Acts of Liberation

"We must not discriminate." -- Cultivating the Mind of Love by Thich Nhat Hanh

Writing on the Ultimate Dimension, Buddhist monk and teacher Thich Nhat Hanh points out in this book, Cultivating the Mind of Love, that there is a moment when, for each of us, we wake up to the moment, just this moment. We feel alive and vibrant.
 He writes about French author, Albert Camus who wrote in his novel, L' Etranger, that Mersault, in prison, condemned to die in three days, for the very first time, notices the blue sky. It was a sudden opening, a moment of mindfulness; he realized that he had spent a lot of time, as people sometimes do, feeling frustrated, imprisoned by anger, lust, or by notions that peace and happiness are out there, somewhere, sometime.
At that moment he saw, really saw the blue sky for the first time, it was a revelation to him. Life did have meaning; there were things that mattered to him. He could live his short time remaining deliberately, with awareness of sun and sky. His seeing deeply made his life real; it became his true life.

Hanh notes that many persons walk about in their daily lives as though they were dead, not noticing much or allowing the world close enough to be touched. He insists that these persons must be helped to realize that they matter; this realization is an act of liberation.
The Christian faith teaches that the Christ wears many different clothing; he has many disguises. Often others fail to recognize him in the sick, the poor or the lame. For Mersault God comes to rescue him with a sudden, burning realization of the beauty of Creation in the form of a blue sky. Anything might bring us to awareness of the Avatamsaka realm, we may wake up to this moment, just this moment and see the beauty and peace of it all. "We must not discriminate," Hanh insists.

The Beauty of Spring

"When you do, you will see that your "first love" may not really be the first..."  Thich Nhat Hanh, Cultivating the Mind of Love
Last night I returned home and heard something really wonderful. There were frogs singing in the night. Frogs, it seems, are one of the great harbingers of spring. They slumber over the winter, buried deep into the mud, protected by a sort of anti-freeze in their blood. When the very first warming of the spring temperatures commence to rain, they emerge from hibernation, as if magically, and serenade the night. Everywhere in the countryside one is treated to their song.
The frogs are singing! Their songs recollect the fine spring and summer evenings spent outdoors in the fresh breeze, the smell of grass, the wet of the dew and the arrival of song birds, creatures of all types. The Robin, a North American species of Thrush, arrived here a more than a month ago; the Cardinal which overwinters here, began its song in earnest weeks ago and now the Woodpeckers join in the busy merriment of spring song. The long winter is done over into the beauty of spring.

The Beauty of Spring is the title of a chapter in a book by Buddhist teacher and monk, Thich Nhat Hanh, Cultivating the Mind of Love. In a very personal and beautiful recollection he writes of first love, his own love, one which the French call the "coup de foudre" or the stroke of love, love at first sight.
This wise monk writes quite simply, "please think about your own first love. Do it slowly, picturing how it first came about, where it took place, and what brought you to that moment. Recall that experience and look at it calmly, deeply, with compassion and understanding. You will discover many things you did not notice at the time. There is a Kung An in the Zen tradition, 'What was your face before your parents were born?' This is an invitation to go on a journey and discover your true self, your true face.
Look deeply into your "first love" and try to see its true face. When you do, you will see that your "first love" may not really be the first, that your face when you were born may not have been your original face. If you [continue] look[ing] deeply, you will be able to see your true, original face, and your true first love. Your first love is still present, always here, continuing to shape your life. This is a subject for meditation."

Mindfulness and the Holy Spirit

"Because you are alive, everything is possible." --Living Buddha, Living Christ by Thich Nhat Hanh


Buddhist author and teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh writes in his book, Living Buddha, Living Christ that the seeds of the Spirit are everywhere. He once asked a Catholic priest to explain to him the Holy Spirit. The priest replied that the Spirit is an energy sent by God. This, Hanh reports, made him happy. He sees the way to the Trinity is the approach through the door of the Holy Spirit.  
Buddhism practices mindfulness; when we are mindful, touching deeply the present moment, we see and listen deeply; the fruits are understanding, peace, acceptance, love, the desire to relieve suffering and bring joy. We are completely engaged in just this moment.

