SLOGAN 27 • Work with the greatest defilements first.
This is a great slogan for procrastinators. It is all about looking into those things we avoid, that we put off, that we somehow never end up dealing with. In particular it is about defilements. But what are defilements? According to this slogan, defilements refer to patterns of thought, habits, and emotions that sap our energy and keep us from thriving. [Read more…] about 27: Work With the Greatest Defilements First
28: Abandon Any Hope of Fruition
SLOGAN 28 • Abandon any hope of fruition.
This slogan undercuts our attachment to either success or failure. It is a kind of positive giving up. Abandoning any hope of fruition does not mean abandoning our projects and ambitions. Instead it points to a way of going about things that is present focused rather than fixated on results. [Read more…] about 28: Abandon Any Hope of Fruition
29: Abandon Poisonous Food
SLOGAN 29 • Abandon poisonous food.
The image of poisonous food suggests an experience that is seemingly nourishing, but in fact can kill you. In terms of slogan practice, this image refers in particular to the poison of ego-fixation and its power to transform the nutritious food of loving-kindness practice into poison. [Read more…] about 29: Abandon Poisonous Food
30: Don’t Be So Predictable
SLOGAN 30 • Don’t be so predictable.
When we work with mind training and the devleopment of bodhichitta, we are interrupting our usual way of going about business. We find that many of our actions are programmed and extremely predictable and we notice that in other people as well. This is why it is so easy to push each other’s buttons. It is why it is so easy to manipulate and to be manipulated. [Read more…] about 30: Don’t Be So Predictable
31: Don’t Malign Others
SLOGAN 31 • Don’t malign others.
When we malign someone, our intention is to cause harm. Our words are spiteful and ill-spirited. There is a saying that “sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me.” But in fact words do have power and they certainly can hurt. [Read more…] about 31: Don’t Malign Others
32: Don’t Wait in Ambush
SLOGAN 32 • Don’t wait in ambush.
This slogan is about scheming mind, the mind that never forgets a slight or an insult. Instead it keeps eating away at us, sometimes for years, and even decades. This unforgiving attitude can cause us to cut ourselves off from long-term friends or relatives. It can become so rigid and fixed, that even on our deathbed we refuse to let it go. Many people carry such grudges for life. Beyond simply carrying a grudge, we begin to plot our revenge. We wait patiently for just the right moment, a time when that person has let down their guard, or when they are in a weakened position, and then we let them have it. [Read more…] about 32: Don’t Wait in Ambush
33: Don’t Bring Things to a Painful Point
SLOGAN 33 • Don’t bring things to a painful point.
We all have lots of faults, and it is easy to get caught up in dwelling on them. It is easy to see all the things that are wrong about everyone and everything else as well. We may feel that we are doing somebody a favor by pointing out to them where they fall short, convincing ourselves that we are only doing so for their own benefit. But focusing on people’s most vulnerable areas, their most painful points, can undermine their confidence and their ability to go forward. Likewise, focusing on our own faults can be equally discouraging. [Read more…] about 33: Don’t Bring Things to a Painful Point
34: Don’t Transfer the Ox’s Load to the Cow
SLOGAN 34 • Don’t transfer the ox’s load to the cow.
This slogan is about weaseling out of our own duties and responsibilitIes. It is about passing the buck. In the first place, we avoid committing ourselves, and when we do make a commitment, instead of following through, we prefer to hand it off. We are so concerned with our rights and what we feel we are owed, and we think very little about what we owe to others and to the society at large. When we are asked to do something we may feign modesty, but not because we are really modest. We just want a way out of taking on a load we know we could carry if we wanted to. [Read more…] about 34: Don’t Transfer the Ox’s Load to the Cow
35: Don’t Try to be Fastest
SLOGAN 35 • Don’t try to be the fastest.
So much of our life is based on speed. We want to be the first to do this and the first to get that. We are always in a big rush. We want to beat everyone else, to get to the front of the line. Being fast and busy makes us feel important. We have lots to do and not much time to do it. Fast is smart, slow is stupid. Fast is youth, slow is old age. We race along faster and faster, but where are we going? [Read more…] about 35: Don’t Try to be Fastest
36: Don’t Act with a Twist
SLOGAN 36 • Don’t act with a twist.
This slogan has to do with being honest about our ulterior motives. It is based on an appreciation for how tricky our mind can be. We say one thing and mean another, or we act out of seeming benevolence, while in our heart we are only really care about ourselves.
Acting with a twist is a way of using others to advance our own interests. Everything revolves around me, myself, and I, and that attitude colors everyting we do. It literally distorts everything we say and all our actions into servants of our ego and our self-important schemes. [Read more…] about 36: Don’t Act with a Twist