When we are open and engaged, we experience the greater self. When we are closed off, we are exhibiting our lesser self.
The lesser self is a deluded condition, whilst our greater self is synonymous with our Buddha nature.
To live for the greater self means to recognise the universal principle behind all things and, being awaked in this way, rise above the suffering caused by the awareness of impermanence. A belief in something eternal is needed to enhance our quality of life.
By believing that this world is the be-all and end-all of existence, we will miss out, we will not live a truly profound life. When our viewpoint expands beyond the boundaries of our present existence to include the entire, eternal universe, we can finally live deeply fulfilling lives, unconstrained by our own limited experience.
In the true reality of life as viewed from the enlightened state of a Buddha, one who has broken free of all delusion, all things are equal, transcending distinctions and differences between subject and object, self and others, mind and body, the spiritual and the material.
Do 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.
Do 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.
We are all made of the same stuff, in fact everything we know about through science supports my Buddhist belief that we are at one with the Universe, being literally made of stardust.
In the true reality of life as viewed from the enlightened state of a Buddha, one who has broken free of all delusion, all things are equal, transcending distinctions and differences between subject and object, self and others, mind and body, the spiritual and the material. 
When we are open and engaged, we experience the greater self. When we are closed off, we are exhibiting our lesser self. 
There is nobody lonelier or more unhappy than a person who does not know the pure joy of creating a life for her or himself.
A year ago today, being present at the passing of the father of a close friend, and later being involved in his funeral, led me to seek out the deeper meaning of death, from the Buddhist viewpoint.
Sadly, my aunt passed away yesterday. I say sadly, but actually that is only for those of us who remain. For her it is but another phase of the Wheel of Life. 
The Search For Enlightenment 
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