Sangha of Auspicious Companions

Dharma Quote from Snow Lion Publications

In the Pursuit of Happy

Happiness is the absence of the striving for happiness. — Chuang Tzu

~~~~ Tip of the Day: “Happiness is defined as a sense of well being, a feeling of joy or delight, and a state of balance and contentment. However, it is easy to confuse intensity, pursuing pleasure, and thrill seeking with joy, delight and contentment. The qualities of happiness include having a sense of freedom to make choices; being loved and giving love; acting in kind and compassionate ways; and seeing life in a context greater than oneself and being connected to the ‘big picture’ and/or ‘greater good’ through purpose, meaning and service. True happiness seems to be more related to one’s state of mind than to your circumstances or the impact of transitory, external events. That is why you can impact your level of happiness by your thoughts, emotions, attention, awareness, and actions.” Dr. William B. Stewart, author of “Deep Medicine,” shares further. http://premiere.whatcounts.com/t?ctl=169B4F1:C3009629A010612C7E400DB610C58249B4B847859706E37D&

~~~~ Be The Change: Make a conscious effort to impact your level of happiness by internal means: thoughts, emotions, attention, and awareness.

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Quote of the Week | Rejoicing Generates Good Will

Learn More | Books and Audio | The Pema Chödrön Foundation

Teachings by Pema Chödrön, taken from works published by Shambhala Publications. Photo by ©Andrea Roth. Forwarded from a friend? You can subscribe to this e-mail emailList, and be sure to include both your old and new addresses. If you no longer wish to receive the Heart Advice e-mails, click here. If you can’t see the images, click here.

The Potential for Design

Our systems, perhaps, are nothing more than an unconscious apology for our faults. — Henri Frederic Amiel

~~~~ Inspiration of the Day: “Design is an inescapable dimension of human activity. To adapt one of my favorite quotes by Reyner Banham, like the weather it is always there, but we speak about it only when it is exceptionally bad or exceptionally good. Design is also a powerful political tool, as pharaohs, queens, presidents, and dictators throughout history have taught us. It comes not only in very visible and traditional applications — in the national identities expressed by currencies, symbols, monuments, an public buildings — but also in less apparent and yet equally momentous applications such as the design of complex systems, ranging from territorial infrastructures to the planning of new communities, and the translation of technological and social innovation for the use of the population.” Paola Antonelli, senior curator of Design and Architecture at the Museum of Modern Art, further explores the potential for design.
http://premiere.whatcounts.com/t?ctl=169B33D:C3009629A010612CBA3334D1297AFBCFB4B847859706E37D&

~~~~ Be The Change: Some intriguing words by the great thinker Vimala Thakar, called “Each of Us, a Miniature Wholeness.” http://premiere.whatcounts.com/t?ctl=169B33E:C3009629A010612CBA3334D1297AFBCFB4B847859706E37D&

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Year of Dancing with Life – Week 4

Email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser. Week 4: Suffering Is Noble To receive Phillip’s weekly teaching, click here: http://www.lifebalanceinstitute.com/ dharmawisdom/dancing-with-life/ teaching/suffering-noble May your study of this material deepen your meditation practice and inspire your dance with life. If you are interested in studying Dancing with Life in more depth, sign up to receive your on-line study guide and other supplemental materials.

