A Spiritual Response to the Attack on America
May type a bit of this up ... should be some online ... then again, readin off a computer screen
can't compare with having a copy in your hot, little hands & sittin in a nice, comfy chair :)
Some links:
What I would say to Osama by Thich Nhat Hanh
Lama Surya Das's response - may type some of this up as I can't find it exactly on the web
And here it is -
What would the Buddha do? No one can really say for sure, any more than anyone can say in truth
why God sent death to 6000 innocent people that week at the hands of a terrorist attack. (I
personally consider it the handiwork of man, not God, and we might do well to look among and
within ourselves for the causes.)
However, I am sure that the Compassionate Buddha would stop for a prolonged moment of mindfulness
and total attention - silent, centred and present - to pray for all those who have suffered
and are suffering, feeling their pain and grief as his own. Buddha would stop and pray for the
victims and their families and all worldwide who suffer and have suffered; he would join Jesus
in blessing the peacemeakers, while also praying for those who have perpetrated such horrendous
crimes.
What would Buddha do? Buddha would move among the wounded, grief-stricken and despairing, with
gentle healing hands. Buddha might remind us of the fleeting, ephemeral nature of life in all
its forms, and remind us that we might profit by turning toward lasting values and the deeper
meaning of life, to help instill in us a sense of the long-range view and the bigger picture.
We condemn wanton acts of violence and destruction. The criminal perpetrators and their aides
and abettors must be brought to justice, and terrorism erased from our world as an acceptable
form of political or social action in any country of the world.
(For more you'll have 2 buy the book :)
What about the Buddhist response
Speaking of forgiveness ... or click here
How precious life is (& how fragile)
More about the practice of compassion
The Shambhala Sun site is searchable
Pema Chodron offers a method for generating love & compassion 4 all beings
Beliefnet has plenty 2 say about compassion
Love thy enemy - life's greatest challenge
Or here - Twyman is a peace troubador - I love his books!
From Desmond Tutu -
Are you willing to believe that even though they are guilty of a diabolical act, they still
continue to be children of God - not monsters, not demons but those with the capacity
to change?
Eckhart Tolle was not actually part of the Beliefnet book -
Compassion arises when you recognise that all are suffering from the same sickness of the mind,
some more acutely that others.
Can we remain mindful instead of angry?
Beliefnet also has a prayer section
www.emissaryoflight.com
"When we come into contact with the other person, our thoughts and actions should express our mind of compassion, even if that person says and does things that are not easy to accept. We practice in this way until we see clearly that our love is not contingent upon the other person being lovable."
The word enlightenment conjures up the idea of some superhuman accomplishment
Everything in life that we really accept undergoes a change. So suffering must become love. That is the mystery.
Great advice from the Heaven letters site - and it is searchable
How to Think Better: The Top 8 Tips from the Last 2500 Years
A different way 2 look at your problems
Continuin the theme - "I am a child of God." (& so is everyone else)
Send pure unconditional love to those trapped in hate
From Bishop Spong - Can we use a moment like this current crisis to seek a new
God definition that might fit a new world?
Leads us 2 this interesting site
Website mentioned in one of the stories
Doug Adams is good 4 a quote or 2 :)
Great piece on unconditional love
What it really means to 'let go'
Poem about karma & also the meek :)
It is comforting to know that the God who guides us sees tomorrow more clearly than we see yesterday
A few more at this Christian site
Google recommends this as a variation on the latest search
Great article about God & suffering - no 'easy' answer
This piece might lighten your mood
Comes from this page of archives - Beacons of Light
Try this for a very different perspective of life on this planet!
You will see this Earth change very rapidly over the next 200 years
www.worldpeacenewsletter.com
Quotes about peace - excellent searchable site
One section had excellent advice on praying for comfort & guidance and there's no one 'correct' way 2 pray
Should type it up - page 83
Article by Dan Baker on practical things 2 do in the wake of those images
The first element of healing is acceptance
Bill Hybels on what we can learn - it has the potential 2 be a tranformative event
www.gratefulness.org
Metta means knowing how to be a friend to ourselves and all of life
Yes, Sharon Salzberg's piece is worth it
(That's about it - I highly recommend this book! Especially if you can get it for 5 bucks as I did :)
A few more thoughts & responses
Just 4 fun - here are a few quotes on various subjects - including mindfulness & love & life &
author :)
"To love our enemy is impossible. The moment we understand our enemy, we feel compassion towards him/her, and he/she is no longer our enemy."
My own collection of responses & sites following September 11 - some are duds as is the impermanence of cyberspace ...
~ Katherine Mansfield
- Thich Nhat Hanh