Thursday, April 29, 2010

Early morning alarms and zen don't always mix

I'm going to admit...it's hard to keep one's Zen when the CO alarm is going off multiple times throughout the night...by no fault of actual CO in this case.

So, in doing my best to not let the anger of waking up from that sound sleep to the ear-piercing noise of the alarm, and to get myself back into slumber, I tried an Buddhist trick passed on to me by my friend Larry:

Sit with your eyes closed and focus on your breathing. Breathe in through your nose while saying silently to yourself "this is my in breath," then exhale through your mouth while saying silently to yourself "this is my out breath."

Do it for about five minutes and you'll find yourself most likely getting back to your calm/zen state in no time.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Should I just give everything away?

When we talk about giving and generosity, especially in relation to Buddhism, there's a lot of people who get a mental picture of a monk who has nothing in the world but the clothes on his back. These people often are the ones who, when hearing of your Buddhist studies, say: "You gonna' give away all you have and shave your head now?"

Their close-mindedness brings up not just their own narrow view-point, but an important facet of generosity - one that I think the modern-day Buddhist could do well to remember in this society where so much is based on material.

It's not about giving up all we have.

If we gave up everything - all our food, all our clothing, etc - to the poor, then the poor would then have all the things everyone else no longer had, re-creating the cycle of poverty is never broken.

That's not the Middle Way (see how that Middle Way keeps popping back up again?)

We have to learn to not take more than we need; not take what's not ours, and to share with those who do not have, without going into want ourselves.

As always, there is a balance.

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

No giver, no taker...only the gift - The power of generosity

I read something very interesting today.

The Buddha said "If you knew what I know about the power of generosity, you would not let a single meal go by without sharing it."

This is not just about "okay, give things, donate things." It is about the cultivation of generosity, training yourself to be able to give from the heart and mind. In giving, we let go.

One other thing on giving that I found fascinating was the idea that "there is no separation between the giver and the taker."

I thought about this one for a little bit, and then it all made sense to me. Let me give you a small and somewhat quirky example.

At Halloween time, I always find it fun to give (to the really little kids anyway) comic books away with the candy.

Flashback in time with me for a moment to when someone - even if it was an uncle or a grandparent, etc - gave me a comic book. It doesn't matter if it was to keep me busy in the store, or as a gift, etc. The fact that they gave it to me as a little child and the incredibly wonderful and happy feeling it gave me. A sense of wonder and excitement of an adventure.

All these feelings...that I am now passing along.

I am somehow both myself back as a child receiving the gift, as well as the giver as the adult me, as well as the child receiving it now via our connection.

All because of this gift.

Pretty nifty. :)