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Good morning
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Dear respected Thay, dear brothers
and sisters and dear friends
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Today is Sunday the 18th of December
in the year 2016
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and we are in the New Hamlet.
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In this winter retreat we are looking
at the Noble Eightfold Path.
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Today i would like to share with you
a little bit about right livelihood.
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Last week Brother Phap Lai
spoke about right action
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and mentioned something about
Right Livelihood and monastics,
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so as I sat down here,
that thought came to me,
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Am I practicing right livelihood,
right now?
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In my mind I see the Buddha
going out on alms round
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receiving alms to be nourished
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and the Buddha will offer the Dharma
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there is an exchange of dana and Dharma.
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I guess I am continuing,
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we are all continuing
the career of the Buddha
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and the Buddha practices Right Livelihood
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offering Dharma for dana
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so i guess that I'm practicing
Right Livelihood.
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It is possible for monastics
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So, the Noble Eightfold Path.
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There are times,
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the Noble Eightfold Path is at times
presented in three groups
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One group for ethics, “Sila”,
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one group for “Samadhi”,
concentration
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and one group for “Prajna”, insight.
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Sila, or the mindfulness trainings
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Thay teaches us that
the mindfulness trainings
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are a very concrete
expression of mindfulness
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and the logo of Plum Village is
Smrthi, which is mindfulness,
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Samadhi, concentration, Prajna, insight.
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So, I would like to start
with sharing with you
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how the eight elements
of the Noble Eightfold Path
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are divided up in those three groups.
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Maybe I'll write them on the board
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Big and small inter-are
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Right view, right livelihood
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One, or two? One.
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Mindfulness
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Usually we present them in a circle
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So, for ethics we have Right View
and Right Thinking
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Sila
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excuse me,
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I'm trying to look at the paper
instead of looking into my mind
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Right Speech, Right Action,
Right Livelihood is ethics, Sila
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Right Concentration, Right Mindfulness,
Right Effort
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is Right Concentration, samadhi
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Right View, Right Thinking
is Prajna, insight,
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When our way of living is ethical,
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if it goes in the direction of
non-violence for ourselves and others
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we feel joyful, we have energy,
we're happy
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And this is very easy
for ourselves to check.
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Right Speech for instance.
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If the first thing we said to the person
we met in the morning,
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was kind, loving, understanding,
you feel well
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and we go to work,
we feel happy and joyful
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When we feel happy and joyful,
it's very easy to concentrate,
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to have concentration.
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When we have concentration,
we can look deeply and we get insight.
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If the first thing we say
when we get up in the morning,
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makes another person feel awful,
we will also feel awful
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we may go to work but somewhere
in the depths of our mind
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is this uneasy feeling.
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We have concentration, but it may
not be the same kind of concentration
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as when we're happy and at ease
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When we look at this path,
the Noble Eightfold Path
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we can ask the question where to enter
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What is the entry
into the Noble Eightfold path?
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Mindfulness,
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that's the door through
which we enter the Noble Eightfold path
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When we practice mindfulness,
we're bringing our mind home to our body.
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There is a saying that goes
'working from home'
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I like to think about 'living from home'
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I bring my mind home to my body,
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and I live from that place of being aware.
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When we go back to ourselves,
bring our mind home to our body,
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we will notice what is happening
inside of us and around us
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and we will have the clarity and calm
in order to know how to respond
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to what is happening inside of us
and around us.
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Not just around us,
in our direct environment
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but also to the world and society at large
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So let's practice with the bell
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and do exactly that,
bring our mind home to our body
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and we will be able to find out
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what is happening inside of us,
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what are we doing, body and mind
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and how are we doing it.
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Two aspects, what and how
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So, make yourself comfortable
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bring your mind home to your body
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to sort of sink into the present moment.
