A Double Whammy

I love quotes! Who doesn't? The only issue that seems to come from humanity's great love of quotes is that we often post quotes in an empty fashion, meaning that we like the idea of the words and can see how they would apply to our lives, but we don't take the next step of actually living by these words.
I liken it to waving a white flag without the intention to surrender, or saying "I stand for this" without really knowing what it means.

Not saying that it's easy to just integrate a quote into your life right away - it will take practice! So, I totally support creating a Pinterest board of quotes, or having your favourites posted on your mirror so you can look at them each morning. Kind of like a mantra, right?
But, choose the quotes that really resonate with you! Some that you feel are actually reasonable to integrating into your life, often by the same person or by people within the same genre.

These two quotes really hit-home today. Both represent something I am struggling with, and speak to my heart very profoundly and eloquently. Lovingly, I accept the guidance presented and commit to putting these into practice.

"The whole secret of existence is to have no fear. Never fear what will become of you."

"You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger."

- The Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama)

Image courtesy of coward_lion at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Namaste, All!

PS. Tell me your favourite quotes in the comments!

Daily Dose of... Buddha

Photo from Pinterest

Namaste.

Let's Talk About... Kadampa Buddhism

(Almost) every Monday night for the past couple of weeks, my sister, my husband, and myself have been attending Kadampa Buddhist teachings at the Akshobya Kadampa Buddhist Centre here in Calgary.

Life-changing.

You can check out more about the centre, and Kadampa Buddhism, here: http://www.meditationalberta.org/kadampa-buddhism/

Kadampa Buddhism is a Mahayana Buddhist school founded by the great Indian Buddhist Master Atisha (AD 982-1054).

In the word, ‘Kadampa’, ‘Ka’ refers to Buddha’s teachings, and ‘dam’ to Atisha’s special Lamrim instructions. Kadampas, then, are practitioners who regard Buddha’s teachings as personal instructions and put them into practice by following the instructions of Lamrim.

By integrating their understanding of all Buddha’s teachings into their practice of Lamrim, and by integrating their experience of Lamrim into their everyday lives, Kadampas use Buddha’s teachings as practical methods for transforming daily activities into the path to enlightenment.

(from http://www.meditationalberta.org/kadampa-buddhism/)

Daily Dose of Buddha

If for just the time of a finger-snap a monk produces a thought of loving-kindness, develops it, gives attention to it, such a one is rightly called a monk. Not in vain does he meditate. He acts in accordance with the master's teaching, he follows his advice. How much more so if he cultivates it.

- The Buddha (Shakyamuni)

Namaste 

Let's Talk About... Change

"Everything changes, nothing remains without change." - The Buddha

I feel like the word "change" is just an overall loaded word. I also feel like it's connotations are highly feared when they should be celebrated. Should we replace "change" with "metamorphosis"? "Growth"? "Blossoming"? These all have positive connotations - when we think of metamorphosis we usually think of a caterpillar turning into a butterfly, or a flower "blossoming" from a plain, green bud into a thing of beauty.

So.... why can't we be that beautiful butterfly or that flower? Let's go back to kindergarten for a sec and be that beautiful butterfly!

 Maybe "changing" the world wouldn't seem like such a colossal task if we switched our train of thought to "assisting in world growth" or, to make it sound a bit more creative and less stick-up-my-butt, "telling the world to grow up!"

 We all have ideas about how this will happen, and that is why I love the internet. It is a world-wide forum on how we live our lives, how we achieve (and do not achieve) peace in our own lives, and our ideas about everything. Yup, every single little thing - haven't you ever perused the YouTube comments section?

Believe it or not, this is helping you to grow/change. You are taking a stance in what you believe in, whether or not you agree with something, and maybe even educating you on a topic that you wouldn't naturally stumble upon. Like.... the gluten and dairy free diet and controversies about it, perhaps?

 Growth/change can be the hardest thing. I am slowly growing up past my fears of failure, my fears of doing something wrong, my fears of letting things go, amongst others... not to mention to massive growth that it took to identify my allergies, discover cooking with them, and creating this blog!

