From cgimian at suchns.com Thu Nov 2 14:41:58 2006 From: cgimian at suchns.com (Carolyn Gimian) Date: Thu Nov 2 14:42:15 2006 Subject: [OceanofDharma] Quotes of the Week: All-Encompassing Friendship Message-ID: <5.1.0.14.0.20061102153451.016015a8@206.47.199.40> Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week November 2, 2006 ALL-ENCOMPASSING FRIENDSHIP The beginning point of buddha nature seems to be the development of maitri, which could be translated as "love," "kindness," or "a friendly attitude." Having a friendly attitude means that, when you make friends with someone, you accept the neurosis of that friend as well as the sanity of that friend. You accept both extremes of your friend's basic makeup as resources for friendship. If you make friends with someone because you only like certain parts of that friend, then it is not complete friendship, but partial friendship. So maitri is all-encompassing friendship, friendship which relates with the creativity as well as the destructiveness of nature. From "Awakening Buddha Nature," in GLIMPSES OF MAHAYANA, pages 19 to 20, published by Vajradhatu Publications. For a copy go to shambhalashop.com. Of interest to readers: Tonight Diana J. Mukpo reads from DRAGON THUNDER: MY LIFE WITH CHOGYAM TRUNGPA in Halifax, Nova Scotia. For continuing reports on the book tour and the activities of the Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project, see the blog at ChogyamTrungpa.com All material by Chogyam Trungpa is copyright Diana J. Mukpo and used by permission. OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK now has 4,821 subscribers. Please send comments on and contributions to OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK to the list moderator, Carolyn Gimian at: carolyn@shambhala.com. Carolyn Rose Gimian Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week: teachings by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Taken from works published by Shambhala Publications, the Archive of his unpublished work in the Shambhala Archives, plus other published sources. TO SUBSCRIBE click on the following link: http://OceanofDharma.com. The Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project is now at ChogyamTrungpa.com. From cgimian at suchns.com Mon Nov 6 11:48:00 2006 From: cgimian at suchns.com (Carolyn Gimian) Date: Mon Nov 6 11:48:13 2006 Subject: [OceanofDharma] Quotes of the Week: Complete Acceptance Message-ID: <5.1.0.14.0.20061106123307.01757710@206.47.199.40> Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week November 6, 2006 COMPLETE ACCEPTANCE Maitri [or loving kindness] is not only maitri toward others, but it is also maitri toward ourselves. In fact, the first step of awakening buddha nature is friendship with ourselves. This tends to help a great deal. We don't have alternatives or side tracks anymore because we are satisfied with ourselves. We don't try to imitate anyone else because we hate ourselves and we would like to be like somebody else instead. We are on our own ground and we are our own resources. We might be fantasizing that there is a divine force or higher spiritual energy that might save us, but even that depends on our recognition that such a thing exists. Finally we end up just relating with ourselves. So friendship, or maitri, means the complete acceptance of ourselves. From "Awakening Buddha Nature," in GLIMPSES OF MAHAYANA, page 20, published by Vajradhatu Publications. For a copy go to shambhalashop.com. Of interest to readers: Tonight Diana J. Mukpo reads from DRAGON THUNDER: MY LIFE WITH CHOGYAM TRUNGPA in Halifax, Nova Scotia. For continuing reports on the book tour and the activities of the Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project, see the blog at ChogyamTrungpa.com All material by Chogyam Trungpa is copyright Diana J. Mukpo and used by permission. OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK now has 4,830 subscribers. Please send comments on and contributions to OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK to the list moderator, Carolyn Gimian at: carolyn@shambhala.com. Carolyn Rose Gimian Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week: teachings by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Taken from works published by Shambhala Publications, the Archive of his unpublished work in the Shambhala Archives, plus other published sources. TO SUBSCRIBE click on the following link: http://OceanofDharma.com. The Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project is now at ChogyamTrungpa.com. From cgimian at suchns.com Sat Nov 11 10:42:11 2006 From: cgimian at suchns.com (Carolyn Gimian) Date: Sat Nov 11 10:42:22 2006 Subject: [OceanofDharma] Quotes of the Week: The Wind of Peace Message-ID: <5.1.0.14.0.20061111113435.0404c4b0@206.47.199.40> Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week November 11, 2006 Remembrance Day, Canada THE WIND OF PEACE May