Best Of
Re: Buddhist quotes
"Since we were born, we have let our mind do what it likes, like a spoiled child, and we have to admit that nothing really positive has come of it. To take control of it is indispensable. That is something worth spending time on, even if it is just a little bit each day."
JIGME KHYENTSE RINPOCHE (b. 1964)
marcitko
Re: For the coming year
I’m finding some days my breath feels kind of ‘open to the elements’, and then I am better off breathing high in the chest and the nose, other days I take the breath deeper. I usually connect better to the breath in the morning or in the evening.
Usually in the first few seconds I find I can just observe.
I approach the breath with friendliness, as if it were a skittish animal.
Then usually it melts away and I find myself in control.
I breathe in a less shallow way then.
Jeroen
Re: Seven Factors of Awakening
Ajahn Sona was my second Buddhist teacher! I still tune in Birken Monastery Livestream from time to time. Thanks. I will re-watch 
Kotishka
Re: Seven Factors of Awakening
For anyone interested, here is a full playlist of an English-language virtual retreat on the Seven Factors of Awakening - both talks and Q&As.
The speaker is Ajahn Sonna, the Abbot of Birken Thai Forrest Monastery in Canada.
For those audio-only inclined, the same content is available on Spotify and iTunes.
I've been relatively obsessively listening to his various talks, during walks, in bed, and at other times, and can definitely recommend.
marcitko
Re: Islam: The Rough Diamond?
@Jeroen said:
But then you can never really say. I’ve not done a deep dive on the World Trade Center collapse, but there were some very strange things about those events, like the Building 7 collapse. The US went after Al’Qaeda hard after that, and they picked up a whole lot of terrorist suspects and put them in Guantanamo, it would be quite something if the original thing all turned out to be some sort of intelligence operation.
They didn't really. Al Qaeda was flown out of Afghanistan prior to Invasion. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunduz_airlift
Then later Al Qaeda fought wars for the USA in Libya & Syria. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libyan_Islamic_Fighting_Group
Al Qaeda leader in Libya was given award by USA Senators: https://x.com/timand2037/status/1156465447853707264?lang=bg
Waked
Re: Should a Buddhist own a gun ?
I think you’d make a great moderator @karasti, you always struck me as thoroughly practical and able to see the many sides of an argument.
Jeroen