This life is so precious

Requesting and offering prayers and aspirations for those in need.
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Ngawang Drolma
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This life is so precious

Post by Ngawang Drolma »

This life is so precious.
To be born human and with our faculties intact and to meet and be able to practice the Dharma freely is like finding a tiny diamond in a huge ocean of waste as deep as the oceans themselves.
I must make use of this opportunity and ensure I do not become part of that waste ever again, but become a buddha and transform the waste into diamonds.

/\
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retrofuturist
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by retrofuturist »

Onwards and upwards...

:namaste:

Metta,
Retro. :)
Live in concord, with mutual appreciation, without disputing, blending like milk and water, viewing each other with kindly eyes.
thornbush
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by thornbush »

Yes, one wrong turn and it can mean all over again for some....question is is there a guaranteed 'all over again' in the same conditions as one was in before....a scary thought...
http://cttbusa.org/42s/42sections.asp" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
The Buddha asked a Shramana, "How long is the human life span?"
He replied, "A few days."
The Buddha said, "You have not yet understood the Way."

He asked another Shramana, "How long is the human life span?"
The reply was, "The space of a meal."
The Buddha said, "You have not yet understood the Way."

He asked another Shramana, "How long is the human life span?"
He replied, "The length of a single breath."
The Buddha said, "Excellent. You have understood the Way."
http://www.ymba.org/BWF/bwf81.htm#impermanence" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
A well-known Master once advised a lay friend to recite the Buddha's name.
The latter replied,
"There are three things I have not yet attended to:
one, my father's coffin is not yet entombed;
two, my son does not yet have a family; three,
my youngest daughter is still unmarried.
Let me take care of these three things and then I will follow your advice."
A few months later, the layman was struck by a grave illness and suddenly passed away.
After the memorial, the monk offered a stanza in lieu of condolences:
My friend, the wise official
When I advised him to recite the Buddha's name he countered with three things;
The three things have not been accomplished,
Yet impermanence has already snatched him away.
Lord of Hell, how inconsiderate can you be!
Ngawang Drolma
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by Ngawang Drolma »

The Buddha asked a Shramana, "How long is the human life span?"
He replied, "A few days."
The Buddha said, "You have not yet understood the Way."

He asked another Shramana, "How long is the human life span?"
The reply was, "The space of a meal."
The Buddha said, "You have not yet understood the Way."

He asked another Shramana, "How long is the human life span?"
He replied, "The length of a single breath."
The Buddha said, "Excellent. You have understood the Way."
I have always loved this passage.
Wonderful :bow:
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dumb bonbu
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by dumb bonbu »

great impetus to practice and get busy cultivating. whenever i consider the good fortune of having this human body i also am reminded to the great debt to everyone, especially my parents in this life, who has freely given their help, guidance and support throughout my years....it reminds me that i am on the path not just for myself but for all others also - sometimes this is too easy for me to forget.
Although I too am within Amida's grasp,
Passions obstruct my eyes and I cannot see him;
Nevertheless, great compassion is untiring and
illumines me always.
- Shinran


Namu Amida Butsu
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Luke
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by Luke »

He asked another Shramana, "How long is the human life span?"
He replied, "The length of a single breath."
The Buddha said, "Excellent. You have understood the Way."
My lama once said that one breath is like a lifetime. We must decide that we want to live, so we inhale--which is like being born--and then we reflexively exhale--which is like dying. So breathing continuously is like an ongoing cycle of birth and death.

Hmm..."the Way" is a very Taoist translation. I think "the Dharma" makes more sense in a Buddhist context, but I'll leave it for the scholars to decide.
Drolma
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by Drolma »

Image

"When you begin to attend to facets of reality uncovered by discursive meditation, when you notice, for example, that your opportunity for realizing your innate human potential is very rare and precious, the practice of Dharma begins to flow naturally from your heart. Tibetan lamas emphasize the importance of this life by advising their students, "If you have a precious human life of leisure and opportunity, use it well. If you don't have one, get one."

