Zen Thoughts

Today I was going to write something about "rising above the pettiness of the world..." Then I remembered two quotes from a little book in my bathroom called The Little Zen Companion.

Page 42 reads, "The raindrops patter on the basho leaf, but these are not tears of grief; this is only the anguish of him who is listening to them. Zen saying"

Page 52 reads, "Life and love are life and love, a bunch of violets is a bunch of violets, and to drag in the idea of a point is to ruin everything. Live and let live, love and let love, flower and fade, and follow the natural curve, which flows on, pointless. DH Lawrence"

The world contains what we project into it. It's our mirror. When I hear myself thinking of the world as containing pettiness, this is being projected from me! That recognition stops me short. How can I rethink all the pettiness I feel is abundant in the world around me? What am I not considering?

The world exists regardless of my judgments. I can choose to assign biased thoughts/feelings to anything around me (and I do!). Assigning value/judgment to what is means not seeing and accepting what is really there, in all its purity and beauty, for Beauty underlies all.

A Course in Miracles teaches this, too. When I am able to withdraw my judgments from the world around me, I find myself in a whole different space, in which a bunch of violets is a bunch of violets, I am a beautiful being, and I am grateful to be reminded NOT to keep filling my mirror with disturbing, annoying, hurtful judgments. I can stop projecting grief and anguish onto raindrops, and simply listen instead.

Blessed listening, dear ones.

Love from Zing