Teachers

Good Morning,

The weekend is here and summer is just around the corner. Many people have the spring fever and their minds and hearts race with thoughts of the season and time spent with friends. During these pleasant moments I encourage each of you to let the small things that do annoy you become teachers or lessons to learn from. As long as we are learning and focusing our minds in the right direction we will never stray far from our path. This brings me to the thought for the day:

If we learn to open our hearts, anyone, including the people who drive us crazy, can be our teacher.

Have a wonderful weekend and open not only your hearts but your minds as well!

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

Perceptions

Good Morning,

I know many of you who receive The Daily Buddha have minor degrees in philosophy, or at least a passing interest in the subject. In basic philosophy classes we come to understand subjective reality VS objective reality. By understanding these fundamental views we can take a deeper look at Buddhist logic. For example I am sitting in a chair writing this letter. From our typical perspective, this chair is solid and belongs to a certain class or category: A hand-crafted modern chair.

We believe we understand an object when we can define and classify it into a category. We take this for granted. We can also describe the chair to others. They know what to do with it - sit in it - as with all other members of this category. As the renowned philosopher Bertrand Russell explained, a category is not a member of itself, therefore I can not sit on the category chairs, an abstraction.

Buddhist logic suggests that when we classify and reason about chairs (or anything) in this way, we are perceiving our thoughts and not the real world. We think we know an object by it's category, but we do not. We only know the category. The truth is we could sit on a desk, on the floor, or on the ground. Since anything can be a chair we begin to see the limitations of our categories and the way we perceive our world.

A wonderful experience awaits us when free ourselves from the limitations of our categories and our own pre-conditioned thoughts. There is a simple quote from Buddha that makes this crystal clear:

The truth you believe and cling to makes you unavailable to hear or see anything new. Buddha.

Have a great day and when we open ourselves to the world we allow the light to pour in and illuminate the shadows of our mind.
Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

Karma

Good Morning,

I wanted to comment briefly on the subject of Karma. I know many people think of it as some form of equalization - being rewarded or punished for deeds done in this lifetime or another. That is truly not the Karma the ancients spoke of (although as with anything does Karma truly take any form).

People get into a heavy-duty sin and guilt trip, feeling that if things are going wrong, that means that they did something bad and they are being punished. That's not the idea at all. The idea of karma is that you continually get the teachings that you need to open your heart. To the degree that you didn't understand in the past how to stop protecting your soft spot, how to stop armoring your heart, you're given this gift of teachings in the form of your life, to give you everything you need to open further.

If we look at life as the gift of knowledge then we can proceed to learn from it's lessons. Have a great day and share what you learn today with others, we are all in the classroom!

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

The Limping Puppy

Good Morning,

I just wanted to share a story that touched me. It was shared with me by a wise Buddhist mentor and although I felt I "got" the message, every time I revisit the tale I find something new. I hope each of you will be rewarded with the same understanding.

A store owner was tacking a sign above his door that read " Puppies For Sale". Signs like that have a way of attracting small children, and sure enough, a little boy appeared under the store owner's sign. "How much are you going to sell the puppies for?" he asked. The store owner replied, " Anywhere from $30 to $50." The little boy reached in his pocket and pulled out some change. "I have $2.37," he said. "Can I please look at them?"

The store owner smiled and whistled and out of the kennel came Lady, who ran down the aisle of his store followed by five teeny, tiny balls of fur. One puppy was lagging considerably behind. Immediately the little boy singled out the lagging, limping puppy and said, "What's wrong with that little dog?" The store owner explained that the veterinarian had examined the little puppy and had discovered it didn't have a hip socket. It would always limp. It would always be lame. The little boy became excited. "That is the little puppy that I want to buy." The store owner said, "No, you don't want to buy that little dog. If you really want him, I'll give him to you."

The little boy got quite upset. He looked straight into the store owner's eyes, pointing his finger, and said, "I don't want you to give him to me. That little dog is worth every bit as much as all the other dogs and I'll pay full price. In fact, I'll give you $2.37 now, and 50 cents a month until I have him paid for." The store owner countered, "You really don't want to buy this little dog. He is never going to be able to run and jump and play with you like the other puppies." To this, the little boy reached down and rolled up his pant leg to reveal a badly twisted, crippled left leg supported by a big metal brace. He looked up at the store owner and softly replied, "Well, I don't run so well myself, and the little puppy will need someone who understands!"

