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#1599 - Monday, October 27, 2003 - Editor: Jerry
Photos are from Clyde Butcher's Archival Digital Carbon Prints. For further information on this process and to see more photos, please visit http://clydebutcher.com/emarket2//home.cfm?emailid=64
Shankar
I Am
Dhakshinamurthy Stotra # 3
The Self is the Primal Cause
The Import Gracefully Suggested by Sri Bhagawan
1 Salutation to that (Spiritual) Preceptor, Dhakshinamurthy,
2 He, who, by (the Power of) His Self-Will,
3 like the Siddha (one endowed with 8 supernatural faculties) and
the
magician (one skilled in magical arts),
4 by the subjection to work, time and space, appearing falsely
due to Maya
(Illusion),
6 later spreads outside "as the mysterious many",
7 this world that existed (before) without differentiation in the
Self,
8 like the seedling (existing) before (sprouting), inside the
seed.
Translation
Yours in Sri Bhagawan
RK Shankar
How Rich Are You http://www.globalrichlist.com/
Robert Hammond
NDS
String Theory
"What Buddhists have realized through their mystical
experience of nature has now been rediscovered through the
experiments and mathematical theories of modern science."
Fritjof Capra, The Tao of Physics PBS is airing a special on
October 28th and Nov. 4, about String Theory.. also known as the
Elegant Universe... or Theory of Everything...or
Buddhism.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/elegant/
http://users.bestweb.net/~et/stringtheory/
http://www.p-i-a.com/Magazine/Issue6/Intuition_6.htm
Thought some of you might find it of interest.
Nam Myoho Renge Kyo
Peace,
Robert
Harsha
HarshaSatsangh
To not mind the mind
Some say that Enlightenment is "sudden",
as if struck by lightening,
and one is never the same.
Some say that Realization
takes place "gradually"
just as the clouds evaporate,
dissipate with the wind and the rain,
and sun eventually shines brightly.
Both views are meaningful
at some point to someone,
and may indeed be helpful.
No perspective can attempt
to embrace the Truth
without a frame of reference.
Truth embraces all perspectives
and admits no reference point.
There is no point
in clinging to either
the "sudden" path or the "gradual" path,
and no point in resisting clinging.
When having nothing to gain or lose,
One does not worry about appearances
and mind the inconsistencies of the mind.
Love to all
Harsha
Vicki Woodyard
NDS
Doubting Tamas
Today I was good for nothing. I went to the grocery store
and put comfort
foods into my basket. Fried chicken tenders, mashed
potatoes and cookies. I
came home and spent the day sitting in front of the television
set.
Of course I would like to eat only pure foods and have
invigorating thoughts;
that just didn't happen. Today was a day to admit to myself that
anything is
possible--just not right this minute. I suppose you could
call it tamas, or
inertia, that was in the ascendancy. I know that my scales
will show a higher
number in the morning.
Bob was not feeling like having his chemo and we decided to
cancel the
appointment until he regained a little energy. We didn't
talk much -just what
was needful was said. He enjoyed the fattening chicken
tenders and gasp,
white bread with butter. Pepperidge Farm is okay in my
book.
Does this mean that we are not worthy? That we register
zero on the
spiritual sanctity meter....I hope not. It does mean that
sometimes grace is
replaced by grease. Sattva will return, but not until I
polish off a bag of
Snickers.
Vicki Woodyard
http://www.bobwoodyard.com
Marcia
We think we are supposed to somehow be different than
what we are in the moment. It is that thinking itself that
keeps us from experiencing what we are right now this
moment. Here you are concerned about what you eat
and the thoughts in your head brain.
My friend is coming up on the anniversary of her husband
dying a year ago. She is suffering about whether she did
the right thing in how she cared for him. I felt like shaking
her. I said..."Linda you act as if Damon died and you were
just standing still. You were going through it also. He was
dying and you were caring for the man that you were married
to for thirty years. Give yourself a frigging break."
In some ways it is easier to be the one who is sick.
Vicki
Hi, Marcia
Of course you are right. Many times I fast forward and
realize the guilt that
will inevitably come down the road because I didn't "love
perfect." It is just
the way that we are wired. My suffering is more emotional
whereas Bob's is
physical....but there are no nice neat boundaries.
As someone who did the Work for a good many years, I now allow
myself to
just be in the moment.
Have a Snickers...