the great revolutionary banner Blow in the wind of peace. May it blow in the wind of karma. May it blow in the wind of fearlessness. One's own mind is revolutionized: There is no need to conquer others. Like the warriors of ancient times Going to war by imperial command, Like seasoned masters of the martial arts, We will destroy the fortress of erroneous thinking. We will no longer tolerate the confused way of life Controlled by the impersonal forces of materialism, Since these forces may snatch away The freedom of human dignity. One must first give up the ego And enter the war with one's mind. That is the first step to freedom. But we will never be free By following the voice of desire. Liberation is only gained By treading the path of what is. Written in Bhutan, September 1968. During this visit to Bhutan, Chogyam Trungpa composed (or received) THE SADHANA OF MAHAMUDRA, a major text dedicated to overcoming spiritual materialism. Published in WARRIOR SONGS, Trident Publications, available at shambhalashop.com. Of interest to readers: For continuing reports on the activities of the Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project, see the blog at ChogyamTrungpa.com All material by Chogyam Trungpa is copyright Diana J. Mukpo and used by permission. OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK now has 4,852 subscribers. Please send comments on and contributions to OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK to the list moderator, Carolyn Gimian at: carolyn@shambhala.com. Carolyn Rose Gimian Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week: teachings by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Taken from works published by Shambhala Publications, the Archive of his unpublished work in the Shambhala Archives, plus other published sources. TO SUBSCRIBE click on the following link: http://OceanofDharma.com. The Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project is now at ChogyamTrungpa.com. From cgimian at suchns.com Thu Nov 16 08:10:00 2006 From: cgimian at suchns.com (Carolyn Gimian) Date: Thu Nov 16 08:10:24 2006 Subject: [OceanofDharma] Quotes of the Week: Patience with Clarity Message-ID: <5.1.0.14.0.20061116090407.037a9ea0@206.47.199.40> Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week November 16, 2006 PATIENCE WITH CLARITY Patience, ksanti in Sanskrit, is usually taken to mean forbearance and the calm endurance of pain and hardship. But in fact, it means rather more than that. It is forbearing in the sense of seeing the situation and seeing that it is right to forbear and to develop patience. So ksanti has an aspect of intelligence, in contrast, one might say, to an animal loaded with baggage which must go on and on walking along the track until it just drops dead. That kind of patience is patience without wisdom, without clarity. Here we are referring to patience with clarity, and energy with the eye of understanding. From "Patience," in MEDITATION IN ACTION, the Shambhala Pocket Classic Edition, page 85. Of interest to readers: For continuing reports on the activities of the Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project, see the blog at ChogyamTrungpa.com All material by Chogyam Trungpa is copyright Diana J. Mukpo and used by permission. OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK now has 4,858 subscribers. Please send comments on and contributions to OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK to the list moderator, Carolyn Gimian at: carolyn@shambhala.com. Carolyn Rose Gimian Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week: teachings by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Taken from works published by Shambhala Publications, the Archive of his unpublished work in the Shambhala Archives, plus other published sources. TO SUBSCRIBE click on the following link: http://OceanofDharma.com. The Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project is now at ChogyamTrungpa.com. From cgimian at suchns.com Sun Nov 19 08:10:58 2006 From: cgimian at suchns.com (Carolyn Gimian) Date: Sun Nov 19 09:18:32 2006 Subject: [OceanofDharma] Quotes of the Week: Welcoming Mishaps Message-ID: <5.1.0.14.0.20061119090554.03589f98@206.47.199.40> Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week November 19, 2006 WELCOMING MISHAPS Student: I gather that, being in the Kagyu lineage [the Tibetan spiritual lineage that Chogyam Trungpa came from], we inherit mishaps. The point is not to try to get to a state where there are no mishaps around you, but maybe to try to get to the state where you can use mishaps almost as a means of locomotion. You might use them to move forward. Like explosions in an engine, the mishaps would drive you forward. Would it be something like that? Chogyam Trungpa: I think so, but not to the extent of self-destructiveness. S: No, but like energy. CT: Yes, definitely. In other words, the Kagyu lineage is not afraid