The Four Noble Truths Monks, what is the noble truth about suffering? Birth is suffering, old age is suffering, death is suffering, grief, lamentation, discomfort, unhappiness and despair are suffering; to wish for something and not obtain it is suffering; briefly, the five factors of attachment are suffering. Monks, what is the noble truth about the origin of suffering? Just this craving, leading to rebirth, accompanied by pleasure and emotion, and finding satisfaction now here now there, namely, the craving for sense-pleasure, the craving for new life and the craving for annihilation. Monks, what is the noble truth about the cessation of suffering? Just the complete indifference to and cessation of that very craving, the abandoning of it, the rejection of it, the freedom from it, the aversion toward it. Monks, what is the noble truth about the way that goes into the cessation of suffering? Just this noble eightfold way, namely, right view, right purpose, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration. -The Buddha True Sacred Scriptures 'There is One Holy Book, the sacred manuscript of nature, the only scripture which can enlighten the reader.' Most people consider as sacred scriptures only certain books or scrolls written by the hand of man, and carefully preserved as holy. to be handed down to posterity as divine revelation. Men have fought and disputed over the authenticity of these books, have refused to accept any other book of similar character, and, clinging thus to the book and losing the sense of it, have formed diverse sects. The Sufi has in all ages respected all such books, and has traced in the Vedanta, Zendavesta, Kabala, Bible, Qur'an, and all other sacred scriptures, the same truth which he reads in the incorruptible manuscript of nature, the only Holy Book, the perfect and living model that teaches the inner law of life: all scriptures before nature's manuscript are as little pools of water before the ocean. To the eye of the seer every leaf of the tree is a page of the holy book that contains divine revelation, and he is inspired every moment of his life by constantly reading and understanding the holy script of nature. When man writes, he inscribes characters upon rock, leaf, paper, wood or steel; when God writes, the characters He writes are living creatures. It is when the eye of the soul is opened and the sight is keen that the Sufi can read the divine law in the manuscript of nature; and that which the teachers of humanity have taught to their followers was derived by them from the same source; they expressed what little it is possible to express in words, and so they preserved the inner truth when they themselves were no longer there to reveal it. - Hazrat Inayat Khan, The Sufi Message     The Heart of Perfect Understanding The Bodhisattva Avalokita, while moving in the deep course of Perfect Understanding, shed light on the five skandhas and found them equally empty. After this penetration, he overcame all pain. "Listen, Shariputra, form is emptiness, emptiness is form, form does not differ from emptiness, emptiness does not differ from form. The same is true with feelings, perceptions, mental formations, and consciousness. "Hear, Shariputra, all dharmas are marked with emptiness; they are neither produced nor destroyed, neither defiled nor immaculate, neither increasing nor decreasing. Therefore, in emptiness there is neither form, nor feeling, nor perception, nor mental formations, nor consciousness; no eye, or ear, or nose, or tongue, or body, or mind; no form, no sound, no smell, no taste, no touch, no object of mind; no realms of elements (from eyes to mind-consciousness); no interdependent origins and no extinction of them (from ignorance to old age and death); no suffering, no origination of suffering, no extinction of suffering, no path; no understanding, no attainment. "Because there is no attainment, the bodhisattvas, supported by the Perfection of understanding, find no obstacles for their minds. Having no obstacles, they overcome fear, liberating themselves forever from illusion and realizing perfect Nirvana. All Buddhas in the past, present, and future, thanks to this Perfect Understanding, arrive at full, right, and universal Enlightenment. "Therefore, one should know that Perfect Understanding is a great mantra, is the highest mantra, is the unequaled mantra, the destroyer of all suffering, the incorruptible truth. A mantra of Prajnaparamita should therefore be proclaimed. This is the mantra: Gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha [Gone beyond, beyond, utterly beyond]." -From the Heart Sutra Creating an Enlightened Society The current state of world affairs is a source of concern to all of us: the threat of nuclear war, widespread poverty and economic instability, social and political chaos, and psychological upheavals of many kinds. The world is in absolute turmoil. The Shambhala teachings are founded on the premise that there is basic human wisdom that can help to solve the world's problems. This wisdom does not belong to any one culture or religion, nor does not belonging to any one culture or religion, nor does t come only from the West or the East. Rather, it is a tradition of human warriorship that has existed in many cultures at many times throughout history. Warriorship here does not refer to making war on the others. Aggression is the source of our problems, not the solution. Here the word "warrior" is often taken from the Tibetan pawo, which literally means "one who is brave." Warriorship in this context is the tradition of human bravery, or the