The Cure.

Just like a fever breaks, last night I felt a deep and rejuvenating release from the rising waters that had crested yesterday with my, "discouraged" post. It isn't the "cure" of liberation from the cycle of suffering and rebirth but rather a break in the fever that is discouragement. Writing out my emotions has long helped me process the disorienting thoughts that ensnares all of our minds. It is a form of honesty, which is a trait that I've been blessed and cursed with. Blessed in the sense that it helps me dissect confusing emotions with direct and exacting examination but cursed only in the sense that such honesty means facing sometimes painful and uncomfortable realities. Yet, despite the discomfort it seems to be one of the most direct and effective ways of dealing with obstacles and discouragement.

This release was initiated with my honest writings yesterday, and the sympathetic comments helped me let go of my guilt that somehow I was "failing" as a Buddhist. Intuitively I knew this deep within the recesses of my mind but hearing it from outside yourself always seems to help convince you that what you suspected is in fact reality, and not just your mind tricking you yet again with another delusion.

So, last night lying in bed I had the most unconventional yet therapuetic meditation. Lying in bed I embraced the exhaustion of the day and just enjoyed the feeling of my tired body being cradled by our cloud-like bed. The soft, soothing, rhythmic breathing of my wife cuddled against me brought me a deep sense of calm. Being fully present in the moment I was aware of my own chest rising and falling with deep, natural breaths. Absorbing the feeling as the boundaries and limits between my body and my immediate surroundings blended into the music of the band, "The Cure." Thus, the title of the post.

Feeling limitless yet grounded at the same time--like the sky stretching from horizon to horizon, free to flow yet held from disappearing into outer space by the grounding power of gravity. As I floated about in this state of pure awareness I soon drifted off in a deep restful sleep. Today I awoke feeling like a huge weight was lifted from my mind. A new day has dawned and yet I am thankful for the reminder lesson I was given in my months of struggle. As they say, "It's always darkness before the dawn" and yesterday was that darkest water mark before it crested and ebbed to make way for pure, stabilizing balance that comes from a deep grounding of oneness.

~Peace to all beings~

A Fire Reflected in a Lake.

A fire reflected in a lake cannot burn the water. Neither can emotions disturb the mind when you don’t get involved in them. Don’t identify an emotion as your self. The fear or anger is not you, only an impersonal phenomenon.

Mentally pull back from the emotion and turn your awareness around to observe it. When in the grip of negative emotion we tend to believe it will never end. But emotions are no more permanent than thoughts.

With continued practice you’ll find that you only have to wait and any emotion, whether pleasant or unpleasant, is bound to change.

–Cynthia Thatcher, from Just Seeing: Insight Mediation and Sense-Perception (Buddhist Publication Society)

James: It sure is hard not to identify with emotions--especially when an emotional reaction is so ingrained within the psyche that its emergence seems totally involuntary. However, we know that at some level we have made a conscious choice to react in one way or another. We feel so helpless and at the mercy of these destructive and misery creating emotions. The suffering they engender is so great that it is like experiencing a nightmare.

A nightmare is a pseudo reality where the most ridiculous, terrifying and outlandish events stream through our mind like an all too real virtual reality, interactive video game. The nightmare seems so plausible--perhaps we find ourselves fleeing from a monster in our dream. Or maybe we get ourselves into some crazy situation such as a recurring dream of mine where I end up unjustly thrown in prison--an innocent man. The terror and suffering in those moments are so visceral that they can even cause the physical body to wake up sweating and gasping for air as if the body was in a real fight or flight situation.

There is, however, something called, "lucid dreaming" where a person is aware that they are dreaming--as they are dreaming. I have experienced this phenomenon every so often and it is often like watching things unfold from a third person point of view, which usually lessons the impact of the events. It is a way to step back from what is going on and get a bigger picture view of it all and see that in truth you are not going to die, or get thrown in prison or lose your parent, child or spouse. It is said that a person can train their mind to be able to go into this third person vantage point while dreaming to better deal with and process the events and impacts of the dreams.

In this way, I see meditation as the lucid dreaming of the waking state to be practiced and fine tuned to be a set of tools to enable us to walk through samsara and accumulate less heavy karmic debts.