To Hanh, mindfulness is very much like the Holy Spirit; both are agents of healing. The Buddha is called the 'King of Healers.' The Christ is also a healer. In the biblical accounts, when someone touches the Christ, they are healed. When you touch deep understanding and love, there is healing.  The Spirit descended unto the Christ like a dove, it bore into him deeply and Jesus, the Christ healed whatever he touched.
We all have the seeds of the present moment within us. Touching deeply is an important practice. For many of us this learning starts with breathing; deeply breathing in and out we become conscious of our self, of our functioning.

Mindfulness is the substance of a buddha, entering deeply into this moment, you see the nature of reality, of inter-being and this liberates you from darkness, suffering and confusion. A heart in good condition is an element of peace and contentment.

Live Like the Dead

"Without true mindfulness, we live like the dead."  --True love: A Practice for Awakening the Heart by Thich Nhat Hanh

"Through the voice of the Holy Spirit you come alive again. Mindfulness is moment to moment, every moment. Being alive is being in the present moment, this moment. When we practice deep looking, mindfulness, we receive help, understanding. "Mindfulness brings concentration, understanding, love and freedom," writes Hanh in his book, True love: A Practice for Awakening the Heart by Thich Nhat Hanh. 

Buddhist monk and teacher, Hanh further expresses his understanding about the Holy Spirit; he says, "if you are a Christian, you could say that this energy [mindfulness] we are talking about is known as the Holy Spirit, the energy that is sent to us by God. Wherever this energy exists, there is attention, compassion, understanding and love. And this energy has the power to heal. Since Jesus embodies this energy, he has the energy to heal whoever he touches. When Jesus heals people, he heals them with the power of the Holy Spirit."

Hanh notes that it may be said that healing occurs as the establishment of the energies of compassion and love. Mindfulness is the energy that makes it possible "for us to be aware of what's happening in the present moment." Thus without mindfulness in this view, we live like the dead. "Through the Holy Spirit you come to life again every moment."

In the modern world, many seek to live with and in the Spirit. For most, it's not easy. Author Richard Hauser S.J. writes, " Rather than respond to the Spirit, we find ourselves responding to these [other] pressures. We don't have to be convinced of the pressures towards evil within ourselves. Daily we experience our self-centered [dream] drives for popularity, money, power, prestige, and pleasure; these can dominate our lives in very obvious and in very subtle ways, blocking our responsiveness to the Spirit... We see happiness as coming primarily from fulfilling our personal needs and desires as much as possible. This self-centered orientation puts us in conflict with other individuals, communities, and nations; any of these which threatens, becomes an enemy to us, as persons or as nations." para. 

These pressures can motivate our lives in a direction opposed to the energy of the Holy Spirit. A solution for practice is to build a daily lifestyle that fosters the Holy Spirit and the mindfulness for living. We must consider the ways in which our talents and gifts may be put to use to heed the calling of the Spirit; How are we called to love and to serve? In the Gospels, Paul gives a list of the qualities that are signs of the Spirit's presence: love, joy, peacefulness, patience, goodness, kindness, trustfulness, self-control, and gentleness. The Spirit's absence is indicated by: feuds, wrangling, jealousy, bad temper, quarrels, disagreements, factions, and envy.

The Lotus Sutra is King

"The Lotus sutra is king of all Mahayana sutras."  --Cultivating the Mind of Love by Thich Nhat Hanh

In every spiritual tradition, it seems, people become fixed in their ways. Their thoughts are habitual. "They attach to form and are bit by the snake of misunderstanding," writes Buddhist master, Thich Nhat Hanh. In every age, there is need for renewal, to keep traditions accessible, to overcome misapprehension, and to introduce practices which reflect positively upon the age. The dawn of Mahayana was just that. The traditions which preceded it were non-native to early practitioners of Buddhism in China and the north. The mind of Mahayana was intended to help one gain a closer understanding of the true practice. For example, ideas of impermanence, nirvana and inter-being were re-formed for the earliest Mahayana practitioners.

