On being Well

This is a drawing from my Lama Karma of the Tibetan word for "well." His photo is below. Lama K is the younger monk being hugged by one of the senior Tibetan lamas Karthar Khenpo Rinpoche. Anyway, his message seems obvious, but as I mentioned in the prior post, we don't always do what makes sense or what might be most beneficial. The lamas teach "Four Thoughts that Turn One's Mind to the Dharma."

First, a human birth is precious. It's hard to obtain and easily lost. I must make this life meaningful. Secondly, this world and everything in it is fleeting. Our life is like a water bubble. Thirdly, our time of demise is uncertain. Finally, at our time of passing, the only thing that can help is the dharma, therefore it is urgent I practice now.

The dharma means "the way things are" aka the revelations of the Buddha (once he woke up and could see clearly.) Dying without regret, living and dying consciously, and a means of clearing our karma and freeing our minds. When the student is ready, the Teacher will appear. Or as Ram Dass once said, "You cannot rip the skin off a snake, but it will shed its skin naturally when ready." You are so right, Lama Karma: To be well resolve the causes that make us unwell. Namaste!

What is the Answer?

A bioethicist (whatever that is) is asking if shaming is the last resort in curbing our obesity epidemic. NO, shaming is not the answer for modifying pet or people behavior. Shame tactics only made me more defiant when I was trying to quit smoking, however fear of death did the trick for me.

It would seem that severely overweight people, along with alcoholics, and smokers, would have such grave concerns over their health they would deal with it the same way you would if your house was on fire. You would run, right? Or would you just sit there and say, "oh well.. oh hell... guess I'm burning up now." Really?  I know it's hard to fight addictions. I'm wrestling with the TV off switch these days, trying to keep my butt on the meditation cushion more, in fact, trying not to be judgmental and angry. But I am trying.

As Buddhists we use mortality as our motivation. That's been one of the tools I've used to modify "bad" (aka life-threatening) habits. I have not smoked for over five years now (about 18,000 cigarettes NOT smoked.) I have lost weight and reduced my cholesterol issues by modifying what I eat and moving around more. Yes, I binged a bit over the holidays, but now I'm back to healthier foods, and working on all my various "bad" behaviors using some of the Buddhist antidotes.
In fact, this is what I find so appealing about Buddhist mind training techniques. It's not a religion of hoping that some outside force will save me; it's a philosophy and set of tools that we can use to steer us away from indulging our addictions.

So, rather than using this blog in the future to rant about what bugs me, I'm going to share the Dharma by using specific examples of how to use the antidotes to shift your tastes and tendencies. I will feel much better about myself (not ranting and judging) and hopefully it will help others along the way.

BTW, this is what I consider "writing to clarity." I was kind of pissy when I first sat down, but by using the Dharma, I arrived at posting something useful, rather than harmful. Hopefully, we will all improve (my self included, of course.)