Gurdjieff parable and the path of Alchemy

Make sure you check out the section at the end that pertains to physical practices like martial arts, hatha yoga, sacred dance, etc.
The Gurdjieff Work helps to get rid of our articifical mechanical nature and instead engender pure action. Also for those who read Chogyam Trungpa this concept is similar to authentic presence.

Key concepts to look for in this article are the material self, reactionary self, the divided self, consciousness and the path of transformation.


http://www.gurdjieff-bennett-canada.ca/Readings/wolfsheepcabbage.htm

The Wolf, the Sheep and the Cabbage
There is an ancient riddle which has taken many forms in different places. This tale, which originated with the Kwajigan, the Masters of Wisdom, in the eleventh century
A man wishes to cross a river with three things: a wolf, a sheep and a cabbage. The man has access to a small boat, with a capacity for only himself and one other thing. How does the man get all three across without letting either the wolf eat the sheep of the sheep eat the cabbage. The solution to the riddle is really very simple, but the other layers of meaning are not so straightforward. This afternoon we will address one level encoded in the riddle. What can the different figures in the story be taken to represent? They have certain characteristics in common. They are for instance, all alive and within certain limits capable of independent motion. All three are valuable to the man but some are more vulnerable than others.

First the cabbage: other than small adjustments to the sun, cabbages have a very limited ability to move. Any other movement requires that the cabbage be picked up and carried. Their single urge is self preservation. For these reasons and to denote its proper function, which is the manipulation of the material world, the part of the human psyche represented by the cabbage can be termed the Material Self.

Secondly the sheep: clearly we are dealing with another order of being altogether. The sheep is used here to represent another aspect of our psyche: the part concerned with perception. Unlike the cabbage, it is not entirely passive. Fearful, timid and suggestible by nature, it ideally represents those parts of us that can be led anywhere and convinced of anything. The more positive aspect of this is its sensitivity to external stimuli. For these reasons the sheep represents what can be called the Reactional Self, that part in us that reacts to the outside world through sense perceptions. It likes, it dislikes and unfortunately it can be convinced to like or dislike virtually anything at all.

Thirdly the Wolf: is primarily a carnivore, a hunter. In order to eat it will take life and shed blood. Unlike the sheep, it does not shrink from a fight, nor will it run from another predator without a contest. Its desires are stronger, its urges for life more powerful. A wolf, with its desires for freedom, is much harder to train or condition than a sheep. Basic dualities in the wolf - the needs for solitude... and for company... to hunt... and to nurture... make the wolf an excellent representation of the part of human nature we term the divided self. Put very simply, this is the seat of the strong desires, the realm of force generated by the conflicting nature of the desires in us.

Fourthly, the Man: who represents those aspects of us which are truly human. We tend to think of these as the unmechanical, rational aspects, and to a degree this is correct. Man is intended to be a conscious being. What is most important is that unlike the other parts, the human aspect can be transformed.

Obviously, getting all four beings or parts to act in harmony is not so easy. Often, however, we do feel the pull towards something greater than ourselves, or a dissatisfaction with our current situation. For some this experience leads one to think of crossing the river.

The nature of this river is perhaps best seen contrasted with the land. The land is basically static. Its very stability allows the forms of life described in the story to arise. The river, on the other hand, is not static; it is fast­ moving and often full of rapids. In fact, it is an ideal symbol for the psychological state in which change is possible. If the passage to the far shore can be made, the relationship amongst the man, the wolf, the sheep and the cabbage will have been changed. Of necessity, they will have come into a cooperative harmony impossible before the crossing.

From one point of view the crossing itself is the creation of this new relationship. It can be called the first real step on the path of transformation. Perhaps the man alone can swim the river and have a look around, but he will be unable to remain on the farther shore unless his possessions are safely with him. And this requires a different kind of organization. In the technical terminology this is termed the difference between state and station. State refers to the experience of visiting while station is the possession of the right to live there.

The river then, is the condition in which change can take place. What then is the boat? In one sense it is a little bit of land... a manufactured organization that allows a real journey, real change to take place in the hazardous conditions of passage. In short, it can be seen as an organization of energy both internal and external. This is an adequate description of a teaching.

