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On Oct 16, 2012 Rod Templin wrote on Gaining Mental Power, by Swami Sivananda:
On Aug 28, 2012 Rod Templin wrote on One February Morning in Vietnam, by Eugene Hilderbrandt:
On Feb 8, 2011 Rod Templin wrote on Believers in Small Graces, by Kent Nerbern:
As the Tao Te Ching says, "Content with a simple life, you can show all people the way back to their own true nature." Years after he passed, I learned that my father, knowing I was on a full scholarship, had anonymously used all of the money he saved for my college education to send another young man to school. No one would have ever known. To me, that is Love in action.
On Oct 5, 2010 Rod Templin wrote on Reality Poses No Danger, by Thanissaro Bhikkhu:
What if we are good enough just as we are in this moment, and there isn't anything we need to change. That knowingness, which is truth, is what sets us free. No resistance, no attachment, no judgement sets us all free!GZDLK
On Feb 23, 2010 Rod Templin wrote on Being Judicious, not Judgmental, by Thanissaro Bhikku:
To expand slightly on the wisdom of the famous RamDass saying, "BE HERE NOW" . . .
This significant entry in my journal came many years ago:
Simply BE Mindfully aware to Witness HERE in non-judgmental Gratitude NOW.
A good question to take into meditation ; How can I be non-judgmental about judgmentality itself (both my own, as well as that of others)?
This notion of "judiciousness" speaks well to that inquiry. Thanx for sharing it.
On Feb 2, 2010 Rod Templin wrote on Forgiveness & Your Life's Unfinished Business, by Stephen Levine:
I believe the Dalai Lama is one of our wisest contemporary teachers. He says that two of the most truly powerful qualities we can cultivate are forgiveness and compassion. He is referring to real power, not the illusion of power that is commonly accepted as position, money, fame, etc.
On Oct 6, 2009 Rod Templin wrote on Are You Ready To Lose Your World?, by Adyashanti:
After being a runner for over 50 years, working with the rhythm of breathing, footstrikes, and mantra, one of the most powerful to emerge recently is:
nonresistance . . .nonattachment . . .nonjudgment . . .sets us free
On Aug 25, 2009 Rod Templin wrote on Deciding What You Want to Keep, by Thanissaro Bhikkhu:
To paraphrase the Dalai Lama:
While engaging in material progress and maintaining physical health we need to give equal attention to developing peace of mind.
On Jun 9, 2009 Rod Templin wrote on Beyond Being Present, by Thanissaro Bhikkhu:
For me, if there is an awareness of thinking at all, (about past, present, or future) then I am not truly being present? The great tennis player, Arthur Ash coined the phrase "being in the zone". It refers to the mental state of a person who is totally absorbed in what they are doing and just allowing the knowledge and training of their whole being (of which the mind is only a small part) to function at its highest level. My own experiences of this have occured while playing an intense tennis match, skiing in challenging conditions, piloting an aircraft in crucial situations, and responding to an emergency, to name a few.
I do agree that the thought of either the past or the future can only occur in the present moment. And these suggestions for the skillful use of these thoughts are quite insightful and helpful. Thanks for sharing this perspective.
On May 26, 2009 Rod Templin wrote on My Stroke of Insight, by Jill Bolte Taylor:
Yes, Yes, Yes!
My first introduction to this notion that we choose our own responses to literally everything, was about 35 years ago in a wonderful little book by Ken Keyes called Handbook to Higher Consciousness. I still return to it's simple wisdom frequently.
On May 19, 2009 Rod Templin wrote on Be With the Storms, by Sri Sri Ravishankar:
It also occurs to me that this approach to accepting pain is useful for those who suffer from chronic pain. Anyone interested in reading more about this could check the work of Steven Levine.
On May 19, 2009 Rod Templin wrote on Be With the Storms, by Sri Sri Ravishankar:
This brings to mind a piece of wisdom from a Cherokee elder, "What goes on in and around you reflects your own mind and shows you the dream you are weaving".
On May 12, 2009 Rod templin wrote on Open to Release, by Arthur Zajonc:
I agree wholeheartedly (wholeBeingly). This reminds me of a brilliant statement by John Lilly many decades ago, in his book The Center of the Cyclone. John Lilly was the pioneer of research into dolphin intelligence and communication. He was also the inventor of the "isolation tank" which has been used successfully to explore human consciousness.
This is a close paraphrase of his conclusion which is so pertinent to this notion, "In the province of the mind, what one believes to be true is true, or becomes true within certain limitations. These "limitations" are merely further boundaries to be transcended. Within the province of the mind there are no limitations!"
On Apr 28, 2009 Rod Templin wrote on On Good and Evil, by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi:
Would there be any concept of "good" without the concept of "evil"? Would we see the stars in the infinite night sky if there was no "darkness" surrounding them? Would we hear the "music of the spheres" without the vast silence in which it occurs? Would anything manifest in material reality without the unmanifest void from which it springs? Good and evil are a part of the Tao, the unspeakable genius of the void (GOV) which many know as GOD. If the Universe were not "bi-polar" it would not exist. Looking from this perspective, we can even be gratefulfor evil.
On Apr 21, 2009 Rod Templin wrote on Attunement: an Agendaless Presence, by Daniel Goleman:
Ganoba has hit the key element here. In my opinion, in order to be fully present, the ego must be "submerged". Another useful perspective on this, is to think of just leaving your ego "on the shelf" unless you need it. If active listening is going to happen, there is no need for my ego.
The practice of "active listening" also requires that one attempt to paraphrase what the "other" is saying. For example, . . ."it sounds to me like you are saying (put it in your own words), is that right?"
Also, once you sense that you have "attuned" yourself to the other's head/heart space, remain in that space yourself. Do not attempt to convince another of your own perspective unless that is specifically requested by the other. You cannot force another to take your viewpoint by beating them over the head with it. As someone wisely advised, "Quiet your mind, open your heart, and exercise your spirit!"
On Apr 14, 2009 Rod Templin wrote on Going Beyond Hope and Fear, by Meg Wheatley:
I see "hope" as a prerequisite to "faith". If one truly has faith, there is no need for hope. True faith springs eternal from a deep place of silent stillness. It is the residence of the "peace that passes all understanding". Living in the depths with this awareness allows one to look at both hope and fear as mere ripples on the surface of life where form is always changing. If we truly realized the beauty and perfection of what is in this moment, we might all just bliss out!
On Apr 7, 2009 Rod Templin wrote on Learning to Stay, by Pema Chodron:
On Mar 17, 2009 Rod Templin wrote on The Phenomenon of Boredom, by MJ Ryan:
On Jun 18, 2013 Rod Templin wrote on Micro Moments of Love, by Barbara Frederickson:
A very strong reaction comes to me when someone says, "there is no such thing as unconditional love." Just because one has never experienced something does not mean it does not exist. Indeed, the highest form of love is unconditional love.