Quote, Quote & Quote

Well ... as usual, not a lot to report really but I've come across a few quotes, poems and short previews of an article that I thought were really good so I'll share them around ... here goes:

“Prayer is the courage to persevere. It is the struggle to overcome our own weakness and lack of confidence in ourselves. It is the act of impressing in the very depths of our being the conviction that we can change the situation without fail. Prayer is the way to destroy all fear. It is the way to banish sorrow, the way to light a torch of hope. It is the revolution that rewrites the scenario of our destiny. Believe in yourself! Don’t sell yourself short! Devaluing yourself is contrary to Buddhism, because it denigrates the Buddha state of being within you. Prayer is the effort to align the gears of our life with the movement of the universe. Our lives that have been passively embraced by the universe now embrace the universe in turn, make the entire universe our ally, and fundamentally redirect our state of life in the direction of happiness”

From Travels around the Globe – My home is the World. President Ikeda

then a poem by someone who I've forgotten

Not enjoyment, and not sorrow,
is our destined end or way,
but to act, that each tomorrow
find us farther than today

then a preview to an article in the American USA mag .. would like to see the full article really as this seems to summarise my attitude to this Buddhism (and often what I fail to do myself too !)

"So why choose passivity over action?" Sean Grover asks in his Perspective. "Bad habits like neglectfulness and indifference sneak into our lives because they're easy -- no struggle, no effort. Not paying bills on time, shunning bulging laundry hampers (laundry avoiders know what I mean), even ignoring problems in a relationship -- what could be easier?"

He also writes: "There is simply no passive way to bring forth my highest life-condition. No matter what my neglectful nature tells me, true happiness doesn't come about by accident. If I am to live without regrets, I must challenge negative life tendencies that stand in my way."