of any mishaps. They welcome them. S: They get more mileage per mishap than any other lineage on the path. [Laughs; laughter.] CT: Absolutely. Otherwise, the Kagyus wouldn't be taking journeys out to foreign territories to present Buddhism to people. From "The Eleventh Trungpa," talk seven in THE LINE OF THE TRUNGPAS, December, 1975. This seminar is being edited for publication. Of interest to readers: For continuing reports on the activities of the Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project, see the blog at ChogyamTrungpa.com All material by Chogyam Trungpa is copyright Diana J. Mukpo and used by permission. OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK now has 4,859 subscribers. Please send comments on and contributions to OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK to the list moderator, Carolyn Gimian at: carolyn@shambhala.com. Carolyn Rose Gimian Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week: teachings by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Taken from works published by Shambhala Publications, the Archive of his unpublished work in the Shambhala Archives, plus other published sources. TO SUBSCRIBE click on the following link: http://OceanofDharma.com. The Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project is now at ChogyamTrungpa.com. From cgimian at suchns.com Wed Nov 22 07:08:12 2006 From: cgimian at suchns.com (Carolyn Gimian) Date: Wed Nov 22 07:08:25 2006 Subject: [OceanofDharma] Quotes of the Week: Conquering the Hot Dog Message-ID: <5.1.0.14.0.20061119150143.035b5038@206.47.199.40> Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week November 22, 2006 [Ed note: Tomorrow is American Thanksgiving. For those of you celebrating, I suggest substituting "turkey" or "tofurkey" for "hot dog" in the quote that follows. Enjoy!] CONQUERING THE HOT DOG Student: Tonight you talked about the Kagyu lineage conquering and expanding. A lot of aggression normally goes into conquering. Would you comment on that? Chogyam Trungpa: Here, it's not so much aggression as it is inspiration. If you are really hungry, you have a fantastic relationship with food. Let's say it's a hot dog. For many days, you want to have a hot dog. And finally, you have a hot dog. You can actually have it on your paper dish, or whatever you have. You have a fantastic relationship with the hot dog. You eat it with complete delight and complete communication. That could be said to be a very aggressive trip. But I don't think that's true, actually, because you have openmindedness towards that particular hot dog. You have designed visualizations of and devotions towards your hot dog [laughter] and you have a sense of longing, and becoming completely softened. You become softened, a soft person and a reasonable person. You have a hot dog, and you can eat that hot dog very beautifully, you know. You hold it in your hand and you feel it. You take a bite and you chew it and feel the goodness of it at the same time. So it's a very real experience. That seems to be the difference between conquering here and aggression, which is, you know, just completely off the wall. [Prolonged laughter.] S: In the same context, yesterday you referred to the distinction between desire and just making yourself available to practice. When you're filled with neurotic desire to eat the hot dog, what do you do with that desire while you're waiting for the enlightened inspiration to be available? CT: That's difficult, actually. Sometimes the desire can only be transmuted once you have what you desire. You can't have completely pure intention at the beginning. Your desire to have a hot dog in a neurotic fashion probably will wear off when you begin to see that the actual hot dog is available. Then, it begins to go beyond the realm of your imagination. There's actually a hot dog stand, and you can eat the hot dog, and your imagination doesn't have any role to play anymore. You're actually relating with an earthy situation. You see, we can't start perfectly, but once we begin to have any physical contact with a situation of that nature, then it can be worked out. So I wouldn't try to start with a transcendental hot dog. That would be deadly. Then you don't actually eat the hot dog at all. You think you are chewing some cosmic energy, swallowing the cosmic energy of the hot dog. You get entirely different results. You get high on eating the hot dog, and after that, you begin to compose paeans [Ed: appropriately songs of thanksgiving] and songs and you try to dance in celebration of the divineness of the hot dog -- which is not necessary. Hot dog is hot dog. [Laughter.] From "The Mishap Lineage," talk two in THE LINE OF THE TRUNGPAS, December, 1975. This seminar is being edited for publication. Of interest to readers: For continuing reports on the activities of the Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project, see the blog at