senses fail;
And doctors with their cures all turn away.

9. Then comes feeble twitching of exhausted limbs,
The failing breath that rattles in the throat,
The family and friends who stand around and grieve
And pray their useless prayers that death might be delayed.

10. The movement of breath, now fine as horse’s hair,
Is severed by the sharp ax of the Deadly Lord.
All beauty now departs; the grin of death appears;
And karma brings the bardo’s deep, black night.

Astrology for 3/13/2017

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3/13/2017 Monday by Norma

Indecision is an issue today. You can’t make up your mind: you need advice, but nobody can answer your question. The minute you come to a decision, it is voted down, forcing you to begin again. The only way to turn is inward. This is a perfect day to entertain possibilities you’ve never considered, to speculate, ruminate and dream. You ‘ll be surprised by what comes to mind. Albert Einstein said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.” Tomorrow you’ll be able to put your plan into play, today you must dream it. Shopping for necessities is satisfying and an impulse purchase is excellent.

Right Before Our Eyes

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The following is an excerpt from a teaching by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo called “Take Control of Your Life”

These are important teachings. The Buddha taught us that yes, we will live many times and we will die many times.  It’s so important to think of this particular life as one increment in a great long inconceivable span of lifetimes.  Lord Buddha taught that we have been born again and again and again in cyclic existence in so many forms and so many times that, literally, every being that we meet must have been our kind mother or father in some past incarnation.  So we should think of all beings—including dogs and cats and worms and iguanas and creatures that perhaps we have very little emotional connection with, but even those—if we have the opportunity to meet them or even be stung by one of them, like a bee, that in some past life, some ancient life, we have had definitely some intimate connection with them.

We had another good lesson recently.  We watched the death of the woman with brain damage, Terri Schiavo What an amazing karma played out right out in front of us.  Amazing karma!  If you just step back away from the emotions and look, it’s so easy to see that this is some ancient, profound, terrible karma playing out between these people—the husband, the family and the woman herself.  Amazingly, her death was brought about by a deprivation of food, and yet the very cause of this terrible fate of hers was practicing bulimia.  So you see a kind of instant karma playing out, and then you see it hooking into this devastating ancient karma with the other people, with the family that she lived with.  How amazing!  What a study that was!

I found myself this past week, between His Holiness the Pope and this Schiavo woman dying, I found myself fascinated by these two things.  Watching everything the Buddha has taught us playing out right in front of us for those of us that could see.  My students, my attendants, the people that are close to me say, “Jetsunma, what should they do?  Should they feed her or not feed her?”  Well, my advice would have been to allow the entire karma to play out, completely unscathed.  Let it play out exactly without any kind of interference, exactly the way it would in the world, because this karma between them is so profound.  Better that she, in this relatively unconscious condition, can go through this terrible karma and live it down, finish it, end it, rather than to have to come back and finish it, because it perhaps wasn’t finished.  So from a wisdom point of view, to watch this karma is a blessing. Because we understand how it is with us, we can get a much deeper understanding; and yet to watch this karma is gut wrenching.  It’s heart breaking because we see how samsara is.  We see how we can mistakenly think that loving concern is just that—loving concern—when sometimes it’s power.  We can see also that sometimes when we feel the most powerful, powerful love, that often its basis is very self-oriented, very selfish.  Not meaning to be selfish.  We think we’re thinking of the other, and yet it’s really about how we feel.

Copyright © Jetsunma Ahkon Norbu Lhamo All rights reserved

 

Astrology for 3/12/2017

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3/12/2017 Sunday by Norma

The full moon magnifies two opposing wishes: to bustle around busily, and to relax. Will you wash the car or watch tv, exercise vigorously or meditate? You can do both, provided you alternate between the two. With an opposition you can’t do both things at once, and that’s the conundrum today. Piscean energy is strong and activities that highlight imagination and creativity are important. Be aware that off-the-radar intuition is here, instructing you in things you didn’t notice before. Crow Indians say, “The eyes speak words the tongue cannot pronounce.” This is a good day to shop-but don’t spend too much- to relax, and to speak words that touch the heart. Someone fears what you might say, so speak gently. If you’re on the receiving end of sharp speech, ask for an explanation and you will be satisfied.

Astrology for 3/11/2017

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3/11/2017 Saturday by Norma

This is a day where things don’t quite come together: what you plan won’t happen right now and a work project is temporarily on hold. In other words, it’s a great day to relax, take a break from the busy schedule and enjoy life. Go to an art gallery, look at nature, enjoy music, recuperate if you’ve been
under the weather. The urge to work is present, but there’s nothing to do. What you can do is engage in contemplation and analysis and consider personal change. Herman Hesse said, “What we can and should change is ourselves: our impatience, our egoism, our sense of injury, our lack of love and forbearance.” Enjoy your partner, and nature, and do a little bit of shopping.

