dharmatalks

“For you are not of this world,” Rabbi Jesus reminded his disciples. The great Master understood the essential Dharma truth that any experience, object, situation, person or passion we could entertain could never make up for, eliminate or otherwise fill the void within us. He understood that what we perceive as this Void is actually our True Nature… Sunyata… the Inexpressible Groundlessness.

When we expect the world to fill that inner void, we are demanding more than the world could ever give. For this reason, we set ourselves up for dissatisfaction, disappointment and create the cause for suffering. This is Buddha Sakyamuni’s First Noble Truth.

People, passions, objects and circumstances can never make you or me “happy”. Happiness is not a result, but rather a determined state of mind we can only generate from within ourselves. It is our natural state of mind. Any time we find ourselves un-happy, that is when we are out of the ordinary. When we recognise that happiness is our natural state of mind… that peace, calm and ease are our natural expressions of life… then healing can truly begin.

Henry David Thoreau noted, "Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder…"

Namasté

khenpo gurudas sunyatananda

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“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.”

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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 ©2010, 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.