Anger "It is natural for the immature to harm others. Getting angry with them is like resenting a fire for burning." Shantideva Once upon a time there was a little boy with a bad temper. His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he should hammer a nail in the fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. The definition of Aversion is: Exaggerated wanting to be separated from someone or something. The basic problem according to Buddhism, is that emotions like anger and hatred are based on projections and exaggeration, not on objectivity or wisdom, and thus basically incorrect. As His Holiness the Dalai Lama mentioned: "When reason ends, then anger begins. Is anger or hatred ever justified? "'Righteous hatred' is in the same category as 'righteous cancer'or 'righteous tuberculosis'. And as Khenpo Konchog Gyaltsen Rinpoche mentioned: "Some people feel patience is showing weakness or pessimism. ^Top of Page What forgiveness is
Meditation and Mindfulness Mindfulness is not thinking, interpreting, or evaluating; it is an awareness of perception. It is a nonjudgmental quality of mind which does not anticipate the future or reflect back on the past. Any activity can be done with mindfulness. Talking on the telephone, cleaning your home, driving, working, and exercising can all be incorporated into a mindfulness practice. Throughout the day, inwardly pause and become very aware of where you are, what you are doing, and how you are feeling. When mindfulness is the primary tool of meditation, the awareness that we apply to our breath (or to whatever our object–or focus–of meditation is, such as a word, image, sound, or physical sensation to which we return our attention after becoming distracted) can be expanded to include all physical and mental processes so that we may become more mindful of our thoughts and actions. It is commonly thought that meditators hope to stop all thoughts and rest their minds in thoughtless peace. by Steven Smith
Monsoons at mrdowling.com Siddhartha Gautama was a prince who lived in the kingdom of Sakyas, near the present day border of India and Nepal, more than 2500 years ago. The young prince was raised in great luxury, but he was not happy. Siddhartha left his palace and lived as an ascetic. Siddhartha told other people of his enlightenment. The Buddha taught his followers to seek balance in their lives. neither through indulgence nor denial, but a “middle way.” Buddhists look within themselves to find peace; they believe they can find the path to Nirvana through meditation and karma. The Buddha did not want his teachings to replace other faiths, but today over three hundred million Buddhists in all parts of the world adhere to his philosophy. Download this lesson as Microsoft Word file or as an Adobe Acrobat file. c\
Basics of Buddhism The Four Noble Truths The Four Noble Truths comprise the essence of Buddha's teachings, though they leave much left unexplained. They are the truth of suffering, the truth of the cause of suffering, the truth of the end of suffering, and the truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering. More simply put, suffering exists; it has a cause; it has an end; and it has a cause to bring about its end. The notion of suffering is not intended to convey a negative world view, but rather, a pragmatic perspective that deals with the world as it is, and attempts to rectify it. The Four Noble Truths are a contingency plan for dealing with the suffering humanity faces -- suffering of a physical kind, or of a mental nature. The Third Noble Truth, the truth of the end of suffering, has dual meaning, suggesting either the end of suffering in this life, on earth, or in the spiritual life, through achieving Nirvana.
The Five Buddha Families. The Buddha families as presented by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche are a description of five qualities of energy. They describe qualities we all have. They are not meant to solidify one’s ego through identifying them the way some people identify with their astrological signs. They are instead a fluid working basis for recognizing our current sanity or neurosis. Practitioners of the buddhadharma are not expected to be uniformly cool or warm, smart or spacious. Each Buddha family has an emotion associated with it, which can be transmuted into wisdom, as well as a color, element, landscape, direction, season, and even a time of day. The central Buddha family is Buddha, which has the quality of space and accommodation. But the neurosis of the Buddha family is dullness, a kind of bubble-gum or molasses mind. This is the wisdom, which makes it possible for the other Buddha families to function. The Vajra family is known for precision and intellectual exactness. There is no fixed type-casting. Bonus:
Home Buddhism: Introduction As of July 1, 2013 ThinkQuest has been discontinued. We would like to thank everyone for being a part of the ThinkQuest global community: Students - For your limitless creativity and innovation, which inspires us all. Teachers - For your passion in guiding students on their quest. Partners - For your unwavering support and evangelism. Parents - For supporting the use of technology not only as an instrument of learning, but as a means of creating knowledge. We encourage everyone to continue to “Think, Create and Collaborate,” unleashing the power of technology to teach, share, and inspire. Best wishes, The Oracle Education Foundation
A Bite of Buddhism The four sublime mental states are qualities of mind that we cultivate in order to alleviate the suffering we experience in everyday life and to feel more connected to others—and the worries and fears we all share. In the language of the Buddha (Pali), they are called the brahma viharas , which means "the dwelling place of awakened beings." The good news for us unawakened beings is that it's easy to begin cultivating the brahma viharas . Indeed, they are an integral part of other religious, spiritual, and humanistic traditions. Metta . I like to think of metta as the simple act of well-wishing. Sylvia once said that she practices metta by just looking at a person and silently saying, "I love you." Karuna . The Vietnamese Zen master, Thich Nhat Hanh, helped me learn to cultivate compassion for myself. Mudita . Just as metta is an antidote for our judgmental tendencies, mudita is the perfect antidote for envy. Upekkha .