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“Karma moves in two directions. If we act virtuously, the seed we plant will result in happiness. If we act non-virtuously, suffering results.”

~~~ Sakyong Mipham

Today is Valentine’s Day here in the USA. I don’t know if folks in other countries observe this rather unusual holiday, but for us here, it’s one more excuse to buy flowers, candy and jewelry for people we love. If you’ve been a reader here for any length of time, you already know that I have a problem with why we have to set aside one day out of the year to show love and devotion. Why don’t we think to do that 24/7/365?

I better get off that soap box and move on with today’s article!

We’ve been talking about meditation — and how the practice of meditation might be a good thing in our lives. We’ve talked about the reason most people meditate is to find inner peace, even if that goal is attained for only a moment or two. We talked about why we’re always looking for something else — something better — something that will make us feel happier?

We also began thinking about the possibility that it just might be our minds that are holding us back from finding a lasting inner peace — our “little” mind — or as I like to refer to it, our “ego-mind”. Gaining control of that ego-mind might be a possible solution to tapping into the soul of us — our true essence — the place where the wisdom, love and compassion of the universe can be found.

“The greatest gift is to give people your enlightenment, to share it. It has to be the greatest.”

~~~ Buddha

In keeping with Valentine’s Day, I thought I’d tell you about the analogy that Sakyong Mipham talks about in one of his books that I’ve read, “Turning the Mind Into and Ally“. He writes mostly about the difficulties of bringing the teachings of Buddhism into a Western culture. He says it’s a lot like trying to plant flower seeds on a rock and expecting them to grow.

These flower seeds, if planted in fertile soil, would produce the blooms of compassion, wisdom, clarity and joy in our lives. If these seeds could blossom on the rock of our ego-mind, they could grow into these attributes and become our way of living our lives. The flower seeds need openness and softness in order to grow.

“There are many paths to enlightenment. Be sure to take one with a heart.”

~~~ Lao Tzu

The rock, on the other hand, is like the rigidity, the solidness of our bewildered ego-minds. Our goal is to find out how to plant these flower seeds in the rocky soil and make them grow. This won’t happen unless we have the right conditions. We need to find ways to soften our minds, our hearts and our ways of living.

We live in a culture that dictates that our personal comfort is our highest goal — it’s what we seem to desire more than anything. We keep telling ourselves that we need to slow down, we need to learn to be more compassionate, but because we’re so set in our ways, because we have a tendency to want what we want when we want it, these softer attributes often seem unattainable. We’re not willing to be flexible.

We’re learning about the softness of the flower — we know it exists – but we question our ability to achieve it because it’s just too hard to do – and since it’s not easy we tend to say, “Ah, the heck with it!”

We’re trying to grow a flower on a rocky soil, but we haven’t prepared the garden. We haven’t trained our minds. Getting the garden ready takes some effort. We have all this weeding, and hoeing, and raking and watering to do to get the earth softened up so it will accept our flower seeds.

Guess what?

This preparation is done by peacefully abiding in meditation.

Our society and our culture is hard. It focuses on materialism, selfishness, greed, and envy. We seem to want to choose aggression to deal with problems rather than love and compassion. All the lessons on how to turn this around are always available to us. We just have to learn how to tune into them. The way to learn to dial into these lessons is to bring meditation into our lifestyle. This is how we will learn to gain control over our ego-minds and make it possible for the flowers of love and compassion to bloom.
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We’ll pick this up from this point with our next article. If you’re new to us here, be sure read the other articles about meditation. You can find links for them over in the left sidebar under the “Recently Posted” section. They all have a title starting with the word, “Meditation”. Don’t forget, spend at least 10 minutes twice each day meditating. Meditate for longer if you can.

“Those who really seek the path to Enlightenment dictate terms to their mind. Then they proceed with strong determination.”

~~~ Buddha

And, don’t forget to check out the information about the Valentines Day Special from the Cinema Circle. (It’s there inder the “Recently Posted”, too.) This offer is good until the 20th of this month, so act now.

Namaste!

And, as I always say in closing — remember these words …

You are the most precious gift you can give yourself. Every day look in the mirror and say, “I’m available to more good than I have experienced, realized or imagined ever before in my life!” Do this every day while you look into your own eyes.

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

“Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.”

~~~ Buddha

~~~ DBL-R

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As you know, I do practice sitting, silent meditation every day in my life. Recently, I did a podcast about this for another blog that I read. Take a moment and click this link to hear what meditation means to me and what it does for me.

My Meditation Podcast

In my meditation I use what I truly believe is the most powerful personal growth and mind development tool on earth. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels —

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution

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