~Peace to all beings~

Chimpanzee Helps Raise Baby Tiger Cubs.

Animals are often seen as dumb and beneath human beings in many societies and religions. The Judeo-Christian-Islamic religions believe that animals are here for man's benefit--man's greed in my opinion. There are many cases of animals saving human beings from a burning house, get help when lost and even cases of them being able to dial the phone for help such as if the owner has a seizure of heart attack!! There are many who think they are incapable of emotions such as love, compassion and concern but there have been numerous cases of the opposite. These animals may not know that they are experiencing emotions but their actions show that they clearly are motivated by some level of emotional motivation. Well animals are also capable and willing to help other animals too. Take the case of the chimpanzee Anjana who has adopted two white tiger cubs as her own when their mother rejected them. She is an expert it seems at these things as she has previously helped raise leopards and lions.“She gives them a bottle and lies with them — she is a great assistant.” The cubs have become almost inseparable from their new motherly figures. She has a close contact and bond and gives them a nurturing.'

James: I wouldn't be surprised if Anjana is reborn as a human being in her next life with her kind, caring, compassionate, loving and nurturing essence. She is already practicing the Dharma. I'm sure that she will be a wonderful human being if she gets that chance. May she be a good example for us humans to keep practicing the Dharma to make the most of this human life.

~Peace to all beings~

The Health Benefits of Incense.

Religious leaders have contended for millennia that burning incense is good for the soul. Now, biologists have learned that it is good for our brains too. An international team of scientists, including researchers from Johns Hopkins University and the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, describe how burning frankincense (resin from the Boswellia plant) activates poorly understood ion channels in the brain to alleviate anxiety or depression.

They found that the compound significantly affected areas in brain areas known to be involved in emotions as well as in nerve circuits that are affected by current anxiety and depression drugs.

James: I use incense to show my gratitude to Buddha for bringing us the Dharma but I also use it because I too have found it to be very relaxing, tranquil and thus conducive to meditation as now proven by science. I find it very rejuvenating to catch a scent of sweet smelling incense while concentrating upon my breath much like lying in a mountain meadow and taking in the smell of fresh flowers with eyes closed. And speaking of eyes closed, I have noticed that when I close my eyes in meditation that the scent of the incense stands out more in my mind. This is probably similar to how when some go blind that their other senses are heightened.

James: I have found too that incense helps me concentrate and focus my attention back to the present moment when I meditate as the incense burns throughout my sessions. This is because when I feel like my mind is doing intellectual somersaults I breath in and out for a bit and the scent brings me back to the present moment.

Also, the burning of incense helps to create a positive state of mind and helps condition the mind to associate the typical fragrance with a positive and calm mind.

James: For myself, Aloes wood reminds me of smells that I enjoyed in Africa, which was a very happy time in my life so when I burn it while meditating it helps me recognize happiness that is always present in each moment if I'm mindful enough. And Nag Champa reminds me of the Nepal-Tibet Imports store where I buy all of my incense and altar items. I always feel relaxed in that shop with all the nice smells, beautiful Buddha statues and the nice family that runs it.

Sandalwood is another favorite of mine and has been used by Buddhists, Hindus and others for 4,000 years. Its special calming effect has been used to treat anxiety and depression, and it acts as a mild sedative. It's one of my favorite incenses for those reasons but also for it's woody smell that reminds me of the woody smells of my favorite camping spot way up in the Rocky Mountains here in Colorado.

And smelling that woody smell reminds me that I am one with all things, which makes me feel small in a good way, in the sense of reducing my ego and just enjoying being no different than a sweet, woody scented pine tree. Trees are rooted deeply in the Earth and smelling that woody scent helps me feel rooted in the present moment and that there is much beauty and peace to be had in this world of suffering. It relaxes me because I have spent so many peaceful, happy days up in those mountains. It is one of my favorite places to meditate because of the fresh air, scents of sweet and woody pine trees and the crisp breeze that often blows through the area.

However, because of it being smoke I try and keep a bit of distance between myself and the burning incense. Also when the weather is nice I will crack open a window a bit to circulate fresh air.

~Peace to all beings~