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

A Middle Ground

Good Morning,

I returned from a wonderful weekend with peers and friends both new and old and the time spent together (no matter how short) was incredibly rich. As I sat and listened to others, I noticed a trend for placing blame on something or someone whenever an unpleasant subject came up. Be it a job, a client or some other form of displeasure, there always seemed to be that familiar escape path we call blame.

We habitually erect a barrier called blame that keeps us from communicating genuinely with others, and we fortify it with our concepts of who's right and who's wrong. We do that with the people who are closest to us and we do it with political systems, with all kinds of things that we don't like about our associates or our society. It is a very common, ancient, well-perfected device for trying to feel better. Blame others. Blaming is a way to protect your heart, trying to protect what is soft and open and tender in yourself. Rather than own that pain, we scramble to find some comfortable ground. The work that truly needs to be done leads us to live in a more tender, responsible place. . . In the Gap Between Right and Wrong.

I missed you all and hope to see each of you soon. Have a great day and remember if you feel unhappy in what you do or where you are, it's only because you have not seen the opportunity of your situation.

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

Setting Sail

Good Morning,

As some of you may know I will be going on a creative treat this weekend with a coworker. We are both looking forward to the event and especially the road trip part. I always enjoy the time to look and ponder the new sights and sounds i encounter along the way. It takes me back to my adventurous days of youth.

I will leave you today with the following quote, which got me off my hind quarters many an occasion:

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." -- Mark Twain

Have a wonderful day and a beautiful weekend. Make the time to do just a little exploring, dreaming, and discovering!

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

Always Asking

Good Morning,

Everyone on the team where i work knows me as the "why guy" due to my incessant and repeated questioning, but why? No matter what the topic, situation or client you can count on me to ask why? to almost every encounter. Why do you want to do that? Why do you find that true? Almost like a small child tiring his parents, there is no end to my questioning of all things fact or fiction.

In my position (creative director) I find the why question invaluable in uncovering essential information. In my spiritual life it simply seems quite natural to question all things I encounter, including my own logic. This brings me to my thought for the day:

Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it. - Buddha

Have a wonderful day and always "live up to it".

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

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Why?

Good Morning,

Lately I have been engaged in conversations with friends concerning certain aspects of Buddhism. One aspect in particular is the elimination of desires. Many people tell me that without their desires they have no motivation and no reason to get out of bed in the morning. Although I believe this is an oversimplified statement lets suppose that it is true.

This means that the only reason people awake in the morning or go through the time period know as our life is to feed the desires of self, that our lives serve no other purpose than to quench the thirst of self and fulfill it's every want and whim. Do we really wake up to just fill the time void so that we are unaware of it's passing?

No, I feel there is a greater answer as to why we go through our lives and why we get up each day to take on another round with samsara and I personally find it in the following words:

Your life's work is to discover your world and then with all your heart give yourself to it. Buddha

Have a great day and keep in mind there is more to life than we can see.

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

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Most Precious

Good Morning,

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. As spring draws near you can feel the buzz in nature as the season changes once again. Kelly and I had some hard decisions to make this weekend concerning our little Chai. Kelly has always had allergies to cats and dogs and we had hoped this would not be an issue with Chai's extremely short hair length. Unfortunately that is not the case and both Kelly and Chai spend more time in separation than together. This doesn't make much of a life for any of us.

Chai is now happily back living with her sister and a family who can give her the time and attention such a wonderful little dog deserves. As I consider Kelly's tough choice I am reminded of a beautiful story to end on:

A wise woman who was traveling in the mountains found a precious stone in a stream. The next day she met another traveler who was hungry, and the wise woman opened her bag to share her food. The hungry traveler saw the precious stone and asked the woman to give it to him. She did so without hesitation. The traveler left, rejoicing in his good fortune. He knew the stone was worth enough to give him security for a lifetime. After some thought a few days later he came back to return the stone to the wise woman. "I've been thinking," he said, "I know how valuable the stone is, but I give it back in the hope that you can give me something even more precious. Give me what you have within you that enabled you to give me the stone.