ChogyamTrungpa.com All material by Chogyam Trungpa is copyright Diana J. Mukpo and used by permission. OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK now has 4,868 subscribers. Please send comments on and contributions to OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK to the list moderator, Carolyn Gimian at: carolyn@shambhala.com. Carolyn Rose Gimian Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week: teachings by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Taken from works published by Shambhala Publications, the Archive of his unpublished work in the Shambhala Archives, plus other published sources. TO SUBSCRIBE click on the following link: http://OceanofDharma.com. The Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project is now at ChogyamTrungpa.com. From cgimian at suchns.com Sat Nov 25 07:06:10 2006 From: cgimian at suchns.com (Carolyn Gimian) Date: Sat Nov 25 07:07:10 2006 Subject: [OceanofDharma] Quotes of the Week: A Talking Mirror Message-ID: <5.1.0.14.0.20061124233140.016eb6a8@206.47.199.40> Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week November 25, 2006 A TALKING MIRROR Student: How does the development of a relationship between a man and a woman or a marriage relate to the spiritual path? Chogyam Trungpa: You relate with a lot of people, including your husband or wife. I don't see any particular problems. At some point, your mate becomes a spokesman of the universe to you, because your mate or your friend has been with you for a long time, so they have knowledge of you from the inside out, roughly, somewhat. I think a marriage situation is extremely creative from that point of view. There is the sense of understanding that somebody is actually a talking mirror who minds your business. From "Bodhisattva and Paramita," Talk Nine of THE TIBETAN BUDDHIST PATH, a seminar at the Naropa Institute, Summer, 1974. Unpublished. Of interest to readers: For continuing reports on the activities of the Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project, see the blog at ChogyamTrungpa.com All material by Chogyam Trungpa is copyright Diana J. Mukpo and used by permission. OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK now has 4,875 subscribers. Please send comments on and contributions to OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK to the list moderator, Carolyn Gimian at: carolyn@shambhala.com. Carolyn Rose Gimian Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week: teachings by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Taken from works published by Shambhala Publications, the Archive of his unpublished work in the Shambhala Archives, plus other published sources. TO SUBSCRIBE click on the following link: http://OceanofDharma.com. The Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project is now at ChogyamTrungpa.com. From cgimian at suchns.com Mon Nov 27 22:07:16 2006 From: cgimian at suchns.com (Carolyn Gimian) Date: Tue Nov 28 08:35:35 2006 Subject: [OceanofDharma] Quotes of the Week: Confusion as a Stepping Stone Message-ID: <5.1.0.14.0.20061127230040.016739c8@206.47.199.40> Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week November 28, 2006 CONFUSION AS A STEPPING STONE Student: How do you deal with confusion? How do you use it? Chogyam Trungpa: Well, what else do you have? [Laughter.] The point is that we should find some working basis as soon as possible, and what else do we have? Confusion is the first ordinary thing; it's how to begin. It think it's very important and absolutely necessary for everyone to know that we should find a stepping stone rather than looking for an ideal situation. People may say, "When I retire from my job, I'll build my house on a beautiful coast, plant my garden, organize my house, and THEN I'm really going to sit and meditate!" That is not quite the way to go about it. We have to do something right away. From "Bodhisattva and Paramita," Talk Nine of THE TIBETAN BUDDHIST PATH, a seminar at the Naropa Institute, Summer, 1974. Unpublished. Of interest to readers: For continuing reports on the activities of the Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project, see the blog at ChogyamTrungpa.com All material by Chogyam Trungpa is copyright Diana J. Mukpo and used by permission. OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK now has 4,878 subscribers. Please send comments on and contributions to OCEAN OF DHARMA QUOTES OF THE WEEK to the list moderator, Carolyn Gimian at: carolyn@shambhala.com. Carolyn Rose Gimian Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week: teachings by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Taken from works published by Shambhala Publications, the Archive of his unpublished work in the Shambhala Archives, plus other published sources. TO SUBSCRIBE click on the following link: http://OceanofDharma.com. The Chogyam Trungpa Legacy Project is now at ChogyamTrungpa.com.