who we are, what we stand for…


a reminder of who we are and what we stand for…~j
Inscription on the Statue of Liberty
Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses, yearning to breath free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,

Send these, the homeless, tempest tossed to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door. 

Author: Emma Lazarus
#StatueOfLiberty #remember #OpenHeart #refuge #immigration #TheOther #ThereIsNoOther #compassion #kindness #generosity #courage #TheLongArc

you are needed…


principles, values, morals, ethics.their companion is our integrity and willingness to stand and to speak when such a time arises. the time is now. 

~j
#WakeUp #OpenEyes #Bodhisattvas #BodhisattvaVow #Service #FierceCompassion #Compassion #Kindness #Courage #Love #OpenHeart #TheLongArc

get in the game…


we must be vigilant and tireless in our commitment. truth, goodness, kindness, compassion, and love require our participation. ~j

#Bodhisattvas #BodhisattvaVow #Service #FierceCompassion #Compassion #Kindness #Courage #Love #OpenHeart #TheLongArc

have some tea and be on your way…


in the Buddhism there is a tradition of inviting our fears to tea. listen to them with understanding and compassion, with gentleness, with tender-heartedness. they might have something important to say!this takes bravery, but they can be our hidden teachers. 

and then, send them on their way.
invite them to tea, 

but not to stay 😌🙏🏻
#fears #listen #understanding #compassion #bravery #courage #YouCanHaveTeaButCannotStay

#Buddhism #wisdom

Dia De Los Muertos…


Dia de los Muertos
a day to reflect on those who have passed, but haven’t left us. a lifting of the veil revealing that we are all One, interconnected through space and time, life and death, in this always moving ground of Being. through memory and ritual, offering prayers of honor, respect and gratitude.
the theme of death is an integral part of Buddhist practice, not as some morbid practice – but practice for what is inevitable and a sacred part of life. something we so desperately try to avoid in our culture, namely: sickness, aging, and dying – in another word, change.
practicing “death” is practicing “life.” each out breath is a death and each in breath is life reborn. an opportunity to be grateful for, an opportunity to continue this adventure of learning to love better and open our hearts.
perhaps this is what our loved ones, who have passed, are trying to tell us.
~j
“In trying to deny that things are always changing, we lose our sense of the sacredness of life. It’s easy to forget that life and death are part of the natural scheme of things, intrinsic to our lives in an eternally shifting universe.”

~ Ronna Kobatznick
#DiaDeLosMuertos

#life #death #practice #love #meditation #buddhism #interdependence #change #family #relationships #ghosts #TheMettaGarden

fall in love with life…


fall in love with life… 

“Every day, priests minutely examine the Dharma and endlessly change complicated sutras. Before doing that, though, they should learn how to read the love letters sent by the wind and rain, the snow and moon.” ~ Ikkyu
#love #life #nature #ItIsAllHere #dharma #Ikkyu #zen #JMWphotos #JMWart

equanimity…


Not being reactive is not being passive. Real equanimity isn’t indifference. It’s the capacity to be present with your whole being and not add fuel to the fire.
~

Jack Kornfield 
#equanimity