From Samsara
.... and Life Coaching with Joe
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Understanding the Grand Cycle of Suffering Today I want to talk about samsara—a word many of us know, although, unless we are discussing the designer fragrance, most of us do not entirely understand it. To be honest, few of us understand the fragrance either. Samsara is a Sanskrit term shared by several Indian religious traditions, […]
From Suffering to Freedom What distinguishes the Buddhist path from more rule-based or solely academic traditions is its emphasis on direct experience. Study deepens our understanding, and guidelines provide important direction, but our immediate experience is where the teachings come alive. In the game of rock, paper, scissors, each choice defeats another and is defeated […]
Mapping Human Experience It is said that the Buddha, speaking to a community of priests, adepts, and teachers, was asked why he didn’t speak about the gods. His answer was purportedly a rather dismissive, “That’s not important.” This was taken to mean that speculation about the afterlife—and any preexistence we may have had—has only a […]
Remembering 2 Remain Human in The 6 Realms A Tibetan Buddhist saying warns that the bandits of hope and fear come to rob us of the present. The present being the precious moments that comprise our life. The true gift of opening this present is that it’s not only where we find our life, but […]
The Faith to Face the Present One thing I miss from my early Christian upbringing was the belief that something out there was caring for me, watching over me. And when I felt cut off as though my spirit had darkened, I assumed I was failing. My disconnect from God was evidence of their displeasure. […]
Not Perfection There is a saying in recovery rooms: “Progress, not perfection.” Perfectionism may appear to be a commitment to excellence, but it is often something more anxious and self-defeating. It comes from the fear that we are not good enough as we are—that we must perform, impress, or remain in control to earn our […]
And No Problem Learn from your mistakes, it is said. But I don’t believe we learn from our mistakes. I believe we learn from our wisdom. And the only mistake we truly make is to not pay attention. Then we fail to listen to our wisdom. Especially when we make a mistake. Indeed, we need […]
UNCOVERING WHO WE ARE The key to understanding ourselves is to employ gentleness. This is important because we are organic beings. We will nurture plants on our windowsill but treat ourselves with a demanding impatience before we’re even out of bed. Pushing ourselves is counterproductive as none of us likes being told what to do. […]
Why is it so hard to pay attention? Our lives are so precious. Our time here so limited. And in that brief moment there is so much we might learn. So much to feel. So much to see. So much to understand. We have so far to grow. And, in my opinion, we should never […]
Paying Attention to the Tool We Use to Pay Attention Before I take my brain out in public, it seems only prudent to check the machinery. Before I unleash my normally passionate—and sometimes reactive—engagement with the world, I like to get in sync with my mind, and have some idea how I’m actually feeling. How […]