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Just become aware of what is happening
inside of us, in our body and mind
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To stop being carried away
by our thinking,
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our feelings, our emotions,
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and coming home to our body,
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is the foundation of our practice
of the Noble Eightfold Path
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Traditionally, Right Livelihood
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is described as having a profession
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that does not harm human beings,
animals, nature, mother earth
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It doesn't cause any harm,
physically or mentally, morally
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which means not to deal in weapons,
this is how it's mentioned.
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Not to slaughter animals
for consumption and meat,
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not to deal in poisons or drugs,
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no human trafficking for instance
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and today I would like to look
a little bit at Right Livelihood
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in the light of our mindfulness trainings
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We have the five mindfulness trainings
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and the 14 mindfulness trainings
of the Order of Interbeing.
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Right Livelihood is,
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looking at how we're making
a contribution to the world
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how do we interact
with the world at large?
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Also, looking to see and to become aware
of the impact we have on the world
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so that we can go in the direction
of non-violence
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not harming ourselves, others,
animals, mother nature.
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We practice being responsible
citizens and consumers
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So, Right Livelihood
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There are two calligraphies by Thay
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that, for me, express very beautifully
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the state of mind that helps us to go
in the direction of Right Livelihood
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and one is: “You have enough”
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I think we can all see
how that relates to Right Livelihood
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as well as:
“Happiness is not an individual matter”
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We have enough,
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we do not take more
from others and from mother nature
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and we do not take more from others
and mother nature than we need,
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and we share what we have with others
you don't take what belongs to them.
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These two calligraphies help us
to look deeply into our Livelihood
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When we look at
the five mindfulness trainings,
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they give us guidelines
for our actions of body, speech
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Throughout the day we make many choices
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what to do, what not to do,
what to say, what not to say
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what to buy, what not to buy,
where to go or not to go
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how to go, how not to go.
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We make choices throughout the day,
the whole time.
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The five mindfulness trainings are
a very good point of reference,
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a guidance for us, to make choices
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that enhance not only our own well-being
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but also the well-being of others
as well as the mother earth.
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So, the first mindfulness training
has the name “reverence for life”
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we practice protecting life.
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The second one is "true happiness"
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we practice sharing our time and energy
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with others and material resources.
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"True love,"
to live in a committed relationship
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we practice deep listening and loving
speech to keep our relationships happy.
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And "mindful consumption" as nourishment
and healing for healthy living
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The 14 mindfulness trainings
of the order of Interbeing
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reflect the Noble Eightfold Path.
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The Noble Eightfold Path,
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when we write them in a list,
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they start usually with the mind.
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Right View, Right Thinking
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and the 14 mindfulness trainings
also start with the mind.
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We have seven mindfulness trainings
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that are related to our mind.
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I pull out the book
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I will read some of that a little later.
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The first three mindfulness trainings
of the order of Interbeing
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speak about our attitude of mind
what kind of attitude do we have.
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The first one is "openness",
we call it openness
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and that is not to be bound
to any doctrine.
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So many wars have been waged
because of doctrines
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that we hold on to for many, many decades
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so doctrines or ideologies.
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The second one is
"non-attachment to views"
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to be open to other people's
views and opinions,
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to be inclusive
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to go in a direction
of the collective insight.
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The third one is "freedom of thought"
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we do not impose our views onto others.
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Everyone has the right to look deeply
and to decide for themselves
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what to do, how to be, what to choose
what to believe, what to believe
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freedom of thought.
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When you look into
this mindfulness training
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we see also that a lot of suffering
has been caused
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by not allowing others to choose
what to believe.
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And the fourth and the seventh,
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they speak about a personal practice.
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We learn to take care of our suffering
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to look deeply into our suffering
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and look into the suffering of the world.
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And for the fifth,
we go in the direction of healthy living
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and for the sixth,
we take care of our mind.
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These are our own personal practices
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like we take care of anger for instance
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and that can be anger, irritation
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upset
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so we take care of our anger
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And the seventh, how we can dwell
happily in the present moment
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and the eighth and the ninth are
about communion and communication
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and truthful and loving speech.
