Balance Restored

11 Aug 2014 1 Comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , , , , , , ,

Balance RestoredThere are times when we need to be reminded of the important things in life. When distractions come along it’s all too easy to get side tracked and let our practice slip. It isn’t that we forget, it’s just that sometimes life can get in the way, albeit temporarily.

When everything comes along at once, it can all be a little too much to cope with. So being reminded that our practice is the one constant that keeps us on the straight and narrow is a very good thing. When we remember that our faith is central, our honzon, and the very thing that makes us who we are, we can take steps to realign ourselves.

Whilst it is no excuse, as life has been both hectic and delightful in the past few weeks, I admit to having let things slide a little. So being mindful of the situation, normal service has resumed and the balance of life restored. The most important things in life need a solid foundation, and my practice is the foundation that will allow those things to grow, blossom and flourish, way, way into the future.

Nature Is Everywhere

10 Aug 2014 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , , , , , ,

Girl with a swan - click for videoThe day had been billed as being affected by the remnants of hurricane Bertha, and in the wee small hours, it did indeed sound as though all hell had been let loose. However, after a leisurely start, including breakfast in bed, things were looking a lot calmer in the quay.

There is the temptation to draw the blinds and hunker down when the weatherman tells us that it’s going to be a nasty day. But as someone once said, there is no such thing as bad weather, just inappropriate clothing. So by lunchtime we were out in the very fresh air and down by the quayside.

Scully had spotted Vestas, the lone swan, looking hungry amongst the boats and pontoons. Vestas is my name for him. He is ringed, but he hasn’t got a nametag, so his nickname has stuck. Though how you can tell a swan is hungry is beyond me.

In my experience, swans are always keen to eat any bread you care to give them, and the slice of thick cut wholemeal was gone in very short shrift. Scully has a way with animals, they seem to know that, as a vegan, they aren’t in any danger of being eaten, and seem to trust her just a little more. She, on the other hand, was pretty wary of Vestas’ beak. Even though they don’t have teeth as such, the serrations along his beak could inflict a deal of pain to the incautious.

The theme of nature continued as we walked into Poole. The pavement alongside the road to the Twin Sails bridge was strewn with grasshoppers of all colours and sizes. They seemed to be enjoying the dark tarmac that had been warmed by the midday sun, and were oblivious to the giant footsteps approaching. We had to be very wary of where we walked as we tried not to injure any of the creatures.

Twin Sails Bridge - Poole - Click To View OriginalHaving had a quick bite in the Slug and Lettuce (more nature references) we had a mooch around Poole and then headed back over the Twin Sails bridge. This time we were treated to the magnificent sight of the bridge opening to let one of the RNLI lifeboats through.

Compared to the old bridge with its massive solid functional structure, the new bridge is a true work of art, and watching it open majestically really is a treat.

The whole process of opening and closing the bridge only takes a few minutes, but it is well worth the time spent as you see the spars of the lifting sections tower above the waters of Holes Bay.

More mindfulness as we carefully picked our way back through the grasshoppers, followed later in the evening by a stomach churning time on one of the fairground rides in Hamworthy Park. The ghost train wasn’t nearly as experiential, though there was a squib of cold water right on the back of our necks as we entered the first ghostly tunnel.

Good Evening Mr Toad - Click To View OriginalOur day of experiencing nature first hand was rounded off in style, when who should we find waiting for us when we got home in the pitch dark, but Mr Toad. Of course, Scully was keen to put the little fellow out of harms way, many fall prey to domestic cats, so picked him up.

Contrary to popular belief, toads have a dry skin, not wet or slimy, and the rescuee sat quietly in her hands as we selected a suitably sheltered spot in the back garden. He even seemed a little reticent to crawl off into the grass, maybe he was enjoying the warmth her hands offered.

With the adventure over, it was time for bed, but our day of mindful nature will live long in the memory.

More On Mindfulness

09 Aug 2014 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , , , , , ,

BreatheWhen we are feeling down, or simply the challenges of everyday life are coming at us too fast, it is all too easy to concentrate on ourselves, forgetting about those around us.

To stop this happening takes mindfulness and courage, as noted by Sensei in Daily Encouragement.

Buddhism is not about leading a self-centred existence. If we do not base our lives on the Law, we are not practicing Buddhism.

The German writer Friedrich von Schiller writes, “The brave man thinks upon himself the last.”

This is analogous to the spirit of not begrudging one’s life taught in the Lotus Sutra.

This means treasuring the Law more highly than one’s life.

The Law and kosen-rufu are central.