Smile Newsletter: What The Geese Taught Me

Nov 1, 2011 Its never too late to be what you might have been. — George Elliot “I was just in town and standing in front of a store. A bearded man came by and politely asked another man who was passing by, “Excuse me, can you help me?” This other man, much more affluent by the look of his clothes, replied in a very rude and abrupt tone, “I dont have time for that right now!!” and kept walking. I suppose he thought the bearded man was going to ask him for money. But that wasn’t the case. After he stomped off this man turned to me and asked the same question. It turned out all he wanted was for someone to unclip a watch that was clipped to the back of his pack so he could go in and buy a battery for it. Not a huge request. I was glad to be able to help after the first man had treated him so rudely. This experience reminded me how important it is to stop, look, and listen.” – Borderjoy [ share your story >> ] You can also contribute comments on each story! Spreading Smiles in Calcutta >> What The Geese Taught Me >> A Pay It Forward Revolution at School >> More Stories >> “I have a seven year old nephew who is one of the most loving, kind, thoughtful, caring, and sharing little boys I know. He wanted to be pen pals with one of my sisters and me and correspond back and forth with us. We’ve been doing this for a couple months now, and I just got a letter from him the other day, which brought tears to my eyes. He told me that I’m his pal and he loves me so much, he can hardly breathe! I was so taken aback by his comment because I was just so astounded that such a young boy would even think of something like that. It surely did make my day. Receiving his sweet letters always brings a smile to my face!” – Sunshinegirl What is a “smile card”? It’s a game of kindness — do something nice for someone and leave a card behind asking them to pay it forward. To date, 976,065 cards have been shipped without any charge. The ‘Smiles’ newsletter is emailed to 85,001 subscribers with the intent of spreading more smiles in the world. You can unsubscribe anytime. get smile cards | donate | write to us

Why Do A Billion Go Hungry?

If you desire peace, cultivate justice, but at the same time cultivate the fields to produce more bread; otherwise there will be no peace. — Norman Borlaug

~~~~ Good News of the Day: In 1971, Frances Moore Lappe wrote a remarkable book that started a movement: “Diet for a Small Planet.” Since then, people have been asking her, “Have things gotten better or worse?” She says, both. The number of hungry people has soared to nearly a billion, despite strong harvests; just four companies control three quarters of international grain trade; conditions for farmworkers remain so horrific that seven Florida growers have been convicted of slavery involving over 1000 workers. However, there is another current that is democratizing power and aligning farming with nature’s genius. Take a look at this insightful look into our global food system. http://premiere.whatcounts.com/t?ctl=169B22D:C3009629A010612CFC5E6FB18698018CB4B847859706E37D&

~~~~ Be The Change: Will bio-technology solve the world’s hunger problem or only deepen it? Contemplate the reflections of various experts in the field. http://premiere.whatcounts.com/t?ctl=169B22E:C3009629A010612CFC5E6FB18698018CB4B847859706E37D&

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InnerNet Weekly: Finding the Deepest Joy in Relationships

Email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser. Finding the Deepest Joy in Relationships by Ezra Bayda [Listen to Audio!] One very helpful tool in both clarifying and working with our relationship difficulties is to return to the three questions: Am I truly happy right now? What blocks happiness? Can I surrender to what is? […] The first question helps identify what we’re actually feeling (often we don’t know). The second question shows us where we’re stuck in our conditioning—our expectations, demands, or unhealed pain. Once we see our expectations clearly, and once we work through our surface emotional reactions, we usually reach that uncomfortable place where we begin to feel our deepest fears — such as the fear of being unworthy, the fear of being alone, the fear of being hurt again, the fear of rejection, or the fear of the loss of control or safety. Our fears may not necessarily be logical, but we still believe at our core that they are the truth, and they certainly dictate how we feel and how we live, thus blocking any chance for true contentment. Finally, the third question leads us directly into the experiential process of coming face to face with our own fears—the fears that are almost always at the root of our unhappiness in relationships. Asking the third question — Can I surrender to what is? — allows us to do the one thing that can help free us from the domination of our fears: that is, to welcome them in and actually feel them. We may think we can’t stand to feel our fears, but the truth is we just don’t want to, primarily because they feel so uncomfortable. But over time we can develop the courage and confidence to stay present with our fears. We learn again and again that it’s awareness that heals; and gradually, the fears, which at one point felt so solid and unapproachable, are now much more workable. As we become more inwardly free from our conditioning and our fears, the love and connection that are possible in relationships tend to flow through us more naturally. As our defenses are lowered, our heart opens, and there is a natural desire to give from the generosity of the heart. We discover that genuine happiness in relationships is not a product of having our expectations met or getting what we want but rather it is the consequence of freely giving in order to bring happiness to another. Nearly every parent has experienced this at some point — their deepest joy coming from giving unselfishly to their children. Unfortunately, this truth is often forgotten as relationships become more complex, and especially as fear supersedes our innate desire to give from the heart.