Bodhi Day

Where ever Buddhism has traveled, 

it has picked up customs and bits of culture from each country.

Bodhi Day - the day Gautama achieved enlightenment is celebrated on December 8.

I've done a little incorporating of holidays -- compassion bringing them together.

The Christmas tree is all set up to celebrate Yule, Christmas and other Holy Days.

On December 8 the lights will represent enlightenment.

Multicolored lights representing the many paths that may be taken to enlightenment.
Under the tree, a Buddha as he sat under the Bodhi tree.

I plan on spending the day quietly.
Some meditation.
Curling up with the kitties to stay warm.
A cup of tea -- or two.
A candle glowing.
A wish for peace for all.

Sunday

"Light must come from inside.

You cannot ask the darkness to leave.

You must turn on the light."

~Sogyal Rinpoche



Wishing YOU well and much joy.

Happy Bodhi Day

Where ever Buddhism has traveled, 

it has picked up customs and bits of culture from each country.

Bodhi Day - the day Gautama achieved enlightenment is celebrated on December 8.

I've done a little incorporating of holidays -- compassion bringing them together.

The Christmas tree is all set up to celebrate Yule, Christmas and other Holy Days.

On December 8 the lights will represent enlightenment.

Multicolored lights representing the many paths that may be taken to enlightenment.
Under the tree, a Buddha as he sat under the Bodhi tree.

I plan on spending the day quietly.
Some meditation.
Curling up with the kitties to stay warm.
A cup of tea -- or two.
A candle glowing.
A wish for peace for all.

Happy New Year!

This is what greeted me in my email this morning.

Happy Losar!

A joyous year of the female water snake to you and yours.

In this, the 2140th year on the Tibetan calendar, may all the world, and every one of us in it, come to know peace and walk with kindness so that those born will be welcome, those passing will be at ease, and harmony reins in all our inner and outer realms.

*

A time to reflect, to start again.

There is no better place to celebrate the Lunar New Year than at the Japanese Garden 

in the early morning.

Thank you to the hosts of Sunlit Sunday and Mosaic Monday.

Wishing you well and much joy in the Female Water Snake Year of 2140!

Good Morning!

 

Good Morning!

From the winter 2007 edition of Tricycle.

Wishing YOU well and much joy.

Good Morning!

Wednesday Morning

"Every morning our first thought should be a wish to devote the day to the good of all living beings."

~Dilbo Khyentse Rinpoche

This and That

As I start a new journey in the New Year,

it's time for This and That.

I read Tiny Buddha daily.

There have been several good articles on getting the New Year off to a good start.

One of those was create solutions not resolutions by Laura Fenamore.

I encourage you to read the whole article, but here is a short form:

"My solution  for letting go comes in daily reminding myself of the process.

 I do that using this morning affirmation for self-love:

Today, I accept myself just the way I am.

Today, I accept my body the way it is.

Today, I accept my mind the way it is.

Today, I accept my heart the way it is.

Today, the love I have for myself is so strong that I embrace all that is me.

Self-iove transforms my life from fear to joy and guides me to make healthy choices.

Today, I share time with others and easily forgive any injustice I feel in my mind.

Today, all of my relationships are based on respect, love and joy.

Today, I allow the divine wisdom in me to direct all my thoughts, words, and deeds.

Today, I allow divine love to give me peace and joy.

Today, I remember I am one with all life, and I give thanks for being me."

There was also a nice article by Loran Hills on journaling tips to help you heal, grow and thrive.

1. Start writing about where you are in your life at this moment.

2. For five to ten minutes just start writing in a "stream of consciousness."

3. Start a dialogue with your inner child by writing in your subdominant hand.

4. Cultivate an attitude of gratitude by maintaining a daily list of things you appreciate in your life, including uplifting quotes.

5. Start a journal of self-portraits.

6. Keep a nature diary to connect with the natural world.

7. Maintain a log of successes.

8. Keep a log or playlist of your favorite songs.

9. If there is something you are struggling with or if there is an event that is disturbing you, write about it in the third person.

10. Develop your intuition.

Loran goes into detail on each of these suggestions.

***

Speaking of journals:

I've started a journal of sorts in a Composition Notebook.