The old adage that ‘No Man is an island’ is very true. It is our family, friends and those we meet each day in our communities, who make our lives meaningful, and it is The Law that shows us the way we are to conduct ourselves and how we should relate to them.

To help with increasing our mindfulness, consciously focus on a simple task each day. Be that taking a shower, doing the dishes, going upstairs, even breathing, anything will do, but concentrate on every aspect of your feelings, your surroundings, everything, and you will find that even the simplest task takes on a whole new meaning.

Still Completely The Wrong Emphasis

08 Aug 2014 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , , , , ,

How much is life worth?NICE, the NHS drugs watchdog, is set to refuse to provide the £90,000 Kadcyla breast cancer treatment to patients on the grounds of cost. As many of you will know, my daughter had breast cancer, had treatment, and has now been tested clear several times, so I have a vested interest in such issues.

How much is life worth? How much would you pay to spend a year, a month, a week or a day extra with your loved ones? Life is priceless, but the greed of the pharmaceutical industry knows no bounds. They are beholding to their shareholders and are driven purely by the profits they can make from people who find themselves stuck between a huge rock and a very hard place.

The really annoying part of all this, is that the cancer industry, those who make a living from researching, isolating, diagnosing, and treating cancer cases, really have no interest in halting the growth in cancer incidence, it’s their livelihood. When you think of all the millions of pounds and hours put into research over decades, there has been virtually no progress in preventing cancer.

Rather than trying to find cures or treatments for cancer, which like the common cold, has thousands of variants, they should be concentrating on finding the cause. But finding the cause doesn’t make you rich, and once it’s found, what will you do with the rest of your working life?

We know that cancer is caused by any number of things, but we also know that it stops developing in the absence of animal protein in the diet. So why are we all still so keen to fund research and treatment when we know how to stop cancer in its tracks?

Money, that’s why. Like the meat and dairy industries, the cancer industry would collapse overnight, with the loss of thousands of jobs, if the truth were widely known. Not exactly a disaster if we look a the bigger picture though. A world without cancer would be a better world, and all the money saved, could be used to fund more worthy schemes.

So let’s stop looking down the wrong end of the microscope, let’s embrace the changes that will make a difference, and give the Big C the heave-ho once and for all.

For more information, take a look here …

Ironic Or What?

07 Aug 2014 2 Comments

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , , , , , , , ,

The Barn Of FollyIt’s a fairly well known fact that 90% of the wealth of the UK is in the hands of 10% of the population, which is a shocking state of affairs in my opinion.

Of course it’s fairly easy to be shocked when you aren’t one of the 10%, but it got me wondering whether I would be any more benevolent if I were.

You may remember the fable about the rich farmer who, having grown his crops, decided that he needed to store it somewhere safe, so that the peasants of the area couldn’t get their thieving hands on any of it. So he set about building a huge barn, and made it secure so it kept out the riff-raff.

It must have taken him quite a while to build it, but finally it was finished, and he was happy that his crops would now be safe. Of course, there was far more than he would ever need himself, but he locked it all away and hoarded it for his old age. Ironically, the night the barn was finished, he died in his sleep.

So the adage that ‘you can’t take it with you’ is anything but new. So I suppose the lesson from the story is, if you have enough of anything, money, food, whatever, you are fortunate. If you have more than enough, you are more than fortunate, and you might consider sharing some of it with others less fortunate, particularly in these austere times.

Forever Reading

06 Aug 2014 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Forever ReadingDaisaku Ikeda, in his book, Buddhism Day By Day, says this about the act of reading:

‘Reading is dialogue with oneself; it is self-reflection, which cultivates profound humanity. Reading is therefore essential to our development.

It expands and enriches the personality like a seed that germinates after a long time and sends forth many blossom-laden branches.

People who can say of a book ‘this changed my life’ truly understand the meaning of happiness. Reading that sparks inner revolution is desperately needed to escape drowning in the rapidly advancing information society.

Reading is more than intellectual ornamentation; it is a battle for the establishment of the self, a ceaseless challenge that keeps us young and vigorous.’

We all know which book ‘changed my life’, and I can confirm that I fully understand the meaning of the happiness that this encompasses. Books transformed civilisation in the broadest sense when they became widely available via the printing presses of William Caxton and all those who have followed.

The advent of the world wide web and the internet has simply taken that process to the Nth level. The dissemination of information, and the written word has never been so widespread. Although there are associated dangers and we must be circumspect about the source of the information we consume, there has never been an easier time to read.

