jmwart

[jmwart]

my heart grieves the war in Ukraine. like so many, i don't have the answers for how this should be handled or what the endgame may be. it feels ominous & dark. i grieve the loss of life & harm, the destruction, the millions of refugees added to the already 84 million refugees worldwide from other catastrophes & wars not getting the same attention.

i feel like the world is failing the Ukrainians, as the world has failed & is failing so many other people. yes, much is being done & there has been extraordinary unity. yet here we are watching what may be the decimation of a country at the hands of a madman who doesn’t care about the cost.

what to do? engage directly & chance World War III, nuclear war? the world is being bullied by a madman dangling these threats & Ukrainians are left feeling abandoned. it feels like failure, a loss for the world. it very well may be. an energy of authoritarianism is on the rise. authoritarianism must lose in Ukraine, in the US & around the world. existence may be on a precipice. there’s such great need for creative problem solving, resilience, sanity & yes - love.

so what to do? i'm leaning in on meditation, opening my heart, sharing these practices w/ others, creating & sharing art. looking to the helpers as Mr. Rogers would say, the courageous & resilient Ukrainians, Russian soldiers abandoning their posts, Russian citizens bravely protesting under oppression & danger, people around the world saying, “NO, this isn't acceptable.” asking myself what it looks like to be a helper in this situation.

i'm thinking of the three poisons - ignorance, attachment & aggression. how these are the root cause of the suffering we see. how to end them? i begin w/ myself. my mind & heart. may i have a mind of sanity & balance, an heart open & brave that gives rise to fierce compassion, love embodied, in action, not indifferent or sedentary.

there’s still love, light, beauty & joy. may this be our path, may the destruction & harm end, may sanity arise, may hearts open, may transformation & healing of suffering be our journey's end.

~j

#Ukraine #Russia #war #harm #suffering #OpenHeart #meditation #love #JinpaLhaga

#ukraine #russia #war #harm #destruction #healing #transformation #open heart #meditation #path #practice #suffering #jmwart #jinpa lhaga

[jmwart]

we don't have to be Buddhist to sit like a Buddha.

we sit upright with confidence and dignity, with an open heart and humility, breathing in and out with awareness, attentive to the present moment, not lost in distraction, or grasping, or aggression.

it may take practice, but it's possible, because we are embodiments of life, of love.

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

if you'd like to sit together and practice, consider joining me next weekend for Self-Care Saturdays & Sundays at 9am PTeither day for Mindfulness Awareness Meditation practice and Lovingkindness Meditation practice. sessions are free or pay-what-you-can donation, with suggestion of $10. visit www.linktr.ee/jaysenwaller for links to join 👍🏻

if you find this post, my writing, photography and/or art beneficial, please consider supporting my practice and sharing, with one time donation on Venmo or PayPal, or regularly monthly giving through Patreon. visit www.linktr.ee/jaysenwaller for links 👍🏻

#meditation #mindfulness #awareness #lovingkindness #love #metta #JustSit #JustBreathe #OpenHeart #practice #path #Buddha #Buddhism #JinpaLhaga #JMWart #photography

#jmwart #buddhism #engagedbuddhist #jinpa lhaga #meditation #mindfulness #awareness #lovingkindness #metta #love #path #practice #photography

[jmwart]

Happy Valentine's Day friends!

may this day be an invitation to go deeper in our love for others and ourselves, to expand our view of love to include even that which we have decided is unlovable, and to touch the Great Love that is the ground of all being, our foundation, our compass, and destination (spoiler alert - the destination is here and now, as we are, with the world as it is).

may our eyes and hearts open to the love that is not boxed in by fleeting feelings of affection and the ever changing tides of emotion, but set free by intention and vow - to choose love and the work of love for people and a world in need.

holding all of you - you who are embodiments of love, along with this world, and this life in my heart and practice with love.

