We have a chance in this life, don’t we? A chance for freedom, for understanding to awaken, a chance to fully realise truth. It’s worth spending a moment to reflect on that. It’s said that 80% of the resources of the world are held by just 20% of us. So do you feel you might […]
Author Archives: AJ
We all try to practice awareness and cultivate a clear perspective on things but sometimes it can be easy to miss the obvious. The clear connections and logical truths can lie in front of us for years without us joining things up and seeing clearly. A really prevalent one in our society is that money […]
It’s that time of year where most of us are thinking about reigning back in the excesses of the festive season and considering some healthier options. When I was young I heard on several occasions someone say, ‘You are what you eat.’ Of course, I didn’t pay much attention, it’s just a throw away comment […]
Last November I sat in the Dhamma hall at Harnham Buddhist Monastery and heard Ajahn Sucitto give a talk all about dana (giving). I was inspired by the openness of heart he spoke of and the importance of this aspect of our spiritual practice and so I’ve been meaning to write something on this for […]
Two of the qualities that help us greatly on our journey, our spiritual path, are honesty and courage. It takes real honesty to admit the truth to ourselves and great courage to explore our own hearts. This reflection arose for me when I first came across the Buddhist Three Jewels. Ideally these are held to […]
Searching for truth presents us with a paradox. Surely we must begin our search with the realisation that truth is simply ‘what is’. That being the case the question is then, ‘Why do I not fully feel a part of this truth?’ The question itself is a clue to the dilemma. The question arises from […]
I’ve always rather liked the Buddhist analogy of the ‘sea of samsara’, meaning the apparently endless ocean we must cross, lifetime after lifetime to reach that far distant shore – termed in Buddhism Nibbana. It’s relevant on a number of levels; the trials and tribulations of life can leave us feeling cast adrift as the […]
As another year draws to a close it’s hard not to let the mind and the thoughts turn inwards; to reflect on what the year has brought us and what the future might hold. So what about your journey? Are you planning to make some New Year’s resolutions? Here are a few tips if you […]
There are different ways to look at life, so many different perspectives we can take. But we so often get trapped into just one – we focus all our attention on the content of our life, re-visiting our memories or living imagined future events over and over. It can become a constant treadmill of inner […]
Are you sure time exists? Might sound silly, but are you really sure? We talk about time as though it’s real don’t we? In fact many of us, and I include myself in this, are ruled by the clock, so we naturally assume time exists. But what if we’re looking at it the wrong way […]
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