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“The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness of the interdependence of all these living beings, which are all part of one another, and all involved in one another.”

~ Thomas Merton

all of this life, from the micro to the macro (even inside this very body!) is relationship.there’s no escaping this truth. we cannot say, “oh, that’s just happening over there” or “not my problem”. the ripple set forth will reach our shore, the seeds planted will bear fruit served to our table.
all we have before us is our decision whether to relate in a way that is closed, tight, fearful, and aggressive, or to relate in a way that is open-hearted, steady, wise and kind, tender and compassionate.
our mutual future and wellbeing depends on how we choose to live this sacred life.

~j

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#interdependence #life #relationship #OpenHeart #path #practice #ThomasMerton #JinpaLhaga #JMWart #TibetanKnot #EndlessKnot #art 

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this is love.

path and practice.

~j

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#love #freedom #OpenHeart #path #practice #JinpaLhaga #JMWart #art #enso

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“Only love is big enough to hold all the pain of this world.” 

~ Sharon Salzberg

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#love #pain #suffering #OpenHeart #path #practice #SharonSalzbergQuote #SharonSalzberg #JinpaLhaga #JMWart #art

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“Ours is not a caravan of despair. Even if you have broken your vows a thousand times, it doesn’t matter. Come, come yet again, come.” 

~ Rumi

every breath is a new opportunity to engage life in an open-hearted way, with empathy, with tenderness, kindness, wisdom and compassion.

~j

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#BeginAnew #BeginAgain #OpenHeart #empathy #tenderness #kindness #wisdom #compassion #path #practice #RumiQuote #Rumi #JinpaLhaga #JMWart #calligraphy

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who are we leaving out of our love & compassion?

who are we allowing to suffer without a response from our love & compassion?

is our love & our compassion free to all because of their inherent sacredness, or only to those we feel aligned or close to, or approve of, or understand, or have a natural arising affection or tenderness towards?

these questions are not about shame or guilt. they are foundational work. they are an exploration of accountability & responsibility to each other. we belong to each other. this is the law of life, of interdependence, of interbeing. so, when we build borders of exclusion within our hearts & world, when we “other” & marginalize, & oppress, & colonize, & annihilate, we are living in opposition to life itself, to love itself.

asking the tough questions is practice.

cultivating love, tenderness, compassion for all without bias or exclusion is practice.

responding to the pain & suffering of our world is practice.

building peace by being peace is practice.

one of the first things we learn with practice is how to “stop”. to simply stop & allow a gap of space where our minds & hearts have the chance to open a little bit more, where awareness and wisdom have the opportunity to arise.

without stopping, there is little chance of our participation in a change that is beneficial to bringing about a lessening or ending to suffering, to building a world of safety & peace. 

~j

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#CeasefireNow #love #compassion #empathy #peace #practice #path #SaintFrancisOfAssisi #EngagedBuddhism #enso #JinpaLhaga #JMWart #art

we lost our dear Goofy this past Saturday night. frankly, it’s been devastating. he was – IS – so beloved in this house and is so missed. we all love our fur family members and i’ve loved all of them throughout my life, but Goofy really was special. he was a bit neurotic and sensitive, yes, but also the gentlest, sweetest dog. mostly unexcitable unless you sang happy birthday to him OR anyone else in earshot! he would dance around and go person to person while we sang. he always seemed to think it was HIS birthday. he had such a gentle heart and deep soulful eyes. 

in general, Great Danes don’t have very long lives, but we expected a few more years, so it has been a shocking loss, an unprepared loss. we never know how long any of us have, in truth, so what else is there than to love. and Goofy was deeply loved and he had a depth of love he gave back. what a gift! sometimes letting go is the greatest act of love we can offer. another’s freedom is the greatest wish we can send to the heavens on their behalf.

years ago, i wrote a little verse i recite daily, but it bears repeating on such occasions as well:

may we hold all of life with love,

and with love, may we let go.

~j

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#loss #death #FurFamily #dog #pet #life #love #JinpaLhaga

“The world you see is just a movie in your mind. Rocks don’t see it. Bless and sit down. Forgive and forget. Practice kindness all day to everybody and you will realize you’re already in heaven now.

That’s the story.”

~ Jack Kerouac

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#HereAndNow #OpenHeart #path #practice #JackKerouac #JinpaLhaga #JMWart #Zen #enso

#HappyPrideMonth

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each of us without exception, are sacred incarnations of life and love, having within us the seed of awakening. how could it be otherwise? we are all made of stardust, light coming forth into this world to teach the world to love without discrimination or favor, a heart opening agape, altruistic love.

be you, be beautiful, and love. live life fully, kindly, tenderly, and fantastically. the world will catch up. where there is love, fear cannot stand, for it is founded in ignorance. even as some work against it, the light of love will not stay hidden for long. how could it be otherwise? it is the ground where we find our being.

~j

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#LGBTQIA #Queer #Pride #BeYou #BeBeautiful #BeLight #BeLove #Buddhanature #OpenHeart #path #practice #JinpaLhaga #JMWart #art #Buddha #PrideBuddha #RainbowBuddha

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it doesn’t have to be this way.

it is important to remember this.

it can be easy to get stuck, stuck in a certain view, stuck in the idea that it has always been this way, so nothing can change. or stuck in the overwhelming sense of it all, that it is too big to do anything about.

but neither of these are really true. so, it is important to not surrender to cynicism or despair.

all things are subject to conditions and change. when we change our view, we can change conditions, and then real practical and beneficial change can take place for ourselves and for the world.

~j

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#WakeUp #impermanence #life #love #NewChoices #ChoosePeace #ChooseLove #hope #OpenHeart #path #practice #JinpaLhaga #JMWart #art 

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how am i going to practice love today? how am i going to live this life today? what is my offering to the world today? who am i including? who have i left out? can i begin to include them today?

before we get up, get going, and get distracted, we can begin each day asking these questions.

this can be our practice.

~j

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#life #love #offering #OpenHeart #path #practice #JinpaLhaga #JMWart