All Quotes By Tag: Buddhism

“As the grounding effect of breath awareness disengages you from the often-overwhelming chatter of the mind, the level at which you think will seem to transcend the noise.”

“The chronic tension the average person experiences in modern life finds its way deep into the body, and we live most of our lives in the “whiplash” of past experiences—mentally rehashing and physically re-experiencing past stressors.”

“The practice of breath awareness relieves tension by shifting attention to the present, and the mental pressures of worries, concerns, and ambitions lift.”

“As a result of regular mindfulness practice, you’ll begin to see your role in different circumstances, recognize your oppor- tunities to grow, and develop a relationship with yourself that is more loving, forgiving, and open to new possibilities.”

“Appreciating the simple things, the great temporary gift of life and the beauty in all aspects of living, is perhaps one of the most power- ful, fulfilling benefits of practicing breath awareness.”

“By choosing to become aware, you choose to take back control of your attention and perspective, which can transform even mundane tasks, such as washing dishes or making coffee, into something joyful and beautiful.”

“If your mind wanders, all that means is that you’re alive and your brain is functioning normally, which is great news!”

“Every time the mind wanders away from the awareness of the breath, notice that it has wandered and bring your awareness back to the breath. This can be likened to a rep in the gym—every time you bring your mind back, you are building your “muscle” of attention.”

“Your mind wanders, you bring it back. This is the exercise—and the practice—of meditation.”

“Slowly and steadily, as the rush to “gain the benefits” of meditation fades away and the depth of the experience itself becomes apparent, your patience will strengthen and your need to be “moving on to the next moment” will begin to recede.”

“Be aware that the concept of meditation is to shift your focus to the awareness of the thinking process, rather than the content of the thoughts.”

“In the ever-accelerating modern world, with new technology constantly bombarding our senses and demanding schedules pulling us in different directions, the benefits of a practice like zazen are easy to overlook but profoundly powerful to practice.”

“The enlightened mind is like a bird in flight that leaves no trace of its path. People will say, “A bird just flew by.” In their mind, there is a trace of the bird’s path. This is attachment. For the enlightened practitioner, that moment is already gone—the bird has left no trace of its flight. Like the bird, from moment to moment the enlightened practitioner’s actions do not leave any trace.”

“The teaching of the sexual tantras all come down to one point. Although desire, of whatever shape or form, seeks completion, there is another kind of union than the one we imagine. In this union, achieved when the egocentric model of dualistic thinking is no longer dominant, we are not united with it, nor am I united with you, but we all just are. The movement from object to subject, as described in both Eastern meditation and modern psychotherapy, is training for this union, but its perception usually comes as a surprise, even when this shift is well under way. It is a kind of grace. The emphasis on sexual relations in the tantric teachings make it clear that the ecstatic surprise of orgasm is the best approximation of this grace.”

“I was only beginning to enter into the infinite subtlety of Gregorian chant. It was – and remains – the only public prayer I have ever been able to engage in without feeling like a phony and a jackass. But then, one day in 1965 or so, it was simply abolished. With a stroke of his pen, Pope John XXIII – who had such good ideas about other things – declared that liturgy would henceforth be in the vernacular language of the people. That was, effectively, the end of Latin chant.Then all those monks and nuns who had devoted hours and hours a day began to sicken and fall into depressions, but nobody noticed for a long time. Maybe, as I can well believe, the music toned up their systems in some mysterious way. Or perhaps chant really was a language that God understood. Faced with numerous liturgical scholas shrieking away in the new vernacular hymns, Divinity may have covered its ears and withdrawn, leaving the monks to pine. We parish musicians, illiterate in anything written after the 13th century, stumbled around trying to score liturgies for guitar and bongo drums, trying to make sense of texts like “Eat his body! Drink his blood!”It wasn’t because the music got so bad that I quit going to Mass, but it certainly was the beginning of my doubts about papal infallibility.”