Certain things must be pointed out about the passage: the cabbage cannot take root, the sheep cannot graze and, the wolf cannot hunt. The passage therefore, must be accomplished with all possible speed. Furthermore if you try to build your own boat, the cabbage will rot, the sheep will wander off and the wolf will be long gone, probably having eaten the sheep before its departure. You must therefore have access to a boat ready for passage. That is not to say that adaptations to the boat are not possible, but simply that there are many boats to choose from, and one of them will almost certainly fill your needs. Nevertheless, the story stipulates that all the boats available are large enough to contain just one man and one other thing. They may come in many shapes and move by different means, but there are only small boats and everyone must cross this river alone. You must choose your boat carefully: make sure that it is seaworthy. Moreover you must first learn how to use the boat.

Some of you may know the solution to the riddle, either because you have read it somewhere or because you have figured it out. Some of you in fact will have realized that there are two solutions to the riddle. The solutions are these: First you must take the sheep across the river, then you return and get the wolf and bring it across. The key to the riddle is here... at this point you must reverse direction, pick up the sheep and take it back across the river. There you deposit it and pick up the cabbage... Finally you return once again and pick up the sheep. The other solution is identical other than the fact that after you transport the sheep, you take the cabbage next instead of the wolf. At this time we will only discuss the first solution...

Let us turn to what it means to take the sheep across the first time. Oddly enough this is largely a matter of conditioning; that is to say, acquiring a taste for finer kinds of perception. The ability to open oneself to influences of a more subtle kind can give the sheep the wish to experience more. Paradoxically becoming more "sensitive" does not mean that we indulge in becoming more attached to our bodily habits, habits of reactivity and habits of the associations that we call thought. The real requirement is to learn to separate and become non-identified with the body, feelings, thoughts. We must learn that negative emotions obstruct the growth of sensitivity. We can become sensitive to the flow of energies in the body itself. We must learn to relax the unnecessary tensions, to learn to find a deep stillness inside. Sensitivity to real feelings is enhanced by experimenting with like and dislike. Mr Gurdjieff called part of this process learning to like what it does not. The basic direction of this kind of work can be summed up in a few words: learning to see the mechanical reactions and manifestations that prevent us from really accom­plishing what we set out to accomplish. To have seen the possibility of something else and to have seen oneself is guaranteed to give force to ones work. This is to have taken the sheep across the first time.

Once the sheep is across the river it can be safely be left grazing in a field. The wolf will remain waiting patiently on the other side.

After all, its basic desire is to eat the sheep.

Coming back across the river to pick up the wolf corresponds to two things. First, it means letting go of the often delightful states that are encountered in the initial work. Second, and more importantly, it means to turn… to face the next aspect of the task.

At this point the initial disciplines have been learned. As pointed out earlier, the Wolf or Divided Self is the realm of desire and force. The tools sufficient for handling a sheep are inadequate to handle a wolf. Work on the Divided Self is centred on learning to produce and control the force generated by the friction of opposites.

Almost always when we experience a strong like or dislike, there is a moment when we experience its opposite, a moment when part of us is still separate and does not experience the feeling. All of us have had the experience of being accused of something. When this happens, we automatically react, by justifying our own position, by denying the accusation, or by trying to evade the issue altogether. There is another alternative, however. We can learn to hold two conflicting impulses in our presence simultaneously. When this is done something else can enter.

This small opportunity can be used for something very big.

This is one way to learn to See.

The forces of the Divided Self are wasted when they are expressed through the Reactional Self. When we jump one way or the other, our wolf has eaten our sheep.

Once we have developed this discrimination and balanced these forces, we have taken the wolf across the river.

The man is now faced with the necessity of bringing the sheep back across with him. It must be clearly seen that this is an inevitable part of the solution. Although he has worked very hard to bring both the wolf and the sheep across, it may appear that his only reward is to undo his previous work. He must put the sheep in the boat and return.

Without this reversal of direction, the whole project will fail.

At this point we notice that that the sheep is being brought from the farther shore, the inner world, back to the starting point; the outer world, the world of everyday life. This transition involves the training of the emotions in a social context. Responsiveness to our feelings must be finer, quicker than when we brought the sheep over the first time. Our awareness must extend from moments of rest into our active interactions with others. Such interactions are strengthened by becoming more sensitive to All things. Art work, gardening, flower-arranging and meditation on Form are all useful in this context.

Once we have returned the sheep to the starting-point, there is a danger: if we are inattentive, if we forget our aim, the sheep will soon be nibbling away contentedly on the cabbage. With the increased sensitivity gained by the passage, there is a great temptation. Our heightened perceptions make self-indulgence extremely seductive.