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

#HappyValentinesDay #ValentinesDay #love #lovingkindness #metta #maitre #compassion #OpenHeart #path #practice #JinpaLhaga #JMWart #JMWphotography #BWphotography #photography

#happy valentine's day #valentine #valentines day #love #lovingkindness #metta #maitri #path #practice #open heart #jinpa lhaga #jmwart #jmwphotography #bwphotography #photography

[jmwart]

dear friends!

Happy Lunar New Year! This year, 2022, is the Year of The Tiger (as was the year i was born - 1974). 🐅

the year ahead is full of possibilities and opportunities for growth and renewal. the Tiger brings with it courage and strength, power and confidence - all great characteristics to engage and bring healing and love to a world in need.

may this year support you in friendship and community as your journey unfolds!

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

*if you like this art, you can have it as a print or on various products found at JMWart, my online Redbubble store. you can visit directly at JMWart.redbubble.com or via my website (link in bio) 👍🏻🙏🏻

#LunarNewYear #ChineseNewYear #YearOfTheTiger #tiger #growth #renewal #courage #strength #power #confidence #OpenHeart #EngagedBuddhism #path #practice #enso #calligraphy #art #JinpaLhaga #JMWart

#lunarnewyear #chinesenewyear #year of the tiger #art #enso #calligraphy #jmwart #jinpalhaga #power #courage #confidence #renewal #path #practice #engagedbuddhist

[jmwart]

if love is the answer for our long ignored wounds, our current harm and trauma (and i believe it is) then we need to understand that Love = Work.

it calls for the vulnerability and courage of an open heart. it calls for our awakening to our interdependence. it calls for our touching in on the tenderness of our empathy. it calls for embodiment, our compassion in action. it calls for a dedication to our aspiration to love, discipline in our practice, and a sense of living by our vow to love.

love is not sentimental. it is a courageous, humble, connective, joyful, fierce, powerful, in the trenches with dirt beneath our nails, healing force. i believe it is what the world needs and it isn't something we can do on the sidelines. we must love into the depths of our lives, touching every cell. love leaves nothing out.

love is the energy we need to defeat movements of hate and aggression. love is the energy we need to dispel fear, to bring clarity, and coherence.

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

*if you like this art, you can have it as a print or on various products found at JMWart, my online Redbubble store. you can visit directly at JMWart.redbubble.com or via my website (link in bio) 👍🏻🙏🏻

#love #life #OpenHeart #path #practice #PlantingSeeds #vow #interdependence #suffering #healing #joy #EngagedBuddhism #JinpaLhaga #JMWart #art

#love #life #suffering #healing #joy #open heart #path #practice #engagedbuddhist #engagedbuddhism #interdependence #jinpa lhaga #jmwart #art #compassion #plantingseeds #vow

[jmwart]

one year ends & another begins. life is a series of endings & beginnings. may our compassion accompany all.

Avalokiteshvara, Bodhisattva of Compassion in Buddhism. featured here w/ multiple arms, often depicted w/ 1000 arms, each there to reach out into the world, to relieve suffering. in China they are depicted as Guanyin, she who hears the cries of the world, vowing to not rest until suffering is relieved.

these figures & stories can be seen as representations of what already resides in us, in our hearts. we can be the embodied compassion of Avalokiteshvara. we too can reach our arms out into the world, hear the cries of the world & answer the call, going where needed, relieving suffering. sometimes that place is our own hearts. we bring compassion to ourselves as well as to others.

we are living in a time of much loss, personal & collective. we are living in a time of heightened fear & existential crisis. this leads to increased stress & many respond to this w/ aggression, but compassion is what is needed for ourselves & others (sometimes fierce compassion re: need for social justice, preventing authoritarianism, attending to the climate crisis). compassion must be our fuel for the work that is calling us or we will burn out, when our light is most needed.

may we hold all that has passed & all that is to be w/ such compassion. we can do so w/ practice, w/ settled minds & open hearts. we are made of love & when we settle, when we allow ourselves to be w/ vulnerability, tenderness, spaciousness & open hearts, our compassion naturally arises to answer the call.

