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With time and practice, anxiety and doubt give way to trust and confidence. Gradually, you discover that your emotions themselves are the doorway to the freedom you are looking for - they open the way for you instead of holding you back. ~ Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche

Emotions are basically reactive responses based on projections and momentary imbalances due to mistaken identification between what is actually occurring in that particular moment superimposed against collective habits and resultant views accumulated over one's lifetime.

If you become enlightened, all delusions are eliminated. There is not even a trace of the act of having rid oneself of those delusions. This state is what we call "No Mind." But this is not a state of suspended animation. It is the recovery of the state of the Great Light. Its the principle of coming out of darkness into Light, but Light which is beyond light and darkness. It's the same as a dust-covered mirror being cleaned and recovering its function to reflect light. When you open the Eye, everything is the Great Light, everything is Buddha, and every place is a Buddha-field. And when this happens you have the purity of the heart of a child, and you can see that mountains are floating on water. This is the world of enlightenment. ~ Zen master Tong Songchol The body is essentially empty like the stem of a reed, And the mind, like pure space, utterly transcends the world of thought: Relax into your intrinsic nature with neither abandon nor control - Mind with no objective is Mahamudra... ...And, with practice perfected, supreme enlightenment is gained. ~ Tilopa to Naropa

some thought could be given to getting a cat. Cats can be great deterrents, just from being around. or this... http://lifehacks.stackexchange.com/questions/7445/how-can-i-get-a-mouse-out-the-house-without-causing-it-any-harm?rq=1 there's also a company called Havahart that produces humane animal/rodent traps.

Traditionally (the Chinese) regard the period after sunset as the rising yin phase which lasts until the first light of dawn or the first cockcrow, regardless if the moon is yet visible or not. Chinese people deem any partial or complete obscuration of sunlight as 'yin' - the moon has no bearing on this. Even in the middle of the day, should the sun be hidden behind thick clouds (overcast), folks will mutter, "Oh look how yin the day is".

As all things are Buddha-Dharma, There are delusions, realizations, practices, births and deaths, buddhas and sentient beings. As myriad things are without an abiding self, There is no delusion, no realization, no buddha, no sentient being, no birth and death. The buddha way, in essence, Is leaping clear of abundance and lack; thus there are births and deaths, delusions and realizations, sentient beings and buddhas. Yet in attachment blossoms fall, And in aversion weeds spread. ~ Zen Master Dogen Actualizing the Fundamental Point mountains; no mountains; mountains again

Inside the Dharma gates where form and emptiness are not two A lame turtle with painted eyebrows stands in the evening breeze ~ old master hakuin

The buddha in the mind is like a fragrance in a tree. The buddha comes from a mind free of suffering, Just as a fragrance comes from a tree free of decay. There's no fragrance without a tree and no buddha without the mind. If there's a fragrance without a tree it's a different fragrance. If there's a buddha without your mind, it's a different buddha. ~ Bodhidharma

according to master bassui.... You ask me to write you how to practice Zen on your sickbed. Who is he that is sick? Who is he that is practicing Zen? Do you know who you are? One's whole being is Buddha-nature. One’s ’whole being is the Great Way. The substance of this Way is inherently immaculate and transcends all forms. Is there any sickness in it? Man's own Mind is the essential substance of all Buddhas, his Face before his parents' birth. It is the master of seeing and hearing, of all the senses. One who fully realizes this is a Buddha, one who does not is an ordinary human being. Hence all Buddhas and Patriarchs point directly to the human mind so man can see his own Self-nature and thereby attain Buddhahood. The best remedy for one perplexed by shadows is to see the real thing. ... So just look into your own Mind--no one can help you with nostrums. In a sutra the Buddha said: "If you would get rid of your foe, you have only to realize that that foe is delusion." All phenomena in the world are illusory, they have no abiding substance. Sentient beings no less than Buddhas are like images reflected in water. One who does not see the true nature of things mistakes shadow for substance. That is to say, in zazen the state of emptiness and quiet which results from the diminution of thought is often confused with one's Face before one's parents were born. But this serenity is also a reflection upon the water. You must advance beyond the stage where your reason is of any avail. In this extremity of not knowing what to think or do, ask yourself: ”Who is the master (of this perception)?" ~ Bassui Tokusho, Zen master, 14th century According to master padmasambhava....

When past conditioning is released and no fresh one produced, the mind no longer seeks for future birth. The seed consumed, craving arise no more. Such-minded wise ones cease like [the flame of] this lamp. ~ Ratana Sutta (Sutta Nipata)

Six Kinds of Loneliness ~ Ani Pema Chodron http://www.lionsroar.com/six-kinds-of-loneliness/

http://beyondmefilms.com/

At the beginning have many daily sessions, each of them of brief duration, and focus well in each one. Whenever you meditate, bear in mind the phrase "without distraction and without grasping", and put this into practice. ~ Lerab Lingpa

Mahamudra cannot be taught. But most intelligent Naropa, Since you have undergone rigorous austerity, With forbearance in suffering and with devotion to your Guru, Blessed One, take this secret instruction to heart. Is space anywhere supported? Upon what does it rest? Like space, Mahamudra is dependant upon nothing; Relax and settle in the continuum of unalloyed purity, And, your bonds loosening, release is certain. Gazing intently into the empty sky, vision ceases; Likewise, when mind gazes into mind itself, The train of discursive and conceptual thought ends And supreme enlightenment is gained. ~ Tilopa's Teachings to Naropa