We must take the cabbage across immediately.

Taking the cabbage across is a way of speaking about direct work on the Material Self, about direct work on the soma; the impulses and reflexes of the body. Here we may include such ascetic practices as fasting, or long hours spent in sitting meditation and doing inner work, provided that these are undertaken from one's own initiative.

Again, the slow painstaking discipline required to master the martial arts, Sacred dance, or Hatha yoga is characteristic of the work which brings the will and the automatism into a direct and proper relationship.

This purification of the organism leaves one with the final step on the way. The man must now return and bring the sheep across once again to the farther shore. It is unlike any of the other crossings, for it cannot be done by one's own efforts. It requires the ability to let go; of effort, of self, of desire. Only the ability to be open to the higher forces can help in the final step. Here we can only ask for grace. This ability to let go is itself an act of will which cannot be taken without the preparatory work. A vessel into which grace can enter must be prepared for, as Mr. Bennett has said: "What use is a vessel that can only contain itself”.

False Fire, Heart Fire Part One

False Fire, Heart Fire

Key Ideas: Balance, Yin Yang symbol, Obstacles to balance


Balance and harmony are hallmark concepts of traditional Chinese Medicine. The beauty of this medicine is that it is virtually impossible to separate the spiritual component out of the foundation. For meditators, Traditional Chinese Medicine offers a field guide to obtaining and maintaining the balance necessary to practice. Personality issues and other obstacles to meditation can sometimes be the result of "heart fire" or "false fire". The problem is that to most people not familiar with the pricipals of TCM read this and dismiss immediately. The other reaction is an automatic acceptance without further consideration. The aim of this post is to talk about the importance of balance and the disharmony of false fire and heart fire.

The Yin/Yang symbol is a simple yet profound device for teaching the principals of Taoism. The implications of this symbol could fill up libraries with information. It goes way beyond the beginning level concepts of masculine/feminine, light/dark,etc. It can be used as an ancient form of philosophical technology used to teach and understand the transformation of the "10,000 things". But for the purposes of this article, we will just focus briefly on what it means for the practitioner of meditation. One would then need to really get deep into Chinese Medicine and philosophy in order to really understand all the complexities.

For starters, homeostasis in the body/mind is sort of an operational normal. It is what the human organism struggles to maintain. The problem is that diet, karmic patterns, structural imbalances, armouring (psychological), memories, the baggage of personal history, the current psychological and physical environment, etc. all have a say so in this homeostasis. As one can see there are many opportunities to throw a human out of balance. Chinese medicine allows one to tease out these patterns of dishamony so that homeostasis can be achieved in order to live out our divine purpose and realize our true nature. For the martial artist the most common type of dishamony is related to heart fire.

Upcoming articles:
Part Two Key Ideas-General principals of Yin/Yang, False Yin and False Yang, Yin patterns of disharmony and Yang patterns of disharmony as related to meditation
Part Three key Ideas-What are the components of the Heart?
Part Four Key Ideas - Martial Artist Fire syndromes, Narcisim, Anger, Lack of Empathy, Separation and Aggression as barries to the path of meditation, "Sword in my hand but not in my Heart"

Levels of Samadhi

Last night's lecture from Ping in Hong Kong was pretty cool. He often talks about levels of Samadhi.
Here is one view of the Levels of Samadhi
According to Veda, the spectrum of consciousness is divided into seven different levels:



1. waking (connected to the A in AUM mantra)

2. dreaming (connected to the U in AUM mantra)

3. deep formless sleep (connected to the M in AUM mantra)

4. awareness/Samadhi (connected to the stillness after the mantra)

5. awareness while waking, while dreaming, and while in sleep

6. conscious of the underlying structure and rules of how reality is formed

7. complete non-dual awareness, one with God

Links for more information:
Hindu Samadhi information

Sufi Comparisons Stages of Fana

Fana Fi-Allah:This is the third stage.When this stage is perfected,one eneters the domain of Baqa.This is when a drop of non-existence enters the Ocean of Divine Existence and becomes part of the tranquil Ocean of Eternity.When the great Master,Shaykh Qasim Junaid al-Baghdadi achieved this Fana,he said:"I have been talking with Allah Ta'Ala for 40 years and people thought that i was talking to them."There are numerous other incidents and comments which involve the great 'Arifin' of the same nature.However,when the Salik reaches this stage,he becomes Muwah'hid-Biz-Zaat.At this unique stage,Shirk becomes non-existent.

