Mind activities of a Stone boy

This is a very easy and effective way to bring myself back the the present. I can just tell myself what I am aware of at that moment... it will bring me back the present moment when I find myself lost in thoughts, the future or the past. I am aware of my chewing on food now.. I am aware of the sensation of my finger tips when I am typing.. I am aware of the brightly lit monitor as my eyes stare at it. I am aware of the calling of my wife..

"life is finite nothing is forever all problems are relative" ~~Bob of Holland

I found this one to be read frequently.. Thus have I heard. At one time the Blessed One was staying at Savatthi, in Jeta's Grove, Anathapindika's Pleasance. The Blessed One addressed the bhikkhus, saying, "Bhikkhus," and they replied to him saying, "Reverend Sir." The Blessed One spoke as follows: "Five things should be reflected on from time to time, by the bhikkhu who is intent on the higher consciousness. What five? When evil unskillful thoughts connected with desire, hate, and delusion arise in a bhikkhu through reflection on an adventitious object, he should, (in order to get rid of that), reflect on a different object which is connected with skill. Then the evil unskillful thoughts are eliminated; they disappear. By their elimination, the mind stands firm, settles down, becomes unified and concentrated, just within (his subject of meditation). Like an experienced carpenter or carpenter's apprentice, striking hard at, pushing out, an...

I just watched ARGO last week. It is a fascinating story about one CIA spy rescued the six hostages out of Canadian embassy in Tehran. You must admire the courage of this CIA agent but at the same time how unsophisticated of Iranian region at that time. Now, you're done with the movie and went to the web to search for more information about the incident. You came to realize that the movie did not portray the real incident objectively. The movie screen writer/director just adapted the real event to a very compelling story to tell. It seems fraud in that regard. a bit disappointment... So, it is to say about Lance Armstrong's story. How can a cancer survivor win 7 tour de France? It turned out that he treats. It is a great disappointment... So, on to this new movie about Journey's new vocalist, "Don't Stop Believin': Everyman's Journey". It is such a powerful story and a very inspiring one. Then, you realize how corrupt the  Philippines  society is....

Gangaji reminds me that the freedom is always there. Having strong desires and getting addiction to things are inevitable in life. Instead of suppressing them, one could try fully embrace them and learn what they really are. In the mist of strong emotions and feelings, there is always a freedom to be still and not to be swayed by the desires and habits. The freedom is always there..

The fifth mindfulness training, the mindful consumption, has always been a challenge to practice. Over the new year holiday retreat at the Blue Cliff Monastery, a lay man said that it is possible to consume alcohol mindfully. I wonder how he did it. I surely can't do so. Every time I drank a bottle of beer, I immediately notice that I could not think as clear as I would like to. Yes, sometimes, that is a sensation that I would like to enjoy, but these days, I sense that it is a loss of clarity in mind. My brain cells are getting killed. So, is it possible to mindfully consume the unmindful things? My life experiences tell me no in the most cases. Still, we could learn a lot from our mistakes so we don't make the same mistakes again. In that regard, we do mindfully consume the unmindful things....

If we practice identifying the causes of our suffering, we will see that sometimes is due to craving and sometimes it is due to other factors. To say, "Life is suffering," is too general. To say that craving is the cause of all our suffering is too simplistic. We need to say, "The basis for this suffering is such and such is an affliction." and then call it by its true name. IF we have a stomach ache, we need to call it a stomach ache. If it is a headache, we need to call it a headache. .... It is true that the Buddha taught the truth of suffering, but he also taught the truth of "dwelling happily in things as they are". To succeed in the practice, we must stop trying to prove anything. IF we touch the truth of suffering with our mindfulness, we will be able to recognize and identify our specific suffering, its specific causes, and the way to remove those causes and end our suffering.

Over Thanksgiving I took a road trip and visiting the places mentioned above. They are all wonderful experiences. Each place offers something unique about it.I must admit that traveling within the US could be as rewarding as traveling outside the country. Yogaville feels like a place out on its own. Who will have know that such a spiritual place will exist in the farming country in VA. Hopefully, the open and spacious energy from that place could radiate all over VA one day. We arrived there on the Thanksgiving day, but there is no Thanksgiving term mentioned the whole day. We went to the level 1 Yoga class right before the dinner. Polyface farm did not really live up to my expectation. I thought that it would be a farm with organic vegetable plots, too. Instead, it is a farm with poultry, rabbit, cow and pigs. I was greeted by friendly cats. One was so friendly that I could pick him up and we went together to see the rabbit house in the field. The rabbit house is an interesting i...