The greatest gifts we can give or receive have little to do with us at all. Have a great day!

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

Goals

Good Morning,

Happy St. Patrick's Day! The weekend is here as well and i wanted to thank everyone once again for their comments and time. I hope the Daily Buddha has become a source of discussion, discourse and inspiration. With that said I would like to offer a loose philosophy of the Buddhist practice and some of it's ultimate goals. I know sometimes the comments may seem like riddles (koans) or something out of philosophy class and hopefully this framework will explain some of the reasoning:

We are so addicted to looking outside ourselves, that we have lost access to our inner being almost completely. We are terrified to look inward, because our culture has given us no idea of what to find. This is one of the last and most resourceful ploys of the ego to prevent us from discovering our real nature. So, we make our lives so hectic that we eliminate the slightest risk of looking into ourselves..... In a world dedicated to distraction, silence and stillness terrify us.

I encourage everyone to spend sometime with themselves this weekend and find the beautiful inner being that lives within each of us, you may find and old friend and ally.

Have a great weekend!

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

Whole?

Good Morning,

What does it mean to be whole? Is a donut whole? To indeed be a donut requires that you must have a "hole", otherwise you would not be a donut. Now although the "hole" is nothing, it must "be something" because it's what makes the donut well, a donut. Now of course to have a "hole' we need something "whole" to have a "hole" in. So I ask you again is the donut whole? Is the hole something? or Nothing?

Now what if we were to consider ourselves the donut. Should we not have a "hole"? So many of people spend lifetimes trying to fill their holes, when the basic truth is that we and the world we live in are quite naturally full of holes in the forms of desires, impermanence, and illusions. Does that make us or the world we perceive any less "whole"?

Just some food for thought :) Have a beautiful day and remember these days you can buy the holes and the donuts

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

Small Things

Good Morning, As most of you know by now Kelly and I have brought a little friend into our family. I know it seems off character and somehow off brand for the "on the go" Jim and Kelly team you all know. Our little friend Chai is a delightful min-pin pup that puts an equally delightful smile on my loving wife's kind face. Although we have never considered ourselves the parenting type, their is no denying the rewards (and pains) of extending love and kindness to smallest of creatures.

I mindfully enjoy each minute with Chai and know she is changing before my very eyes and again although she is not a child I can understand in some small way the beauty of it all. This brings me to the thought for the day:

Harmonizing heart and mind through love and compassion is what can establish a complete intelligence, a complete self, where a one can look at life and realize there are no dead ends, there are always possibilities. The greatest gift a one can give another during all the ups and downs of life is love.

Have a wonderful day and try flying a kite this weekend, it's a beautiful way to let your mind soar.

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

The Lowly Task

Good Morning,

As many of you know we have a new edition in our family, she is a min pin and her name Is Chai. Along with her tiny cute self comes a large amount of responsibility and plenty of dirty jobs to do. Sometimes we may feel certain jobs are "dirty" or maybe it's below us. We could simply call it "dirty work" or "low level grunt work". I know that many of us move on in either our personal or professional lives and simply do not perform some of the lowly little tasks we used to. Their is certainly nothing wrong with this, but I have noticed over the years that sometimes when I would revisit a task I use to do, or a department I use to manage, I always seemed to gain a bit of insight into something I was now doing. I always seemed to have a better perspective of that task both then and now, which brings me todays thought:

Wisdom is often nearer when we stoop, than when we soar. —William Wordsworth

Have a great day and be a new point of view for someone today!

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

Going all the way

Good Morning, Sorry todays thought is late, I just returned from the emergency room for having yet another unknown allergic reaction. This time I did not take anything and we have no idea what triggered it. Besides that I hope everyone had a great weekend. I will be short today, but still long on inspiration. Todays thought is a simple one:

There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting. Buddha

Have a great day and show an enemy how important they are to you.

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

Happiness

Good Morning,

It's the weekend and we are supposedly in for a warm one! I just wanted to wish everyone a great one and thank you all for the many posts you are each putting up on the site (www.thedailybuddha.com). I know we can all find many things to complain about so it is nice to see so many positive and intelligent comments on the site. I will keep it short today and end with a positive thought and goal for us all:

Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of that candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared. Buddha

Have a beautiful day and try to enjoy someone you know in a different way.

