The first fight

The fight is within.

The fight is with the tiny fists of doubt that constantly wrestle with your mind.

The fight is with the two seemingly glorious paths.

The fight with the separation between you and the thought.

Before you jump into the battle field of life,

and dream to conquer other things and people,

win over your thought.

Make the thought a part of your being.

So strongly interwoven into your body, your nerves and veins

That no amount of talking or convincing can separate you from it.

Make sure that part of your flesh is torn and your body bleeds

in the act of separating you and your thought.
Let the thought flow in your blood.
Let it beat in your heart.

Then you are ready to fight.

The first fight is with yourself.

The first fight is inside your own mind.

The first fight is to conquer the thought.

Yet another ode to failure

Any one who has achieved anything big will tell you they didn't succeed at it, they failed at something even bigger. Any one who shoots for small thing will point to an even smaller thing and brag about how they succeeded! Shoot for the stars and embrace the tiny speck of dust you fall on. It's that tiny speck of dust that carries you around the universe.

Zen and the Art of Running by Larry Shapiro

Mindfulness

Right Effort

Meditation

Awareness

The Middle Path

Impermanence

Buddha says:

A jug fills drop by drop.

Peace comes from within. Do not seek it from without.

We are what we think. With our thoughts, we make the world.

He is able who thinks he is able.

To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one's family, and to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one's mind.

It is better to travel well than arrive.

The foot feels the foot when it feels the ground.

No one saves us but ourselves. No one can and no one may. 

We ourselves must walk the path.

It is a person's own mind, not his enemy or foe, 

that lures him to evil ways.

There is nothing more terrible than the habit of doubt. Doubt separates people. It is a poison that ruins friendships and breaks up pleasant relations. It is a thorn that irritates and hurts. 

It is a sword that kills.

There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth: not going all the way and not starting.

The secret of health for mind and body is not to mourn for the past, nor to worry about the future, 

but to live the present moment wisely and earnestly.

Every human being is the author of his own health or disease.

I do not believe in a fate that falls on people however they act. 

But I do believe in a fate that falls on them unless they act.

All things appear and disappear...

Zen and the art of living

Ah! Yet another new year! Time just flies, doesn't it?

I decided to go without making any resolutions this year - growing up I guess. Plus I have been doing everything that I would like to do in life and just need to continue on the path instead of adding new items to the list or stressing myself out about my performance.

One thing that has definitely been a welcome change is the frequency at which I got to read books in the last couple of weeks in spite of such a hectic work schedule. The next two posts are summaries of the books I read recently.

Zen and the Art of Running by Larry Shapiro

Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg

Sacrifice of a rose

A devil sat in a garden of roses
Plucked a flower
Started pulling out a petal at a time.

The leaves stood up tight and screamed:
That's a rose!
You don't pull it out.
You just look and smell.

The devil smiled and went his way
Till the flower remained no more
Just its fragrance lingered on about.

One day a prince came riding along
Spotted the devil
Tightened his bow, his aim unmistakable

Just then,
The leaves stood up tight and screamed:
Wait! That's a rose!
You don't shoot at it.
You just look and smell.