Tag: practice

Opinions Without Anger

In the UK of late, the news headlines have often been filled with stories and pictures of those appearing to not be complying with the lockdown rules, covidiots as the press brand them, and the actions of some have created a storm of much wrath and heated debate. In the face of an overwhelming crisis … Continue reading Opinions Without Anger →

The Incorrigible i

I was looking over some old notes of an investigation I was doing a couple of years ago into the nature of self, and I noticed the notes read with an almost poetic tone so I decided to arrange them into a Dhamma poem. I'm not a frequent poem writer, it does occasionally seem like … Continue reading The Incorrigible i →

No Feelings? No Chance

Watching a Dhamma Q&A this week I noticed there was something of a theme in the questions. Many of them revolved around asking about ways to alleviate fear, pain, grief, or anger. While it isn't unusual to ask these kinds of questions, even of ourselves, I wondered if this was part of a tendency we … Continue reading No Feelings? No Chance →

Have You Heard Yourself Lately?

Do you think you really pay attention to your thoughts? Do you ever listen to what your mind is actually saying to you? In my last post I was exploring different ways that we can loosen the grip of thinking on our minds and emotions. Ways like challenging your thoughts or recognising convenient fictions are … Continue reading Have You Heard Yourself Lately? →

Be Brave, Stay Still

In a time of great need, we must all be needed to do something. It’s a very logical thought, surely at a time like this we must be something we are all required to do. As we sit in lockdown wondering what to do with ourselves often our mind starts posing this question to us … Continue reading Be Brave, Stay Still →

Metta For Fear

Life is always uncertain but at the moment that uncertainty seems more apparent than usual. At times like this naturally we take refuge in our practices, but while they can support us through testing times they often don't give us clear situation specific instructions to follow. We are never really told what to do. Instead … Continue reading Metta For Fear →

The Three Refuges

How do you become a Buddhist? Is it complicated? Well no, actually, it can be very simple. In some traditions all you need to do is take the three refuges, these being the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha. The Buddha is of course the Buddha himself, the Dhamma is the teachings, and the Sangha … Continue reading The Three Refuges →

Keeping Your Routine Away From Home

Do you still meditate when you are on holiday? When you are staying in a friend's house for the weekend? When you are working away from home? Are you the diligent type that always gets a sit in or does your normal routine suffer, or does your routine go on hold until you get home? … Continue reading Keeping Your Routine Away From Home →

Three Wedding Days and a Funeral

Life has been somewhat up and down for me recently, I have been taken away from my usual routines to deal with the sharp end of being alive - namely sickness, old age, and death. But at the same time I found myself in a curious juxtaposition: in the same week I both attended the … Continue reading Three Wedding Days and a Funeral →

Your Parrot Mind

Do you ever sit in meditation and wish that your mind would just shut up and give you some peace and quiet? Even just a few minutes peace seems like all you need but hard as you try to concentrate your mind just won’t stop. The conversation with Karen from HR, the jingle that was … Continue reading Your Parrot Mind →