Marcia
I feel that way about my father. He lived with us for four
years with Alzheimers. I was listening to a program today
on being with people in this condition. I really could have
enjoyed him so much more than I did. I missed out on
sharing that stage of his life with him.
I was still mad at him for being emotionally absent with me
when I was young.
How useless that was. I sure hope my children don't hold
so much against me. They will of course. It is in the nature of
life that this happens.
Vicki
Yes, it is. However, I find that honesty with others
about it helps somewhat.
That is where I part with many so called nondualists.
I see that idealism doesn't cook the rice or assuage the guilt.
So telling it like it is often helps us, even if
indirectly.
For instance, I know how you feel about your father because I
know how I feel about my husband.
We are all alike.
Have another Snickers (the bag is almost empty....you will have to buy the next one.)
Daily Dharma with Dharma Grandma (dg, aka OH)
"What allows us to stop negative behaviour is a basic
feeling that we do
not have to be afraid of what we are feeling right now, that we
do not
have to look for alternatives, that we aren't ashamed of what we
are
feeling in this moment. We are scared of what we are feeling.
Instead,
we can just let our warmth toward that instant of time just be
there as
the working basis.
Compassion for ourselves is settling down with the situation
without
looking for alternatives."
~Pema Chodron
Whatever is causing us a "problem," let's take a
deep look at it. Are
we just trying to make things turn out the way we want them to?
Are we
trying to manipulate the situation to avoid pain and bring us
pleasure?
Are we afraid of what might happen if we do not exert control -
change
things to be the way we think is best?
Ironically, the Buddha tells us that to stop all the effort, the
trying
to make things be different than they are and just accept
whatever is
presented to us is what brings us true happiness.
Let go, dears. As an old friend told us, "Let it be."
~dg
Muslims focus on fasting, spirituality during Ramadan
By Alison Go, Daily Staff Reporter October 28, 2003
At sunset yesterday, 1.2 billion Muslims worldwide broke from
a day's worth of fasting. Yesterday marked the second day of
Islam's holiest month, Ramadan.
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, during
which Muslims forego food, drink and other sensual pleasures.
"Abstaining from food is a way for Muslims to feel for
the
needy - those who are not as fortunate," said LSA senior
Lena
Masri, vice president of the Muslim Students Association.
While Muslims abstain from food and drink from dawn to dusk,
abstention from sensual and material pleasures is practiced
throughout the month of Ramadan.
"On one hand, you control your appetite, and on the
other,
you control your sexual urges and be careful of what you
listen to and what you say," Business School junior Nauman
Syed said. "When you're fasting, it's a reminder of what you
should and shouldn't be doing."
Ramadan is also a time of intense spirituality, and students
said fasting fosters connections of spirituality and
community.
"We abstain from anything that might distract us from our
spirituality," Masri said. "Fasting brings people
together.
It reminds Muslims who they are and why they are here."
Followers of Islam believe that the first revelation of Quran
was revealed during the month of Ramadan.
"Ramadan is the holiest month," Syed said.
"This is the best
chance of the year to focus and build on your faith. It is an
opportunity to do good deeds and avoid bad ones."
"It's a lot about patience and self restraint on all
levels,"
LSA senior Halim Naeem said. "You have to put God before
your
own desires."
Because Ramadan is one of Islam's five pillars, all Muslims
are required to observe it, which fosters a sense of unity.
Muslims break fast, attend special prayer and celebrate the
end of Ramadan as a community.
"When the sun sets, it is a blessing to eat together and
feed
each other," Naeem said. "This is when we experience a
lot of
camaraderie, brotherhood and companionship."
There is an additional special prayer after the usual
nighttime prayer. Each night of Ramadan this year, hundreds
of Muslims will gather at the Ann Arbor mosque.
In light of doing good deeds, altruism is another important
principle that is especially obeyed during Ramadan.
"We believe our good deeds are worth more this
month," Syed
said.
MSA is holding a series of events in honor of Ramadan and its
call for outreach and philanthropy.
"This is a time when the mosques all over the world are
very
open and people can go, ask questions and learn about
Islam,"
said Rackham student and MSA President Omar Khalil.
MSA is also hosting "Fastathon" on Nov. 13. Each
local
business that participates will donate $1 for every person
who participates in Fastathon. All the money raised will go
to the Ann Arbor Food Gatherers.
"Later, we will have people come and talk about what they
felt when there were fasting and what they thought of the
experience," Khalil said. "It's for people who would
not be
fasting normally."