Images that I come across that I like, a post from Tiny Buddha that I liked, tea that was new to me, breakfast at Hungry's. roses for the Rose Bowl Parade, scones that I made and liked ....

***

I've been cleaning out the garage.

I tackled all of the boxes from Mr. Dragon's office and then found three boxes of *things* like this:

I believe these are all left over from the clean-out of my mother's things

years and years ago.

I have no excuse. There should always be a project going to keep my fingers happy!

***

Sometimes it's fun to visit with an old friend.

I first read The Copper Crown in 1986 and I still love it.

Good fantasy, good writing, good story, a smidge of sci-fi and lots of good 

Celtic Mythology.

Wishing YOU well and a JOY filled week.

Wordless Wednesday: Buddha Baby

Good Morning!

"Waking up this morning, I smile. Twenty-four brand new hours are before me. I vow to live fully in each moment and to look at all beings with eyes of compassion."

  ~Thich Nhat Hanh 

Tara

Image from Dharma Crafts

White Tara

White Tara is associated with practices intended to lengthen one's life and to overcome life-threatening obstacles. Her special attributes are her seven eyes - the 'third eye' located on her forehead and the other four on the palms of her hands and soles of her feet - which allow her to look upon all beings with unobscured wisdom and heartfelt compassion.

Green Tara Singing Bowl

Tara also embodies many of the qualities of feminine principle. She is known as the Mother of Mercy and Compassion. She is the source, the female aspect of the universe, which gives birth to warmth, compassion and relief from bad karma as experienced by ordinary beings in cyclic existence. She engenders, nourishes, smiles at the vitality of creation, and has sympathy for all beings as a mother does for her children. As Green Tara she offers succor and protection from all the unfortunate circumstances one can encounter within the samsaric world. As White Tara she expresses maternal compassion and offers healing to beings who are hurt or wounded, either physically or psychically.


***

We have had a healing touch practitioner work with Mr. Dragon to give him some comfort.
We are nearing the end of the journey to the stars and I am preparing to talk
Mr. Dragon on his way.

Right now, we are both enjoying a visit with his sister and DD.

Thank you for your kind thoughts and prayers.

Wishing you well.

Sculpture Garden

The Chung Mei Temple is one of our favorite places.

It has a lovely tea room and a garden that is sure to bring a smile to the face.

From lohans and arhats ...

to little monks with begging bowls, drums, horoscope creatures to...

a bodhisattva in royal ease position ...

Chung Mei Sculpture garden has something for everyone.

A big THANK YOU to Mary for being our hostess for Mosaic Monday.

***

We had a long and busy week last week.

Lots of family and colleagues of Mr. Dragon were here to share memories and say their goodbyes.

Sad, but lots of happiness too. 

Today and this week we rest ... just the two of us with the furbabies.

DD (dear daughter) and Mr. Dragon's sister will be with us the following week. 

Thank you for your loving support and kindness.

Wishing all of you well and a JOY filled week.

Kuan Yin

Image from Dharma Crafts

Kuan Yin is the Bodhisattva of compassion. Her name means "she who hears the cries of the world". Depicted here in three aspects, she holds a lotus flower symbolizing the innate purity of the Buddha nature, a sutra symbolizing the enlightened wisdom of the Dharma, and a mala, or rosary, symbolizing the vow of the Bodhisattva to save all beings from suffering.

When Mr. Dragon and I started on this journey called cancer, we knew the odds were stacked against us with a 30% survivor rate at three years. The latest news is not good and after much thought, Mr. Dragon has decided against further therapy. So now we enter the final journey for him. From the stars we come and to the stars we will return. We ask, once again, to send your prayers, good thoughts, white light as we complete this journey.

Wishing you well.

Medicine Buddha

Image from Dharma Crafts

This is the Medicine Buddha (Bhaisajyaguru in Sanskrit). He is invoked for healing physical illness as well as to pacify the inner afflictions of attachment, hatred and ignorance. His right hand, extended in the gesture of giving, holds the stem of a healing plant. His left hand holds a jar of healing nectar.

