Culture of awakening.

I grew up in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The culture of Green Bay revolves around the Packers. The front page of the Green Bay Press Gazette (which I diligently delivered as a teenager) always talks about the Packers. The community wears Packers gear, talks about the Packers, and responds to how the Packers are doing.

If you don't value the Packer culture, you also don't quite fit in. That doesn't make you bad. The community doesn't reject you, but at some point or another you just move along.

Culture has values. It shapes beliefs and actions. Culture can shift our posture, the way we sit and the way we greet each other. Without having to be spoken, culture says, "This is what we do around here."

Stephen Batchelor coined the phrase culture of awakening. I haven't read any of Stephen's work, but this notion that we do impacts and shapes others is powerful.

The Buddha taught that our intentions and actions shape the world. Our individual thoughts and actions impact our life. When we form communities with others who share our values, we create a culture. Others interact with that culture. They see what people value, how they interact, and what they do.

The culture becomes a contact point for change.

The change that a culture brings isn't always about making a quick impact. It is often more like a resonance or a vibration, something that can be felt minutely at first, but later can shape entire landscapes and tear down walls. 

A culture of awakening isn't about forcing you awake. It is like whispering in your ear, "It's time to get up."

Objects of gratitude.

Success can take many forms. 

Fancy cars, big bonuses, new additions, first homes, second homes, happy hours and weekend getaways.  Buy what you want.  Build a pile of what you think you need. 

Walk through your area and you are likely surrounded by people living out their success story.  Money and status grant us certain comforts and security, but underneath that success, how many people are really satisfied and content?

A lot of the contentment and satisfaction in our lives comes from being objects of gratitude.  We have been relied upon, trusted, made an impact and been present in someones life and they feel grateful for that presence.

We don't own that gratitude, yet we benefit greatly and derive deep satisfaction and joy from it. 

Instead of chasing success, maybe we should pursue more opportunities to impact the lives of others.  

What do we leave for posterity?

Some stories, stuff made, a few worthy possessions. 
We leave a few gems, a few things worth holding onto.
We leave memories, and pictures, and special recipes no one else had.

Mostly we leave the impact of love.
It's love that impacts people's lives, that changes them.
It's love that makes the stories meaningful,
that makes the possessions valuable.  

Love compels us to seek out the stories,
to rummage through the pile,
to hold on.

Love is our last testament. 

Pure vision.

དག་སྣང་
Tibetan: dak-nang
English: pure vision

Pure vision is a unique aspect of the tantric path and the student-teacher relationship. 

As a westerner we approach the student-teacher relationship with skepticism and doubt.  We tend to be critical of every thought, word and deed.  We are used to bringing judgement into our relationships, setting firm boundaries of what is right and what is wrong.  We are ready to pounce on every minor flaw that we see, confirming our own rightness and position.

The result is that we are not impacted.  We are not changed.  We continue on our righteous way. 

In order to be impacted by teachings, we need to be open minded and receptive.  We need to be present.  It is important that we show up ready, attentive, embodied.

We have to show up with a receptive and strong mind of initiative in order to be impacted.  Our habitual tendencies, negative thoughts and emotions are simply too strong otherwise.  It is too easy for us to slip back into negative feedback loops.  Too easy to fall prey to judgement, skepticism and arrogance. 

Pure vision is the process of entering a teaching with a sense of wonder and awe.  It is a fresh, receptive and curious perspective.  When we sit for a teaching in such a way, we actually hear and receive the teachings. 

Pure vision isn't about creating a make believe experience, it is about seeing things as they truly are for the first time, as they are now. 

The struggling artist.

An artist is someone who is generous, open and vulnerable.  Their medium is connection.  The result of their work is that they have impacted another life, brought about a benefit or change.

We all have to work with what is coming up.  Something is always coming up.

The artist is able to cut through the resistance and willing to care enough to make an impact.

The rest of us get caught up in the resistance, entangled in struggle and strife, dissatisfied in our search for meaning. 

We're struggling artists.

The difference?  How you relate to what is coming up in your life. 

Changing the story.

I am continually inspired by my brothers and sisters on the path who are dedicated to their practice and generous with their time and energy.

One of the people who has inspired me is Seth Godin who introduced me to a new definition of an artist.  An artist is someone who makes an impact, benefits someone and effects change.  In this sense we all have the opportunity to be artists, regardless of our profession.  We all have the opportunity to take a moment, lend a hand, to truly listen and share generously.

We all have an opportunity to care. 

The thing about being an artist is that you don't create art all the time.  Not everything you do in your day is about making an impact.  Most of your day will be spent doing your job, working on the tactics, getting things done.

