Karmic Recycling

Karmic RecyclingGoing back over our errors,  asking ourselves painful questions and giving honest answers is a difficult experience.

We’ve all made mistakes in life, some more serious than others, but talking them through, trying to explain why you made this decision at that point in time, makes you re-examine your own values.

Our history is set in stone, we cannot go back and make those decisions anew. But we can try to make amends, apologise for any hurt we have caused, and, above all, be honest with ourselves and others.

We can also learn from mistakes, to do anything else would be considered foolish, but sometimes those mistakes are not as obvious as we might think. If you find yourself in a repeating cycle of events over time, it is definitely worth taking a long hard look at why that appears to be happening.

Karma, the law of cause and effect, will be behind the cycle somewhere, so we need to examine the causes and change them if we are to break the merry-go-round of sadness, and move onto pastures new.

Some people fear change, but if life is just not working the way we want it to, then we have to make changes. Embrace the opportunity to make life better, examine the causes that need to change and make those changes whole-heartedly, you will not regret it once the effects, and the happiness, start coming through.

On What Ifs

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.

On The Theme Of Waiting …

WaitingWaiting is a strange thing.

Waiting for the lights to go green can take ages when you are late for an appointment. Waiting for a sapling to mature takes years. Waiting for your girlfriend to finish in the bathroom can take forever (don’t tell her I said that).

But actually, waiting is often an act of faith, a belief in a desired outcome, and reaching that desired outcome, that’s when it can usually be said that ‘it was worth the wait’.

Others, as you might expect, have described the process far more eloquently than I ever could …

Tout vient à qui sait attendre

‘Ah, all things come to those who wait,’
(I say these words to make me glad),
But something answers soft and sad,
‘They come, but often come too late.’

~ Violet Fane (1843-1905)

The Waiting

Oh baby don’t it feel like heaven right now
Don’t it feel like something from a dream
Yeah I’ve never known nothing quite like this
Don’t it feel like tonight might never be again
We know better than to try and pretend
Baby no one could’a ever told me ’bout this
I said yeah yeah

The waiting is the hardest part
Every day you see one more card
You take it on faith, you take it to the heart
The waiting is the hardest part

Well yeah i might have chased a couple women around
All it ever got me was down
Then there were those that made me feel good
But never as good as I’m feeling right now
Baby you’re the only one that’s ever known how
To make me wanna live like I wanna live now
I said yeah yeah

The waiting is the hardest part
Every day you get one more yard
You take it on faith, you take it to the heart
The waiting is the hardest part

Oh don’t let it kill you baby, don’t let it get to you
Don’t let it kill you baby, don’t let it get to you
I’ll be your bleedin’ heart, I’ll be your cryin’ fool
Don’t let this go too far
Don’t let it get to you

~ Tom Petty – 1981

Interestingly, Tom Petty had this to say about the song …

“That was a song that took a long time to write. Roger McGuinn swears he told me the line – about the waiting being the hardest part – but I think I got the idea from something Janis Joplin said on television. I had the chorus very quickly, but I had a very difficult time piecing together the rest of the song. It’s about waiting for your dreams and not knowing if they will come true. I’ve always felt it was an optimistic song.”

So what ever you are waiting for, make causes, remain determined, and you will reach your goal one day.

Through Different Eyes

Through Different EyesDo you remember the day you mastered the art of riding a bicycle? Of course you do. For me, it was the culmination of a rather lengthy, and very frustrating process, and but for the perseverance  of my father, I might never have learned at all.

I just couldn’t seem to get it. It looked so simple, but the harder I tried, the worse I got. Then suddenly it clicked, I had it nailed, and from that day on I have been able to ride a bike.

Ok, so it’s no huge revelation, but I think learning about Buddhism is a bit like learning to ride a bike.

As you learn, about The Oneness of Self and the Universe, about Karma, about Life-Energy or The Ten Worlds, you also learn to see yourself, life and the Universe in a different way. And just in the way that having learned to ride a bicycle, you never unlearn the skill, once you learn to see the world through different eyes, you never unlearn that either.

Deep in my heart, I know that I am different for having Buddhism at the centre of my life. Some people have noticed that change, others ask what has changed and how I know that it’s a real change, not just a fad, or ‘a phase I’m going through’.

Well as I say, once you see the world differently, you just can’t un-see it that way. It’s a wonderful change, and I’m very confident, not to say delighted, that it’s a permanent change.

Nature’s Perfection

Nature's PerfectionWith glorious English weather arriving over the last few days, yesterday seemed like a good time to get out in the sunshine and make the most of the wonderful sights of the Dorset coast. Those of us who live in the UK know all too well, that it pays to make hay while the sun shines.

Nature's PerfectionStarting at the top of Branksome Chine we made our way through the amazing woodland that surrounds the stream as it makes its way slowly down to the ever popular Branksome beach. Not only does the walk through the Chine do you good, but it also saves trying to find a parking space down by the sea.

