Please post some of your favorite quotes!

We are what we think.

All that we are arises with our thoughts.

With our thoughts we make the world.

Buddha

Dhammapada.

This existence of ours is as transient as autumn clouds.

To watch the birth and death of sentient beings is like looking at the movements of a dance.

A lifetime is like a flash of lightning in the sky,

rushing by, like a torrent down a steep mountain.

************************************************************************

Indeed, the truth has never been preached by the Buddha,

seeing that one has to realize it within oneself.

Regarding

the highest, most fulfilled, awakened mind,

I have not attained anything,

That is why it is called

the highest, most fulfilled, awakened mind.

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The wise man who sees the world as illusion,

Does not act as if it is real,

Therefore he does not suffer

And

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Holding onto anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burnt

Do not believe in anything (simply)

because you have heard it.

Do not believe in traditions because they

have been handed down for many generations.

Do not believe in anything because it is

spoken and rumoured by many.

Do not believe in anything (simply) because

it is found written in your religious books.

Do not believe in anything merely on the authority

of your teachers and elders.

But after observation and analysis,

when you find that anything agrees with reason

and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all

then accept it and live up to it.

As a mother would risk her life

to protect her child, her only child,

even so should one cultivate a limitless heart

with regard to all beings.

With good will for the entire cosmos,

cultivate a limitless heart:

Above, below, & all around,

unobstructed, without hostility or hate.

Whether standing, walking,

sitting, or lying down,

as long as one is alert,

one should be resolved on this mindfulness.

This is called a sublime abiding

here & now.

Buddha

Karaniya Metta Sutta.

"Here in this body are the sacred rivers;

Here are the Sun and the Moon,

As well as all the pilgrimage places.

I have not encountered another Temple

as Blissful as my own Body."

Saraha.

"there is suffering"

my favorite one

sarva kalikalaha vigraha vivada prasamanim

sarva bhuta graha nivaranim

sarva paravidya chedanim

akala mrtyu paritryayanim

sarva sattva bandhana moksanim

_/\_

When asked, "what is the answer to life the universe and everything" the Buddha replied,

"Don’t ask silly questions".

LOL

I love the one on anger and hot coals, thank you for streaming it into my awareness.

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"This is my child, this is my wealth": such thoughts are the preoccupations of fools. If we are unable to own even ourselves, why make such claims?

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There are two mistakes one can make along the road to truth—not going all the way, and not starting.

Reasoning is harmful

To fools;

It ruins their good fortune

And splits open their heads.

The Dhammapada

I really love this conversation:

Vimalakirti Nirdesa Sutra:

....Then the venerable Sariputra said to the Brahma Sikhin, "As for me, O Brahma, I see this great earth, with its highs and lows, its thorns, its precipices, its peaks, and its abysses, as if it were entirely filled with ordure."

Brahma Sikhin replied, "The fact that you see such a buddha-field as this as if it were so impure, reverend Sariputra, is a sure sign that there are highs and lows in your mind and that your positive thought in regard to the buddha-gnosis is not pure either. Reverend Sariputra, those whose minds are impartial toward all living beings and whose positive thoughts toward the buddha-gnosis are pure see this buddha-field as perfectly pure."

Thereupon the Lord touched the ground of this billion-world-galactic universe with his big toe, and suddenly it was transformed into a huge mass of precious jewels, a magnificent array of many hundreds of thousands of clusters of precious gems, until it resembled the universe of the Tathagata Ratnavyuha, called Anantagunaratnavyuha. Everyone in the entire assembly was filled with wonder, each perceiving himself seated on a throne of jeweled lotuses.

Then, the Buddha said to the venerable Sariputra, "Sariputra, do you see this splendor of the virtues of the buddha-field?"

Sariputra replied, "I see it, Lord! Here before me is a display of splendor such as I never before heard of or beheld!"

The Buddha said, "Sariputra, this buddha-field is always thus pure, but the Tathagata makes it appear to be spoiled by many faults, in order to bring about the maturity of the inferior living beings. For example, Sariputra, the gods of the Trayastrimsa heaven all take their food from a single precious vessel, yet the nectar which nourishes each one differs according to the differences of the merits each has accumulated. Just so, Sariputra, living beings born in the same buddha-field see the splendor of the virtues of the buddha-fields of the Buddhas according to their own degrees of purity."

VIMALAKIRTI NIRDESA SUTRA.doc

I think trans must be wrong at a point.

"The Buddha said, "Sariputra, this buddha-field is always thus pure, but the Tathagata makes it appear to be spoiled by many faults, in order to bring about the maturity of the inferior impure living beings. For example, Sariputra, the gods of the Trayastrimsa heaven all take their food from a single precious vessel, yet the nectar which nourishes each one differs according to the differences of the merits each has accumulated. Just so, Sariputra, living beings born in the same buddha-field see the splendor of the virtues of the buddha-fields of the Buddhas according to their own degrees of purity." "

I would cross out everything malevolent or violent, because it is likely distorted interpretations vying for power stemming from greed.

