The result of the work.

If our work is to be more present and of service in the world, then we need to change the way we think about the results of our work. We need to change the way we think about accomplishment and achievement for the type of work we are doing- the work of showing up, being present and attentive, striving for human dignity and kindness. The usual measures of success, recognition, promotion, and profits aren't the goals for this type of work, and what our culture sets as the targets of work well done is only going to leave us disappointed and frustrated. 

During the course of a lifelong commitment to this practice, you will realize that there are no shortcuts and that this work that we are doing is hard work. It is difficult to be of service without being destroyed in the act of service. It is challenging to deal with difficult people and maintain our patience and willingness to care. Learning to show up consistently, despite failure, fatigue and conflicting emotions is hard work. 

As we learn the necessary skills and attitudes needed on the path, we start to achieve a sense of being in the world and out of the world, involved in the messiness of life and yet not caught up in the unnecessary struggle. 

We start to learn that we can survive our intense emotional ups and downs, that the day to day is much like the weather, some days are good and some are bad and yet each day we show up and dedicate ourselves to our practice. 

We start to recognize that some things are simply out of our control, that we can strive to be present, compassionate and kind, and that sometimes that is not going to land quite the way we thought it would. 

We start to understand that though we struggle with the meaning and significance of our life, we find there is purpose and benefit to holding something- holding space, holding intention, holding to a daily practice. 

As you endeavor in your practice, over time, you will likely find that the tangible benefits of your practice are hard to identify or remain elusive. However, you will also likely find that the intangible benefits of your practice have led to a profound transformation of your being and identity, bringing a felt sense of joy, ease, and connection. This accomplishment as a result of your practice and hard work transform the world from a battlefield in which you are always struggling into a world in which you always feel at home. 

At home in the world, dedicated to presence, openness and availability, kindness and compassion, committed to showing up for ourselves and for others with a felt sense of joy, ease, and connection, those are some of the ways in which the results of our hard work show up in our life. The accomplishment of the practice is largely a life well lived, the result is the practice itself with nothing more to achieve. 

Mid-life breakthrough.

To have reached our destination,
to have traversed the path, accomplished our aims.
Just beyond where we are is where we want to be.

As such, we are divided amongst our self,
forever thirsting for things just beyond our reach.

Although we long to have gone beyond,
the journey to freedom takes place right in the middle of the path,
in the midst of our own life.

The mid-life struggle is the mid-life call to being present in the life you have created,
and to put aside your thirst and yearning for things beyond yourself.

We awaken in the middle of life to the way things are, not the way they could be. 

Progress through wisdom.

The common method of achievement and accomplishing your goals is by force.  Push harder, put in more time and effort, show up early, stay late. 

A lot can be accomplished through effort and exertion.

Another method is to progress through the wisdom of selflessness.  As you cut through ego and self-cherishing, you eliminate possessiveness and suffer less.  Not fixating on your own agenda and perspective, you become more open and generous. 

As wisdom deepens, you don't feel so overwhelmed by situations or problems.  You don't feel the need to turn back or give up.

As wisdom deepens further you can work with adverse conditions and circumstances with great patience.  The impulse to shut down gradually fades further and further from view.

Deeper still, your wisdom overwhelms whatever arises in your experience, allowing you to continue forward with your intention.  Even amidst great hardship and adversity, you continue unafflicted.

Deeper and deeper into the wisdom of selflessness, further and further along the path you progress.  Wisdom unearths accomplishment, yet what have you to gain?

Two attitudes.

A practitioner needs two attitudes in their efforts to be generous, to make an impact and to benefit others- humility and confidence. 

Humility.

The humble practitioner says, "I can do more." 

"I can do better."

Contrast that with the person who thinks what they have done is enough, that they have nothing more to do. 

The humble practitioner pays reverence to great teachers, profound teachings, generous acts and all those who are striving to make a difference.  The act of paying reverence is a display of humility.

Contrast that with the person who bows to no one, respects nothing even as their equal.  

Confidence.

The confident practitioner says, "I can do this."

"I can achieve that."

A humble practitioner who is endowed with confidence can do anything.  And they likely will.

Run in the rain.

Don't worry about achievement.
Don't worry about the result.
Don't worry about enlightenment.

Practice so that you can run in the rain, and enjoy it.

Practice ain't easy.

It's easy to practice when everything is going right.  Hard to practice when everything is falling apart.  And that's why they call it practice. 

Take patience for example.

