dharmatalks

Your spiritual practice should be a balanced path. If it’s intense and rigourous, it may be time to do some gentle course-correction. If it’s too relaxed and unstructured, you’ll similarly want to evaluate ways in which you can bring it closer to the Middle Way.

The Middle Way is simply the path of non-attachment, mindfulness and compassion. That’s it. Anything else you endeavor should be in order to cultivate greater compassion, mindfulness and non-attachment, otherwise, it is a distraction from your path.

The Middle Way is neither an intense practice, nor is it something that can be done without effort. It is a path of gentle awareness… never clinging to our ideas, our observations, our perceived triumphs or perceived obstacles. It is a path of bringing our awareness to light on the journey, without having to define, restrict or control that journey.

It is a ball of yarn, slowly and playfully unraveling, as if a kitten were batting it about with it’s tiny little paw… only to reveal at the core a magnificent brilliance reflected in a mirror, from within us… the Awakened Mind.

Namasté

khenpo gurudas sunyatananda

_____________________________________________

“Chenrezig, Treasure of Objectless Compassion;
Manjushri, Lord of Stainless Wisdom;
Vajrapani, Destroyer of all adversarial forces;
O Je Tsong Khapa – Losang Drakpa —
Crown Jewel of the Sages of the Land of Snows,
Humbly at Your Lotus Feet I ask your blessing.”

_____________________________________________

Drawing on the essential teachings of the great spiritual teachers, philosophers and freethinkers throughout time, Khenpo Gurudas Śunyatananda (retired Archbishop Francis-Maria Salvato, O.C.) has been regarded as a provocative, revolutionary “voice of reason” within the field of religion and spirituality, since 1983. Having the distinction of being one of the few openly non-theistic, openly-gay and post-denominational thinkers ever to serve as Bishop-Exarch and spiritual leader of the autocephalic Eastern Catholic Franciscans in North America, Gurudas is the author of more than 600 articles, eight books and currently serves as the spiritual advisor for a non-theistic, intentional spiritual community, The Spiritus Project. He can be reached at: http://dharmadudeunplugged.com

Copyright ©2008, Khenpo Gurudas Sunyatananda (The Most Reverend Dr. F. Francis-Maria G. Salvato, M.Sc., O.C.). All rights reserved. This material may be reproduced, blogged, quoted or distributed, provided the entire copyright including contact information remain intact. It may NOT be altered in any way, without express written permission.