It’s Simple… and Difficult
The absence of engagement, the hours spent in one or another form of channel-surfing, is actually the chief cause of our anxiety and mental exhaustion, the sleep of the spirit the chief cause of our…
“Infuriating Things” by Sei Shōnagon
A very ordinary person, who beams inanely as she prattles on and on. Some newcomer steps in and starts interfering and lecturing the old hands as if she knows it all. —The Pillow Book, translated…
Today’s One-Liner (#349)
Hell is not other people (as a resentful toad once said); it is ourselves. –Reinaldo Arenas, The Color of Summer Or The New Garden of Earthly Delights, 169 Note: The “toad” refers to French philosopher…
A Simplifying Renunciation
Thus, you should carefully consider which among the main things you want in life is the most important, and renounce all the others to dedicate yourself to that thing alone. Among the many matters that…
First Things First
One’s education must first of all be directed to a thorough knowledge of the classics and an understanding of the teachings of the sages. –—Yoshida Kenkō, Essays in Idleness, translated by Meredith McKinney, 80
Commitment
In all our studies, continues concentration and diligence are the hallmark of success. It is meaningless to begin the study of karate-do as if you were stopping by a roadside stand for refreshment on your…
Seize the Instant Already!
A man engaged in Buddhist practice will tell himself at night that there is always the morning, or in the morning will anticipate the night, always intending to make more effort later. And if such…
Bodhisattva Vows
Although sentient beings are limitless, we vow to save them.Although our evil desires are limitless, we vow to be rid of them. Although the teaching is limitless, we vow to learn it all.Although Buddhism is unattainable,…
Word of the Day
aware, Japanese —a feeling-tone in which responsiveness to the moving nature of the phenomenal world derives from a recognition of its transience. –Meredith McKinney, in her translation of Sei Shōnagon, The Pillow Book, xxvii.
Today’s One-Liner (#348)
In Aikido, a sincere practitioner continually strives to forge the body, discipline the mind, and polish the spirit. –John Stevens, The Shambhala Guide to Aikido, 27