Money Well Spent?

31 Jan 2011 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: ,

Fernando TorresAs a Chelsea fan since 1964, I have to say that, in my heart, I am delighted that we have signed Fernando Torres, the Spanish international striker.

He is a very good player, but is it money well spent?

In all, the Premiership clubs have spent over £215 million on new players, in this time of financial cutbacks, an obscene amount of money.

Just imagine what that money could  have done. Thousands of people are losing their jobs, potentially plunging their families into financial crisis. The public sector is facing unprecedented cuts, reducing services that are relied upon by the most vulnerable members of our society. Surely this is madness, even given that football no longer has anything to do with real life.

In my head, I cannot help wondering whether the spending of this huge amount of money on, what is after all a game, does show a lack of Wisdom and Compassion, if not Courage.

A Worry Resolved

30 Jan 2011 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: ,

Moriconium TwilightFor the best part of a year I have been putting off seeing my ex-wife because I feared it would bring back all the heartache and pain of the separation and divorce. So knowing that she was coming to see me today had been a worry for a few days.

I need not have been so negative about it. On a beautifully sunny winters day, we took our little Bischon Frise, Chelsea, for a nice long walk along the coast and as we walked, we talked.

I think it would be fair to say that we had both harboured preconceived ideas about how things might turn out, there was a lot of hurt on both sides, but in the event, things went very well.

The talking cleared the air, I think we were both open and honest about what we felt and how the split had affected us. But agreeing that nobody can change the past, as indeed, nobody could have predicted our future at the time of the break-up, left a calmness in the relationship that maybe neither of us could have foreseen.

Coupled with a light pub lunch, in the dog-friendly local, it made for an enjoyable afternoon, so when she set off home, I was left wondering why I had build it up, in my own mind, to be such a problem in the first place.

Feeling much relieved, I came back into the apartment to find the magnificent sunset you see in the photograph above. It seemed quite a fitting conclusion.

Moral of the story … don’t prejudge situations, talking solves a lot of issues and is the only way to move forward. Turning Poison (the worry) into Medicine has yet again been the way through the situation, chalk up another win for Buddhism, further proof that my Practice is working.

Being Constant

29 Jan 2011 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: ,

Dark PassengerI don’t know about you, but when I say I’m going to do something, I mean it. When I decide on a course of action, I try my best to carry it out.

The problem is that sometimes we don’t stick to our goals, and there are many, many reasons for that. Sometimes it turns out that we decide that the goal isn’t quite what we first thought. Sometimes the Dark Passenger has a little say, introducing doubts or reasons why we should give up. Ignore him and get yourself back on track

There is very little to compare with the feeling of satisfaction when we achieve our goals. In the same way, there is very little to compare with the feeling of disappointment when we let ourselves down and fail.

We all want to be happy, so be constant. You will be more successful, more content and people will know where they stand too. A win-win situation.

Radiators And Drains

28 Jan 2011 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: ,

DrainsYou might be thinking this is going to be a plumbing 101 lesson from the title, but it’s far more useful than that.

There are two types of people in this world, and no not those who say ‘There are two types of people’ and those who don’t. The two types are those who are Radiators and those who are Drains.

A Radiator is the kind of person who leaves you feeling more energetic and enthused, after you meet or speak to them, than before. They radiate positive energy and are happy to share their life-energies with others. They appear to have a permanent smile on their faces, as though they know something others do not. In fact they do, they know that the secret path to a happy life is to pass on their happiness to others.

Drains are the complete opposite. They have the unfortunate knack of being able to take energy and enthusiasm from other people, leaving them feeling unhappy and flat. When you meet one, and there are plenty around, the conversation is hard work, they are negative about things when you ask about how they are. In fact, you probably walk away wishing you hadn’t met them in the first place.

Our life-state can dictate whether we are a Radiator or a Drain if we let it, but concentrating on the positive side of life can change all that. When we are in Heaven we tend to Radiate energy to other people, when we are in Hell we Drain energy from others.

So think of all the good things in your life, walk around with a smile and a cheerful disposition, be a Radiator and see how people react positively towards you.

We all know a Drain when we meet one, and if you don’t, then it’s you.

A Jolly Good Day

27 Jan 2011 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags:

SweatYou know the feeling when you’ve put in a really good shift, at work, in the garden or maybe at some kind of sport, and you end the day nicely exhausted.

Well that’s how today has been. The team focusing on pushing the project past the finishing line and all going in exactly the same direction.

Don’t believe it’s all been sweetness and light today, there have been Heavens and Hells. But that is life, The Ten Worlds all in one, the trick is dealing with them. My Practice has given me the tools to cope, and it’s a brilliant feeling.

