Path of Action: Day 35 The best way to challenge limiting patterns is to look at your experience for yourself, without judgments or preconceived concepts. Don’t make any commitments in advance. Don’t fixate on one particular understanding. Don’t try to ‘fix’ things, or to make any special effort or force any particular result. Just lookRead more about The Source of Understanding[…]
Path of Action: Day 34 Just think how much of what we regard as true has been given to us by our language and our conditioning! We think thoughts passed on to us by others. We use words with little regard for what they really mean, almost as if they were meaningless noises. When weRead more about Discovering Limiting Patterns[…]
Path of Action: Day 33 Dedicating our energy to work that will produce lasting knowledge and benefits is a powerful and rewarding Dharma practice. Still, we should not expect it to produce results quickly. Westerners, and especially Americans, have been conditioned to expected immediate results from their efforts. They want enlightenment to be tangible, somethingRead more about Taking the Long View[…]
Path of Action: Day 32 The best way to be of service is simply to focus on our own work. If our work brings us joy and satisfaction; if we work for higher goals; if we act out of inspiration, dedication, and love, we can be sure something good will come of what we areRead more about Commitment to Work as the Foundation for Sharing[…]
Path of Action: Day 31 These are the dark days of the Kaliyuga, when people mostly pursue material values and mostly ask how they can manipulate experience for their own ends. So it is not surprising that their hearts and minds are not open to the Dharma, or that they lack faith in the higherRead more about Sharing the Benefits[…]
Path of Action: Day 30 When you understand the path of action at a deeper level, you gradually see that work is not one specific part of your life, in contrast to ‘time off’ for relaxation, or time that you set aside for study or meditation. Our way of working makes work a way ofRead more about Short-term Results and Long-term Benefits[…]
Path of Action: Day 29 The self’s usual tendency is to narrow experience down to objects that it wants to take control of or use. Look at the self in operation, and you will see it acting out a pattern of grasping again and again. The self says, “I need this,” and then sets outRead more about Out of Control[…]
Path of Action: Day 28 The range of knowledge is vast beyond our power to comprehend. Western traditions alone offer the achievements of science, the speculations and analyses of philosophy, and the insights of psychology—a storehouse of knowledge far beyond our ability even to conceive. Since the scope of the Buddhist teachings extends all theRead more about Cherishing Knowledge[…]
Path of Action: Day 27 Working with fierce determination adds immeasurably to the quality of our lives. Our days are full of energy and excitement. Transforming our weaknesses into strength, we face each situation head on. We celebrate with deep admiration the accomplishments of those who are learning to to work in this way, forRead more about Our Work Speaks for Itself[…]
Path of Action: Day 26 The usual motivation for action is personal security or personal satisfaction. But when work has value on this level alone, when it lacks intrinsic meaning, it is easy to grow discouraged and question whether your efforts are having any real impact. When people get the sense that their time isRead more about The Value of our Work[…]