Horizons of Perfection.

Levels of the Boddhisatva Path

This post is for my fellow TaiChiZen classmates. Please check back as I will be posting basic information for the different streams of influence for the meditative component of the TaiChiZen curriculum. I will use the different labels of Buddhism, Sufi, Taoism, Chinese Medicine. Also feel free to go through the old posts as they have a lot of relevant information for our training.
Levels of the Boddhisatva Path
here is one set of "levels". remember that there are different variationsl
1. Cultivate renunciation 2. Begin cultivating bodhicitta 3. To get bodhicitta, need correct view, so
4. Meditate on and realize emptiness 5. Attain bodhicitta
(now a bodhisattva on path of accumulation) 6. Alternate stabilizing meditation (concentration) and analytical meditation
7. Stabilize mind on emptiness, attain path of preparation. 8. refine and deepen realization of emptiness; sense of subj/obj. split weakens 9. realize emptiness directly and non-dualistically, attaing path of seeing (= first ground)
10. continuing on path of meditation, overcoming subtler types of afflictions on grounds 2-7 11. Escape cyclic existence, continue on path of meditation grounds 8-10 12. refine and deepen realization, getting rid of subtle obstructions to omniscience
13. become a buddha: from within meditation on emptiness, all other things also appear; path of no-more-learning

Essay on the Four Fold Way

Angeles Arrien wrote this very good essay on the Four Fold Way. I hope to in the future weave elements of the Traditional Chinese Martial arts into the Paths outlined in her article.

Four Ways to Wisdom

BY ANGELES ARRIEN

As Alvin Toffler points out in his visionary book "Future Shock", we must become more capable of handling change than ever before if we are to survive and thrive in the twenty-first century. Toffler observes, "We have the opportunity to introduce additional stability points and rituals into our society, such as new holidays, pageants, ceremonies, and games. Such mechanisms could not only provide a backdrop of continuity in everyday life but serve to integrate societies and cushion them somewhat against the fragmenting impact of super-industrialism."

Although Toffler writes about introducing new techniques to help us handle change, indigenous and Eastern cultures have long recognized that the only constant is change. Among tribal peoples, medicine men, chiefs, shamans, teachers or seers are called "change masters." The shamanic traditions practiced by agrarian and indigenous peoples remind us that, for centuries, human beings have used nature and ritual to buffer the effects of change and to support a life event, rather than denying or indulging in it. Although individuals in industrial cultures can help themselves embrace change through dreams, images, play, relationships and acts of creative work, we suffer from the lack of cultural support as we face the ever-increasing demands of change. In the introduction to Arnold Van Gennep's Rites of Passage, Salon Kimbala observes that "one dimension of mental illness may arise because an increasing number of individuals are forced to accomplish their traditions alone and with private symbols."

In cultures like ours where we are alienated from our mythological roots, renewal requires a return to the basic source where all personal and cultural myths are ultimately forged the human psyche. To guide our renewal we can look to cross-cultural research that reveals how shamanic traditions have consistently accessed four archetypal patterns to maintain connections to the mythic structures that support creative expression, health and adaptation to change. These four archetypal ways are The Way of the Warrior, The Way of the Healer, The Way of the Visionary and The Way of the Teacher. The four Ways reflect a pervasive belief that life will be simple if we practice four basic principles: Show up or choose to be present, pay attention to what has heart and meaning, tell the truth without blame or judgment, and be open, rather than attached to, the outcome.

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THE WAY OF THE WARRIOR

The task of the warrior is to show up, to be visible and empower others through example and intention.

Through the archetype of the warrior an old-fashioned term for leader indigenous societies connect to the process of empowerment and to the human resource of power. Universally there are three kinds of power:power of presence, power to communicate, power of position. Shamanic societies recognize that a person who has all three powers embodies "big medicine."

Every human being carries the power of presence. Some individuals carry such presence that we are drawn to and captivated by these charismatic people even before they speak or we know anything about them.

A warrior or leader uses the power of communication to effectively align the content, timing and placement to deliver a message at the right time in the right place for the person involved to hear and receive it.

A warrior demonstrates the power of position by the willingness to take a stand. Many politicians have great presence and great communication, but lose power when they allow constituents to wonder where they stand on specific issues.