The artist can be busy and still make great art.

For me, this relieved a great burden, something I actually struggled with for a long time.  I was carrying a lot of frustration and aversion to being busy and working hard because I wasn't able to devote myself fully to making an impact.  I felt that too much of my days, weeks and months were wasted because I could be doing something better.  I could be doing better work but my work itself was preventing me from actually doing that.  That resistance to the nuts and bolts, ground level experience of my job (and life) prevented me from seeing and seizing those moments when I could act, when I could be generous.    

The function of our work is to make an impact, but not all the time.  We struggle to find meaning in our work and in our life, but we need to create meaning.  If we could even spend 10% of our time seizing those opportunities to make an impact and to care, we would find great meaning in our life.  It would even allow us to be really good at the busy, mundane, daily responsibilities that we need to fulfill because they would further create opportunities to create art. 

I can tell you that even 10% is hard.  It is too easy to hide in the busy tactical aspect of your life, too easy to keep your head down and keep plugging away at what you are doing.  We hide in the busy and then complain when our work has no meaning.  We fight internally against the resistance, but the resistance often wins and prevents us from stepping away and actually caring.

That is the fight, the struggle.

If we can recognize and identify that resistance, then we can actually find ways to reduce it.  Once we know what it looks like and what it is trying to do, we can push through the resistance and strive to make an impact, strive to care.  Start to create art.  

Entirely different.

There are people in our life who have changed us.  Changed us in ways that we couldn't imagine what our life would be like had we not been touched by their grace.  We would be entirely different people. 

They are people whose words have impacted our mind, whose presence has opened us up and whose kindness has permeated our heart.  They could be people we have known for many years, or even those who we knew for a brief moment in space and time.  Those people are our greatest teachers.  They've changed us, stuck with us even when they are no longer around.  They have given us a gift that is timeless and inexhaustible.

We can never repay our teacher's kindness.  It is not possible because they have created a world that we could have never imagined even for ourselves.  Their gift to us has created something that didn't exist before and the only way that we can begin to repay their kindness is to share it.  Increase it and spread it throughout the ten directions.

You can never be sure when a gift will create a new world, so give generously and dedicate all of your actions to the benefit of beings.    

  

In search of meaning.

Tibetan: དོན་ 'don'
English: meaning, purpose, function, benefit, significance, substance, truth

Many of us struggle to find meaning in what we do.  We spend our days in busyness and distraction, propelled by to-do lists and deadlines.  We have this sense that we need to find meaning by doing something, accomplishing something. 

We ascribe a lot of meaning to little things that come and go, but that meaning doesn't really stick around too long.  We push to the finish and enjoy a moment of achievement, but that achievement lacks the substance to fulfill a greater purpose or meaning. 

We all have a relative experience of meaning in our lives, the meaning that we ascribe to our work, to our family and friends, to the places we live and the places we love to visit.  But what is truly meaningful? 

I would like to think that it is impacting another life.  Leaving an imprint, bringing about transformation, causing a shift in that person's continuum.  If that were the case, the meaning of our life and work is truly established in others.  They are the carriers, the holders, the substance.  They have names and faces and stories.  Some you have known for moments, some for ages. 

The hard part of finding what is truly meaningful is that you never really know.  You never really know how you have impacted others, how your generosity and kindness has shaped them.  You can never be sure, but you do it anyway. 

Hoping that what you are doing is meaningful is selfish, fear that it is insignificant is also selfish.  Free from hope and fear, genuinely pursue connecting with and benefiting others and the work you do will have substance. 

Coursing through your veins.

We interact with a lot of people in our life.  We share moments, constantly.  Sometimes we may share a long length of time with a person and remain unchanged.  Other times, we can have a brief exchange, an intimate encounter, or a timely interaction and it stays with us forever.  

Changed.

It is hard to say why, or how, or even what.  But you see it, you know it in your heart and feel it coursing through your veins.  You have been changed, blessed, impacted.  You can never repay their kindness and generosity, just as the earth can never repay the sun for its light and warmth.  You don't have to repay it; just share it, amplify it and give it to others.  

Remarkable.

I saw something remarkable the other day.

I was walking in downtown Seattle this past week and saw a homeless man up ahead begging for change.  He was holding a sign, “Out of work.  Anything helps.”  In the winter Seattle’s homeless population spikes as people migrate to the coasts for warmer weather.  We are used to seeing men and women standing at off ramps, at street corners and camping out in archways to stay out of the rain. 