Previously, many had taught that the practice was to exit this world of suffering. Shravakas, therefore had practiced primarily for the self and not for the compassion and good of the world. In the new view, this was not the heart of the Buddha's teaching. Rather it was Vimalakirti sutra which launched a challenge to this former thinking. Shariputra, disciple of the Buddha, was the focus; humbled by the new way, the Mahayana ushered in a time when the average person could be enlightened. No longer was enlightenment the province of priests, monks or nuns alone. 

Yet it is in the Lotus sutra that we learn Shariputra remains the Buddha's most beloved disciple; he learns that the Buddha has offered the teaching at that time because it was necessary. Now we learn that everyone has the possibility to become a fully enlightened buddha, and that the Buddha is present everywhere, forever. Additionally we learn that the three vehicles are in fact one, ekayana. So no matter what tradition you have or do follow, all are disciples of the everlasting Buddha. "Thanks to the Lotus sutra, peace and reconciliation among practitioners has become possible," writes Hanh.

Mahayana Love*

"The Dharmakaya of the Buddha is always present, always alive... Vairochana is made of light, peace, flowers, joy..." -- Cultivating the Mind of Love, by T.N. Hanh

Mahayana teachings as presented by Suzuki in his book, Outlines of Mahayana Buddhism, are complicated and simple; they're essential, and overlooked; it is central to understanding, and experience by practitioners of all stripes. Please study Suzuki a bit for yourself.
These small essays cannot cover this topic. Suzuki declares that we are all Bodhisattvas. As Shakyamuni was a Bodhisattva, so we are all destined to become Bodhisattvas, when, in a certain sense, we understand that we are all one in the Dharmakaya.

The Dharmakaya manifests in us as Bodhi (knowledge-intelligence). As soon as we come to live in this love and intelligence, individual existences are no hindrance to the "turning over" of one's spiritual merits to the service of others. Abandon, says Suzuki, "our selfish thoughts of entering into a Nirvana that is conceived to extinguish the fire of hearts, leaving only cold ashes of intellect... have sympathy for all, turn over your merits, however small, to the benefit and happiness of others."

This spirit of universal love prevails in all Mahayanism. Nagar-juna in his writings on the Bodhichitta gives a view of the Bodhisattva. He says, "the essential nature of all Bodhisattvas is a great, loving heart... therefore do not cling to the blissful taste produced by the varied methods of mental tranquility (dhyana), do not covet fruit of meritorious deeds... the Bhodisattvas, who inspired with great energy, mingle with birth and death; they are like Lotus flowers who rise out of the mire, yet remain uncontaminated.

The Bodhichitta, or intelligence-heart, like the Dharmakaya is essentially love and intelligence (karuna and prajna), Suzuki compares the Christ, seeing him to be a Bodhisattva, a Buddha. He says in the West, Jesus, the Christ is perhaps the best, most accessible example available. He writes, "one who understands the nature of bodhichitta sees everything with a loving heart, for love is the essence of the Bodhichitta. The Bodhichitta is the highest essence. The Bodhichitta abiding in the heart of sameness (samata) creates individual means of salvation (upaya).

The Bodhichitta is naturally present in the hearts of all beings. He is a reflex of the Dharmakaya, he has no compulsions; he is free from beginning to end. He has no impurities nor prejudice. He is present in the heart of all beings, like the moon, shining with silvery light on clear, cloudless nights, reflected then in every drop, every mass of water on the earth, reflected like so many stars descended on earth.

* "And I give my gratitude to my first teacher of all things, my friend, Liang-Hui Mei. From her loving presence in my life, a whole world, way, and language was opened to me. I know she is teaching still.

Becoming Alive, the Kingdom of Happiness

"This is the practice of living deeply in the moment. If you worry too much, you will suffer." --Going Home by Thich Nhat Hanh

Know that, says Thich Nhat Hanh, "the Kingdom [of heaven] is not for tomorrow, the Kingdom is not a matter of the past. The Kingdom is now. We need food today... We need to be alive in each moment. We need the kind of food that makes us alive in every moment of our life so that we can nourish our faith, our love, our solidity, and our tolerance. We desperately need that kind of food." There are so many hungry people, people hungry for spiritual food.
We grasp ideas and notions "that is why we have never satisfied our hunger. We always speak of eating, but we never eat."