So I’m off for a nice hot shower and a good night sleep, ready for the morning and doing it all over again.

Proof Of The Pudding

26 Jan 2011 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: ,

Do You Really Care?Caring for someone is very different to caring about them.

Caring for someone entails making every effort to giving them the love and support they need, when they need it, not just when they need it most.

Caring about them means very little when it’s not backed up by actions, Saying you are thinking about someone, without showing them in the things you actually do, is of very little use to anyone.

So next time you tell someone you care, take a moment to think about what sort of care it really is.

What A Gray Day

25 Jan 2011 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , ,

Gray SackedThe rumblings over Sky TV’s Andy Gray and Richard Keys, regarding the comments about a female referee’s assistant, have reached a crescendo today when it was revealed that Gray had been videoed making other sexist comments to a female colleague.

Sky have sacked Gray for inappropriate conduct and he deserves that. Whilst he was Sky’s most senior soccer pundit, that kind of conduct is totally unacceptable.

His knowledge of the game was excellent and he and Keys dissected games, post match, to explain how they had been won and lost. That must show a Wisdom of sorts, but his comments also show a complete lack of Wisdom when it comes to his bigoted views about women.

Having the Wisdom, Courage and Compassion to make the most of our lives is a continuous process. It involves learning, through reading and listening, and it is worthwhile and rewarding in so many ways.

Personally I won’t miss Mr Gray’s commentaries and I know I won’t be alone in feeling that. He was a good player, with a long and successful career, but all that will be forgotten now. For that, I feel sorry for him. An acute lack of common sense, or Wisdom, regarding his code of conduct, has destroyed a reputation that has taken him years to build.

We should all have the courage to show him some compassion and he, in turn, should show the Wisdom, Courage and Compassion to make a public apology to all the women he has verbally abused over the years.

Two Steps Forward

24 Jan 2011 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags:

InfinityOur current web project is nearing it’s fruition, but the progress seems to be slowing as we near completion. Two steps forward and one step back.

It’s a little like trying to reach a point almost at infinity. If you half the distance to that point every day, you make rapid progress to start with. But as the distance to go to your destination gets smaller, the distance you travel gets smaller proportionally.

In fact, in this model, you would never reach the point, because the distance you have left to travel is still half of that from the previous day. The journey would take you an infinite time, which non of us have.

Now we will finish our web project, and on time given a fair wind, but the only way to achieve it is to use the principles of Kyo Chi Gyo I.

Set those goals, use that wisdom, put in the effort and the rest will follow.

Downs And Ups

23 Jan 2011 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: ,

Snakes & LaddersContinuing the theme of games from a few days ago, I was thinking about the ups and downs of life.

It struck me that our moods, or life-states within the Ten Worlds, mirror the board game Snakes and Ladders. I remember to this day, playing the game with my family and the disappointment of landing on the snake on the 99th square.

In life, there you are happily plodding along when you find yourself being whisked up a ladder to a higher life-state by something you find agreeable or exciting.

You may well stay at that higher life-state, again plodding along blissfully unaware that the next step may scoot you down a snake, maybe even back to square one (which may well be where the saying comes from) when a disappointment, or sadness comes your way.

The trick to winning the game, and indeed to being happy in life, is to aim for the ladders and try to avoid the snakes, to state the rather obvious.

Easier said than done, but if by taking step ladders and short snakes, by seeing events in a composed manner, you can even out the variation in your life-state. And the best way I have found to achieve that is through my learning and Practice.

Setting A Goal

22 Jan 2011 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags:

LotusIt’s amazing what a day of spring cleaning and mind clearing can do.

Gone is the fog of yesterday and back is the 20-20 vision that comes with taking control and setting yourself goals.

If you remember, Nichiren Buddhism has a clear set of rules to get you what you want, anything you want, you just need to set the wheels in motion.

So these are the details you have to quantify …

Kyo – the goal you wish to achieve.

Chi – is the wisdom needed to reach that goal.

Gyo – is the action you need to take to reach the goal.

I – the status you will attain when the goal is reached.

Don’t get Kyo and I mixed up, let’s give you an example to help stop that …

You say ‘I want to be a traveller’ that’s I, the goal, Kyo would be ‘I want to travel’, subtle difference there, so don’t be fooled.

So today I’ve set my goal (Kyo), I’ve determined the wisdom I need (Chi), I know what I need to do (Gyo) and I’m looking forward to attaining the status (I) when the goal is reached.

You didn’t expect me to tell you what the goal is, did you ???

Click here if you want to find out more.

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