May our hearts remain open

May our minds be balanced & at ease

May we rest in Love & be fueled by compassion

May our luminosity shine brightest in the darkest night.

Happy New Year, dear friends!

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

*you can have this photography as a print or on various products found at JMWart, my online Redbubble store. you can visit directly at JMWart.redbubble.com or via my website (link in bio) 👍🏻🙏🏻

#Avalokiteshvara #Guanyin #bodhisattva #compassion #love #OpenHeart #luminous #light #shine #metta #lovingkindness #path #practice #NewYear #JinpaLhaga #JMWart #photography #bwphotography

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[jmwart]

There is only one question:

how to love this world.

~

Mary Oliver

embodied.

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

*if you like this art, you can have it as a print or on various products found at JMWart, my online Redbubble store. you can visit directly at JMWart.redbubble.com or via my website (link in bio) 👍🏻🙏🏻

#love #embodied #OpenHeart #life #path #practice #metta #maitri #lovingkindness #art #JinpaLhaga #JMWart

#love #openheart #path #practice #jinpa lhaga #jmwart #art #embodied #life #lovingkindness #metta #maitri

[jmwart]

"Our hearts can grow strong at the broken places."

~ Jack Kornfield

a muscle in our chest the size of our fist, is more resilient and capable than we realize. it is a special grace in this life - that which breaks can heal and become stronger. love is the source and the way.

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

*if you like this photography, you can have it as a print or on various products found at JMWart, my online Redbubble store. you can visit directly at JMWart.redbubble.com or via my website (link in bio) 👍🏻🙏🏻

#BrokenHeart #OpenHeart #heart #love #resilience #healing #strength #metta #lovingkindness #path #practice #JinpaLhaga #JMWart #art #BWphotography #photography

#brokenheart #heart #openheart #life #path #practice #metta #lovingkindness #jmwart #jinpa lhaga #bwphotography #photography #healing #resilience #strength

[jmwart]

there is a balance in nature, in life, that occurs. an ebb and flow, where even the darkest and longest of nights, holds within it the promise of ever-growing light in the days ahead.

happy Winter Solstice friends!

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

*if you like this art, you can have it as a print or on various products found at JMWart, my online Redbubble store. you can visit directly at JMWart.redbubble.com or via my website (www.jaysenwaller.com) 👍🏻🙏🏻

#WinterSolstice #darkness #light #balance #harmony #nature #life #Tao #YingYang #path #practice #art #JinpaLhaga #JMWart

#winter solstice #dark #light #nature #life #balance #harmony #Tao #yinyang #art #jinpa lhaga #jmwart #path #practice

[jmwart]

if not now, when?

"Like a flash of lightning in a summer cloud..."

this is one of the ways our life is described in the Diamond Sutra. bright, electrified with power, stunning even...but brief. i reflected on this thought a couple of days ago on my 47th birthday. as i enter my 48th year on this spinning life-giving and accommodating rock, our home, the previous 47 years seem like a dream.

we put off so much, thinking we have so much time.

in my heart i feel this urgent need to love more fully, more openly, more skillfully. there is so much need in this world. need for healing, need for empathy, need for compassion, kindness, community. we are called to ensure full equality, social justice, and peace. our planet, our home, is crying out for healing action.

what a sacred gift this life is! to be cherished and enjoyed for sure, but also to give, serve, and heal. we have an opportunity to be aware, to practice an open heart, to embody love and harmony. my birthday wish is that we each find a practice that supports our growth in this way, that supports our embodying of love and healing, that supports us being of benefit to a world in need.

if not now, when?

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

*if you like this art, you can have it as a print or on various products found at JMWart, my online Redbubble store. you can visit directly at JMWart.redbubble.com or via my website (www.jaysenwaller.com) 👍🏻🙏🏻

#IfNotNowWhen #life #brevity #impermanence #sacred #opportunity #interdependence #love #OpenHeart #path #practice #EngagedBuddhism #Zen #enso #calligraphy #art #SocialJustice #ClimateChange #ClimateAction #equality #JinpaLhaga #JMWart

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[jmwart]

There is no language of the holy. The sacred lies in the ordinary.