"If the Christ is the body of God, which he is, then the bread he offers is also the body of the Cosmos. Look deeply and you will notice the sun, the earth in the bread."
Being mindful will allow you to see all that the bread contains; consuming this bread, "you eat it in such a way that you become alive, truly alive... Eat in such a way that the Holy Spirit becomes an energy within you.. and then [it] will stop being an idea, a notion."

You need to eat this bread, corn, rice, what ever it may be, mindfully so as to become alive to the Way, to the process.
Artists often talk of 'process.' What is your process? What is your attachment to the outcome?
Mindfully observe the ways in which you consume the 'bread of life.'
"You need to eat it in order to become alive again so that faith as an energy, true faith, true love, is nourished in you, and happiness becomes a reality for yourself and for many others."

Yet because of all that what is written above, in complete faith and hopefulness, you imagine a kingdom that is without suffering at all. "It is very distressing,' writes Hanh.
 He observes that the joy to be alive can most clearly come about from the despair of dying; the joy of health is not complete without the knowledge and experience of sickness and loss of health.
Hanh states, "Our hope, our desire, our aspiration for a kingdom or a place where suffering does not exist should be re-examined."  That the people in that place should not suffer, they will not despair; they should only experience happiness, unending in their daily life -- Wake Up!
"This is something absurd and impossible," Hanh writes. Rather a "Pure Land" is a place where both suffering and love exist. It is a place of mindfulness, and of impermanence so that the good may follow the ill. It is Hell to merely suffer without any hope for relief.

Love is born of suffering. Suffering is its ground. If you live in such a place that is without suffering, then you live in a place without love.
We all need food to sustain ourselves, but not just any kind of food. The right food for each of us is not always the same food.
You who have suffered, know what it is; you want to help others in their suffering; to bring them the food they need. You want to bring happiness, your happiness; this is the stuff of love; it is compassion. Love born of suffering is a practice.
"Unless you know what suffering is, you are not motivated to practice compassion, love and understanding."

The Paraclete, the Divine Healer

"Resting in God is a term I like." --Thich Nhat Hanh
 
Buddhist monk and teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh, writes in his book, Living Buddha, Living Christ, that real love never ends. He says, "In Judaism, we are encouraged to enjoy the world as long as we know that it is God himself." Jewish belief is the forebear of Christianity; its patrimony is unmistakable, joyful, loving, creative. "The Ten Commandments... of the Judeo-Christian heritage help us know what to do, and what not to do in order to cherish God throughout our daily life."

"All precepts, commandments are about love and understanding." Jesus gave this commandment first to the Apostles his disciples, to 'love God with all your mind, with all your strength, and most importantly, to love your neighbor as yourself.' In the Jewish world of the Christ, this was very well known verse. It appears a number of times in the Torah. In the Bible chapter, First Corinthians (Corinthians 1), it declares the principle message of the bible and its eastern, Jewish roots: Love is patient, love is kind, love is not arrogant, envious or rude. Love does not rejoice in the wrong, it is not irritable or resentful. Love does not insist on its own way. Love rejoices in the truth.

These are very close to the teachings of Buddhism, continues Thich Nhat Hanh. He comments that, "Love bears all things, believes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. Love is born and reborn... To take good care of yourself and the environment is the best way to love God. This love is possible when you understand that you are not separate from other beings, or the environment. This understanding cannot be merely intellectual. It must be experiential, insight gained from deep touching and deep looking in a daily life of contemplation, prayer and meditation." Real love never ends. It can be born and reborn within you, again and again.

When you pray with your heart, your love, the Holy (whole, unified) Spirit is within you. Nothing more is necessary. The Spirit is a force, a power within you and in the world. Spirit comes, lighting the Way in the darkness. The force of Bodhichitta is alive. You can see things deeply, understand deeply, love deeply. Hanh writes, "if you practice this way, the Lord's Prayer comes alive in you. It brings real change: thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven... This is like the water that touches the wave, which is its own nature.

This touching removes fear, anxiety, anger, craving... give us our daily bread, and forgive our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us... lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, every evil...have mercy upon us, and protect us from anxiety..." Deeply looking, meditating on this prayer shows the light of the Spirit, the loving God, is loving the living beings that "we see and touch in our daily life.

