Enlightenment is Switching on the Light

For me and many other perpetual dieters I've spoken to, a trick that seems to work is as simple as first giving up sugar. It's tough for up to a week, but then you magically don't care anymore and the rest of the diet seems to fall into place. That is, until the Holiday season … Continue reading Enlightenment is Switching on the Light →

The Beginner’s Mind – Listen

There are three modes for using our brain: 1. Learning - The ability to assimilate knowledge and obtain skills. 2. Thinking - The ability to use learned knowledge to design strategies or optimize a skill. 3. Doing - Executing a strategy or skill. All of us excel at those three brain modes to different degrees. I … Continue reading The Beginner’s Mind – Listen →

Koan: How to Prepare for an Unknown Event

Mrs. Hanamoku points out that shit is a beautiful thing. Caring for our beloved pets, being around babies, caring for elderly loved ones, it's a sign of things still working well inside. So we cannot even judge shit negatively. With the secular Bodhi Day (Dec 8) past, we now await the "real" Bodhi Day, the … Continue reading Koan: How to Prepare for an Unknown Event →

Day 7 – Secular Bodhi Day Eve

Here we are at Day 7, the last day before Bodhi Day. Notice there isn't an exclamation mark - that's because it just Is, no good, no bad. There is just what Is: "Judge not, that ye not be judged." - Matthew 7:1 Our brains are judging machines. From each neuron firing or not firing, … Continue reading Day 7 – Secular Bodhi Day Eve →

Day 6 – Pitifully Inadequate Model of the Universe

Day 6 of the Secular Bodhi Day. Tomorrow, Day 7 the last day before the enlightenment of many new Buddhas on the morning of December 8, Bodhi Day. If you understand what Rubber Ducky Buddha of Joliet has been saying the past few weeks, meaning you understand that your brain is a pitifully inadequate model … Continue reading Day 6 – Pitifully Inadequate Model of the Universe →

Day 5 – Secular Bodhi Day – Levels of Reality

Today is Day 5 of the Secular Bodhi Period. For all of you aspiring to attain enlightenment on December 8, Rubber Ducky Buddha of Joliet asked me to ensure your expectations are properly set. For one, "attain", and "expectations" are clinging. It's important to understand that we will not attain enlightenment, but rather shift our … Continue reading Day 5 – Secular Bodhi Day – Levels of Reality →

Day 4 – Secular Bodhi Day 2017 – Illusion of Fragmentation

Today is Day 4 of this "secular" Bodhi Period. When last night's full moon "disappears", the real (lunar) Bodhi Period starts. These Bodhi Periods aren't tranquil, peaceful, Om-humming times. As we ignore our thoughts and focus on the present, the desperation of our thoughts for our attention increases - that's what thoughts do. Finally, exasperated, … Continue reading Day 4 – Secular Bodhi Day 2017 – Illusion of Fragmentation →