Once again we are asking for your good thoughts, prayers, white light, good juju as Mr. Dragon once again is going to M.D. Anderson for more tests next week. He has had a rough time the last two months, continues to lose weight and because of an injury during the surgery has trouble breathing.

Thank all of you so very much.

Wishing you well.

Sunday Morning

 "Our ancestors viewed the earth as rich and bountiful, which it is. Many people in the past also saw nature as inexhaustibly sustainable, which we know is the case only if we care for it. It is not difficult to forgive destruction in the past that resulted from ignorance. Today, however, we have access to more information, and it is essential that we re-examine ethically what we have inherited, what we are responsible for, and what we will pass on to coming generations."

~His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Reading

The Open Road: The Global Journey of the XIVth Dalai Lama by Pico Iyer



I don't know where to start! I mentioned several times to Mr. Dragon that I never write in books ... just one of my *laws*, but I sure wanted to write in this one. Finally, after hearing me say this daily, Mr. D looked at me and said "write in the book"!!! So I did. There is just so much in it that I want to remember and look at again. Pico Iyer in this book "tried to be a general reader speaking to other general readers, and bringing little more than the curiosity and interest of a journalist who has never practiced Buddhism and knows little about it but is intrigued to see how it might expand the thinking of anyone, Buddhist and non-Buddhist alike." He looks at the paradoxes of the Dalai Lama's position -- religious leader, monk and the head of state of a government in exile. He looks at the Dalai Lama's work and ideas as a politician, scientist, philosopher and the idea of globalism. There's just to much to talk about and review. One of the delights of this book comes at the end under the section READING ... book after book on Tibet, Buddhism, the life of the Dalai Lama ... a lifetime of reading. Iyer first met the Dalai Lama through his father some 30 years ago and has published five books on modern globalism.

April Lesson

Here is the April lesson from Dharma Days: Art, Musings and Meditations for the Spiritual Path by Dairyu Michael Wenger.

It got my attention -- "Disease and medicine are all in a life's work."

The beautiful medicine buddha is from Dharma Crafts.

We celebrate Easter in April.

The Buddha's Birthday on April 8.
Don't forget Earth Day April 22.
(Everyday should be Earth Day -- don't you think?!

Blessings to All.

March Lesson

It's been so busy around here that I almost forgot the March Lesson!

"A koan is a public case, almost like a legal precedent, in which some issue of understanding is raised beyond the meaning of the words. ... Be alert to an opportunity to be of service. Use whatever you have to be of help. You don't necessarily know in advance how. Do the best you can."



The beautiful eleven-headed bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, approx. 1300, Western Tibet, Ladakh. The Avery Brundage Collection at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco.

(All from Dharma Days: Art, Musings and Meditations for the Spiritual Path by Dairyu Michael Wenger 2010 Calendar)

February Lesson

It's time to share the February Lesson from Dharma Days 2010 Calendar: Art, Musings, and Meditations for the Spiritual Path by Dairyu Michael Wenger. My homework for this month is to cultivate compassion without falling prey to its near enemies. For instance, feeling sorry for someone is far from feeling close to that person and may give you a sense of superiority. Getting depressed yourself when someone around you is feeling depressed is self-indulgence and helps no one.

I'm still working on January's don't be critical!

Here are a few important dates in the Buddhist calendar for February:

• February 8 (or in some calendars February 15) - Nirvana Day - is the final nirvana, which occurs upon the death of the body of someone who has attained complete awakening. This date celebrates the parinirvana of The Buddha.

• February 9 - Bodhidharma's Birthday - The historical Bodhidharma (known as Daruma 達磨 in Japan) was an Indian sage who lived sometime in the fifth or sixth century AD. He is the undisputed founder of Zen Buddhism 禅 (Ch. = Chan), and credited with Zen's introduction to China during his travels to the Middle Kingdom. (Note: Zen Buddhism is the term used in Japan, but Daruma’s philosophy arrived first in China, where it flowered and was called Chan Buddhism. Only centuries later does it bloom in Japan, where it is called Zen). (For more information on Daruma/Bodhidharma go here.)
  
  
• February 14 - Chinese New Year (Lunar New Year 4708) the year of the Tiger. It is also called Losar by the Tibetans (2137). Let's not forget Valentine's Day!

Happy February!