There's lot of fear and stress flying around in the world, and it reflects also on this forum.
As the Nikkei nosedives, and people all over the wester hemisphere are shivering in paranoia and apocalyptic resignation, there's little comfort in looking for good news.

Solace is found within these days. And for me, I found it early this morning.

Woken up way too early by my son, we walked out into the livingroom in the darkness and started the day, making breakfast, feeling abit down. To cheer things up abit, I lit a candle on the breakfast table, and sat my son in his little chair, and turned on the Classical Music station. As a beautiful Gregorian chant came out of the radio, my son got really quiet, and as we sat there by the breakfast table, time kind of stopped. It was as some form of Grace had entered and I felt completely safe, completely at ease. As of the whole universe was listening in stillness. We sat there eating in silence, and I felt tears rolling down my face. I felt things were really OK allready, yet I also felt this sweet soft pain of knowing how this moment will pass.

What are you guys experience with these moments, if any, and how do/did they affect your life and practice?

h

dude, now you make ME cry too... These moments are what makes life so good. I have them all the time. Yesterday I took a plane and as we lifted a thought, or a state of mind, just grabbed me and made me think of my girlfried and the moments we have where we are close. The fact that it will all pass away someday makes me really appreciate the moment and my situation. And when the moment opens up, or when I open up to the moment, there is nothing but deep appreciation and like you say it, a sweet soft pain. I crave this kind of pain.

Your post made my day Hagar! Thanks a lot!

Tusen takk tilbake.

h

Might be a good time to meet up with other taobums in your area, practice and eat together.

Think you misread me abit.

h

I am glad I don't watch TV and read the newspaper, but heard of what is going on while being in touch with people I know of online in Europe (I live in Australia).

Let the unawakened dwell in their own karmic ignorance. I know it doesn't sound like "bodhisattva talk" but greed and ignorance is what has caused all this issues, and humans living in more technologically advanced societies are responsible for that.

Now what we as awakened can do is send positive energy hoping for their awakening. I do that after most of my meditations.

I chase those moments. I attach to them too heavily. Those feelings of bliss, undying love, compassion, safety, etc. that I have experienced in my meditations - and subsequently in life too - make my heart yearn for them.

They make it harder to remain unattached. Detaching from the mundane is relatively easy in comparison.

Yours, still clinging,
James

So universally true!

I've kind of grown resentful of not getting to have them as my practice suffers due to lack of time.

But maybe what's funny is that these moments are just moments, but the reveal what fundamentally is hidden within each moment (which the buddhists define as consisting of 17 instances) following Zen and Dogen in particular.

Secondly, I've gotten so attached to "realizations" and profound experiences, as viewing practice very instrumentally, as means to get to, or attain the next one. I've really made a fool out of myself in relation to that misapprehention, resulting in not wanting to focus on the "states" at all, only method (also very misunderstood "Zenism").

What is left opening to the moment via the heart, through my true nature, which is not at all affected by my quality of practice or lack thereof.

Simply difficult.

When it happens, it's always catches you off guard. Evidently, the present moment is not there if you prepare.

h