If we can love them, we can love God. "Thus the Holy Spirit continues on in you. You are one, both the wave and the water, the raft and the shore. Your mindfulness will bring this about, sharing with others.

Seeds Like Dharma Rain

"When you listen to a Dharma talk, just allow the rain of Dharma to penetrate to soil of your consciousness. Don't think too much, or argue, or compare... Just allow your consciousness to receive the rain..." --Cultivating the Mind of Love by Thich Nhat Hanh

Consciousness, writes Thich Nhat Hanh in his book, Cultivating the Mind of Love: The Practice of Looking Deeply in the Mahayana Buddhist Tradition, "is said to be composed of two parts-- store consciousness (alayavijnana) and mind consciousness (manovijnana). In our store consciousness are buried all the seeds, representing everything we have ever done, experienced, or perceived. When a seed is watered, it manifests into your mind consciousness.'

"The work of meditation is to cultivate the garden of our store consciousness. As a gardener, we have to trust the land, knowing that all seeds of love and understanding, all seeds of enlightenment and happiness, are already there. That is why we don't have to think too hard or take notes during a Dharma talk. We only need to be there, to allow the seeds of love and understanding that are deep within us to be watered. It is not just the teacher who is giving the dharma talk; the violet bamboo, the yellow chrysanthemum and the golden sunset are all speaking at the same time. Anything that waters these deepest seeds in our store consciousness is the true Dharma."

Dharma deals with the present moment. The Dharma is not just a matter of time. If you practice the Dharma Way, peacefulness and joyfulness are there as soon as you embrace the Dharma. A healing takes place through embrace of the "dharma-in-the-now." Embracing the now, you are in the ultimate dimension as Mahayana teaches. There is nothing more real than this moment, the ultimate moment of now. As all seeds are already contained within; at any moment you may become what you are most deeply. The Lotus Sutra teaches this is possible.

When we are in the state of mindfulness, we are in the now; we dwell in warmth, peacefulness. When mindful, we are fully engaged in the present moment, and we experience a quietness, a calmness, peacefulness; we may be inspired with strength, confidence, joy and happiness. There is no fear, because fear is what has not yet occurred; we are not in the past because it is already past. At present moment, we dwell with ourselves as we are, in this moment, present. Forming or joining a Sangha for support and practice is a good idea. Sangha may be composed of two or more persons.

To Mahayanists, in the present moment, the Lotus Sutra teaches us, "we too, can be everywhere at once. From any point in the cosmos, people can touch us wherever we are, and wherever they are. We are not at all confined by time and space," Hanh informs the reader. He further explains this is so because of the nature of inter-being.

Gaining the energy of compassion, as Hanh describes it, in deep practice of the Lotus Sutra, "energy, of compassion, in you will transform your life, and make it more beautiful. Compassion is always born of understanding, and understanding is the result of looking deeply."
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The Anguttara Nikaya, Possibility Alive

"There is a person whose appearance on earth is for the well being and happiness of all." --Living Buddha, Living Christ by T. N. Hanh


Writing, "The Joy of Being Alive," Buddhist teacher and monk Thich Nhat Hanh says that by simply breathing, you know that you are alive. The breath, after all, like the beating of a heart is the most elemental to all human existence. "Because you are alive, the community of practice (Sangha) can continue. Because you are alive, everything is possible."

Every moment is a moment that can possibly be taken for the Buddha heart, for the Dharma way, for an opportunity to enter into the Spirit. The Buddhist text Anguttara Nikaya, known in Chinese as Zēngyī Ahánjīng. These texts, a collection of Sutras, proclaim for one that humans are not merely reducible to living heaps of sense-matter. Rather that they exist as real entities, or centers of living experience encountering the world in a real and heartfelt way. The readings share a timeless, simple wisdom valuable throughout the ages.
Hanh writes, "there is a person whose appearance on earth is for the well being and happiness of all. Who is that person?" It may be the teaching of the Buddha or the Christ, or it may be a sangha or a person who at times appears to you as a Bodhisattva. Through your daily life, with those you come into contact with, in a way of simple presence, of caring and friendship, you can help that person continue. In your mindfulness you see clearly what is necessary, what needs to be done. Breathe deeply; know that you are alive.

