I climb the road to Cold Mountain,
The road to Cold Mountain that never ends.
The valleys are long and strewn with stones;
The streams broad and banked with thick grass.
Moss is slippery, though no rain has fallen;
Pines sigh, but it isn’t the wind.
Who can break from the snares of the world
And sit with me among the white clouds?
- Han-shan
"Years of living with an alcoholic is almost sure to make any wife or child neurotic. The entire family is, to some extent, ill."
— ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 122
It is important for me to realize that, as an alcoholic, I not only hurt myself, but also those around me.
Making amends to my family, and to the families of alcoholics still suffering, will always be important.
Understanding the havoc I created and trying to repair the destruction, will be a lifelong endeavor.
The example of my sobriety may give others hope, and faith to help themselves.
From the book Daily Reflections
Copyright © 1990 by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.
Chapter 14
What cannot be seen is called evanescent;
What cannot be heard is called rarefied;
What cannot be touched is called minute.
These three cannot be fathomed
And so they are confused and looked upon as one.
Its upper part is not dazzling;
Its lower part is not obscure.
Dimly visible, it cannot be named
And returns to that which is without substance.
This is called the shape that has no shape,
The image that is without substance.
This is called indistinct and shadowy.
Go up to it and you will not see its head;
Follow behind it and you will not see its rear.
Hold fast to the way of antiquity
In order to keep in control the realm of today.
The ability to know the beginning of antiquity
Is called the thread running through the way.
~~~~~~
do not be distracted
from twitter
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Dalai Lama
@DalaiLama
Fundamentally human beings are the same. Imagine being lost in some remote place and suddenly seeing someone coming towards you over the horizon. You wouldn't care about their race, nationality or religious faith, you'd be filled with the joy of encountering another human being.
Unaware of illusion or enlightenment,
From this stone I watch the mountains,
Hear the stream.
A three-day rain has cleansed the earth,
A roar of thunder split the sky.
Ever serene are linked phenomena
And though the mind’s alert,
It’s but an ash heap.
Chilly, bleak as the dusk I move through,
I return, a basket brimmed with peaches on my arm.
- Genko (1505)
When the woman of Tao left the mountain,
The mountain turned as gray as ashes;
The white clouds hid away their smiles,
And the blue pines were filled with grief.
Suddenly came news of the woman of Tao’s return,
And bird’s song burst open the mountain valleys.
A divine light radiates from the precious temples,
And a dharma rain washes away the swirling dust.
- Su Shih (1073)