Be Honest…

Precept number four says, “Be Honest in Your Dealings with Others”. This quotation from Walter Anderson reminds us that it is equally as important to be honest with ourselves.

Never the easy option!

“In your now…”

This Sunday’s quotation is taken from the words of Abraham – Hicks.

During the month of December, it is customary to look back over the year that has just gone to see what we have achieved, while setting goals and expectations for the forthcoming year.

I’ve been busy setting up my goals for next year, building on from my achievements of this year. How about you?

“The more light…”

This Sunday’s quotation features the words of Shakti Gawain.

When I took this picture from my front room window this week I was reminded that light has many ways of manifesting into our lives – we just need to be aware, to practise mindfulness.

Go Quietly …

This Sunday’s quotation comes from Baba Ram Dass.

When I took the photo in the quotation image, I was totally mesmerised by what looked to me like flames in the sky. Time stood still as I watched the cloud patterns changing until eventually the ‘flames’ disappeared from view. During that time of quiet watching, I became very aware of the energy of the sun and its interaction with all the elements around it. I became quiet and the universe spoke it’s wisdom to me.

Make Haste…

This Sunday’s quotation is attributed as a ‘Zen saying’.

Zen sayings are notoriously obtuse – so what does this one mean?

I think we can learn a lot about the meaning of this saying by thinking about the life of the insect in the photograph. Insects are always busy, but they never rush. They each have their allotted tasks. Their lives follow the rhythm of nature.

Now I’m not suggesting that we become like insects, but if we try to live in mindfulness we will find it possible to get everything done without any of the stresses involved in racing against the clock. By living mindfully, each thing we do becomes our only focus for its duration making it totally possible to make haste slowly.

Yesterday…

This Sunday’s quotation comes from Mother Teresa.

How many times have you said “I’ll just leave it till tomorrow? I know I say it far too often! Fretting over the past and worrying about the future are both distractions from life itself. We only get one stab at life – right now.

Let’s take note of Mother Teresa’s words:

“Let us begin!”

Every Morning…

The quotation this Sunday is from the writings of Thich Nhat Hanh.

Every morning when we wake up we make a choice. To be happy, or to be miserable: to smile or to frown: to look upon life as a gift or a burden. Which one did you choose today?

The wound…

This Sunday’s quote comes from the writings of Rumi.

At first glance this quotation may seem quite incomprehensible, wounds are normally associated with pain and fear and darkness not light.

Lets take the physical analogy of an actual wound. A young child falls over when running and scrapes the skin on their knee. It hurts and they cry. Where is the light in that? The light comes when they realise that sometimes running too fast without due care and attention can cause pain.

Looking on a deeper level, when everything is going well in our lives we become self-contained and sometimes a little complacent. When trouble hits – something goes badly wrong – we may initially find it difficult to cope. But in most cases we do cope, we learn to deal with whatever life has thrown at us. It is when we look back on these times that we can see how much strength we have gained – how much we have grown. The light!

The Secret…

The quotation this Sunday is from Buddha.

If you look closely at the teachings of all the great spiritual leaders of the world, past and present, you will find that they all talk about the relationship between living in the present moment and health.

It’s not easy to do. It requires us to pay 100% attention to whatever we are doing at this precise moment in time. But when we achieve it even for a short while, we feel all our worries and fears drop away.

Kindness…

This sunday’s quotation comes from the writings of Lao Tzu.

Kindness is one of those words which we often use but don’t often think about what it really means. Dictionary.com lists these as synonyms for kindness:

benignity, benevolence, humanity, generosity, charity, sympathy, compassion, tenderness, good turn.

We tend to think of Kindness in terms of helping other people in a tangible way – doing someone a good turn. We tend to forget that kindness, like all good charity, should begin at home. If we can’t be kind to ourselves, how can we hope to be kind to others.