Wednesday, October 12, 2016

Dream force vs Heart force

Watch deeply the following video of Dharma talk by Sister Chan Không and Thay Phap Dung.


The followings are excerpts from the video.

Quote:
(Sister Chan Khong's Dharma talk: from 7:00)
The good news is that there is a quiet, safe place where you can take refuge. The safe island that we all can take refuge is not in New York city, not in San Francisco but in yourself.

I, myself, every time I feel totally lost, full of fear, despair, at that very moment, I know that only peace in myself, love in myself, understanding in myself, they can help me. So, I have to come back to my in-breath. Totally with my in-breath, totally with my out-breath, I try to dissociate myself with that news that make me so desperate.

And I need to continue to touch that peace by a walk. I go out. ... And if I succeed to keep my mind with my in-breath and out-breath for 1, 10, 20-minute, peace and clarity of my mind come back. And I know what to do and what not to do.

And if I want to invite you to try, because telling is easy but putting into practice (is not so easy), we need you to train yourself, like I have trained myself.

(Guided meditation)
Please close your eyes and pay totally attention to your in-breath, totally attentive to your out-breath. Try not to think of anything. Forget totally dreamforce and other activities next. Totally with your in-breath and out-breath.

(sound of the bell)

Breathing in, I calm all the tension in my body.
I calm all agitation from the top of my head.
I calm every cell of my face, every cell of my whole body.

Breathing out, I release tension of my whole body.
That idea of fear comes. I let go. Please fly away, my little fear!
That anger comes back.  Please fly away, my anger!
I need some peace, some clarity before I can look deeper into you and know the way out with beauty, with dignity, with compassion.

(Thay Phap Dung's Dharma talk: from 35:55)
He (Thich Nhat Hanh) said, "Son, would you like to join the Buddha's enterprise?" And I was shocked. He used the word, "enterprise". ... This is not a religion. What this person found, this person in India, an Indian person (the Buddha)? He is like a business man, a business person. And we represent a company. So, we are the longest lasting company in the history of humankind. 2,500 years! 

So, you have to see it like that. So, what is our product if you see yourselves? I'm trying to change your perceptions a little bit. Because we are not about religion. We are about helping the world be more kind, more slow, more gentle, more free. ... So, this is our product. A kind of compassion, kindness. ... So, in a way, our company could be called like a "Heart Force".  

I just want to share a little bit of our product. The first one is about suffering. We want to teach people how to suffer. Our teacher shared that if someone knows how to suffer, they will suffer less. You might be wandering, "I don't want to suffer." That's exactly why you continue to suffer. So, we teach people how to be with their suffering. If you know how to be with your suffering, your heart will melt. 

Some of you might have touched that as you were listening to the chant. You might have remembered someone. You might have remembered yourself. You maybe had a little tear, informing in your eye. That's exactly the essence of compassion. It's not a product you can sell or you can package. It's only when you can touch suffering but it will arise. Out of suffering, compassion will arise. So, you can not run away from suffering. So, what we teach people is how to be with suffering

When we breathe in, and I am feeling sad. 
Breathing out, it's okay to be sad. 
Breathing in, I feel lonely. Everyone on Facebook and they are having parties and I feel alone. Tonight is Saturday. And I can sit with it. I don't need to do and go anywhere. I put it down and just be with my loneliness. 

And from that ability to sit there and be with your suffering, then you begin to see that it flows and goes away. This is the key to what we are teaching people. So, don't run away from suffering. You have to learn. There is a way, techniques. And this is our whole life, to train and to share. That is our product, teaching people how to suffer so that they can suffer less.

The second products is happiness, compassion, joy. Happiness (as you heard from Daniel) is also a habit. Happiness is not a state you arrive to in the future. A lot of you are in a business. You think if you get there, you will be happy. Your promotion and so on. It is not something you arrive and you have. It's not a package. Happiness is a habit. 

We have tools to train so that you are more peaceful, free, more solid, more stable, less reactive. And the person who has these qualities, freshness, more spaciousness in the mind and the heart, and that person no longer runs, no longer is pressured to push and pull. And that person is really nice to be around. You sit next to people who are solid, who are fresh, who are free and open-minded. 
:Unquote

(My commentary)
Heart force is a great catch-copy for Dreamforce. Who has heart? Who has a dream? Non-separate self, or true self has heart. Separate self, or ego has a dream (idea, notion, mind). So, Heart force is a spiritual power and Dream force is a materialistic or economic power. The balance is vital.

(Cf.) http://www.slideshare.net/compassion5151/walking-meditation-62204227