The man walking ahead of me approached the homeless man and gave him some change from his pocket.  Then he shook his hand.

He didn’t have to shake his hand.  He could have gave him money and walked away untouched.  He could have avoided getting dirty or having to worry about what germs the homeless man carried.   He could have made the exchange a simple, clean transaction. 

But he didn’t.

He made it human.  He extended his money, which I am sure the homeless man appreciated.  Then he extended his respect, kindness and dignity, something that is invaluable to someone who doesn’t feel like they are worth anything. 

We have a tendency to think big.  We think in systems and projects and data and financials.  All of that is important if we want to fulfill our aims and the aims of others, we need to go through that process, but if you are wondering where to start, start here.  Start with extending kindness, respect and dignity to those in your family and your community.  Start with our real world problems, with where we are right now.

It might be dirty and you are going to have to work hard, but if you are able to impact a human life, you are doing something remarkable.     

Part of our family.

There are those who care and those who don't.

Don't worry about those who don't care, treat them with respect and kindness and let them go there way.  Respect your own time and energy.

Those who care are like your own family.  They show up, do the work.  They push through resistance because what other choice do we have?  Pour your energy and time into strengthening the network, on impacting their lives and offering your support.  Benefit others, contribute value and the whole community benefits.  

We all want to be part of a family that cares, that takes a chance on being generous and kind.  Such a family experiences true wealth, or ratna, and they are crazy enough to want to share it with others.   

A world of difference.

The person seeking there own freedom and happiness is constantly at odds with the world around them.  Karma and dependent origination serve as a burden, a constant reminder of entrapment in this unceasing wheel of life.  Fear exists at every corner, constant threats are always presenting themselves and our own well being is always in a precarious position.

For the person seeking the freedom and happiness of others, everything in the world around them is an opportunity.  Karma and dependent origination reveal a deep connection with the world and all beings.  This connection allows for responsiveness- impact and growth.  There is a natural freedom and ease, because this thing that is happening, this struggle, this problem, this seeming end- it's not permanent nor lasting. 

Yes, karma and dependent origination reveal a wheel that just keeps going. 

But so do we. 

Earth Day Meditation April 22, 2014

SIT for a moment of mindfulness and appreciation.
CELEBRATING environmental protection and activism.
HONORING nature and it's inherent peacefulness.
RECOGNIZING our connection to and impact on the earth.
And a REMINDER- of how precious and fleeting the opportunity available to us.

Sit with us 

Tuesday April 22, 2014

6pm

Golden Gardens in Seattle, WA

or wherever you are, near and far.
Hosted by Sit in the City and Siddhearta.

What happens when we rise from meditation is up to you.

Invite your family, friends, neighbors.  Spread the invitation.

For more details email Greg Patenaude at siddhearta@gmail.com

Doing Work that Matters.

There have been many teachers in my life, but the one that has had the most profound impact on my life and my mind is my root teacher, Younge Khachab Rinpoche.

I met Rinpoche in 2004 in Madison, WI where I studied closely with him and engaged in numerous meditation retreats under his guidance.  That period of my life left an indelible imprint on my mind and transformed my life in such a way that it is still beyond my comprehension. 

When I moved to Seattle in 2006 Rinpoche gave me the responsibility of connecting with others, introducing them to meditation and sharing these profound, practical teachings and their significance in daily life.  That has been a challenge that I have had to reconcile with my practice, make it part of my practice.  Looking back it forced me to go deeper and drew out the implications of my practice beyond the confines of my meditation seat. 

Rinpoche often asks me, "How is your job?" and "How is your practice?"

It turns out that how you answer both of these questions says a lot about your practice.

If you think your practice is good but you are consistently overwhelmed and discouraged by your daily life and work, then you haven't figured out how to integrate your practice. 

We have a lot of modern day examples of people who have made a great impact in the world, people like the Dalai Lama, Pema Chodron and Lama Surya Das.  They have integrated their practice with their life, acting with generosity, love and compassion.  Making an impact.  But you don't need to be a monk, nun or lama.

That is not the only way. 

A couple years ago I asked Rinpoche, "What if I sell everything I own, quit my job and go move to a small retreat house in Nepal or India?"

His response, "That is a good idea, but you need to work for another twenty years."

The message- there is no escape.  Even if we manage to escape, it only perpetuates the cycle, lifetime after lifetime.  What you need to do is liberate the mind, not free it into some sort of fantasy, but actually free it.  To do that, you need to integrate your practice and your life.

Your life is your spiritual practice, the result is the path.

You need to do the hard work of connecting with others, benefitting them through kindness,  generosity and doing work that matters.