Nature's PerfectionBeing surrounded by fresh leaves and shoots, along with the sounds and smells that bombard the senses, leave you stunned by how wonderful nature is. The Chine winds gently down to the sea, so you hardly notice the slope, but the stream reminds you as it tumbles over a series of waterfalls, all very magical.

A beautiful day, beautiful weather, beautiful sights and wonderful experiences and all within thirty minutes of home. Some people might say I am lucky to live where I do, but actually it is a combination of the causes I have made in life. Isn’t karma grand?

Click on the images to see them full size.

Writing Nice Letters To Ourselves?

Creating Our Own DestinyThe law of cause and effect, action and reaction, applies to everything in life and forms the basis of our Karma.

The results of all the causes we have made in this, and previous lives, is precisely why we are where we are today.

The more good causes we create, generally speaking, the more good effects we see, and the happier we are with our lives.

Dora, in the book The Buddha, Geoff and Me, explains that Karma is a bit like letters we write to ourselves. Many of those letters were written so long ago, that we have forgotten all about them.

The nice letters are lovely surprises when they arrive. Nasty ones come as a bit of a shock, they may annoy us and we might even write another nasty one in response. Of course, in time, those responses get delivered too, so the cycle can repeat itself, time after time.

That is, of course, until you understand the way the process works. Once you realise that you create the causes, you can create causes for nice, or good effects, rather than going round and round forever.

I cannot imagine a more important lesson to learn, to know that your Karma, and hence your future, is determined by you? It is the most empowering feeling, to take control of your life and to have your destiny in your own hands.

You Have Full Control

Two Headed CoinOnce upon a time, there was a general who was leading his army into battle against an enemy ten times the size of his own.

Along the way to the battle field, the troops stopped by a small temple to pray for victory.

The general held up a coin and told his troops, “I am going to implore the gods to help us crush our enemy.

If this coin lands with the heads on top, we’ll win. If it’s tails, we’ll lose. Our fate is in the hands of the gods. Let’s pray wholeheartedly.”

After a short prayer, the general tossed the coin high into the air. It landed with the heads on top. The troops were overjoyed and went into the battle in high spirits.

Just as the coin predicted, the smaller army won the battle.

The soldiers were exalted, “It’s good to have the gods on our side! No one can change what they have determined.”

“Really?” asked the general, and showed them the coin … there was a head on both sides.

Fortunate Karma

Fortunate KarmaA shallow person will only ever have shallow relationships.

True love is not one person clinging to another, it can only be fostered between two strong people, secure in their individuality.

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, author of The Little Prince, wrote in his work Wind, Sand and Stars, “Love is not two people gazing at each other, but two people looking ahead together in the same direction”

When we are fortunate enough to find someone we can love for whom they are, and who loves us for whom we are, then we are truly fortunate. Meeting that person, amongst the throng of humanity, is surely one of the most fortunate karmic effects we can experience.

Embrace The Change

Embrace The ChangeThere are several changes afoot in the office, and a few people are finding that a way of life they have known for many, many years is coming to a rather abrupt end.

Now change can be a painful process, it can cause those who have allowed themselves to settle into a rut, and let’s be honest, it’s easy to do, to suddenly find that life has turned upside down and inside out.

Change is good. Change is the norm. Nothing lasts forever, no matter how much you wish it would. So embrace the change, look for the positives, rather than focussing on the negatives, and make your causes to promote a positive future.

Some of us are clearly doing just that. Steve is off to New Zealand with his family at the end of the month. Gordo is planning to do a bit of travelling, and I am busy getting my teaching qualifications so I can go to the Far East and teach English to the students with a Brummie accent.

At the end of the day, it’s about seeing things in a different way. Making the most of the situation rather than being consumed by the loss of a comfortable and convenient way of doing things.

All you need to do, is to see the glass half full rather than half empty. List all the things you could now be doing, rather than those you won’t be doing any more. Take responsibility for your own future and make the causes that will point you on an upward course. You know you can do it.

On The Fiddle?

On The Fiddle?In case you were wondering, my CELTA course is going rather well, all things considered. Apart from the fact that I am really enjoying the whole experience, it’s a bit like Chinese water torture, the lesson preparation and assignments just keep coming.

Last night was a little milestone on our collective path, half way through the sixteen weeks of study and a brand new gaggle of victims, or more properly, teaching practice students. A lovely group of people, all very keen to learn and very willing to be subjected to our formative teaching skills.

As well as being a new set of faces, these students are still taking their first steps in learning English, as opposed to our previous charges, who were really quite fluent. So the challenges, on both sides of the classroom, were slightly different. There was more emphasis on keeping things simpler and checking that individual students understood what was being taught.

The evening went really well. We were teaching them new vocabulary in the context of music, and they worked really hard. The highlight of the evening, for me, was talking to the oldest student, an 83 year old Middle Eastern gentleman, who was keen to tell me that he has been playing the violin since he was 7. He had the callouses on his fingers to prove it.

It’s so interesting, meeting new people. People who have incredible stories to tell. None of this would have happened had I not made the causes. Karma is a wonderful thing.

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