July 14, 2025 With good fortune
comes responsibility.
Good fortune provides us not only with a rare existence as a human but also includes everything from adequate living necessities to the good things that make our life comfortable and enjoyable. Family members who are loving and supportive. Friends who genuinely have our best interests at heart. Coworkers who we can depend on.
Having attained these, we can find ourselves at a juncture.
Do we personally enjoy all we have and look no further? Or do we begin to look beyond our own existence? Do we recognize that while we are not supposed to attach to the phenomena around us, we should not ignore or dismiss them either? As an integral member of humanity, can we, upon seeing others in need, not want to help? Is it not our responsibility to aspire to leave a place better after we have been there?
Good fortune can be very gratifying. But far more rewarding is good fortune coupled with the willingness to share it.
July 5, 2025 One moment we’re chanting and the next,
we’re not.
It’s not surprising. After all, we’re used to multitasking. And so, as soon as our mind sets into motion the chant of “Amituofo, Amituofo . . . ” it zooms away to plan the next meal or write another FaceBook post. A solution? Count as we chant! We might count once per word. Or on every in-breath and then again on the out-breath. Or once on a combined inhale and exhale.
Just like the speed of our chanting, we can see what method works best for us.
How do we combine counting with chanting? We can try to hold both thoughts in our mind, weaving them together like coiled rope. Or we can chant while visualizing the number, layering it on top of the chant. The objective is to hold both the chant and the number in our mind—without losing awareness of either one—until we reach our pre-determined number. What if we lose track of the number. Start over again at once!
The thought of which will greatly enhance our focus.