Anne's Note reminds us that We're All In This Together. The main article speaks of Developing Compassion. Healthy Living recommends the Five Second Memory Release. The Anne Talk is EZosophy: Anne Sermons Gillis. The Featured Product this month is Anne's I AM Affirmations CD.

The EZ Mantra: "Everything can be EZ or at least EZier." – Anne Sermons Gillis

  A Note From Anne

Dear ,

I appreciate that you are taking a moment to read my words. I know how many things fight for our attention. I was a little concerned that my main message might be too long this week and a little too political. But then I remembered what Gurumayi says, “You take the fastest road to hell when you try to please everyone.”

So many people today seem to see the world in terms of givers and takers. Ayn Rand left her mark, but I think there’s just one world and we are all in this together. Please read this with an open mind and an open heart.

Anne

  Developing Compassion

Life is a mixed bag. Sometimes it’s a bag of tricks, while at other times it is a bag of treats. Unfortunately, some people are so fascinated with personal injustice that they hang around the bag of tricks and judge everything from that vantage point. It’s understandable when that injustice involves not getting enough water or constant bullying, but when one is spastic when left off a guest list, it’s time to rethink one’s position. And that’s what most upset is. It is a position. We take our opinion and affix it to everything we see, then plant our feet in the ground and remain unmovable.

Then comes the unexpected. We get knocked off our positions. Something happens that questions our stand. I have a friend who is in new thought. He knows a lot about the Law of Attraction, but recently was ill and spent months trying to find the problem, so he could fix it. His position was that we are always at choice. His lesson was, “There are many things in life we can’t control.” He is recovering now, but his humility is greater and his certainly about life is weaker. Sometimes an optimistic position, that demands a certain outcome, can be disadvantageous.

Life’s humbling step, when faced and assimilated, leads to compassion. We discover that there are those who cannot extricate themselves from of a life of poverty and misery simply by choosing out. Some people don’t even know how to choose. They come from a place and space where they are treading water. How can you plant a garden when you are struggling for a place to stand?

There is a tragic story emerging in our culture about people who take from society. It’s like people are afraid that some people are not going to work and they are going to suck on them and cause them to lead impoverished lives. When wealthy people inherit money, and never work a day in their lives, no one calls them lazy. 65% of people on food stamps work. If you make minimum wage, $7.25 an hour, and work for 60 hours a week, your income is $435.00 a week. If you have a family of four and have to pay transportation costs, buy food, and pay rent, not only is there nothing left over, there’s not enough to pay all the bills. You need food stamps, health care, and affordable public transportation.

Our government subsidizes large corporations though tax breaks and other incentives. Tax loopholes allow the biggest corporations in our country to pay little, if any, taxes. The slack is taken up by the poor and vanishing middle class. When a corporation does not pay its fair share, the burden falls on us. People seem to fight for corporate welfare, but disparage welfare for the working class, elderly, children, and the poor.

I once attended a seminar that created a simulation of what it was like to be poor. There were different stations, such as the food stamp office, one’s place of work, bus schedules to make, etc. I had to go to the bus station, then arrive at work. Get off work; ride the bus; go home. Find a way to pay bills and get to a place to pay them. We had an allotted time to complete the task, and if we ran out of time, there was a time bell. It might mean our family could not eat for days. Given the demands of making a living, shopping, and taking care of problems, I could rarely see my children. The bus would not be running at a time I was able to go pay a bill. The office closed just as I arrived. I had to choose between eating and electricity. And the choices went on day after day. At the end of the simulation, I was speechless and teary-eyed. I realized the difficulty, and sometimes the impossibility, of rising from poverty. It stamped out any lingering notion I may have had about a level playing field in life.

If you feel compassion for others, but feel powerless in alleviating the suffering, the Buddhist practice of tonglen offers healing for the one who prays or meditates, and healing to the one who suffers. It is an advanced practice and it is not recommended for everyone. Pema Chodron describes the practice: “In tonglen practice, when we see or feel suffering, we breathe in with the notion of completely feeling it, accepting it, and owning it. Then we breathe out, radiating compassion, loving-kindness, freshness; anything that encourages relaxation and openness.”