tradition of fearlessness. The North American Indians had such a tradition, and it also existed in South American Indian societies. The Japanese ideal of the samurai also represented a warrior tradition of wisdom, and there have been principles of enlightened warriorship in Western Christian societies as well. King Arthur is a legendary example of warriorship in the Western tradition, and great rulers in the Bible, such as Kind David, are examples of warriors common to both the Jewish and Christian traditions. On our planet earth there have been many fine examples of warriorship. The key to warriorship and the first principle of Shambhala vision is not being afraid of who you are. Ultimately, that is the definition of bravery: not being afraid of yourself. Shambhala vision teaches that in the face of the world's great problems, we can be heroic and kin at the same time. Shambhala vision is the opposite of selfishness. When we are afraid of ourselves and afraid of the seeming threat the world presents, then we become extremely selfish. We want to build our own little nests, our own cocoons, so that we can live by ourselves in a secure way. But we can be much more brave that that. We bust try to think beyond our homes, beyond the fire burning in the fireplace, beyond sending our children to school or getting to work in the morning. We must try to think how we can help this world. If we don't help, nobody will. It is our turn to help the world. At the same time, helping others does not mean abandoning our individual lives. You don't have to rush out to become the mayor of your city or the president of the United States in order to help others, but you can begin with your relatives and friends and the people around you. In fact, you can start with yourself. The important point is to realize that you are never off duty. You can never just relax, because the whole world needs help. While everyone has a responsibility to help the world, we can create additional chaos if we try to impose our ideas or our help upon others. Many people have theories about what the world needs. Some people think that the world needs communism; some people think that the world needs democracy; some people think that technology will save the world; some people think that technology will destroy the world. The Shambhala teachings are not based on converting the world to another theory. The premise of Shambhala vision is that, in order to establish an enlightened society for others, we need to discover what inherently we have to offer the world. So, to begin with, we should make an effort to examine our own experience, in order to see what it contains that is of value in helping ourselves and others to uplift their existence. - Chogyam Trungpa, Shambhala The Unification of Mankind "Gloriously situated by life at this critical point in the evolution of Mankind, what ought we to do? We hold earth's future in our hands. What shall we decide? In my view the road to be followed Is clearly revealed by the teaching of all the past. We can progress only by uniting: this, as we have seen, is the law of Life. But unification through coercion leads only to a superficial pseudo-unity. It may establish a mechanism, but it does not achieve any fundamental synthesis; and in consequence it engenders no growth of consciousness. It materializes, in short, instead of spiritualizing. Only unification through unanimity is biologically valid. This alone can work the miracle of causing heightened personally to emerge from the forces of collectivity. It alone represents a genuine extension of the psychogenesis that gave us birth. Therefore it is inwardly that we must come together, and in entire freedom. But this brings us to the last question of all. To create this unanimity we need the bond, as I said, the cement of a favoring influence. Where shall we look for it; how shall we conceive of this principle of togetherness, this soul of the earth? Is it to be in the development of a common vision, that is to say, the establishment of a universally accepted body of knowledge, in which all intelligences will join in knowing the same facts interpreted in the same way? Or will it rather be in common action, in the determination of an objective universally recognized as being so desirable that all activity will naturally converge towards it under the impulse of a common fear and a common ambition? These two kinds of unanimity are undoubtedly real, and will, I believe, have their place in our future progress. But they need to be complemented by something else if they are not to remain precarious, insufficient and incomplete. A common body of knowledge brings together nothing but the geometrical point of intelligences. A common aspiration, no matter how ardent, can only touch individuals indirectly and in an impersonal way that is depersonalizing in itself. It is not a tete-a-tete or a corps-a-corps that we need; it is a heart-to-heart. This being so, the more I consider the fundamental question of the future of the earth, the more it appears to me that the generative principle of its unification is finally to be sought, not in the sole contemplation of a single Truth or in the sole desire for a single Thing, but in the common attraction exercised by a single Being, ForŠif the synthesis of the Spirit is to be brought about in its entirety(and this is the only possible definition of progress), it can only be done, in the last resort, through the meeting, center to center, of human units, such as can only be realized in universal, mutual love." -Pierre Teilhard de Chardin in The Future of Man.