The Experiential Domain of the Lords of the Tenth Stage of Awakening

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The following is respectfully quoted from “The Treasury of Knowledge: Myriad Worlds” by Jamgön Kongtrul

Namah śrimām-sad-guru-pādāya

[Embodiment] of complete purity and ethics, you stand firm like the golden foundation.
Your beauty reflects your countless contemplations, like the distinct features of the mountains and continents.
Like the sun and moon, your brilliant wisdom illuminates all phenomena.
Supreme sage and achiever of all goals, I revere you.

With the heart of a great hero who protects beings for as long as they exist,
You suffused the universe with your excellent conduct.
Though father to the victorious ones, you manifest as the victorious ones’ son.
Lion of Speech, grant me flawless intelligence.

You nurture the seed — the potential or nature of beings — by imparting instructions that mature and liberate them.
You cause others to purify incidental defilements through the twofold path,
And bestow the fruition, the four dimensions of awakening distinguished by great bliss.
To you, my mentor, and to the masters of the lineages, I bow.

Although I lack the intellectual capacity to compile knowledge correctly,
I shall compose a short, clear, comprehensive work.
In order to ensure that those with insufficient knowledge or interest to understand the texts will not lose their opportunity on this isle of treasures.

***

This treatise [The Infinite Ocean of Knowledge] as a whole has [ten] divisions, equal in number to the ten perfections:
The realms that appear during the age of illumination;
Buddha, the Teacher; the doctrine, both scriptural and experiential;
Its continuation and spread in the Land of Jambu;
Maintaining ethical conduct; learning; reflection; meditation;
Through successively engaging in these, progression through the paths; and realization of the ultimate result.

***

There are general and specific causes and conditions that initiate [the creation of realms]:
For as long as infinite space and sentient beings exist,
The compassion of the victorious ones and the actions of sentient beings continue without end.
Those to be guided and enlightened guides
Manifest through inconceivable interconnections.
When the characters and dispositions of those to be guided are activated,
[The compassion of] the guides [arises], and the configurations of the realms and dimensions of awakening appear;
The miraculous methods of guiding others manifest beyond all bounds.
The sphere of reality never changes into something else;
Yet blessings, vows, actions and natural laws
Cause oceans of realms to appear.
The realm Unsurpassed is free from incidental defilement
And transcends the experience of the three realms: it is indivisible primordial wisdom.
In this self-manifesting, spontaneously appearing [realm,]
Richly Adorned,
Dwells Illuminator, Great Glacial Lake of Wisdom;
A billion realms in his every pore.
Their locations, shapes, sizes, durations, and arrangements are inconceivable.
Within the central minute particle in the palm of his hand lies the Oceanic World-System.
That itself contains many world-systems, in the center of which
Lies the realm called Flower-Filled World.
Furthermore, [between the wind] and Unsurpassed lie one billion four-continent world-systems,
A great third-order thousand [world-system].
Multiplying that by factors of one billion
[Yields] Infinite Links, Continuums, Oceans,
And Flower-Filled World.
Each rests on an ocean and [is encircled by] and outer rim.
This is the sphere of influence of one supreme manifest dimension of awakening.
Inside the great outer rim, in a sea of scented water,
Four jewelled lotuses support
A tiered arrangement of twenty-five world-systems;
The thirteenth is known as Endurance. This third-order thousand-world system
Is completely encircled by realms — Covered, Surpassing,
Stainless, Variously Emerged, etc. —
Equal in number to the particles of this thirteenth world-system.
[Endurance] is spherical, has a four-vajra demarcation,
And rests on a multicolored configuration of wind and a network of lotuses.
Illuminator, the teacher in this [world-system],
Appears throughout the Unsurpassed realms of the pure domains.
This four-continent [world-system] called Destructible
Is surrounded by ten other four-continent [world-systems].
It is taught that these [world-systems] are formed and destroyed together;
This is the experiential domain solely of lords of the tenth stage of awakening.

 

Astrology for 3/10/2017

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3/10/2017 Friday by Norma

Dignity and stability characterize this day, plus excellent financial opportunities. Pour your energy into your work and dress well to make a statement about your position. Today you shift gears; everything slows down and a new stability permeates your efforts. Take time to think through your agenda before taking action, using as little energy as possible- you’ll be more successful than when you threw yourself at things impulsively. Careful planning replaces brute strength in pursuing goals.
This is a stable, emotionally satisfying day. Use the good energy to tackle your trickiest tasks, you’ll succeed. A sense of humor helps. Sir Fred Hoyle said, “Space isn’t remote at all. It’s only an hour’s drive away if your car could go straight upward.” The world switches from annoyed to amused today, good!

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