Seeing Me, Seeing the Way

"Whether you can see the Buddha or not depends on you, on the state of your being." --Thich Nhat Hanh

Writing in Living Buddha, Living Christ Buddhist monk and teacher Thich Nhat Hanh recalls the adage that says "to encounter a true master is said to be worth a century of studying" of reading, of writing. Because in such a person we encounter a witness, "a living example of enlightenment. How can we encounter Jesus or the Buddha? It depends upon us." Many have looked squarely into the eyes of a Jesus or a Buddha and not seen anything, were not at the moment capable of the experience to see anything. Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta founded her works of mercy and charity upon this very point.

She served the poorest of the poor; of her faith-filled conviction, that in touching the broken bodies of the poor, she was touching the body of Christ; it was for Jesus himself, hidden under the distressing disguise of the poorest of the poor. Recognizing the Christ in everyone, she ministered with wholehearted devotion, expressing the delicacy of her love. Thus, in a total gift of herself to God and neighbor,

Mother Teresa found her greatest fulfillment. She wanted to remind all of the value and dignity of each of God's children; thus was Mother Teresa, as she said, "bringing souls to God, and God to souls," always remembering holiness of all; her ministry was devoted to seeing, to seeing the Way.

In another story Thich Nhat Hanh recounts that there once was a man in such a hurry to see the Buddha that he neglected a woman in dire need whom he encountered along the way. Arriving at the Buddha's monastery, he saw nothing. This tale repeats in the world many times since.

Says Thich Nhat Hanh, " whether you can see the Buddha or not depends upon you, on the state of your being." "I am understanding, I am love." It is not enough to simply feel love, to simply think about love. We, who practice, who seek the way, are called to be that love, to act that love. "Like many great humans, the Buddha had a hallowed [blessed] presence. When we see such persons, we feel peace, love and strength in them, and also in ourselves." Our courage to move forward is summoned.
There is an old Chinese proverb Nhat Hanh quotes: "When a sage is born, the river water becomes clearer and the mountain plants and trees are greener." When in their presence, one feels the ambience, a sense of peace, of light. Even if you did not recognize the sage, your proximity would gain all the greater light; your understanding the greater than by words alone.

The Light That Reveals: I Am There for You.

"...the energy of the Holy Spirit is in us, we are truly alive." --Thich Nhat Hanh

Buddhist monk and teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh, intimately familiar with spiritual traditions beyond his own, from both study and long experience, writes competently in his book Living Buddha, Living Christ, about the indwelling, or incarnation of the Spirit within the Christ.

He writes in the essay The Light That Reveals, "When John the Baptist helped Jesus touch the Holy Spirit, the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit descended like a dove, and entered the person of Jesus." When mindfulness is born in us, we need to continue to practice. "Children have little difficulty recognizing the presence of the Holy Spirit. "When the Spirit is in us, we are truly alive, in love with life itself; capable of understanding, we desire to be of help and service to others.

Approaching God through the Holy Spirit "seems to be a safer way to approach the [Holy] Trinity." When the Spirit rests within, we are "living mindfully, touching the light of our awareness in everything we do, we touch the Buddha, and our mindfulness grows."

"I am There For You," writes Hanh. "The most precious gift we can offer to others is our [simple] presence. When our mindfulness embraces those we love... they bloom like flowers. If you love... and rarely make yourself available... that is not true love... Mindfulness relieves suffering, anxiety and worries... by doing that, you already offer some relief. Mindfulness is filled with understanding and compassion.

When you are really there, the energy of the Holy Spirit is in you." In Hanh's words, the Holy [whole, unified, One] Spirit is very much about mindfulness; both help us to touch the ultimate dimension of reality.

The Holy Spirit Continues in You

"Resting in God is a term I like."
--Thich Nhat Hanh


Buddhist monk and teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh, writes in his book, Living Buddha, Living Christ, that real love never ends. He says, "In Judaism, we are encouraged to enjoy the world as long as we know that it is God himself." Jewish belief is the forbear of Christianity; its patrimony is unmistakeable, joyful, loving, creative. "The Ten Commandments... of the Judeo-Christian hertitage help us know what to do, and what not to do in order to cherish God throughout our daily life."

