Thursday, June 30, 2016

To Learn







Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.

                                       ---Benjamin Franklin---

A False Picture of Reality


It is not that anger and desire are inherently evil or that we should feel ashamed when they arise. It is a matter of seeing them as the delusions that they are: distorted conceptions that paint a false picture of reality. They are negative because they lead to unhappiness and confusion.

---Kathleen McDonald---

Roasted Cauliflower

4 cups of large cauliflower florets
3 tablespoons of olive oil
q clove of garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon of ground caraway seeds
1/2 teaspoon of ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons of chopped fresh parsley

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Toss the cauliflower florets with the oil, the garlic, the ground caraway seeds, the ground coriander, and the salt.

Place a single layer of the florets on an unoiled baking tray and bake until the cauliflower is tender and has begun to turn golden brown, 20 to 30 minutes.

Carefully stir a few times during the baking.

Remove the roasted cauliflower from the oven and transfer it to a platter or shallow serving bowl.

Allow the cauliflower to cool to room temperature; then top with the tomatoes and the parsely.

Decorate with lemon wedges at service.

Suffering


It is often thought that the Buddha's doctrine teaches us that suffering will disappear if one has meditated long enough, or if one sees everything differently. It is not that at all. Suffering isn't going to go away; the one who suffers is going to go away.

---Ayya Khema---

My Hero


Walter Cronkite

My Hero


Thomas Paine

My Hero


Thomas Jefferson

My Hero


Thich Nhat Hanh 

My Hero


Steve Shives

My Hero


Robin Hood

My Hero


Rachel Maddow

My Hero


Nelson Mandela

My Hero


Neil deGrasse Tyson

My Hero


Martin Luther King Jr.

My Hero


Jonas Salk

My Hero


John Chapman (Johnny Appleseed)

My Hero


His Holiness the Dalai Lama

My Hero


Harvey Milk

My Hero


Harriet Tubman

My Hero


Gandhi

My Hero


Carl Sagan

My Hero


Bill Nye

My Hero


Benjamin Franklin

My Hero



Albert Einstein

My Hero


Barack Obama

My Hero


The Buddha

Pacify the Mind


Huike said to Bodhidharma, “My mind is anxious. Please pacify it.”

Bodhidharma replied, “Bring me your mind, and I will pacify it.”


Huike said, “Although I’ve sought it, I cannot find it.”


“There,” Bodhidharma replied, “I have pacified your mind.”

Zesty Tomato Soup


2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 cup of chopped onion
3 cups of chopped fresh tomatoes
3 cups of undrained canned tomatoes, chopped (a 28-ounce can)
1/4 cup of chopped fresh basil
1 teaspoon of sugar
3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon of freshly grated orange peel
2 cups of orange juice
3 tablespoons of chopped fresh cilantro
3 tablespoons of chopped fresh parsley
Salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a large soup pot. Add the onions and saute over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. You want the onion translucent.

Add the fresh and the canned tomatoes with their juices, the basil, the sugar, the lemon juice, and the orange peel.

Bring this to the boil, lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a food processor, combine the orange juice, the cilantro, the parsley, the salt, and the pepper and puree until thoroughly mixed.

Ladle about 2 cups of the cooked, seasoned tomatoes from the soup pot into the mixture in the food processor. Puree until smooth.

Stir the puree back into the soup and heat thoroughly for 10 minutes.

Serve hot. You may enjoy a garnish of chopped basil, chopped parsley, sliced green onion, or chopped chives.

This recipe will give about 7 or 8 cups of soup.

Karma


Karma is not something complicated or philosophical. Karma means watching your body, watching your mouth, and watching your mind. Trying to keep these three doors as pure as possible is the practice of karma.

---Lama Thubten Yeshe---


Contentment


Realizing for ourselves that the power to achieve contentment comes from within requires an understanding of how our thinking process controls our behaviors and, thereby, our results.

---Matthew Flickstein---




The Teaching


When someone asks you a question, answer him or her sincerely, and when not asked, do not force your teaching upon others.

---Jae Woong Kim---

Ignorance


Ignorance may be bliss, but it does not lead to liberation.

                                                       ---Bhante Henepola Gunaratana---

The Buddha Way


If you want the Buddha Way to manifest before your eyes, it is a mistake to harbor any preferences or aversions, This includes anything you hope to acquire, keep, discard, avoid.

---Master Sheng Yen---

Wisdom









In the very ultimate,
Rules and standards do not exist.

                                   ---The Hsin Hsin Ming---

Reality






Contemplate all this as equal,
as one,
you then return to the Truth.


Freedom


The moment one lets go of the attaching-mind,
at that moment they are free.

Wednesday, June 29, 2016

To Judge or Not To Judge


Making comparisons necessitates judging others.

Cucumber Yogurt Soup


Great on a hot day.

5 cucumbers, peeled
2 cups of plain yogurt
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/4 cup of coarsely chopped fresh chives
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh dill
2 tablespoons of chopped fresh mint
1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons of honey
Salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Coarsely chop 4 of the cucumbers to make about 5 cups.

Combine the chopped cucumber with all the remaining ingredients (except the 5th cucumber).

Working in batches, puree in a blender or food processor until the mixture is smooth.

Seed and dice the remaining cucumber and stir it into the soup.

Serve at once or refrigerate and served chilled.


The Lotus Sutra


The message of the Lotus Sutra is everyone can and will become a Buddha.

Understanding Reality

M. C. Escher

In order to observe and understand Reality, we have to transcend notions of same and different, coming and going, now and then, inside and outside, above and below, before and after, birth and death.

Observing Reality


Our usual way of observing reality is through our senses. This is a limited perception and it can be mistaken. We should try to avoid being attached to ideas and concepts.

The Bodhisattva Way


Never become complacent with what you have achieved. Continue to grow in wisdom, compassion, and service.


This is the Bodhisattva Way, the Bodhisattva Way of becoming a Buddha.

Inner Strength


Within the teaching of the Buddha Dharma there is no "hopeless case." Every person, without exception, has with herself or himself an inner strength, a great power to observe, to understand, and to realize the Truth.