#gil fronsdal

[deepinsamsara]

"Any understanding or sense of self is a construction of the mind—it has its role in life but it has no inherent existence. Any understanding of the world or even of Buddhist practice is a construct of the mind. Paradoxically, for practitioners, Buddhist teachings are constructs of mind that point beyond themselves." - Gil Fronsdal

[dharmarainbow]

The Buddha understood that suffering arises from and is fueled by clinging. When the fuel is removed, suffering is extinguished.

Gil Fronsdal, “Nirvana: Three Takes”

[true-person-of-no-rank]

[terracemuse]

between your thoughts

[dmcblue]

Calm in mind, speech, and action    And released through right understanding, Such a person      Is fully at peace.

Gautama Buddha, Dhammapada 96 (trans. Gil Fronsdal)

[hocuspicus]

Once you know your deepest wish you can base your life on intention rather than craving.

Gil Fronsdal

[deepinsamsara]

"The world of karma is the world of intention, and the world of intention belongs to the world of right now. Nowhere else. With what intention do you meet this moment? What is your intention for how you do your work, or drive, carry on a con­versation, or do someone a favor? If you tend to your intentions with love and care, as you would a garden, your intentions will flower beautifully and bear fruit in your life." - Gil Fronsdal

[deepinsamsara]

"During my early Vipassana practice in Thailand, Achaan Buddhadasa said at the opening of a ten-day retreat, “Do not do anything that takes you out of your body.” I carried this-for me puzzling-instruction with me during the ten-day retreat, and I began to realize how often my center of attention and gravity were projected in front of me as I so frequently reached forward to grasp or identify with something outside of myself. The anticipation of lunch or the end of a meditation period, the rehashing of memories, the planning for future events, and the desire for or aversion to emotions or states of mind all contributed to a sense of not being physically centered on myself. Often I would feel as if I was ahead of myself either by actually leaning forward, or more usually and more subtly by feeling my “center of gravity” projected forward. In the course of the ten-day retreat, I began to learn to settle back into my own center of gravity and to align my body in a balanced vertical posture. The more settled I felt in my body, the more sensitive I became to ever subtler movements away from center caused by ever subtler attachments and aversions of the mind. Gradually I learned that mindfulness of the body is one of the best windows I have into an honest view of my inner life. In contrast to a trend in western culture to posit a radical duality between the body and the mind, the Buddha saw the human mind and body as intimately interconnected. When we repress or suppress aspects of our emotional and cognitive life we tend to disconnect ourselves from our body. The exploration and awakening of the body from the inside through mindfulness and awareness can result in a rediscovery of suppressed emotions, and also a greater capacity to feel emotions, to be sentient beings."

-Gil Fronsdal (x)