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It's about interactions that we have
with others
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and the tenth trough the 14th
are for acting in society.
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We protect and nourish the Sangha.
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To bring about a change in society
we need the sangha, we can't do it alone
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so a sangha is a precious jewel
it's a place of refuge
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it's where we get the support.
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We all know already that we may be
on this path of mindfulness
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and when we go home, we look for others
who also practice the same thing
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because standing alone in society
is not so easy
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but having a sangha to practice with,
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we're able to stand by the choices
we make in our life.
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As a sangha, we can do it.
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The 11th mindfulness training
speaks of Right Livelihood
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The 12th about reverence for life
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The 13th about generosity
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and the 14 about Right Conduct,
about our intimate relationships,
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true love.
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When we look at the Noble Eightfold Path,
we'll find the 14 mindfulness trainings
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when you look at
the 14 mindfulness trainings
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you'll find all the elements
of the Noble Eightfold Path
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we're looking into
the mindfulness trainings
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so we can understand ourselves better.
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We all want to go
in the direction of happiness
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not only for ourselves but for all others.
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And looking into ourselves in the light
of the five mindfulness trainings
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we can see how we can...
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enhance our practice
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of going in a direction
of non-violence and true happiness.
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Right Livelihood is expressed
also in the way we think,
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and in the way we speak and
how we spend our time and energy.
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At this point I'd like to read
the 11th mindfulness training
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Right Livelihood
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“Aware that great violence and injustice
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has been done to our environment
and society,
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we are committed
not to live with a vocation
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that is harmful to humans and nature.
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We will do our best to select a livelihood
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that contributes to the well-being
of all species on earth
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and helps realize our ideal
of understanding and compassion.
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Aware of economic, political and
social realities around the world
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as well as our interrelationship
with the ecosystem,
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we are determined to behave responsibly
as consumers and as citizens.
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We will not invest in,
or purchase from companies
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that contribute to the depletion
of Natural Resources,
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harm the earth and deprive others
of their chance to live.”
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So, in this training
we see very clearly that
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it is not just what we do,
as a profession
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but also, how do we live,
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what are the choices that we make.
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As i said before, choices that may,
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choices that support others
in their livelihood
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For instance if we are a teacher
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we have the heart...
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to nurture our students
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in a way that will give rise
to compassion and understanding in them
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and we can say we have Right Livelihood.
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Then afterwards, we go to the supermarket
and we put things in our basket
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we may use products that have chemicals
that pollute the environment
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and as long as we put those articles
in our basket
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they will be produced.
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So in that way, we are supporting
the livelihood of someone else
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that pollutes the environment
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and when we look at that way
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the choices we make in our life
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we can clearly see that Right Livelihood
is not an individual matter.
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It is a collective matter
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and if we want to bring about a change
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then we need a collective awakening.
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Maybe we can have a bell
before we continue?
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All our actions of body of speech of mind
have an effect on other people
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so when we go to work, go to the office
or wherever we may be working
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the way we interact with others
has an effect on others
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so we can practice Right Livelihood
to the way we speak.
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If we speak from understanding
and compassion
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others will build up trust in us.
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They will be able to listen to us
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they will open up to us
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and they may see how we live.
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They may become aware
of what choices we make
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and this may inspire them
to look at their choices.
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When we practice being open to their views
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to allow them to believe
what they want to believe,
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all that is part of Right Livelihood.
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Right Livelihood is not just
the actual work that we do.
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When I was much younger,
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some 20 years old or so,
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and I did some job
to earn some money in my holiday.
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So I went to one of those offices
where you get temporary job, temps office,
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One day I was sent
to an advertising agency
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Since I can type,
they asked me to type the notes
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of the meeting they had the day before,
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because their secretary was sick,
I was replacing the secretary.
