Zen Wisdom for Your Everyday Life

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So much of the time we are rocked back and forth by disappointment and confusion. We may blame others, or life itself, but in truth distress takes over because of where we have placed our trust. We are trained to put our faith and trust in authorities of all kinds, teachings, teachers, newspapers, and so called experts in every area. And all the time the true expert, the real basis of well being and strength is right in front of our eyes, living our lives, whispering in our ears, guiding us step by step. Why is it so difficult to listen to what we hear, see what we see, be grateful for the endless gifts we receive each day, even be unaware of them? Let us return to our original wisdom, and live a life based on our deepest truths.

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So many resist change, as if the only way to stay steady and strong is for everything to be stable. Then we'll know who we are and how to behave. We live inside  the illusion that security comes with being in an unchanging, familiar world. However, this illusion is disrupted all the time, as our lives consist of nothing but change. And, the great art of remaining, steady and stable is to view change differently. Change is not our enemy, change is not loss. Change is only change. Once we know it, expect it,  let go of resisting it, we become at home and secure in the very experience of change itself.  This requires letting go of our endless craving to hold on, grasp things tightly. Instead, in this beautiful, new way of being, we simply learn how to open our hands.

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We all feel we have so many burdens, one thing to do after the next. And it never ends.  Day by day, hour by hour, we search around for what's next. How can we improve things, what needs to be done now? Zazen practice comes to tell us to  sit down quietly, breathe, realize that it's all done. Our racing minds and hearts have been playing with us, throwing us here and there. The longer we sit still, truly doing nothing, letting the breath breathe us, letting the thoughts drift up and leave,  we start to feel the delicious presence that we naturally are. This Presence is filled with all we need and all that everyone needs as well. It's already here, taking care of everything easily and completely. All we have to do is allow that. To stop trying to run the show. To stop having to be important. Instead, just to Be. What a wonderful discovery. What a gift to ourselves and the entire world. Try this is your relationships as well. You'll be thrilled.

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This is a holiday season of freedom from bondage of all kinds, a time to step  bravely into The Unknown .  Many cannot make that step, as they feel safer with that which is familiar, even if it is  hurtful to them.  It is a question of which messages we listen to. Do we listen to the call of our spirit, the deep inner knowing of where we belong? Or do we listen to the voices that surround us that insist we stay in our old place. All growth, all power and all true love belong to us and will  appear in our lives as we break free from the chains that bind us, and take that step into The Unknown.

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We all  want to be Unshakeable, to be able to weather any storm that comes. Most of us think that the way to do so is to  resist difficulties, remove ourselves, focus on something else. When we do so, that which is troubling us doesn't disappear. It simply goes underground and gives fuel to  underlying anxiety and fear that  can hit at any time.
The true way to be Unshakeable is to make friends with all of life. To  allow each moment, each person, and each event that comes to be what it is. To experience it fully and then simply let it go. When we do not cling to a moment, try to own it, identify with it, or become embroiled in other ways, it naturally disappears and transforms into something else. Although we might like this to happen with difficult moments,  we want to hold onto happy or beautiful moments and people endlessly. The secret  is we must adopt this open allowing with all moments, people and events. Let them Live. Let them Be As and Who They Are.  As we say in Zen, "When You Come We Welcome, When You Go We Do Not Pursue"

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There's a sure way to make your life Unshakeable, enjoyable and positive no matter what's going on. Just learn the simple and powerful art of looking through the eyes of love. Usually we start the day with concern, hoping this or that will work out well. At the same time, we drink in the endless difficult and negative message sent to us by the world. And then we search with all our might to find something or someone to counteract the hard times we face. However, we can turn all of this around easily. Real love is always waiting right where we are. As we learn the difference between Real and Counterfeit Love, we also learn how simple it is to offer Real love, to be open, available, and kind. The simplicity of this is startling, as are the wonderful effects on all. And, as we do this, the endless negativity has no choice but to melt away. 
Read The Unshakeable Road To Love, (Value Centered Relationships) and find out more. www.totalrelationshipsnow.com 

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There's an incredible secret of zazen practice, and of living our everyday lives. Don't Sit To Get Something. Just Sit To Sit. Sit to discover what sitting really is, what you are, and what this amazing world that we're part of it. Usually, we live, or practice to achieve an end. We want to be better, smarter, more in control.  We want to hold onto which we love and refuse to allow change to be change. What a mistake! That way of living or sitting, only causes heartache and disappointment in the end. What we do not realize until we actually practice this new way of sitting, is that the more we let go of our personal demands, intentions and claims, the more we receive. That which comes to us is unexpected, delightful, and perfect in its way. Loneliness fades away as we experience our lives in an entirely different way.

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We all wear masks, costumes and cling to the identity we are creating as if it's who we actually are.  What we do not realize is that these masks not only close the world out, but also imprison us behind them. Then we wonder why we feel so alone, or disconnected. But as soon as we begin to take the mask and costumes off, realize it's not who's really living inside, Then a beautiful freedom begins to come.  Not only freedom, but a sense of belonging and connection to all of life. Zen practice is entirely about slowly taking off our masks and costumes, or when we're wearing them, realizing it's just a play we're in. When we realize we're simply playing a part in an emormous play, and do not identify with the role we're playing, so much entanglement and pain dissolves.  We can even enjoy things just as they are, as we stay in touch with the Real One who's living within.  Clarity and enjoyment arises as we get in touch with the wonderful being who's right there, just behind our costumes. And, as we do, we never can feel separated or alone.

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The answer to being free of suffering is right in front of our face. It's so easy to do, and is really all that is needed. The answer arises from our endless need to always have something else, something different. What we have or receive in life, moment by moment is never quite right. It's not enough. Has to be fixed. We spend most of our precious time looking for something else, going around and around on the merry go round, trying to grab the golden ring. But the golden ring is right here, every moment and person that comes to us, just as it is. We don't have to look somewhere else. Whatever arises, realize that you do not need something else. Just be with what comes one hundred per cent... (including yourself).. Honor it, accept it. Stop rejecting yourself and your experience.. And then it will go its way and the next moment will appear. You'll actually have a wonderful time all day long then, no matter what arises. You'll suddenly see the harmony and connection between all...you'll realize that there is no need to fight off or control each moment.  Instead you can truly make friends with all of life. 

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Most of us feel that our life is like a fragile boat floating on the wild ocean. All kinds of unexpected currents arise, threatening our stability. From out of nowhere high tide comes, or perhaps a rip tide. A sunny sky turns cloudy in a moment and thunder storms can be right behind. It is difficult to experience a sense of stability and safety when we imagine our lives to be like that. When we think we are at the mercy of greater forces that can attack from out of nowhere. When we focus upon that which is transitory, upon the passing show of life, when we believe that is who we are, we are always subject to fluctuations and feel out of control. But when we undertake the practice of Zen, we return to our essential selves, which cannot be rocked around. We return to that which is not affected by the endless changes of life, and which can bring clarity, light and the warmth of love to all our experiences. Then even one sip of delicious tea delights and fills us completely.

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