During my CELTA course I read to expand my knowledge of the English language, currently I am reading to increase my understanding of psychology and the workings of the mind. Whatever we read, be it fact or fiction, it adds to the kaleidoscope of facts and emotions locked in our brains, so read and read and read again, it will never be a waste of your precious time.

On Coping With Challenges

05 Aug 2014 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

The State Of Mindfulness The challenges we meet in life are often seen as the negative side of our existence. We alone can decide how we deal with them, we can accept and tackle them head on, or shy away from them and hope they go away. Anyone who has tried the second path will know that it never works, so accepting challenges has to be the right way to go.

Accepting our challenges is not, initially, the most natural thing to do. It might seem easier to run away, to bury our heads, or just ignore the issues, but no good will ever come of taking that path. Taking responsibility and meeting challenges head on can be really hard. That doesn’t mean it has to be difficult, but it does mean we have to dig deep, stay strong and never ever give in.

So how should we approach the process? For me, it means looking at the challenge from all sides, and that involves keeping a calm mind and thinking clearly about all the aspects involved. Chanting allows me to calm my mind, to focus and to concentrate. This is the state of mindfulness and gives me control over my thoughts, words and deeds. For others it may be beneficial to meditate or to write down a list of all the facets of the challenge.

The whole process can be thrown into turmoil by our fundamental darkness. That little voice in our heads that tells us the challenge is too hard, that we cannot overcome it, and that giving up is the easy path. We must listen to that voice because it is part of us, but we must then rationalise the alternatives and be determined to take the right path, not simply the easiest path.

When you overcome a challenge, the feelings of elation are immense. When we give into a challenge, the feelings of defeat are equally immense, but terribly damaging. Gaining your first win will be the hardest. Once you know the winning feeling, you will never again want to feel defeat again.

So try different coping strategies, be that chanting, meditation, list building or whatever works for you. Be sure that overcoming challenges will make you a stronger and more confident person, and that each win will make the next challenge easier to overcome. In time, you will lose the fear of challenges, and although you may not exactly look forward to the next one, you will be more prepared to meet and overcome it when it arrives.

Happiness Comes From Within

04 Aug 2014 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , , , , , , ,

Happiness Is Within YouI have to say that I haven’t been quite this happy for quite a long time. Being happy is not something that we can take for granted, problems can derail our happiness at any time. But we can take steps to ensure that we are aware of the causes and take steps to resolve and correct the effects.

Sensei summed it up perfectly …

Buddhism teaches that we are each responsible for our own happiness or unhappiness. Our vitality—the amount of energy or “life-force” we have—is in fact the single most important factor in determining whether or not we are happy.

True happiness is to be found within, in the state of our hearts. It does not exist on the far side of some distant mountains. It is within you, yourself. However much you try, you can never run away from yourself. And if you are weak, suffering will follow you wherever you go.

You will never find happiness if you don’t challenge your weaknesses and change yourself from within.

So if you are happy with life at present, be mindful of where that happiness comes from. If you are unhappy, challenge the causes of that unhappiness and make the changes you need to make.

On Thinking Straight

03 Aug 2014 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , , , ,

Right ThinkingOne of the many aims of Nichiren Buddhism is to smooth out the emotional highs and lows in life. through right thinking. However, one of the most difficult things to do, personally speaking, is to remain in a constant life-state when confronted by the highs and lows of life.

A Buddhist quotation says that “The Wise Man is neither elated by success nor deflated by failure”. That is not to say that you cannot be happy when you succeed, or sad when you fail, it’s about the intensity of those feelings and trying to stay nearer the mid-point.

We all find it tough at times, but I find the more I practice. the better I get at achieving equilibrium.

On What Ifs

02 Aug 2014 1 Comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , , , , , , ,

What If?Sometimes, we find ourselves in situations, or potential situations, were we are a little unsure of what the outcome may be.

Our minds race, we mull over the possibilities, the what ifs, the maybes, and it can be all too easy to form ideas in our minds as to how things will pan out.

That’s fine, and perfectly normal, as long as we don’t let these expectations run away with us. Having a notional or preconceived idea is one thing, but pinning our hopes on that idea is a recipe for disaster. Things rarely, if ever, go exactly as we imagine.

So the trick is to keep a level head, let events unfold as they will, and be tolerant of the inevitable differences between what we expect, or would like, and what actually comes to pass.

But as someone once said ‘Be careful what you wish for, you might just get it’. Conversely it has also been said that ‘That thing you wished for, the thing you never got, might have been the most fortunate moment you could ever imagine’.

So muse away, daydream to your hearts content, but remember that at the end of the day, the truth of the situation will become clear soon enough.

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