Blog Posts Across Unfettered Mind

Distracted: the Erosion of Attention and the Coming Dark Age

There's a fairly interesting podcast on the Point for Inquiry website of an interview with Maggie Jackson about her new book Distracted: the Erosion of Attention and the Coming Dark Age Continue

Posted by Mark Johnson on August 8, 2008 at 7:39am — No Comments

My steak/Myself: in 3 parts

Yesterday I found myself volunteering to cook some T-bone steaks for my friends at a BBQ. The urge had been with me for several days and I knew that it would please Ben very much for me to do so, though he exerted no pressure. After weeks of watching "Top Chef" I wondered if it was was an easy as they made it look to braise a steak. Really? You just sear it and bath it in juice while it cooks? That's IT? Per what I had seen, I rubbed olive oil on the meat, all the while telling this cow or cows… Continue

Posted by Cara Speckhals on August 4, 2008 at 10:33pm — No Comments

Go to the body

The other night I had a very stong physical reaction to an encounter with old age, illness and death. I've just started a job as a pharmacy technician. One part of the job, and one of the first steps in the process, is to enter prescriptions writen on paper into the computer database program we use to help manage the process of filling prescriptions. As you might guess, people waiting for their medications, often pain medication, would like to have their prescriptions completed as quickly as po… Continue

Posted by Cynical Heart of Mellowness (Greg Germano) on June 22, 2008 at 10:00pm — 4 Comments

GURU RINPOCHE (Vajra Guru) Mantra

Om Ah Hum Vajra Guru Padma Siddhi Hum Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche (former head of the Nyingma Lineage, deceased) explains: "It is said that the twelve syllables Om Ah Hum Vajra Guru Padma Siddhi Hum carry the entire blessing of the twelve types of teaching taught by Buddha, which are the essence of His Eighty-four Thousand Dharmas. Therefore to recite the Vajra guru mantra once is the equivalent to the blessing of reciting.....or practicing the whole teaching of the Buddha. The wi… Continue

Posted by Crissi on June 14, 2008 at 5:39pm — 2 Comments

Oosterschelde Papers #5: Living Small

Bruce and I shared a cabin that was about eight feet square. There was room for two bunks (upper and lower), a small wash-stand with a wall-mounted cupboard above and a built-in cupboard below the (tiny) sink; a floor-to-ceiling cupboard with four shelves for our clothes and other gear (two shelves each); and about two square feet of floor space. For light and ventilation, there was a shaft over the floor space that led up to glass portholes on deck. It was impossible for us both to be standing… Continue

Posted by Chou Dog of Dis-illusioned Allegory on June 7, 2008 at 10:39am — No Comments

Oosterschelde Papers #4: On Being a Field of Merit

What happens when you really can't do anything for yourself? Then you're a field of merit--others gain merit by their acts of kindness towards you. It's so embarrassing!!! When I sprained my ankle, I couldn't be on my feet for more than a few minutes. People would offer to bring me food and drinks, wouldn't let me even carry my own empty plate from the table to the kitchen for washing. I didn't feel anywhere near as helpless as they apparently thought I was, and I wanted… Continue

Posted by Chou Dog of Dis-illusioned Allegory on June 5, 2008 at 6:04am — 4 Comments

Oosterschelde Papers #3--Stone Slivers

>SN 1.38--Sakalika Sutta--The Stone Sliver Translated from the Pali by Thanissaro Bhikkhu I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying near Rajagaha at the Maddakucchi Deer Reserve. Now at that time his foot had been pierced by a stone sliver. Excruciating were the bodily feelings that developed within him — painful, fierce, sharp, wracking, repellent, disagreeable — but he endured them mindful, alert, & unperturbed. Having had his outer robe folded in four and laid o… Continue

Posted by Chou Dog of Dis-illusioned Allegory on June 2, 2008 at 11:09am — 2 Comments

Messages in UM Ningspace

I notice that the Ning function that allows a member of this space to send a private message by email to another member is not enabled. Advantages of this include protection of privacy and potentially less intrusion of unwanted electronic messages into one's world. A disadvantage is that it isn't possible to communicate anything to anyone in this space without it being public. I'm wondering how others feel about this? Could it be helpful to enable messaging? Or is the risk of negative consequen… Continue

Posted by Turning Falcon of Passionate Intensity (Ann) on May 21, 2008 at 8:30pm — 3 Comments

Faith and/or Love in therapeutic relationships

Ken's podcasts on faith and belief (Guru, Deity, Protector 2/ Then and Now 5) inspired me to read Sharon Salzburg's book entitled "Faith," and a couple of days ago I listened to a podcast by Sharon on the topic of faith (available at: http://www.audiodharma.org/talks/SharonSalzberg.html). In both the book and the talk she tells a story about asking a psychiatrist friend what he considered the single most compelling force for healing in the psychotherapeutic relationship. "Love," he replied. Shar… Continue

Posted by Turning Falcon of Passionate Intensity (Ann) on May 19, 2008 at 5:26pm — 6 Comments

What is mind?