Sow a thought and reap an act. Sow an act and reap a habit. Sow a habit and reap a character. Sow a character and reap a destiny.

This one is relatively close to what I am learning right now. It is nice to see how this older master is still so nimble. Wish I will be the same when I reach his age. Another one is somewhat similar.

Here is another attempt by TED. The Pursuit of Happines s I, like, everyone else sentient being would like to live a happy life forever and ever. Perhaps, it is good to start from understanding what happiness is.

This morning I saw this message in my inbox and decided to read it carefully. It speaks to me so well these days.. "Whenever you are feeling an extreme emotion, whether it is anger, hurt, despair, or even bliss and you act on that feeling, there can be no clarity. The feelings are here to be felt. True action or inaction has to come from what lies beneath all feelings. Ultimately, each of us has a responsibility to ask ourselves, “What do I want?” If you want peace, it is here regardless of what you have done or what you are feeling. If you want war, you know how to go to war. We all do. What do you want for yourself, for all victims and all victimizers? What do you want for all? What a challenge. What an opportunity, right now. I send you my love and support." ---Gangaji  

My lovely wife just sent me this video which is a pleasant surprise. I've been doing headstand pose for years and it is very easy for me. When I was younger, handstand pose is also quite easy for me. Now, it is a bit challenge. I didn't realize that one can actually transition headstand practice to the handstand practice. This video summarizes it. All kudos to the instruction and wifi who discovered it. How to learn handstand...

THIS IS YOUR LIFE THE DUST BROTHERS and you open the door and you step inside we're inside our hearts now imagine your pain is a white ball of healing light that's right, feel your pain, the pain itself, is a white ball of healing light i don't think so this is your life good to the last drop, doesn't get any better than this this is your life, and it's ending one minute at a time this isn't a seminar and this isn't a weekend retreat where you are now you can't even imagine what the bottom will be like only after disaster can we be resurrected it's only after you've lost everything that you're free to do anything nothing is static, everything is appalling (evolving), everything is falling apart you are not a beautiful and unique snowflake you are the same decaying organic matter as everything else we are all a part of the same compost heap we are the all-singing, all-dancing crap of the world you are not your bank acc...

I always feel that it is really amazing to turn a two dimensional object into a three dimensional one. Here is really a useful one for all those printed paper that hang around in the house. http://www.netflixorigami.com/tray.htm There are tons of other origami examples out on the web. It is so easy to learn new stuff these days thanks to the web...

The triune brain model was proposed by Dr. Paul MacLean in the 1950s. It states that humans don't just have one brain, but rather a layer of 3 brains that have each evolved on top of the other over the course of years: reptilian brain, mammalian brain, and primate brain. The Reptilian Brain This brain is the first to be developed. It is responsible for autonomic bodily functions such as heartbeat, breathing, and temperature control. It is also responsible for the most important human needs, such as survival, feeding and mating. This brain is part of your subconscious mind. It has a set of pre-programmed instructions that it will always execute. This brain cannot change or learn from past experiences. It only understands images, and does not understand language. Some of the traits associated with the reptilian brain are: aggression, dominance, obsessiveness, compulsiveness, fear, worship, submission, greed, sex, and seeking a mate. The Mammalian Brain This is ...

It is a good chart to illustrate the stage of addictive mind. May I be aware of this chain. May the clarity shine spot light on this. May I be free from it.

This is one of my favorite five mindfulness trainings in the tradition of Thay. "Aware of the suffering caused by exploitation, social injustice, stealing, and oppression, I am committed to practicing generosity in my thinking, speaking, and acting. I am determined not to steal and not to possess anything that should belong to others; and I will share my time, energy, and material resources with those who are in need. I will practice looking deeply to see that the happiness and suffering of others are not separate from my own happiness and suffering; that true happiness is not possible without understanding and compassion; and that seeking wealth, fame, power and sensual pleasures can bring much suffering and despair. I am aware that happiness depends on my mental attitude and not on external conditions, and that I can live happily in the present moment simply by remembering that I already have more than enough conditions to be happy. I am committed to working in a way that I ca...

"Death is always on the way, but the fact that you don't know when it will arrive seems to take away from the finiteness of life. It's that terrible precision that we hate so much. But because we don't know, we get to think of life as an inexhaustible well. Yet everything happens a certain number of times, and a very small number, really. How many more times will you remember a certain afternoon of your childhood, some afternoon that's so deeply a part of your being that you can't even conceive of your life without it? Perhaps four or five times more. Perhaps not even. How many more times will you watch the full moon rise? Perhaps twenty. And yet it all seems limitless." -- Paul Bowles, The Sheltering Sky Narrated by Brandon Lee