Inspire-ME Monday #2: Buddha & Buddhism

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"When people asked the Buddha why his followers were so joyful and healthy when they lived so simply, he replied: 'They do not repent the past, nor do they brood over the future. They live in the present. Therefore they are radiant. By brooding over the future and repenting the past, fools dry up like green reeds cut down in the sun.'” --From Why I am a Buddhist by Stephen T. Asma, PhD

"Everywhere is here." --Prince Siddhartha in Wake Up: A Life of the Buddha by Jack Keruoac

"During deep meditation it is possible to dispel time, to see simultaneously all the past, present and future, and then everything is good, everything is perfect, everything is Brahman. Therefore, it seems to me that everything that exists is good—death as well as life, sin as well as holiness, wisdom as well as folly. Everything is necessary, everything needs only my agreement, my ascent, my loving understanding; then all is well with me and nothing can harm me." --Herman Hesse from Siddhartha

"Your enemy is your greatest teacher." --Buddhist saying

 "I thought if you could run 100 miles you'd be in this Zen state. You'd be the fucking Buddha, bringing peace and a smile to the world. It didn't work in my case - I'm the same old punk-ass as before - but there's always hope that it will turn you into the person you want to be, a better, more peaceful person." --Jenn "Mookie" Shelton in Born to Run

"You're bound to become a Buddha if you practice. If water drips long enough even rocks wear through." --Shih-Wu

"When we look into our own hearts and begin to discover what is confused and what is brilliant, what is bitter and what is sweet, it isn’t just ourselves that we’re discovering. We’re discovering the universe. When we discover the Buddha that we are, we realize that everything and everyone is Buddha. We discover that everything is awake, and everyone is awake. Everything and everyone is precious and whole and good. When we regard thoughts and emotions with humor and openness, that’s how we perceive the universe." --Pema Chodron

"The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, but to live the present moment wisely and earnestly." --Buddha

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