Examples of individuals who carry all three powers and who access the mythical structure and archetype of the Way of the Warrior are Mother Teresa, Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. Each has been committed to aligning the power of presence, communication and the willingness to take a stand in arenas that have heart and meaning for them.

Cross-culturally, the posture of standing meditation in one position with arms at sides and eyes open for at least fifteen minutes is used in the martial arts, spiritual practices and in the military as a way of reinforcing and coalescing the three universal powers and of connecting the practitioner with the greater being of who he or she is.

Most native peoples attribute the Way of the Warrior to the direction of the North, the home of Father Sky and of all the winged creatures. The belief is held that during challenging times, it is essential to face our challenges with the grace, power and dignity of the "winged ones." It is important to remember that when challenges present themselves, it is the warrior's way to embrace them with full-bodied presence rather than to constrict in fear.

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THE WAY OF THE HEALER

The task of the healer is to pay attention to what has heart and meaning and to access the human resource of love. We express the Way of the Healer through attitudes and actions that maintain personal health and support the welfare of our environment.

The archetype of the healer is a universal mythic structure that all humans experience. Every culture has ways of maintaining health and well-being. Healers in most traditions recognize that the power of love is the most potent healing force available. Effective healers from any culture are those who extend the arms of love gratitude, acceptance, recognition, validation and acknowledgment.

Probably the most powerful contemporary example of someone who demonstrates the healing power of extending love is Mother Teresa. In shamanic traditions she would be called a medicine woman.

The posture of lying meditation is often used for healing work. In "journey work," which is lying down on one's back with closed eyes to the accompaniment of the drum, individuals in shamanic traditions access spiritual guidance and healing. When individuals do a journey, they open themselves to the possibility of removing the blocks and obstacles to receiving and giving love.

Most native peoples attribute the Way of the Healer to the direction of the South, with Mother Nature and all the four-legged creatures. Across cultures, there are four universal healing salves: singing, dancing, storytelling and silence. Native cultures transmit their values, ethics and spiritual beliefs through the oral traditions of stories, songs, dances and silent rituals and prayer. It has long been recognized that these healing salves reawaken and sustain the divine child within human beings and return to individuals the qualities of wonder, hope and awe. It is how we pay attention to our life story that allows us to experience the human resource of love, the most powerful healing force on Mother Earth.

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THE WAY OF THE VISIONARY

The task of the visionary is to tell the truth without blame or judgment. Truthfulness, authenticity and integrity are essential keys to developing our vision and intuition. We express the Way of the Visionary through personal creativity, goals, plans, and our ability to bring our life dreams and visions into the world.

All cultures regard the importance of vision and its capacity to magnetize the creative spirit. Shamanic societies use Vision Quests, extended periods of solitude in nature, as a way of remembering their life dream and of accessing the four ways of seeing: intuition, perceptions, insight, and vision.

Many native American cultures hold a belief that each individual is "original medicine," nowhere duplicated on the planet and that therefore it is important to bring the creative spirit and life dream or purpose to Earth. Since we are "original medicine," these native people see that there is no need for comparison or competition. The work is to come forward fully with our gifts, talents and resources and to powerfully meet our tests and challenges. The Visionary is one who brings his or her voice into the world and who refuses to edit, rehearse, perform or hide all ways we can feed the false-self system of denial and indulgence.

Among most indigenous peoples, the direction of the East is associated with the home of the Great Spirit, the place of the rising sun and the place where we come home to our authentic self. Archetypically, the bell or conch shell serves as a sonic voice that calls people together and calls us as individuals to remember our authentic purpose.

The human resource of vision is the container that magnetizes the creative spirit to bring one's original medicine into the world. It is the Visionary within that inspires the voice to share what it sees. Rollo May states what shamanic traditions have practiced for centuries, "If you do not express your own original ideas, if you do not listen to your own being, you will have betrayed yourself."

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THE WAY OF THE TEACHER

The task of the teacher is to be open, rather than attached, to outcomes. Openness and non-attachment helps us recover the human resources of wisdom and objectivity.

Every culture has traditional and non-traditional means of education. Shamanic traditions believe that wisdom is flexible and fluid. The teacher's way is to be open to outcome and access wisdom by learning how to trust and be comfortable with states of not knowing. Trust is the container out of which the qualities of wisdom grow clarity, objectivity, discernment and detachment.

