Looking ahead!

                   Found this photie when I was, as usual, looking for the recent phone photies, which are still somewhere indiscernible within the machine, cyberspace, or whatever. The photie above is of Cambusnethan Church from the Bowman's back door in Newmains. Takes one back, so it does.

                   Even with the usual hassle with the photies, the machines have not been so back right now since I seem to have been successful in applying for an Indian Visa. So screwed up have I been with this visa that I am not investigating this until tomorrow when I'll have put in a whole day's meditation first of all. Maybe that particular .... just wait till I have to look at it.

                    Trying to book flights, get visas, etcetera, has really marred the last few weeks for me. It's not as if I'm actually looking forward to any of these events I'm flying to, but I think I don't have to worry about anything else for a couple of weeks. Next year I'd love to spend several months camping down at the Samye Ling. No flights, no visas, no bugger all!

                    I was thinking of old age and Mrs Bowman yesterday. She had a long and very normal old age. She lived alone and only had visitors occasionally, usually at the weekend when some of her children might show up. She told me once that she found the days to be long, and I can sympathise with her on that.

                    By contrast, I feel as if I'm on the, or a, path. I really do. When I get a grip on my bad habits, particularly, the meditations are a huge boon. It takes a lot of effort, but just the experience of the bliss without any concomitant effects, would make it all worthwhile. Sometimes there have been wee difficulties, but these were generally to do with lifestyle, beliefs, etc. The meditations work. It says in The Bliss of Inner Fire that you might experience "explosions of bliss and emptiness." I'm not there yet, but I do feel like I am on the path, and slowly but surely I'm a-coming!

                     

The Samye Ling again!

                    Shows what a screw up the start of this year was when I only got down to the Samye Ling last week for the first time this year. This is not good. After the first day of settling in, the quality of the meditations was way better than the usual around these parts. I really need a lot longer in retreat, but it was pretty, pretty good.

                    Funnily enough, I was only in the temple once, the first night I was there. This is really because the abbot was away on business. Most of my meditating was done down by the river. Due to the water level being lower at this time of year, the wee island made an appearance. Perfect place to sit!!

                  The meditations moved on a bit, but now I'm back here and already today I've had two incomings. I cancelled the Samye this weekend when Katen Lama is doing something, but I think I'll try to go back on Monday for three or four nights.

In These Sunny Days.

            Somebody bought the three buddhisty books on my kindle thing last weekend. I really like that. It's not the money. I think I'd get about 75p, not enough to even give away. But it's some kind of almost subliminal connection. Whoever it was, wants to know something about buddhism and all, and I'd like to do that too.

          The bug photies are because of the smart phone... for an old joe like me, the cameras are amazing ... like the first Bladerunner when the boy zooms in. The photie is because my friend likes bugs and asked me to take them. Damsel flies.

          Some of the photies are just the bit around where I was meditating today, sitting in the dirt in the sunshine. The weather has been hotter than it should be, but I always like it when the grass goes yellow and starts blowing away.