But I am growing... and it is exciting! The new opportunities that have opened up to me are terrifying, fascinating, exciting, and will continue this never-ending growth spurt!

I am proud of myself.

Say it to yourself now. I AM PROUD OF MYSELF!

For:

- list your accomplishments, big or small (if you can't think of any, you're not trying hard enough)

Now, what needs to change? What do you need to grow past? Are you holding onto something that is preventing this growth?

Chances are, you probably answered yes to at least one of those questions. If not, you're not thinking hard enough - you can always improve!

Think of the quote from Buddha above; where would we be if we hadn't changed/grew?

When I think of who I was, especially in high school, I see much growth/change. I see my Self hurdling over obstacles to GET WHAT I WANT TO BE HAPPY.

What do you want? Write it down, blow it up, frame it. WHAT DO YOU WANT??? Will you be happy and true to your Self?

How are you going to get it? I bet that it will involve change/growth - I bet that it will take a bit of life revision to say "I need to change this" or... "I need to grow up".

Our mantras:

"I am proud of myself"

"I am ready to grow"

"I can be that beautiful butterfly"

"I am going to be true to my Self"

"I am going to be happy"

Namaste.

Daily Dose of... Buddha

"Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life."

- The Buddha

Namaste 

Daily Dose of... Buddha

"To keep the body in good health is a duty... otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear."

- The Buddha

Namaste

Please Tell Me What You Think!

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French Onion Soup Blog

An Amazing Woman

Daily Dose Of... Zen

“Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet.”- Thich Nhat Hanh

Namaste

Daily Dose of Buddha

“In a controversy the instant we feel anger we have already ceased striving for the truth, and have begun striving for ourselves.” - The Buddha

Namaste.

The Brilliant Mind of Eckhart Tolle

"To end the misery that has afflicted the human condition for thousands of years, you have to start with yourself and take responsibility for you inner state at any given moment. That means now." 

- Eckhart Tolle

Namaste.

Daily Dose of... Buddha

These past two days seem to be on the theme of weightloss, and I'd like to continue the motivation! The hardest thing for me is waiting - I need to train myself to have more patience!! We all need to promote patience within ourselves; we need to remember that things do not happen overnight, or at the snap of our fingers. This seemingly simple quote from The Buddha helps to remind us of this.

"A jug fills drop by drop." - The Buddha

Namaste.

Daily Dose of... Dhammapada

"As many kinds of wreaths can be made from a heap of flowers, so many good things may be achieved by a mortal when once he is born."

- From The Dhammapada

Namaste. 

Find Your Shine!

"Good people shine from afar, like the snowy mountains; bad people are not seen, like arrows shot by night."

- The Buddha

Image (C)FrenchOnionSoupBlogCalgary

Namaste. 

The mountains are memorable - anybody from Alberta can attest to that! Personally, when I drive to Banff from Calgary, looking at the mountains creates a bit of a stir within me. How is it that these beautiful pieces of Earth were made? I will always cherish the sight of them... much like good people with the best intentions are cherished by those around them. You will then learn to cherish yourself. Remember my post about having a constant heart?
You cannot cherish a bad person - somebody who constantly cuts you down, insults you - I'm not talking about somebody who has a bad day - this is somebody who consistently, intentionally leaves a bad impression.
Think of these intentionally bad people as The Buddha says - as an arrow shot in the dark. The arrow's intention is to wound, to kill... but if it is shot in the dark, it misses you and you do not see it, you do not cherish it, it does not leave an impression on you, and you are not affected.

Find your shine - be a mountain!

Daily Dose of... Buddha

"He who always greets and constantly reveres the aged, four things will increase to him: life, beauty, happiness, power."

- The Buddha

Namaste 

Respect your elders

The Importance of Being Earnest

"Fools follow after vanity. The wise man keeps earnestness as his best jewel."

- The Buddha

Namaste. 

Let's Talk About... Being Proactive!

"I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done."

- The Buddha

 

Something To Think About

"Buddhist teachings are not a religion, they are a science of mind."

-The Dalai Lama

 

Daily Dose of... Buddha

“However many holy words you read, however many you speak, what good will they do you if you do not act on upon them?”

-The Buddha

Namaste.