~ Deng Ming-Dao

when we perceive our world with a beginner’s mind, with eyes of curiosity and wonder, there is nothing that is ordinary, each breath is a miracle, each moment has a newness and freshness to it, an opportunity to greet this world with open hearts, with interest and love.

we begin to realize we already dwell in the sacred. the Absolute is here and present within the Relative. these aren’t just places or states of mind and heart reserved for another time, a later date. these are available here and now.

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

*if you like this photograph, you can have it as a print or on various products found at JMWart, my online Redbubble store. you can visit directly at JMWart.redbubble.com or via my website (link in bio) 👍🏻🙏🏻

#JustThis #sacred #life #nature #Tao #OpenHeart #BeginnersMind #curiosity #wonder #Zen #Buddhism #path #practice #JinpaLhaga #bwphotography #photography #JMWart

#sacred #ordinary #justthis #nature #zen #buddhism #engagedbuddhist #jmwart #path #practice #openheart #beginnersmind #photography #bwphotography

[jmwart]

Life bursting open

Through sunrises and sunsets

Here we learn to love.

~j

it’s this moment. it’s this time. it’s this place where the magic happens. what magic? the opportunity to love, to respond to and relate to a suffering world with an open heart and steady mind. if not now, when?

and when we feel we fall short of this, with gentleness we begin anew. if not now, when?

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

*if you like this art, you can have it as a print or on various products found at JMWart, my online Redbubble store. you can visit directly at JMWart.redbubble.com or via my website (www.jaysenwaller.com) 👍🏻🙏🏻

#haiku #art #love #life #magic #metta #lovingkindness #mindfulness #OpenHeart #SteadyMind #ThisMoment #path #practice #JinpaLhaga #JMWart

#haiku #love #life #open heart #lovingkindness #metta #art #jmwart #jinpa lhaga #path #practice #this moment #steady mind

[jmwart]

What good is it to live

with nothing left to give,

forget but not forgive,

not loving all you see?

~ Coldplay

loving all we see...

loving all we see is not an approval of what is harmful, what is cruel, what is injustice or inequality, or what is violent and destructive.

loving all we see is our response to a world with injustice and inequality, with violence and destruction, with harm and cruelty.

loving all we see is loving justice, loving equality, and working toward these things, bringing what is healing to the world.

our love is an offering of heart, of hope, of peace. our life is an offering, loving this world into healing, into equality and justice, into peace.

all of this world needs our love, so we love it all.

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

*if you like this art, you can have it as a print or on various products found at JMWart, my online Redbubble store. you can visit directly at JMWart.redbubble.com or via my website (www.jaysenwaller.com) 👍🏻🙏🏻

#LoveItAll #OpenHeart #metta #lovingkindness #TheLongArc #path #practice #EngagedBuddhism #Zen #calligraphy #art #JinpaLhaga #JMWart

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[jmwart]

today is Bodhi Day, for Mahayana Buddhists. a commemoration of the day Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha) sat under the bodhi tree and night sky, and in the early morning hour, awakened.

may we all find our stillness, our connection to all life, and may we wake up in heart and in mind, so we may be of benefit to a world in need.

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

*if you like this art, you can have it as a print or on various products found at JMWart, my online Redbubble store. you can visit directly at JMWart.redbubble.com or via my website (link in bio) 👍🏻🙏🏻

#BodhiDay #SiddharthaGautama #TheBuddha #Mahayana #Buddhism #WakeUp #OpenHeart #path #practice #art #DharmaArt #JinpaLhaga #JMWart

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[jmwart]

there is an emphasis on breath in Buddhist meditation, Taoist meditation, Tai Chi, Yoga, & other spiritual traditions. breathing happens naturally & involuntarily, so we seldom even think about it until it is inhibited perhaps through illness or environment circumstances.