The Five Elements The elemental wheel exists in each person just as it is present in each clan and in every community. This means that each person, on a smaller scale, must maintain a state of balance at all cost. Each person needs to keep the waters of reconciliation flowing within the self, in order to calm the inner fires and live in harmony with others. Each person needs to nourish the ancestral fire within, so that one stays in touch with one's dreams and visions. Each person needs to be grounded in the earth, to be able to become a source of nourishment to the community. Each person needs to remember the knowledge stored in one's bones--to live out one's own unique genius. And each person needs to be real, as nature is real, that is, without pretense, keeping in touch with a sense of mystery and wonder and helping to preserve the integrity of the natural world. To be out of balance in any of these areas is to invite sickness to come dwell within. - Malidoma Patrice Some,The Healing Wisdom of Africa

Unlimited Friendliness May all beings be happy and at their ease! May they be joyous and live in safety! All beings, whether weak or strong--omitting none-in high, middle, or low realms of existence, small or great, visible or invisible, near or far away, born or to be born--may all beings be happy and at their ease! Let none deceive another, or despise any being in any state! Let none by anger or ill will wish harm to another! Even as a mother watches over and protects her child, her only child, so with a boundless mind should one cherish all living beings, radiating friendliness over the entire world, above, below, and all around without limit. So let everyone cultivate a boundless good will toward the entire world, uncramped, free from ill will or enmity. -From the Majjhima Nikaya

True Giving What does one person give to another? He gives of himself, of the most precious he has, he gives of his life. This does not necessarily mean that he sacrifices his life for the other---but that he gives him of that which is alive in him; he gives him his joy, of his interest, of his understanding, of his knowledge, of his humor, of his sadness---of all expressions and manifestations of that which is alive in him. In thus giving of his life, he enriches the other person, he enhances the other's sense of aliveness by enhancing his own sense of aliveness. He does not give in order to receive; giving is in itself exquisite joy. But in giving he cannot help bringing something to life in the other person, and this which is brought to life reflects back to him; in truly giving, he cannot help receiving that which is given back to him. Giving implies to make the other person a giver also and they both share in the joy of what they have brought to life. In the act of giving something is born, and both persons involved are grateful for the life that is born for both of them. -Erich Fromm, The Art of Loving

Right Concentration Concentration is the mental state of focusing single-mindedly on a virtuous object. Our ordinary mental state is one of distraction. Our ordinary minds are too uncontrolled and weak to be able to understand the nature of reality. And it is essential to understand the nature of reality if we are going to liberate anyone, ourselves or others, from the sufferings of the cycle of birth and death. It is therefore necessary to develop the mind into a suitable tool for investigating reality, like a strong microscope. It is necessary to develop the mind into a suitable weapon to sever the root of suffering, like a sharp sword. Concentration is the practice whereby one's ordinary, distracted, uncontrolled mind is developed to the point that it can remain powerfully, effortlessly, and one-pointedly on whatever object one chooses. Bodhichitta [the compassionate wish to achieve Buddhahood for the sake of others] should be at the basis of the practice of concentration. -The Dalai Lama,The Way to Freedom

The Mind of Absolute Trust The Great Way isn't difficult      for those who are unattached to their preferences Let go of longing and aversion,      and everything will be perfectly clear. When you cling to a hairbreadth of distinction,      heaven and earth are set apart. If you want to realize the truth,      don't be for or against. The struggle between good and evil      is the primal disease of the mind. Not grasping the deeper meaning,      you just trouble your mind's serenity. As a vast infinite space ,      it is perfect and lacks nothing. But because you select and reject,      you can't perceive its true nature. Don't get entangled in the world;      don't lose yourself in emptiness. Be at peace in the oneness of things,      and all errors will disappear by themselves. If you don't live the Tao,      you fall into assertion or denial. Asserting that the world is real,      you are blind to its deeper reality; denying that the world is real,      you are blind to the selflessness of all things. The more you think about these matters,      the farther you are from the truth. Step aside from all thinking,      and there is nowhere you can't go. Returning to the root, you find the meaning;      chasing appearances, you lose their source. At the moment of profound insight,      you transcend both appearances and emptiness. Don't keep searching for the truth;      just let go of your opinions. For the mind in harmony with the Tao,      all selfishness disappears. With not even a trace of self-doubt,      you can trust the universe completely. All at once you are free,      with nothing left to hold on to. All is empty, brilliant,      perfect in its own being. In the world of things as they are,      there is no self, no non-self. If you want to describe its essence,      the best you can say is "Not-two." In this "Not-two" nothing is separate,      and nothing in the world is excluded. The enlightened of all times and places      have entered into this truth. In it there is no gain or loss;      one instant is ten thousand years. There is no here, no there;      infinity is right before your eyes. The tiny is as large as the vast      when objective boundaries have vanished; the vast is as small as the tiny      when you don't have external limits. Being is an aspect of non-being;      non-being is no different from being. Until you understand this truth,      you won't see anything clearly. One is all; all      are one. When you realize this,      what reason for holiness or wisdom? The mind of absolute trust      is beyond all thought, all striving, is perfectly at peace, for in it      there is no yesterday, no today, no tomorrow. - Seng-Ts'an, from The Enlightened Heart-An Anthology of Sacred Poetry

