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Mind & Desires Shakyamuni Buddha said, It is
a man's own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil How strange, how strange! All living beings, without exception, possess the wisdom and virtuous characteristics of the Tathagata (the Buddha). It is because of their idle thoughts and attachments that they cannot certify to them. What we think, we become. In the sky there is no distinction of east and west; people create distinctions out of their own minds and then believe them to be true. The mind is radiant, shining, glowing forth; but it is stained by the defilements that visit it. The mind is radiant, shining, glowing forth, and from the uprooting of defilements that visit it, it is freed. One must first discipline and control one's mind. If a man can control his own mind he will find the way to Enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him. Nothing seems to happen exactly as it ego desires. It is simply the mind clouded over by impure desires, and impervious to wisdom, which stubbornly persists in thinking of "me" and "mine." From craving (attachement) springs grief, from craving springs fear; For him who is wholly free from craving, there is no grief, much less fear. Do not become attached to the things you like; do not maintain an aversion to the things you dislike. Sorrow, fear and bondage come from likes and dislikes. Who is the greater conquerer? One who with vast armies invades territories and subdues kingdoms, or one who conquers his own desires, his own senses? He is the greater conquerer who has subdued himself, who has conquered his own desires, subdued his own senses. Perfect peace can dwell only where all egoism has disappeared. There is no happiness higher than tranquility. Form does
not differ from emptiness;
- end of quotes from Shakyamuni Buddha. - Conquer your mind and your senses. These are your real enemies Sivananda The mind is an instrument for communication, for practical purposes. The mind cannot grasp the truth. The Self witnesses the mind, but the mind cannot catch hold on the Self....The mind can only work with some name or form or image. If you give this up, the mind will be helpless. Nisargadatta We should take care not to make the intellect our God. Albert Einstein If your are always about wordly things your mind becomes dirty. From a spiritual point of view the mind is like a mirror; it is only useful when it is clean. Saradamma As soon as you have made a thought, laught at it. Lao-tzu The mind is like a strolling street dog. You are eating out of garbage cans. You who are heir to immortal glory, divine blessedness - why are you picking up these little droppings and trying to fill yourself? Sivananda Mind is thought. Thought means emotions, hopes, memory. Erase the emotions, good and bad, erase hope and disappointments, erase the memory, and the mind will be stilled. Deepa Kodikal To the mind that is still, the whole universe surrenders. Chuang Tse "Thoughtlessness" is to see and to know all things with a mind free from attachement. Hui-Neng Have a happy state of mind, a state that is untouched by the events of life. Paramahansa Yogananda We have been accustomed to thinking that we have to get something from outside us in order to be happy, but in truth it works the other way: we must learn to contact our inner source of happiness and satisfaction and flow it outward to share with others - not because it is virtuous to do so, but because it really feels good. Shakti Gawain All desires can cause you trouble, even spiritual ones. Annamalai Swami Desires are innumerable, insatiable and unconquerable. Enjoyment cannot bring satisfaction. It is a mistake to think so. Enjoyment only fans a desire.... Enjoyment strengthens, increases and aggravates a desire. Sivananda Don't think about desires and how to get rid of them. Just be still and quiet and all your doubts and desires will vanish. Lakshmana Trying to satisfy one's desires with possessions is like putting out a fire with straw. Confucius Whatever there be on the surface of the earth - property, gold, cattle, good health - none of these truly satisfy man. Tranquility arises from this understanding. Tibetan saying Possession of material riches, without inner peace, is like dying of thirst while bathing in a lake. If material poverty is to be avoided, spiritual poverty is to be abhorred. For it is spiritual poverty, not material lack, that lies at the core of all human suffering. Paramahansa Yogananada They who are possessed by desire suffer much and enjoy little, as the ox that drags the cart gets by a morsel of grass. Santi-deva
Material possessions are oftentimes a hindrance toward attaining higher consciousness. They take a cunning delight in becoming one's master while appearing as a benevolent slave. Shantidasa Think of a vast ocean filled with water on all sides. A jar is immersed in it. There is water both inside and outside the jar; but the water does not become one unless the jar is broken....What is the jar? It is I-consciousness - the ego. When the I disappears, what is, remains. Ramakrishna The ego is like a crooked tree. If you catch it when it is small, it is easy to tie to a stick and straighten out. If you wait till it has grown big, it is a more difficult to control. Saradamma Character is like a tree - it will always fall in the direction it leans. Shantidasa The problem is that the ego can convert anything to ist own use, even spirituality. Ego is constantly attempting to acquire and apply the teachings of spirituality for ist own benefit. Chögyam
Trungpa Egolessness is impersonality. Personality seems to be something, and impersonality nothing. But that's because we do not easily see that personality is limitation to a body, while impersonality is the absence of limitation....Impersonality is Consciousness undiminished. Lakshmana Sarma Desire tells us, each time, "Now get thou this, and then you shall be happy." The fact, is desire is a bottomless pit which can never fill up, or like the all-comsuming fire which burns the fiercer, the more we feed it. Lakshmara Sarma Men are like animals so long as they are subject to the ego. The Upanishads Many could forego heavy meals, a full wardrobe, a fine house....it is the ego they cannot forego. Mohandas Gandhi The ego, the lower nature, is of persistent character. It struggles fiercely not to die. The ego lives by denying what is real, conveniently ignoring truth in the process. Shantidasa The attainment of enlightenment from ego's point of view is extreme death. Chögyam Trungpa |