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

The Grander View

Good Morning,

Todays thought comes from my old high school science teacher. He had been in some type of lab accident and in the healing process acquired a distinct scar in the center of his forehead. The scar was in the shape of a "V" and over the years a story about him believing he was from Venus had been nurtured over the years. I had the fortune of taking a summer school class from Mr. Venus.

Looking back I see how the man had grown into the legend and it captivated us all, we listened to hear the "crazy" science teacher talk. In the end we learned. Along the way of standard biology and chemistry we learned about life and different perspectives, we learned that the world really is about perceptions (ask me about the octopus eye sometime) and that our world never really changes . . . our perceptions of it change.

So I wanted to share a little thought he shared with us on the last day of class that summer school season:
Where the telescope ends, the microscope begins. Which of the two has the grander view? See you all in class again some day.

Thinking about it now all I can say is yes, yes you will.

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

To Be Creative

Good Morning,

Creativity, what is it? Does everyone possess it? Can it be taught? In my career I have often been asked to define creativity and what it can and can not do. After many years of fumbling with the question and writing way too many elevator pitches with far too many words I realized the simple thought I want to share today:

There are some people who live in a dream worlds, and there are some who face reality; and then there are those who turn one into the other.

Have a great day and turn someone's world around today.

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

Talking the Talk

Good Morning,

I was reading some of the passages spoken by The Buddha. Many of them were surprisingly relevant considering the period he walked this planet (2500 years ago).

I know we are always asked on a daily basis to prove our selves to someone, some how on some level. Who has not had to interview for a job? or interview someone else for a position they had open? When I came across today's thought I chuckled out loud because it looks like even 2500 years ago, the seeds of doubt about a persons composure and background were already in place. Funny how time never changes somethings.

"A dog is not considered a good dog because he is a good barker. A man is not considered a good man because he is a good talker."
Buddha

Everyone have a great day and may you not have the need to bark at or bite anyone today!

Peace and Love, Jim
jim@thedailybuddha.com
www.thedailybuddha.com

Don't Go Back To Sleep

Good Morning,

It was a wonderful weekend, I hope everyone found a way to enjoy it! I wanted to start the week off simple and crisp. I found this verse and was moved by its simple and strange beauty. I just wanted to share. If you have ever given thought to lucid dreams (think movies such as Fight Club or Vanilla Sky) then you will certainly have a deeper appreciation for these simple words:

The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you.

Don't go back to sleep.

You must ask for what you really want.

Don't go back to sleep.

Thoughts cross the doorsill where two worlds touch.

The door is open.

Don't go back to sleep.

-Djalal ad Din Rumi

Have a wonderful day and think about the ones you love, there thinking about you.

Peace and Love, Jim

jim@thedailybuddha.com

www.thedailybuddha.com

Fun Friday

Good Morning,

It has been a beautiful week with wonderfully warm weather. I hope everyone found some time to get out and enjoy it. I thought I would end the week with some of my favorite quotes by Lily Tomlin. I used to love her in all the old shows including Laugh In and Love American Style. Her most recent movie "I Heart Hukabees" was a great movie with a metaphysical slant. Anyway enjoy the quotes and I wish everyone a great weekend!

At the moment you are most in awe of all there is about life that you don't understand, you are closer to understanding it all than at any other time.

For fast-acting relief try slowing down.

I always wanted to be somebody, but now I realize I should have been more specific.

If love is the answer, could you please rephrase the question?

If you're read a lot of books you're considered well read. But if you've watched a lot of TV, you're not considered well viewed.

Man invented language to satisfy his deep need to complain.

Ninety eight percent of the adults in this country are decent, hardworking, honest Americans. It's the other lousy two percent that get all the publicity. But then, we elected them.

Reality is a crutch for people who can't handle drugs.

Reality is nothing but a collective hunch.

Sometimes I worry about being a success in a mediocre world.

The best mind-altering drug is the truth.

The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you're still a rat.

We have reason to believe that man first walked upright to free his hands for masturbation.

Why is it that when we talk to God we're said to be praying, but when God talks to us we're schizophrenic?

