Most of us have spent our lives caught up in plans, expectations, ambitions for the future; in regrets, guilt or shame about the past. To come into the present is to stop the war.
Jack KornfieldRead
Within each of us there is a silence as vast as the universe. We long for it. We can return to it.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the profound inner peace that exists within individuals, akin to the vastness of the universe.
Jack Kornfield's quote speaks to the deep sense of stillness and tranquility that resides within every person. It suggests that amidst the chaos and noise of life, there is a silent space within us that is expansive and fulfilling, where we can find solace and a sense of connection to something greater. By recognizing and returning to this inner silence, we can nurture our well-being and sense of purpose.
In practice
During a mindfulness retreat where participants seek to connect with their inner selves.
Most of us have spent our lives caught up in plans, expectations, ambitions for the future; in regrets, guilt or shame about the past. To come into the present is to stop the war.
We need courage and strength, a kind of warrior spirit. But the place for this warrior strength is in the heart. We need energy, commitment, and courage not to run from our life nor to cover it over with any philosophy-mate rial or spiritual. We need a warrior’s heart that lets us face our lives directly, our pains and limitations, our joys and possibilities.
The questions asked at the end of lie are very simple ones: Did I love well? Did I love the people around me, my community, the earth, in a deep way? And perhaps, Did I live fully? Did I offer myself to life?
We can bring our spiritual practice into the streets, into our communities, when we see each realm as a temple, as a place to discover that which is sacred.
According to Buddhist scriptures, compassion is the "quivering of the pure heart" when we have allowed ourselves to be touched by the pain of life.
Much of spiritual life is self-acceptance, maybe all of it.
Memories which someday will become all beautiful when the last annoyance that encumbers them shall have faded out of our minds.
Knowledge is power. Information is liberating.
These are the six ways of courting defeat - neglect to estimate the enemy's strength; want of authority; defective training; unjustifiable anger; nonobservance of discipline; failure to use picked men.
Nobody holds a good opinion of a man who has a low opinion of himself.
Feminism is not just about women; it's about letting all people lead fuller lives.
Soon madness has worn you down. It’s easier to do what it says than argue. In this way, it takes over your mind. You no longer know where it ends and you begin. You believe anything it says. You do what it tells you, no matter how extreme or absurd. If it says you’re worthless, you agree. You plead for it to stop. You promise to behave. You are on your knees before it, and it laughs.
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