It is easy to be patient when you have time to spare and plenty of space.  Easy to be patient, relaxed and easygoing when it is a nice day, your to do list is finished and you have a patio seat with a view. 

Much harder to practice patience when you haven't eaten, have to go to the bathroom and things just aren't going your way.  When reality and people seem to be intentionally scheming against you, when the conditions aren't right and you wish you had just a little more time...that is when you practice patience. 

That is when you are really practicing. 

Your practice is to meet adversity and dance with it.  It is to make friends with your enemies and to participate when you feel like giving up.  Real practice doesn't come with a timetable and a map, it is raw, emotional and difficult. 

And when we see you practicing despite all of the chaos, we are impressed.  Then we don't hesitate in calling you a practitioner. 

Keep practicing. 

Fear and the Ladder.

Fear is a pretty primal instinct.  We all have it.  It is almost always there in its various shades of darkness.  We fear our loss of friends, loved ones, status or wealth.  We fear loss of face.  We definitely fear our own death.

Our natural instinct is to try to insulate ourselves from fear.  To build up our comfort zone and a nice cushion.  That is our conquest, whether it is the fear of our present discomfort and discontentment or the fear of death itself.  In vain that conquest often takes the form of an attempt to conquer nature and the outer world.  

That is where the ladder comes in (and the habit of selfishness). 

We think if we climb higher we can actually insulate ourselves from fear.  If we can work our way up, get promoted, find a better job, make more money or achieve a certain status, then we won't be so vulnerable to fear and states of loss.  We won't be so vulnerable to death. 

It is our core belief that attaining higher states of existence will free us.

That is a pretty powerful implication.  Think about that.  Think about it in the context of your own life, our culture.  Is it true?  Can we climb our way out? 

Where is the true fire escape?

What's Your Mark.

A marksman knows exactly where her mark is.  

She knows when she has hit it, and when she has not.  

She will exert significant effort and a substantial amount of time to mastering her skills, cultivating the correct temperament and poise so that she can willfully hit her mark.  She learns how to handle external distractions and how to work with her own internal thoughts and emotions.  She knows how to adapt when the conditions change, how to stand in varied terrain.  

When she hits her mark, she is not lost in emotion and feelings of achievement.  Her's is the quest for mastery, for knowing directly and having the confidence that comes with that knowing.  The mark simply allows her to get there.  

What's your mark?

Joyous Perseverance

If a knight drops his swords, he retrieves it without hesitation in order to protect himself.  
If a snake falls in your lap, you instantly jump up in order to avoid getting bit.
If there is a chance you might lose the game, you push harder than ever, rally caps on.
If we cut ourselves, we use extra caution to clean and dress the wound, applying ointment day and night to prevent infection.

And yet, when we drop our mindfulness we are not in a hurry to retrieve it.
And yet, when negative emotions befall our mind we continue to indulge them.
And yet, when we actually lose our patience we let anger rule the show, and keep winning.
And yet, when we cut off generosity we don't care about the ensuing infection.  Who cares?

Diligence is important.  This is known amongst ordinary men and even the Buddha's praise it.  The Exhortation to Wholehearted Resolve Sutra says:

Always rely upon noble joyous perseverance,
Which clears away all suffering and darkness,
Which is the basis of freedom from miserable realms,
And which is praised by all the buddhas.

One who joyously perseveres,
Has no difficulty accomplishing any project
Whether mundane or supramundane,
Who among the learned is disheartened by joyous perseverence?

If we do not persevere in overcoming our own shortcomings, how can we achieve our own aims, much less the aims of others?

Go.

Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Tick, tock.

What are you waiting for?

More time.
More information.
More resources.
More room.
Better conditions.
A nicer day.
Something else...

The sun is setting, your shadow is growing longer.  You never know how this opportunity will present itself tomorrow.  Better to act now.

Go.

Powerboat

Ours is a culture of achievement.  We wrap ourselves in a nice cocoon of materialism, image and identity.  These form the basis for how we interact with the world around us.

Our habit is to control.  We strive to get where we are going as quickly as possible.  In this sense we all want to travel the quick path, the powerboat that carries us to the far shore with the wind in our hair.  We trust that the boat has everything we need to get us where we want to go.  Oh, and we want to look good doing it.

Our habits form over long periods of time as a coping mechanism to deal with the world.  We have a lot of learned behaviors, some good, some bad; but we should examine our habits and determine if they actually bring our intended result.

Does control, materialism and achievement fulfill our aims?  Are you satisfied?

How does a sailboat travel to its destination?  What story does that tell?