You may not want to imbibe the pain of others or breathe limitation in, but then again, this might be yours to do. Use discernment in how you use this practice. A less intense, but none-the-less effective approach, is to use the ideas in a contemplative prayer. Center yourself with the following thoughts. Repeat them slowly, lovingly, and compassionately.

May I be peaceful. May I be happy. May I be well.
May I be safe. May I be free from suffering.

Then contemplate or affirm the following:

May all beings be peaceful. May all beings be happy.
May all beings be well. May all beings be safe.
May all beings be free from suffering.

You can add to the basics using thoughts such as:

May all beings experience happiness and dwell in the source of happiness. May all beings be free from suffering and the source of suffering. May all beings develop compassion and balance. May all beings live in the source of safety. May all beings be free from attachment and avoidance.

You can be more specific using thoughts such as:
May all animals live in safety. May all women live in safety.

There is much suffering in the world; to ignore it is denial. But we can deal with our feelings about the plight of people, animals, and the earth in ways that bring dignity to others and humanity to ourselves. Donate money when you can, give of your time to causes you are passionate about, and discover the deeper levels of empathy that embolden the flames of compassion.

Bhikkhu Samahita, the author of the following prayer, said that Buddha provided the words and he just wrote them down. These words light up my heart.

May I be happy. May I sustain my happiness by living without trace of enmity. May all beings be happy and successful. May they be full of joy, all beings that breathe and have life, whether they are weak or strong, tiny or huge, visible or invisible, near or far away, born or to be born. Let all beings enjoy safety, content, ease, and a peaceful, serene bliss!

Let no one deceive another. Let no one be harsh in speech. Let no one by anger or hatred wish bad for his neighbor. Even as a mother, at the risk of her life, guards and protects her only child, so with a boundless heart of compassion, I venerate all living beings by permeating this entire universe with sympathy, above, beneath, and all around, without limit, immeasurable and truly endless!

In this very fine way I cultivate an infinite goodwill toward this whole world. Standing or walking, sitting or lying down, during all my waking hours, I will always treasure and dwell in this goodwill, knowing that this way of caring is the most Noble in this entire universe!

Thus shall I, by stilling pointless discussions and controversies, and by acting blamelessly, be gifted with tranquility and true insight into what is profound. Thus shall I subdue the urge for sense-pleasure, and never again know rebirth. May this also inspire and thereby cause all other sentient beings to fulfill the conditions leading swiftly to Nibbāna, which is the only lasting happiness! May all sentient beings be thus liberated and fully released from all suffering. May all sentient beings thus escape the dangers of ageing, disease, and death. Friendliness is thus the Greatest! Yeah. :-)  http://what-buddha-said.net

Anne

  Anne Art

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  Featured Product This Month

  What is EZosophy?

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  Healthy Living

Five Second Memory Release

Many upsets can be dealt with quickly then easily dispersed. They probably should have never been on our mental screens. The ones we can let go of quickly are the ones that are constructed by the egoic mind. Other situations, such as banging our finger in the door, have continuation, because our finger may hurt for a while or require more attention, yet giving up the mental suffering about the pain can be accomplished quickly.

This tip came to me by way of a good friend, Veronica Nannee. It offers a quick way out of an ego driven upset and, in some instances, a way to reduce the freak out that often accompanies an accident. All tips do not work for all situations, but this tip has the potential to give quick relief in many cases.

“Take 5 seconds. Look at your situation, see what went wrong, figure out what you are going to do so it won't happen again, and forget it." Make it your goal to get over it in five seconds. Don’t keep running it through your mind. If your finger is hurt, get a band aid, but don’t mentally suffer over your physical pain. That’s the key to dropping something. Drop the mental chatter while taking any necessary action.

Anne

  Anne Talks

This week's Anne Talk is EZosophy: Anne Sermons Gillis. It's a brief example of how Anne uses EZosophy to deal with life's ups and down. This talk was presented at Celebration Circle in San Antonio maybe ten years ago. It's still valid. Time: 25:29.

  Quotes

"If peace is to herald the dawn of a new age, let us realize that humanity is one’s only religion, breath one’s only prayer, compassion, one’s only God."
— Yogiraj Gurunath Siddhanath

"The mind exhausts you."
— Yogiraj Gurunath Siddhanath

"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion."
— The Dalai Lama

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