Apech

where are they going? through the gray slanting drizzle a lonely light calls.

ever in the now an instant came and went like the last bus home.

a) is this an article? b ) tiger balm noooooooooooo (ouch). Give your willy a rest.

Pietro, I kind of agree with you - but maybe the answer is - decide what you want to talk about and post it. You should get some replies - and off we go again. Just cos everyone else is going round and round doesn't mean you have to. A.

Pink - color of spring Water mixed with cranberry, Silk purse or pig's ear.

Has anyone else noticed this? BBC - Quiet sun baffling astronomers Its says: Interesting that we have the worst global recession for 50 years and that economically and politically we seem to be in a period of dramatic change - and presumably social change too.

Its important to distinguish between unintelligent behavior or actions and the person. There's no problem with recognizing that some things are stupid or greedy or negative - but in the spirit of compassion and goodwill to all beings which is in Taoism and Buddhism means that you should try to avoid condemning people. From a Buddhist perspective you should see these actions as the product of a confused mind and as such as evidence that the person is suffering and that it is your hope that they will be liberated from this condition. Other people should be viewed as potential Buddhas and granted this respect - whilst recognizing that their actions may be harmful. It is a difficult lesson, if you are a basically well meaning person, that most people's minds are wrapped up in samsara and that because of this they can be quite vicious and selfish.

For 'realization' I would understand a transformational change, that is the truth of 'enlightenment' is fully absorbed or embodied in the being to the degree that one becomes a living version of that truth. So for instance if you take the mind's non-dual nature then the mind of the enlightened person is completed absorbed in that awareness. I think there are four stages to this: 1) you see it (as an experience) 2) you absorb it - allow it to change you 3) you learn to activate its power (siddhis) 4) you become it i.e. go beyond duality. So it goes from being an experience to simply being what you are.

how would you finish these sentences when looking for advice ...collar someone in the street and follow them no matter how fast they try to walk away, until they give you a straight answer. when giving advice ...jump up and down yelling loudly and gesticulating until the person agrees just to shut you up. when in a fight ... remember even though you threw the first punch they were looking at you in a funny way which you didn't much care for. when fighting more than one person ... remember you have the perfect right to push to the front of any queue. when choosing a teacher ... pick a dumb one who won't ask you to do anything too difficult or sit any exams or anything. if you meet someone and fall in love ...put your credit card in a safe deposit box to avoid the temptation of acts of generosity, giving expensive gifts and so on. when you have nothing to do ... well, life can be a little taxing so make the most of it. when you feel life is testing you ... find someone else to blame and so you can feel sorry for yourself. when you have to do something that you are afraid of ... put it off, go into denial, pretend its not happening, feign a heart attack. when people don;t agree with the way you live ... well f@ck you! I 've worked hard to be this dissolute!

Ummmm I hate to point out the obvious but the sun is being QUIET i.e. at its most inactive for 100 years - so its not making us warmer at the moment. (Mind you I guess its up to no good - hanging around with its big yellow face on - who does it think it is? huh!)

I love it - what's the tune? CO2 Won't you come To heat up every day CO2 Won't you come Won't you come I kinda thought the BBC article was just facts about sun spots and so on ?

I think the 'quiet sun' and the timescales quoted (50,55 and 100 years) could demonstrate that events on earth (even those which are dependent on human activity like the stock market prices) resonate with cosmic cycles and events. It could show that we are not as clever as we think we are - and thus give us a bit more humility (perhaps). The sun in ancient times was viewed as a great soul - that is an intelligence which, like a king, ruled the solar system. If we see nature as 'intelligent' in this way then the natural cycles it follows have a purpose. We don't have to be like baffled astronomers we can intuit what the sun is telling us. Be quiet, be calm, let change happen and then after begin to grow again (my suggestion).

In other words you do something or try to do something and the experience comes 'out of' (ex) that activity. So if for instance I ride a bicycle then from out of this activity I have the experience of it. I think this is the heart of the problem of calling enlightenment an experience. Since it is a different category of activity than anything else. It would be ok to say 'I have had an enlightening experience' as this would just mean that something you have done has given you more insight and so on about your own (and the world's ) condition. But this is using the word as an adjective. When we talk about enlightenment as a noun, as a word to signify the goal of spiritual work, then things change because we expect a clearer definition to help us work towards it. If we were to try a definition like "realising the nature of reality" then we have more problems, like for instance, what do we count as 'real' anyway? More importantly it is more or less universally agreed that the nature of reality is ineffable - that is cannot be expressed directly in words. If ultimate reality is ineffable then so to is enlightenment. I think that one thing that can be said is that enlightenment seen in this way cannot be a fleeting experience. The realization which enlightenment relates to must point to that which is more real, more fundamental ... the absolute. Temporary experiences happen on the way and some are confirmatory but they are not enlightenment.

The spring rains arrived I'll invert my umbrella to make a small boat.

where's the fireworks? well I keep them in my pants those Chinese crackers!

lots here on earth too stake them out and lay a claim then rent out heaven.

Neutralwire doesn't post here anymore unfortunately.

mountain top retreat will rest of mountain follow? low clouds will be missed. (missed=mist ha! ha!)

Thnx Trailmaker Changing, one with all in every transformation - You ... with many faces.

hello and a smile that melts into nothingness just a wave remains.

I've noticed that the digits 0,1,2...9 occur with amazing frequency, either alone or in groups of two, three, four or even more permutations and combinations. Today I caught a bus with a 10 marked on the front. When I got off I was almost home! Last week I caught a 98 and the same thing happened. What does it all mean? Eh?

turn to tao return go back to the beginning its where we end up.

Forgive yourself and then continue your practice. If something is worth doing its never easy. Set long term goals and just keep going.

all things come and go some you are going to miss riddance to the rest.

to gift my way there some glass beads would be handy string me a necklace.