In one of Ken's recent "Then and Now" podcasts, he says this: "Saving all sentient beings means waking up every aspect of our mind." I mentioned this to a friend, who replied, "Yeah, but what is mind?" Indeed. In "Wake Up to Your Life," Ken describes the process of seeking an answer to this question. He reports that asking "What is mind" is an arduous, sometimes agonizing journey that can have a peaceful conclusion. His description of the process seems to be similar to working with the Zen ko… Continue

Posted by Phil Vinson (Soldier of Vague Misanthropy) on May 19, 2008 at 5:14pm — 4 Comments

Names and maturity

I modified my dharma name generated by Ngawang Tenzin Tashi Wangmo Gyaltsen Palden Ngodrup Tsering Pema Lhamo, alias Limp Budgie of Mellowness, also known as Franca, The Important One with the Big Clever Brain... I added 'Mature" in front of "stapler of fulsome absenteeism". Why did I add it? Because I've had trouble from the beginning filling in the profile information for this community. Under "practice level," I should select "mature" since I've been practicing for well over 5 years -- even… Continue

Posted by Leslie (Mature Stapler of Fulsome Absenteeism) on May 18, 2008 at 9:16am — 4 Comments

Great brief TED Talk about news distortion

Not a lot of surprises here, but some good solid facts and context about news distortion in a brief TED talk by Public Radio International head Alisa Miller. A great example of how what we say we want, what we actually want, and what we offer one another don't line up. This is shown in the context of media coverage, but exactly the same distortions apply to our own world views and our approach to dharma practice. Here's the link. Continue

Posted by Limp Budgie of Mellowness (Franca) on May 17, 2008 at 10:08am — 3 Comments

Dharma Name Generator

Inspired by my good friend, Turning Falcon of Passionate Intensity, I've developed a dharma name generator. Check it out! Continue

Posted by Limp Budgie of Mellowness (Franca) on May 13, 2008 at 5:27pm — 10 Comments

Buddhism and Science

While I'm usually wary of linking Buddhism and science, an op-ed piece by David Brooks in today's NY Times describes an interesting convergence, in which Buddhism and science challenge the notion of a personal god and associated claims to divine revelation, etc. Click here for the article. Continue

Posted by Burning Dog of Irony (Ken McLeod) on May 13, 2008 at 9:16am — 4 Comments

Habits and the Brain

A friend sent me a great link to a NYT article on habits and the brain — how the brain develops new synaptic connections when we do things differently. In other words, getting out of your rut makes your brain grow. Hooray! The article quotes a couple of experts who talk about "three zones of existence: comfort, stretch and stress. Comf… Continue

Posted by Limp Budgie of Mellowness (Franca) on May 12, 2008 at 9:35am — 7 Comments

Oosterschelde Papers #2: Buddhist Survival Manual

I've been reading this wonderful book (Ken recommended it to me). Its Sanskrit name is Bodhicaryavatara, which is translated a number of ways but generally seems to mean something in the nature of 'a guide to the path leading to enlightenment'. It was written in India by a monk called Santideva (or Shantideva) around the 8th century CE, and is revered by all the Mahayana schools, although it has a particular place of importance in Tibetan Buddhism. It's about developing bodhicitta,… Continue

Posted by Chou Dog of Dis-illusioned Allegory on May 10, 2008 at 3:16am — 2 Comments

A great dharma talk by Yvonne Rand

I don't know what this "My Blog" feature does, so I thought I try it. Earlier I re-listened to a talk by Yvonne Rand in the Dharma Seed Tape Library. Since I've been coming at practice and study with the zeal of the converted (even though I've been in and out of practice for years) I found her talk helped bring me (closer) to the ground and had some practical advice: Yvonne Rand on Expectations Continue

Posted by Valerie Brewster on May 7, 2008 at 4:20pm — 1 Comment

Oosterschelde Papers #1: Be grateful to everyone

To a pickpocket in Valencia? We were to board the Oosterschelde in Valencia, Spain on March 30; Bruce and I decided to spend a few days in Valencia first. We love Spain and Spanish food! We had a wonderful three days, great weather--we were staying in the old city, where there are beautiful plazas and churches. On March 28 we went down to the harbour to find out where Oosterschelde was moored. We had a lovely day; but on the (crowded) bus back to our hostel, a pickpocket got all… Continue

Posted by Chou Dog of Dis-illusioned Allegory on May 7, 2008 at 6:23am — No Comments

The Oosterschelde Papers

Okay, maybe it's a bit pretentious as a title but I wanted a sort of 'basket' to put some thoughts into, and since they were all associated with our voyage on the Oosterschelde, well... The Oosterschelde (www.oosterschelde.nl) is a three-masted topsail schooner (a 'tall ship', a sailing ship); her home port is Rotterdam in The Netherlands. My husband Bruce and I sailed on her from March 30 to April 15, 2008, from Valencia (Spain) through t… Continue

Posted by Chou Dog of Dis-illusioned Allegory on May 7, 2008 at 6:15am — No Comments

Releasing, healing, and awareness

When you've gone through a difficult period, when you sit down to practice, make your intention to experience what is arising in you. If you hold on to even a little bit of the intention to release the energy or the emotion, you will find yourself struggling in practice. It really comes down to sitting in the whole mess and not trying to change or do anything with it. This is hard, subtle and important. As you continue to practice, release may take place with the arising. Again, however, don't… Continue

Posted by Burning Dog of Irony (Ken McLeod) on April 29, 2008 at 12:31pm — 3 Comments