Two brothers worked together on the family farm. One was married and had a large family. The other was single. At the day's end, the brothers shared everything equally, produce and profit. Then one day the single brother said to himself, "It's not right that we should share equally the produce ...Continue Reading

Reckoning, judging, evaluating, leaping in, taking it personally, being bored -- the helping act has many number of invitations to reactiveness and distraction. Partly we are agitated because we so intensely want to help. After all, someone's in pain. We care. So part of the time we are listening, but ...Continue Reading

There is no special virtue to the phrase "voluntary simplicity"--it is merely a label and a somewhat awkward label at that. Still, it does acknowledge explicitly that simpler living integrates both inner and outer aspects of life into an organic and purposeful whole. To live more voluntarily is to live more ...Continue Reading

The absence of craving and aversion does not imply an attitude of callous indifference, in which one enjoys one’s own liberation but gives no thought to the suffering of others. On the contrary, real equanimity is properly called “holy indifference”. It is a dynamic quality, an expression of purity of ...Continue Reading

There is a great momentum of suffering and confusion that every spiritual seeker encounters. It is the momentum of ignorance which manifests as the experience of conflict and confusion and which causes suffering. In order to discover the perspective of Liberation, which alone transcends this entire movement of ignorance and ...Continue Reading

Our lives are ruled by fear. Fear of death, fear of old age, fear of illness, fear of unemployment, fear of failure, fear of superiors, fear of inferiors, fear of responsibility, fear of committment, and numerous other fears cause us continual anxiety. Fear leads to violence and war; fear prevents ...Continue Reading

A cab driver describing his 'view': And this (pointing to the windshield)...this is like my little window to the world, and every minute is a different show. Now I may not understand it, I may not even necessarily agree with it, but I tell you what, I accept it and just ...Continue Reading

There were always choices to make. Every day, every hour, offered the opportunity to make a decision which determined whether you would or would not submit to those powers which threatened to rob you of your very self, your inner freedom; which determined whether or not you would become the ...Continue Reading

Grown-ups like numbers. When you tell them about a new friend, they never ask questions about what really matters. They never ask: "What does his voice sound like?" "What games does he like best?" "Does he collect butterflies?" They ask: "How old is he?" "How many brothers does he have?" ...Continue Reading

A young boy traveled across Japan to a famous Zen school. When he arrived he was given an audience with the master. "What do you wish from me?" the master asked. "I wish to be your student and learn Zen," the boy replied. "How long must I study?" "Ten years at least," ...Continue Reading