B. Alan Wallace - Buddhism with an Attitude.
genkaku
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by genkaku »

This life is so wonderfully precious.
That is why we must learn to give it up.
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dumb bonbu
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by dumb bonbu »

genkaku wrote:This life is so wonderfully precious.
That is why we must learn to give it up.
it is hard. your words remind me of Ippen's -

Just cast away!
Then you will see:
there's a way to let go
of life in this world
so as not to throw it away

:namaste:
Although I too am within Amida's grasp,
Passions obstruct my eyes and I cannot see him;
Nevertheless, great compassion is untiring and
illumines me always.
- Shinran


Namu Amida Butsu
Drolma
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by Drolma »

Image




it’s not matter but the mind
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Aemilius
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by Aemilius »

Ngawang Drolma wrote:This life is so precious.
To be born human and with our faculties intact and to meet and be able to practice the Dharma freely is like finding a tiny diamond in a huge ocean of waste as deep as the oceans themselves.
I must make use of this opportunity and ensure I do not become part of that waste ever again, but become a buddha and transform the waste into diamonds.

/\

Great aspiration!

The opportunity of a human life when Dharma is existent and flourishing is like finding a magnificent jewel.
svaha
"All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.
They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
Sarvē mānavāḥ svatantrāḥ samutpannāḥ vartantē api ca, gauravadr̥śā adhikāradr̥śā ca samānāḥ ēva vartantē. Ētē sarvē cētanā-tarka-śaktibhyāṁ susampannāḥ santi. Api ca, sarvē’pi bandhutva-bhāvanayā parasparaṁ vyavaharantu."
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 1. (in english and sanskrit)
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Jechan
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by Jechan »

How fortunate I am having obtained this precious human body and having come into contact with the Buddha's teaching.
Where it not for this, I would be locked for life in the prison of concerns over food and clothing and trapped in the net of cares for fame and wealth.
If it were not for the embrace of the Tathagata's great compassion, there would be no value in being a human.
I would like to repay and express thanks for the great mercy, the great compassion and the great grace of the Buddha.
Namu Myoho Renge Kyo!
南無妙法蓮華経
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????
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by ???? »

I am very grateful for this human form
For the intellect and mind:ability to self-reflection
For the pain associated with the knowledge that I would die,everybody will die
Oh, I thank gods(or Absolute etc) for this great honor
for this slow process of dying called 'life',for the opportunity to be alone at the time of death

ImageImage
Priceless experience of the human form
We are the lucky ones,we get the same thing without effort,for free

Human form, strat dying before their first breath,let's celebrate
Image

this process of dying called 'life'
This ''wonderful'' gift,only for chosen ones,which we can not keep


For all the diseases which I can experiencing cancer, hiv, old age
For the chaos in my head caused by thousands of different doctrines and teachings
which I am able get to know only in precious human form

Only humans are able to do not understand and feel confusion

Image
Image
"I am God
And look there ...
- What is it?
- human
From today he will live
He would kill to stay alive
I mean, he must eat
He would kill to eat
I have created a beautiful thing"
Image
Thanks to the human form the only one thing I can do is being sarcastic
it is a ''very valuable'' ability...very ''valuable''


Image

- ...and he said:"dont wory ,life is only illusion,so death does not exist"
- HAHA,please stop because I will come back to life with laughter
"Does it hurt being dead"??All beings are too dead to die
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Ayu
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by Ayu »

In the (absolute) end, there will be nothing more than (absolute) joy.

:thinking: Edit: Maybe that's not told in the right way, if you consider things as neverending...

Chögyam Trungpa put it like this:
Well, I think the basic point here is that death means another sense of a living situation. It's kind of life in a different planet, a different realization. Reality of death shouldn't be cultivated, and the realities of life shouldn't be cultivated... saying that once your life is out then you are off altogether. So one should maintain some sense of loyalty in a situation of death. I think some sense of joy is always... Joy doesn't depend on life or death... never... never... never. Joy is always joy. Joy doesn't depend on a smile alone. Joy depends on the brilliantness of light [luminosity], always, wether you live or die. So I think you could let people who are dying [know that] that kind of joy of living brilliantness, which is a smile... always happens. And that brings a sense of cheerfulness. In the Shambalian language we talk about seeing the Great Eastern Sun eternally... So joy always comes.
("Warrior-King Of Shambala", Jeremy Hayward)
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????
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Re: This life is so precious

Post by ???? »

???? wrote: - HAHA,please stop because I will come back to life with laughter
I will be revived* on account of/because of laughter

*Resurrection (my poor English destroyed joke)
"Does it hurt being dead"??All beings are too dead to die
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