although breathing happens involuntarily, most of us do not breathe in a beneficial way. we breathe in short bursts, usually because we are hurried & stressed, w/ busy bodies & busy minds. this becomes habitual & patterned. this short breathing is mostly in our chest/shoulders going up & down & doesn't use our full lung capacity.

watch a baby breathing & we see something different. we see the belly rising & falling. a relaxed diaphragm allows the lower lungs to fill up w/ air as well. w/ intention we can relearn to breathe this way, which benefits the health of our bodies & minds.

by placing our attention on our breathing, we can bring both body & mind back together. we can even enjoy our breathing. as we relax into our breath, our bodies relax as well. if the feeling of this is too strong at first, we can just lightly touch the feeling of our breathing w/ our attention without too much emphasis.

there’s a Taoist practitioner/teacher (George Thompson) that i follow & really enjoy who spoke about proper breathing recently & gave 3 suggestions/practices for proper, beneficial breathing:

+Breath Slow

Default: 5 seconds in / 5 seconds out

Destress: 4 seconds in / 7 seconds hold / 8 seconds out

+Breathe Deep

Use your intention

Release stomach tension

+Breath Through Your Nose

When? All day, every day

How? Use intention to habituate

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

*if you like this art, you can have it as a print or on various products found at JMWart, my online Redbubble store. you can visit directly at JMWart.redbubble.com or via my website (link in bio) 👍🏻🙏🏻

#breathe #body #mind #health #path #practice #meditation #Buddhism #Taoism #TaiChi #Yoga #Zen #enso #calligraphy #art #JinpaLhaga #JMWart

#breathe #health #mind #body #path #practice #meditation #buddhism #taoism #taichi #yoga #zen #enso #calligraphy #jinpa lhaga #jmwart

[jmwart]

"Hell is not punishment, it's training."

~ Suzuki Roshi

i love this quote and it also challenges me. when things are going wrong, when it feels like the world is caving in, when it is hot and heavy, i'm more likely to whine and feel bad for myself. how about you?

but is whining and feeling bad for oneself, responding with love?

in Buddhist cosmology, the remedy or response to the Hell Realm is to practice Lovingkindness. for others and for ourselves. we include ourselves in Lovingkindness practice. the practice is one of opening the heart and reorienting the mind. we can learn to hold all that is hellish with tenderness, with gentleness, with kindness, with warmth. the ground is then prepared, so that we can respond to circumstances in a way that is motivated from genuine self-care and care for others, in a way that is loving and compassionate.

i think back to my Christian upbringing, where i was taught that after his crucifixion, prior to his resurrection, Jesus descended into hell and set the captives free. how could he have done this in any other way, but love?

love is always the answer. love is the training. opening our hearts, reorienting our minds, ending harm and destruction, bringing healing to a world in need.

we won't just need this in the times ahead, we need this now.

this is the path, this is the practice. we respond to this world, by saying:

"i am here to love."

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

*if you like this art, you can have it as a print or on various products found at JMWart, my online Redbubble store. you can visit directly at JMWart.redbubble.com or via my website (link in bio) 👍🏻🙏🏻

#hell #love #metta #maitri #Lovingkindness #OpenHeart #training #practice #path #EngagedBuddhism #Buddhism #Zen #calligraphy #art #JinpaLhaga #JMWart

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[jmwart]

Happy Hanukkah to all of my dear friends who observe and celebrate!! 🕎

we can all benefit from this Festival of Lights and remembering that one light can light many. it can be easy to feel overwhelmed by darkness to forget that there is a light that shines within each of our own hearts.

if we can practice remembering that this light shines within our hearts, if we can practice keeping our hearts open to share this light, then this light has the possibility of shining to the ends of the earth and beyond, benefiting all people and the entire world.

may it be so.

~j

⭕️❤️🙏🏻

#Hanukkah #FestivalOfLights #light #shine #love #OpenHeart #art #calligraphy #JinpaLhaga #JMWart

#hanukkah #fedtivaloflights #light #shine #open heart #practice #art #calligraphy #jmwart #jinpa lhaga