The opposite of trust is control. The trickster figure found in many shamanic traditions functions to present surprises and the unexpected as a way of waking people out of their routines and shocking them into seeing their attachments.

Among many shamanic traditions, the Way of the Teacher is associated with the direction of the West, the home of Grandmother Ocean and all the water creatures. The ocean is nature's mirror for indigenous cultures to learn how to be malleable and fluid.

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BALANCING THE FOUR-FOLD WAY

Even though these four archetypes are emphasized in most shamanic traditions, it is important to understand the they are universal and easily accessed by all humans in a variety of different contexts, cultures, structures and practices. To maximize well-being and to be adaptable to change, indigenous peoples consider it important to be equally balanced in the areas of leading, healing, visioning, and teaching work.

If you numbered these archetypes from one to four, with one being the most developed in your nature and four being the least developed, what would you discover? Most cultures recognize optimum health as having a balance in the expression of all four of these ways. Independent of the culture we come from, we can follow the warrior's way to access power, the healer's way to access love, the visionary's way to access vision, and the teacher's way to access wisdom.

Through the resource of power we are able to choose to be present. Through the resource of love we are able to pay attention to what has heart and meaning. Through the resource of vision we are able to give voice to what we see. Through the resource of wisdom we are able to be open, not attached to, outcomes.

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the above essay is Copyright 1995 by Angeles Arrien

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Angeles Arrien, Ph.D. is a cultural anthropologist, educator, corporate consultant and author of
The Four-Fold Way: Walking the Paths of the Warrior, Teacher, Healer
and Visionary and Signs of Life: The Five Universal Shapes and How to Use Them.
She lectures internationally and conducts workshops that bridge cultural anthropology, psychology and comparative religions. Her work reveals how indigenous wisdoms are relevant in our families, professional lives and our relationship with Mother Earth.

The Four Fold Way

My wife was reading The Four Fold Way when I first met her. It has been a guideline for my training ever since. After reading that book mulitpule times I still learn something new. Many martial artists get stuck in one way of thinking. Traditional Chinese martial artists of old have always followed a path similar to the one outlined in her book. They transform from fighter to sage. Take Master Sun Lu Tang as an example. He transformed his martial method into martial tao. It was a way to achieve liberation from the narrow self. As an example of this type of training in Chinese Martial Arts I offer this citation from Ping Zhen Cheng. It is from an article entitled "Sun Lu Tangs Martial Enlightenment and Structural Mechanincs":

'As the pioneer of integrated internal arts, a reformer of
all three styles of the Internal Family, his teachings on Marital enlightenment is not
only systematic, but it also can be validated by both Taoism Alchemy principles and
Jung’s theories of “actualized SELF” and “collective consciousness”, as well as certain
components of Zen and Vipassana teachings.'


So one can infer from this article that there is a long tradition of Taoist Alchemy, Buddhist study, etc. that is embedded in some styles of martial arts. There is a transformation that takes place from a limited perspective of the self to a broader more inclusive perspective or realization. Rather than serving as a hinderance the martial arts training taught from this perspective can be utilized to travel on a path to liberation.

The Four Fold Way is a modern day guideline that a martial artist can use to break out of old patterns. These aggresive and controling attitudes combined with other misguided words of wisdom from a well meaning teacher can perpetuated by a fighters mentality. One can use this Four Fold Way to start thinking outside the box.

Practice: How often? When to skip?

The frequency of practice depends on many factors such as spare time, family commintments, goals, etc. The ideal amount of time required for your training is highly individual and should take into account your responsibilities and commitments. Right off the bat you, should never sacrifice valuable time with family and friends in order to spend more time at the gym chasing a dream. Spending time beyond a reasonable amount (5-10 hours per week) is just plain wasteful. It would be better spent hanging out with significant others or engaging in spiritual practice at the meditation center or church. If you are spending more time than this then you are running away from something.

In spiritual training, it is easy to practice when life is good. When I am healthy and have money to pay the bills it is damned easy to sit on the cushion or be nice to everyone. Practice is hard when someone is yelling me or the economy is crashing or my relationship is in a rough spot. It doesn't matter if you are a Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, etc. Is there a better time to practice unconditional love or acceptance than when that cop is writing you a speeding ticket? Is there a better time to learn to be humble than when someone is calling you on your narcissim? I don't think so.