   On 2012-5-9 at 9:00 PM, Informer said:

I think trans must be wrong at a point.

 

"The Buddha said, "Sariputra, this buddha-field is always thus pure, but the Tathagata makes it appear to be spoiled by many faults, in order to bring about the maturity of the inferior impure living beings. For example, Sariputra, the gods of the Trayastrimsa heaven all take their food from a single precious vessel, yet the nectar which nourishes each one differs according to the differences of the merits each has accumulated. Just so, Sariputra, living beings born in the same buddha-field see the splendor of the virtues of the buddha-fields of the Buddhas according to their own degrees of purity." "

 

I would cross out everything malevolent or violent, because it is likely distorted interpretations vying for power stemming from greed.

Good change of the words. yes it may have been a translation error. The Buddha wouldn't say living beings are inferior...but it may be a comparison to the manner of state that a living being resides in given their karmic conditions.

Yet, inferior wouldn't be the best choice of wordings... lol

Thanks for the clear-up

I figured it must have been impure because he was talking about purity and degrees of it.

   On 2012-5-10 at 5:03 AM, Informer said:

I figured it must have been impure because he was talking about purity and degrees of it.

In terms of purity and impurity of mind, for the sake of speaking in relative terms, I would agree too that the Buddha may have pointed to this manner of this comparison. But not to be discriminative in terms of inferiority and superiority.

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Truly, I have attained nothing from total enlightenment

 

-Buddha

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In the sky, there is no distinction of east and west; people create distinctions out of their own minds and then believe them to be true.

 

-Buddha

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It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven or hell.

 

-Buddha

   On 2012-5-9 at 9:00 PM, Informer said:

I think trans must be wrong at a point.

 

"The Buddha said, "Sariputra, this buddha-field is always thus pure, but the Tathagata makes it appear to be spoiled by many faults, in order to bring about the maturity of the inferior impure living beings. For example, Sariputra, the gods of the Trayastrimsa heaven all take their food from a single precious vessel, yet the nectar which nourishes each one differs according to the differences of the merits each has accumulated. Just so, Sariputra, living beings born in the same buddha-field see the splendor of the virtues of the buddha-fields of the Buddhas according to their own degrees of purity." "

 

I would cross out everything malevolent or violent, because it is likely distorted interpretations vying for power stemming from greed.

The original term may be a common Sanskrit one that means something like "ordinary ignorant person." The equivalent Chinese term is fan fu (凡夫). The key component fan (凡) means "ordinary," "common," or "worldly."

   On 2012-6-12 at 4:47 PM, styrofoamdog said:

The original term may be a common Sanskrit one that means something like "ordinary ignorant person." The equivalent Chinese term is fan fu (凡夫). The key component fan (凡) means "ordinary," "common," or "worldly."

Thanks!

So then was he referring to ones perspective of reality versus actuality?

Like some who have a materialistic stance and adamantly deny anything spiritual or mystical, who put an emphasis on external objectivity, verse the seeking and finding within the subjective realm of realizations.

I think that ignorance is a proper word in this respect in just not knowing or caring of the subjective realm within.

I wonder if there is another translation of that quote?

   On 2012-5-8 at 11:05 PM, 林愛偉 said:

http://www.thetaobums.com/index.php?app=core&module=attach&section=attach&attach_id=1978

Thanks for the attachment!

Not from Buddha but from one of his card carrying representatives:-

Foes are (as unlimited) as space,

They cannot possibly all be overcome;

Yet if you overcome the thought of hatred

This will be equal to overcoming all foes.



Where is the leather

With which one can cover the earth?

But (wearing) a leather sandal

Is equal to covering the earth with leather.



Shantideva

Sensual passions are your first army.

Your second is called Discontent.

Your third is Hunger & Thirst.

Your fourth is called Craving.

Fifth is Sloth & Drowsiness.

Sixth is called Terror.

Your seventh is Uncertainty.

Hypocrisy & Stubbornness, your eighth.

Gains, Offerings, Fame, & Status wrongly gained, and whoever would praise self & disparage others.

That, Namuci, is your army, the Dark One's commando force.

A coward can't defeat it, but one having defeated it gains bliss.

Do I carry muñja grass? I spit on my life.

Death in battle would be better for me than that I, defeated, survive.

Sinking here, they don't appear, some brahmans & contemplatives.

They don't know the path by which those with good practices go.

Seeing the bannered force on all sides — the troops, Mara along with his mount — I go into battle.

May they not budge me from my spot.

That army of yours, that the world with its devas can't overcome, I will smash with discernment — as an unfired pot with a stone.

~ Padhana Sutta

Conquerors are those like me

who have reached fermentations' end.

I've conquered evil qualities,

and so, Upaka, I'm a conqueror

~ Ariyapariyesana Sutta

Do not overlook negative actions merely because they are small; however small a spark may be, it can burn down a haystack as big as a mountain.

Do not overlook tiny good actions, thinking they are of no benefit; even tiny drops of water in the end will fill a huge vessel.