The Dangerous Self The root cause of all suffering is the ignorance that misconceives the nature of phenomena and apprehends oneself as self-existent. This ignorance leads us to exaggerate the status of phenomena and create the categories of self and others. These bring about experiences of desire and hatred(aversion), which in turn result in all sorts of negative actions. These in turn bring about all our undesirable sufferings. -The Dalai Lama, The Way to Freedom

Some say that my teaching is nonsense. Others call it lofty but impractical. But to those who have looked inside themselves, This nonsense makes perfect sense. And to those who put it into practice, This loftiness has roots that go deep. I have just three things to teach: Simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures, Simple in actions and in thoughts, You return to the source of being. Patient with both friends and enemies, You accord with the way things are. Compassionate toward yourself, You reconcile all beings in the world. -Lao Tzu

The Great Circle You have noticed that everything an Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and everything tries to be round. In the old days when we were a strong and happy people, all our power came to us from the sacred hoop of the nation, and so long as the hoop was unbroken, the people flourished. The flowering tree was the living center of the hoop, and the circle of the four quarters nourished it. The east gave peace and the light, the south gave warmth, the west gave rain, and the north with its cold and mighty wind gave strength and endurance. This knowledge came to us from the outer world with our religion. Everything the Power of the World does is done in a circle. The sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball, and so are the stars. The wind, in its greatest power, whirls. Birds make their nests in circles, for theirs is the same religion as ours. The sun comes forth and goes down again in a circle. The moon does the same, and both are round. Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were. The life of a man is a circle from childhood to childhood, and so it is in everything where power moves. Our tipis were round like the nests of birds, and these were always set in a circle, the nation's hoop, a nest of many nests, where the Great Spirit meant for us to hatch our children. - Black Elk Hehaka Sapa, Oglala Sioux Lakota, from In a Sacred Manner I Live.

Our fathers gave us many laws, which they had learned from their fathers. These laws were good. They told us to treat all men as they treated us; that we should never be the first to break bargain; that it was a disgrace to tell a lie; that we should speak only the truth; that it is a shame for one man to take from another his wife or his property without paying for it. We were taught to believe that the Great Spirit sees and hears everything, and that he never forgets; that hereafter he will give every man a spirit-home according to his deserts: if he has been a good man, he will have a good home; if he has been a bad man, he will have a bad home. This I believe, and all my people believe the same. - Chief Joseph Inmutooyahatlat, Nez Perce Tsutpeli, from In a Sacred Manner I Live.

The Tree of Life We are familiar with the unflattering expression, "He can't see the forest for the trees," Similarly, it can be said that most of us don't see the tree for the leaves. We fail to see the Tree of Life because we are fascinated by the leaves. We are so obsessed by millions of little fragments of foliage that we are not aware of the tree at all. We do not see that without the tree leaves do not have any life - that is the sap, coming from the very life of the tree, that flows into the leaves and supports them. In the modern world most of the emphasis is on separateness, on the leaf rather than the tree. Every day in countless ways we receive the message, "Find your joy in your own way, live your life in your own way." This drive for personal satisfaction is based on a complete fiction: that the leaf can prosper without the leaving tree. In reality, none of us are separate. We are all part of the same creation, drawing our strength, happiness, and fulfillment from the cosmic tree. -Eknath Easwaran

"Doing your best, you are going to live your life intensely. You are going to be productive, you are going to be good to yourself, because you will be giving yourself to your family, to your community, to everything. But it is the action that is going to make your feel intensely happy. When you always do your best, you take action. Doing your best is taking the action because you love it, not because you're expecting a reward." -don Miguel Ruiz, The Four Agreements.

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