The Tathagata is the essence which is the reality of matter, but he is not matter. He is the essence which is the reality of sensation, but he is not sensation. He is the essence which is the reality of intellect, but he is not intellect. He is the essence which is the reality of motivation, but he is not motivation. He is the essence which is the reality of consciousness, yet he is not consciousness. Like the element of space, he does not abide in any of the four elements. Transcending the scope of eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind, he is not produced in the six sense media... He abides in ultimate reality, yet there is no relationship between it and him. He is not produced from causes, nor does he depend on conditions. He is not without any characteristic, nor has he any characteristic. He has no single nature nor a diversity of natures. He is not a conception, not a mental construction, nor is he a nonconception. He is neither the other shore, nor this shore, nor that between. He is neither here, nor there, nor anywhere else.… ~ Vimalakirti Vimalakirti: "Manjusri, all worlds are empty." Manjushri: "What makes them empty?" "They are empty because [their ultimate reality is] emptiness." "What is 'empty' about emptiness?" "Constructions are empty, because of emptiness." "Can emptiness be conceptually constructed?" "Even that concept is itself empty, and emptiness cannot construct emptiness."

When a man is parched by thirst, the thought of water brings no relief. Only drinking can quench his thirst. Similarly, information differs from direct experience. The exhausting search for information for mere objective knowledge becomes needless with direct meditative experience. ~ Mipham Rinpoche

The discursive mind interprets the world in monochromatic shades of black and white, whilst non-discursive awareness knows the world as a colourful display of rainbow light. ~ Paramito Ladakh

found a seat up there in a stadium of thousands one game... many views

The idea of understanding is linked to capture and containment, to a break in an ongoing flow of movement. As if understanding were a great tiger that we must take into custody and keep enclosed and tightly controlled. But . . . what if we were able to give up this way of understanding understanding and see it not as a captured stillness or singularity but rather as a momentary pause in an ongoing movement of unfolding, like a rest in a musical score, or a pause in a story, or a swirling eddy in an inexorable, ongoing river of meaning? ~ Lisbeth Lipari

Every once in a while Spotless visits to try and make himself understood. I think he generally likes things to be without holes, to be tight, and... perhaps even clinical. To fit in to his perceived understandings. Thats ok too, you know.

Buddhahood can not be attained elsewhere. If this goal is sought outside oneself, Even the efforts of countless eons Will fail to bear any fruit. Search not, strive not. Let your mind rest in its natural state. ~ Machig Labdron

Within the Buddhist tradition, one generally distinguishes between two types of meditation. One type is a resting meditation or settling the mind, and the other is an analytical or investigating meditation. Some practitioners think that these two forms of meditation are in opposition to each other, like water and fire. That view implies that if you have one, you cannot have the other. One might think that if you practice analytical meditation, you will not be able to place the mind evenly in absorption meditation, and if you practice absorption meditation, it will exclude the possibility of analytical meditation. . It seems that most people actually prefer absorption meditation because they think of analytical meditation as a lot of work. They think, "Oh, analytic meditation is not good because you have to use a lot of effort, you have to read many books, and generally you have to think a lot." It seems that most students would prefer simply to practice a form of resting meditation. Thus, we should ask why there seems to be this preference for resting meditation and so little enthusiasm for engaging in analytical meditation. . One reason that meditators may not be so enthusiastic about analytical meditation is that they think thoughts and concepts will increase through engaging in the process of analysis. From books they have read, they have understood that the meaning of meditation is to "be without thoughts." As a result, many people have developed the preconception that meditation should be without any mental activity, whatsoever. They think that the ability to rest or meditate as if one were a stone is a sign of good meditation. When it appears that analytical meditation increases conceptions and thoughts, then their preconception that "good meditation is without thoughts" prevents these meditators from considering analytical meditation to be true meditation. When practicing this type of meditation, one does have the feeling that thoughts are increasing. This is how it apparently is; thoughts do increase, apparently. . ~ Acharya Lama Tenpa Gyaltsen

SARAHA Behold! Yogis who abide in the immutable nature of nonduality possess not the least desire for accepting or rejecting. Since I neither hold nor discard anything, there is nothing I would tell you, my sons, to do. Just as the "holy grail" (mani) of the mind has no objective substantiality, so the conduct of a yogi is a life devoid of external trappings. Even though we talk of various ways of behaviour, the yogi acts directly out of his perception. And since that is not determined [by external rules or conditions], the yogis conduct is completely free and unconditioned. Like an innocent child, or a crazy person without premeditation, so one should act. Emaho! Mind is like a lotus, growing up out of the mud of Samsara! How ever many are the defilements, it remains unstained. Let food and drink, sensual pleasures, or the afflictions of mind and body, be just as they are. Whatever occurs, there is nothing to do or liberate. In the state of realization's spontaneous display of conduct, upon witnessing the suffering of worldly beings, tears of overwhelming compassion naturally flow forth. Taking on their suffering and giving in return one's own well-being, thus one engages in healing others for their sake. Examining what is, one finds that reality is free from the three constructs of subject, object and medium. Worldly existence is unreal; it is like a dream or a magical illusion. Free of attachment and aversion, the yogi experiences a pure joy devoid of sorrow, and acts like a master of illusion putting on a performance. Excerpt from: The Mahamudra Dohakosa

We're constantly surrounded by potential causes of death, and by the news of the dead and dying, yet many people still wander around in denial, thinking to themselves “It can never possibly happen to me - not yet!” However, each moment that passes is yet another moment closer to the end of our precious human life, and we have absolutely no idea how or when death will strike - it really is that uncertain. The only certainty is that it's going to happen. Each passing moment of our life is so precious - Each moment we have a chance to do something that can contribute towards better rebirths in samsara, and even liberation, and enlightenment. So use what precious life that you have left, in a way that you will be able to face death with as few regrets as possible. ~ Chamtrul Rinpoche