How is it possible to remain peaceful in such a violent world?
You have to want to lose your appetite for violence or aggression. And to do that, you have to lose your self-righteousness. You have to realize that you cannot continue to have your habitual reaction to something, especially if your reaction ends with violence-physical or verbal-against yourself or somebody else, or even against the government of your country or the terrorists or whomever. You have to accept in your gut that the habitual reaction is poisonous not only to you but to the rest of the world.
Pema Chodron
"A practice I have been enjoying for some months now is to “make peace with the present moment”. That means that when thoughts arise followed by thoughts of judgment I tell myself that the whole process is part of my practice: the original thoughts and the secondary or following thoughts as well. I do this by saying to myself, “how human of me to have a thought of X”. This helps so much when I look at the behavior of others as well.
When I say silently to myself, “How human of him to act/react with anger or fear or disappointment” then there is a space for compassion to arise in me. And I like how that feels. Then I am at peace with the present moment.
Judith Hanson Lasater - from: http://www.judithlasater.com/writings/ 'Recent Thoughts'
The goal of this journey is not only freedom from suffering but an expanded capacity for creativity, clarity, and joy.
Miranda Shaw PASSIONATE ENLIGHTENMENT
...the 8 factors (limbs) of Patanjali's Yoga could usefully be arranged in a circle since it is by their combined power that the yogin propels himself forward along the path of internalisation.
George Feuerstein THE YOGA SUTRA OF PATANJALI 'The Eightfold Yoga'
The essence of realization is nowness,
Occurring all at once, with nothing to add or subtract. Self-liberation, innate great bliss, Free from hope or fear. . .
Chogyam Trungpa, Nalanda trans. THE LIFE OF MARPA THE TRANSLATOR 'Marpa's First Journey to India'
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