More on the theme from this morning's session.
(from the Upajjhatthana Sutra)
I am of the nature to grow old. But don't slow down.
There is no way to escape growing old. So do it gracefully.
I am of the nature to have ill-health. Balance.
There is no way to escape having ill health. The opposite is also true.
I am of the nature to die. And to live.
There is no way to escape death. So you might as well have fun.
All that is dear to me and everyone I love are of the nature to change. Change for the better then.
There is no way to escape being separated from them. It is all connected.
My deeds are my closest companions. Indeed.
I am the beneficiary of my deeds. My deeds are the ground on which I stand. Build a solid foundation.
Birth will end in death. What's between is what counts.
Youth will end in old age. As ignorance can end in wisdom.
Wealth will end in loss. Don't cling.
Meetings will end in separation. Schedule more meetings.
All things in cyclic existence are transient, are impermanent. This, too, shall pass.
The Buddhas cannot wash our sins with water. We are responsible for our own cleanliness.
They cannot remove our suffering with their hands. But they can suggest tools that can.
They cannot transfer their insights to us. But they can try.
All they can do is teach the Dharma. Pay attention.
I am my own protector. You got your back.
This color = my augmentation to the original (the nerve!)
http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/?pg=fullstory&id=5176
2 comments:
From the Washington Post re Armstrong's broken clavicle:
Armstrong's approach to pain is as much a matter of fundamental state of mind as of fortunate physiology. He views pain as corrective, and cleansing. At a time when so many people seek shortcuts to wealth, and crave indulgences and exquisite personal comfort, he voluntarily seeks out severe discomfort because he likes what it does for him. He wants things the hard way -- in the cold, and rain, with his backside on a bike for six hours at a time -- because he finds it clarifying. He knows exactly who he is: He's the guy who can take it. He returned to cycling precisely because he found the slackness of retirement soul-wearying. Even in his most dissolute periods over the last three years, between sipping good red wines in Miami or New York, he goaded himself through training for the New York and Boston marathons. "I have the will to suffer," he says. "I do have that."
Beautiful. THAT pretty much sums it up. It starts here. If you have THIS, you can have anything. Thanks for the post amigo.
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