A Fistful of Sand

You shouldn't chase after the past                           or place expectations on the future.                           What is past                                         is left behind.                           The future                                         is as yet unreached.                           Whatever quality is present                           you clearly see right there,                 ...

Non-violence, ahimsa , was the starting point of the Buddha’s journey. As a bodhisatta, Siddhartha Gautama, craved a way to alleviate violence, both in his life and the lives of sentient beings. In autobiographical passages he said violence dismayed him. It was all around him like a disease gone wild. Wanting a haven for myself, I saw nothing that wasn't laid claim to. Seeing nothing in the end but competition, I felt discontent.                            And then I saw an arrow here,            so very hard to see,            embedded in the heart. Samyutta Nikaya 4.15 In 2011 there were 31,940 deaths by firearm in the United States, according to the Center for Disease Control. When combining the statistics for the 23 richest nations, he...