I was once addicted to marijuana. It started as a recreational activity which I did with friends. It inspired me with visions that I could use in my art and ideas that I thought were very unique and astounding while I was high. Sometimes these ideas helped me when I sobered up to have a …
Category: Opinion
What Has Helped Me
Ryan Shelton, creator of this blog, wrote in a most recent post, "I want people to feel encouraged and supported in practicing however they can within the limitations of the rest of their lives. I don’t know exactly how to help..." That struck me. I too, as a writer for this blog, feel the same …
Be Quiet and Listen
This is a discussion that I have listened to multiple times and continue to get more out of it. I've posted it on this blog before, because it is a truly marvelous and very Dhamma-like conversation. http://www.jkrishnamurti.org/krishnamurti-teachings/view-video/knowledge-and-the-transformation-of-man-part-1-of-18.php The discussion is about as close to 'what is' as you can get, aside from meditating. It's the …
Ways to See Equanimity
There are many different ways to speak of equanimity and awareness. Most of the spiritual speakers and writers of the world will point to these two principles in some way. They may only point to things that point to these things, but still, they are on the same track to seeing it. They may also …
Simplicity
What amazes me again and again about Vipassana is its simplicity. I've started to get my daily sits in without having to think about TRYING to do so. They are a natural part of my life now. I think this is ideal with any form of art. For it to really be something you're involved …
Complete Surrender
I don't understand what it means to completely surrender to Dhamma and the technique of Vipassana. The first step to surrendering is to let go of control and have faith in the practice to guide me, but am I also relinquishing responsibility and ownership of my life and actions? Once I accept that someone else …
S. N. Goenka: Notes – Day 1 Discourse
S. N. Goenka: Notes - Day 1 Discourse You will get the best results of your stay here, the better you work. You must work. The art of living is missing. This will teach you the art of living. Someone goes to the other bank of the river and comes back and says, it's so …
Moral Unity
A moral foundation allows people to coexist within communities. The Golden Rule, which exists in some form within all the major religions, reminds individuals of how it feels to be mistreated, and encourages them to act nobly. When we feel or witness the suffering we cause in others, we are much less likely to act in negative ways, but when …
Living With Reality
How much time do I spend distracting myself from reality? The obvious distractors are television, movies, and internet, but I want to look a little bit deeper. When I see a model seductively posed in an advertisement, how many seconds does this distract me from the people and circumstances around me? After watching a nice car drive …
Our Work is Love
Our work is love. The classic statement is that to love your job is to mean you will never work a day in your life. This is not work, but play. To find love, on the one side, may sometimes feel like work, but if we love our work, it will be play. If our …
Living Vipassana 