Here is a beautiful story.
In Northern Thailand there was a statue of the Buddha. In artistic terms, it was nothing special; not very well adorned, plain, and made of clay. But it was a holy object, and it stood for over 500 years with generations of monks carefully tending it. Then, in the early 20th century, this statue was moved to make way for a new temple.
Zen and Kundalini Yoga: A Contradiction?
I shared some of my favorite Kundalini mantra music with a Buddhist friend the other day. He loved it, but then gingerly asked whether I “consider it to be compatible with Buddhism”. He asked about the music, but he was really asking about the paths, in general. “Maybe I should just forget about all that and just enjoy it for what it is”, he then mused.
Phillip Moffitt, Anna Douglas, Stephen Cope and Sarah Powers
We asked a panel of people who practice both yoga and Buddhism how the two can work together.
In the forests of Vedic India, pupils gathered around teachers who instructed them in the path of liberation called yoga, meaning “union.” One such student, in the 6th century bce, was a young mendicant who came to be known as the Buddha.
Karma is a word everyone knows, yet few in the West understand what it means. Westerners too often think it means "fate" or is some kind of cosmic justice system. This is not a Buddhist understanding of karma, however.
Karma is a Sanskrit word that means "action." Sometimes you might see the Pali spelling, kamma, which means the same thing. In Buddhism, karma has a more specific meaning, which is volitional or willful action.
Sūta began to tell the story of Parīkṣit arresting Kali:
While surveying the Kuru Jungle, Parīkṣit heard undesirable news: Kali had spread through the kingdom. Seeing this as an excellent opportunity for a fight, he took up his weapons and set out on a beautiful chariot, flying a lion-flag and yoked to brilliantly black horses, along with soldiers, horsemen, elephanteers and charioteers.
When Kuntī heard the terrible news from her son, Arjuna, she immediately ceased her material existence with undeviating and nakedly soulful divine love for the transcendent All-Attractive.
King Yudhiṣṭhira was very troubled about the road taken by the All-Attractive and the destruction of the Yadu family. Deeply lonesome, he made up his mind to follow the same road himself.
Sometimes one uses a thorn to take out a thorn, and in the end throws both away.
While the king inquired fearfully, Arjuna became more and more morose over the loss of Krishna – a friend dearer to him than his very self. Sadness dried his mouth, and the lotus of his heart was robbed of luster. Enrapt in memory of his great friend, he could not answer for a long time. He made great efforts to stop his uncontrollable sobbing, smearing tears around his eyes with his hands.
Arjuna had been gone for months and still had not returned from his trip to Dvārakā with news of their relatives and Krishna. Meanwhile, King Yudhiṣṭhira observed many different omens of ill fortune. Unseasonal weather and behavior – cruelty, anger, greed and deceit – foretold the approach of a terrible fate. Even fathers, mothers, well-wishers and brothers were polluted by cheating and duplicity; while husbands and wives quarreled.
Meanwhile, the noble King had finished his morning prayers and rituals – paying respects to the learned and giving them food, resources and money. He returned to the palace to respect his elders but could not find his uncles and aunt.
Worried, he went to Sañjaya and asked,
“Where is our blind and old uncle? Where is my aunt, so sad over the death of her children?
“And, when you want something,
all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”
― Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist
For more information on Paulo Coelho and his writing, please visit his official blog...http://paulocoelho.com/en/
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Peace & Namaste Friends...