"All precepts, commandments are about love and understanding." Jesus gave this commandment first to the Apostles, his disciples, to 'love God with all your mind, with all your strength, and most importantly, to love your neighbor as yourself.' In the bible chapter, First Corinthians (Corinthians 1), it declares the principle message of the bible and its eastern, Jewish roots:

Love is patient, love is kind, love is not arrogant, envious or rude. Love does not rejoice in the wrong, it is not irritable or resentful. Love does not insist on its own way. Love rejoices in the truth.
These are very close to the teachings of Buddhism, Thich Nhat Hanh continues. He comments that, "Love bears all things, believes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. Love is born and reborn... To take good care of yourself and the environment is the best way to love God. This love is possible when you understand that you are not separate from other beings, or the environment. This understanding cannot be merely intellectual. It must be experiential, insight gained from deep touching and deep looking in a daily life of contemplation, prayer and meditation."
Real love never ends. It can be born and reborn within you, again and again.

When you pray with your heart, your love, the Holy (whole, unified) Spirit is within you. Nothing more is necessary. The Spirit is a force, a power within you, and in the world. Spirit comes, lighting the Way in the darkness. The force of Bodhichitta is alive. You can see things deeply, understand deeply, love deeply. Hanh writes, "if you practice this way, the Lord's Prayer comes alive in you. It brings real change: thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven... This is like the water that touches the wave, which is its own nature.

This touching removes fear, anxiety, anger, craving... give us our daily bread, and forgive our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us... lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, every evil...have mercy upon us, and protect us from anxiety..." Deeply looking, meditating on this prayer shows the light of the Spirit, the loving God, is loving the living beings that "we see and touch in our daily life.
If we can love them, we can love God."

Thus the Holy Spirit continues on in you. You are one, both the wave and the water, the raft and the shore. Your mindfulness will bring this about, sharing with others.
simplemindzen.blogspot.com

Love, No Beginning, No End

Love comes often as a surprise, an accident, a gift. It comes not as we choose, but as we, the chosen one. Always love is a gift shared between two or more persons. If it is not reciprocal, not shared, it may be a relationship but it is not love.

In his book, Cultivating the Mind of Love, Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh relates to the reader his personal, honest experience. He says he was young monk, meeting a young nun, and "Seeing her standing there like that was like a fresh breeze blowing across my face...I had never had a feeling like that." Falling in love is an accident, he concludes, but it is also more.

You see he writes, "in our store consciousness are buried all the seeds, representing everything we have ever done, experienced or perceived. When a seed is watered, it manifests in our mind consciousness...we have to trust, knowing that all the seeds of enlightenment and happiness are already there... We only need to be there, to allow the seeds of love and understanding that are deep within us to be watered."

Anything that waters these deepest, true seeds within us is true Dharma. We become filled with the mind of enlightenment, the mind of love. Filling us with joy, confidence and energy, we feel alive. Yet "our mind of love may be buried under many layers of forgetfulness and suffering. If we are lucky, we may find someone in our community who is skillful enough so as to enable us to touch this seed, the mind of love."

The community of practitioners is vital to one who seeks to live by experience, the simple mind, to touch the mind of love. This group may be large; it may be just two or three persons who support one another. They, solidly forming, to support and encourage one another in the practice of mindfully examining themselves and the world around in this moment. "If you don't have anyone who understands you, who encourages you in the practice...your desire to practice may wither."

The mind of love is a strong power within you. You are alive with it; it is a matter of watering those seeds to bring it forth. Thich writes, "Where is the self? Where is the non-self? Who is your first love? Who is your last? What is the difference between our first love and our last love? How can anything die?

'If you want to touch my love, please touch yourself." Water which flows in spring, in winter, is a bright, solid mass. In a cold pond, it reflects the bright, full moon. Can you hold onto the water by its form? Can you trace its source? Do you know when and where it will end? "It is the same with your first love. Your first love has no beginning and will have no end. It is still alive, in the stream of your being."

Love may indeed be an accident, but we need not avoid it, nor the gift that it may bring us. While this accident may "cause us some suffering...we will survive."
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