Peace and Love, Jim jim@thedailybuddha.com www.thedailybuddha.com

Taming The Mind

Good Morning,

Since I have chosen a new path for myself here in this new year, many friends and family are curious as to why I have done so. The truth is I want to train my mind. I started this process many years ago when I was sitting in a college class one day. I had just lost nearly 50lbs of extra weight I had put on from many years of food abuse and letting my mind run my life. I had taken great pride in my accomplishment and realized I had changed my entire life and thinking process in order to accomplish my goal. Sitting in that class I realized that if I could seize control of my body and mind for that small period of time then taking control of my mind all the time would surely help me lose much of the emotional weight (baggage) I have carried most of my life.

The problem is we are not raised are taught that we can control our mind, most of us are controlled by it. Problem is no one gave us an owners manual for our minds! many of us simply think that the random scattered thoughts or "chatter" is a normal part of our daily functions. This is partly true, yes the random thoughts and chatter are what the UNTRAINED mind naturally does, it bounces from thought to thought, past to present, and current to future all without effort from us. And that is the point there is no effort from us.

This is a problem, it keeps us from truly ever understanding ourselves and our roles, it perpetuates the illusion that this is simply how things are. . . and believe me it is an illusion. What if I said that we do not have to follow or even listen to our mind? What if I said the thing we call self does not exist? What if instead of spending our lives trying to please self and keep self comfortable, we discard self (become selfless) and start to focus on taming the mind and controlling our thoughts? Can we do this? How would it help us?

I can only say this, it can be done, it will change your life and shake up everything you have been taught. It is not a journey for the faint of heart (after all destroying our perception of self tends to leave one empty). Realizing your entire life and everything you value or love is simply and illusion and that we spend almost all of our time appeasing this concept of self can be a shattering reality, but none-the-less a good one.

So why have I chosen this route so late in this life? I woke up, I took the green pill, I have seen the errors of my minds thoughts. I have chosen to tame the wild horse I call my mind, to keep it on the trail and not let it bolt into the pasture (random thoughts) whenever it feels like it. I want to develop control and clarity, to see my thoughts and emotions for what they really are: Just vibrations and thought patterns in my head. I want to lead my mind and not be led by it.

This brings me to the thought for today:

It is said that if you want to know what you have done in the past, look at your body now; if you want to know what will happen to you in the future, look at what your mind is doing now.

The Dalai Lama

I hope each of you has a great day! I appreciate all the comments being left on the blog so please continue to post or ask questions. I encourage each of you to watch your mind at work, you will be amazed at what it conjures up!

Peace and Love, Jim

jim@thedailybuddha.com www.thedailybuddha.com

Just As It Is

Good Morning,

I have had a long night of pain and sleeplessness. My pain reminds me that not everything in our life is considered pleasant and yet it is very much a real part of life. Our challenge is to accept these unpleasant moments as part of the normal cycle of things. I know many people try to see the positive in every situation. I also know many people just try to have a "good day" (the have a nice day syndrome), but in both cases we are missing the point.

By simply glossing over the unpleasant experiences we are not really experiencing them (or learning from them), we are trying to make them something else, something easier to swallow. A dear friend of mine has told me on more than one occasion that the only thing getting her through her days now is the thought of her upcoming vacation in the summer. This could be all well and fine, but I fear she may be missing the beauty and joy of right now (the moment). How odd it seems to write off several months of days and moments just to get to one week of days and moments she does enjoy. One quick look would show that it is simply a frame of mind that makes those days better than the current ones. In fact my friend could be on vacation everyday if she chose to see it that way. Yes it is tough, but it is all simply a matter of how we choose to see the world.

This brings me to the thought for the day:

Mindfulness is the aware, balanced acceptance of the present experience.
It isn't more complicated than that.
It is opening to or receiving the present moment, pleasant or unpleasant, just as it is,
without either clinging to it or rejecting it.

There is nothing more romantic, attractive or false than the ways we trick ourselves into getting through our days.

The trick is not to get THROUGH your day but to LIVE  your day.
Sylvia Boorstein

Have a great day and may we each find the strength to make everyday one of our greatest!

Peace and Love, Jim

jim@thedailybuddha.com

www.thedailybuddha.com