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As was typing these notes,
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there was a sentence,
one input from one member
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that was sort of in the direction of,
we really would like this product to sell
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We cannot straight out say
it's much better than other products
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because actually it's not exactly the case
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but we like to word it in a way
that it sounds that it is better
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we cannot say it's better, but we'll
word it so it sounds like it's better
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so I typed up all the notes.
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I had to breathe when I came to that part,
you may understand.
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When I was ready, I went to the person
who'd asked me to type
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and I gave it back
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She said “well that's all for today”
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and I said “thank you very much”
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and I didn't bow because..
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I said “thank you very much,
have a nice day”, and I left
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and on the way to the station
I stopped at the agency and I said to them
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“I don't think I'll go back there, could
you please give me something else to do?”
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And the lady said “No,
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they want someone for an X number of days
and that is what we give you."
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I said “well, I'm sorry, I cannot take it,
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I will go somewhere else”, I said,
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and she said,
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“you may not find something else
to do elsewhere.”
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I said “it's ok, I'll find a job,
I'll clean toilets
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but, I don't feel comfortable
working for this company”
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so I went home and I told my mother,
“don't believe anything you see in an ad.”
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And at that time, you know,
I didn't realize,
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I could have gone back,
the people were very nice
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and maybe at some way or another,
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I could have helped and raise
their awareness of Right Livelihood
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They're there, you know they need a job
they have a family to feed
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they are doing their best
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I still type things from time to time,
but it is all about the Dharma
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so I feel very comfortable typing it.
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But this is just to say that
if we are in a job, we need a job,
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we need something to do, we need
to have some bread on our plate, or rice.
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What impact do we have on the world
and the people around us
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this is not about going about and
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you know, moralizing,
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going about and telling everybody
they're not ethical etc
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but, what is our intention in life?
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From where do we live?
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What is our intention
when we interact with our co-workers?
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What do we water in them?
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Do we water something in them
that helps all of us
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to go in the direction
of non-harming, non-violence?
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What do we do?
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As teachers, we can do many things.
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As a secretary we can do many things.
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Maybe one day we will be
the director of the company
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we can look and see what kind of products
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or how would we like
to promote the market.
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There's many, many possibilities
to practice Right Livelihood
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Today, we have a little bit
of a different program for this morning
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not quite the same as the days before.
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I've just shared a little bit with you
about Right Livelihood
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for you to reflect...
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on how to bring
this aspect in your daily life
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or to say, how to bring a spiritual
dimension in your daily life
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through the practice
of the Noble Eightfold Path,
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maybe the five mindfulness trainings
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and 14 mindfulness trainings
of the Order of Interbeing.
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Maybe we can enjoy a sound of the bell?
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To go in the direction of non-harming,
in Plum Village, we also follow this path.
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When i first came to Plum Village,
we were vegetarian
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we had cheese.
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In France, at the time at least,
you could buy a bar of cheese
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a square bar, about this size.
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On the table in the morning, there were
neatly cut slices of square cheese
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square slices of cheese that we could have
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and then when we became aware
of the dairy industry
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we became vegan
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going in the direction
of being totally vegan.
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Slowly also we became aware
of the impact on the earth
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of the products that we use in our hamlets
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so we looked into biodegradable products
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and we're still going in that direction.
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Sometimes we have many
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sometimes a little bit less
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but we're going in the direction
and that's very important.
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Nowadays, when we travel from one
hamlet to another, we have buses
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before, we asked everybody to please
use their car and fill them up with people
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until we realized that's many cars.
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So now we use buses, it's just one big
vehicle for many people to go into
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We're going in the direction of trying
to combine trips to the town
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This usually works around Christmas
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when we have one day when we can go and
buy some material to make some presents
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if we don't find materials here.
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So the important mindset is
to go in the direction
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to go in the direction
is very compassionate.
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It also avoids us from becoming dogmatic
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we go in the direction of Right Livelihood.
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The Buddha walked everywhere
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for us, it's a bit far to walk from the
Lower and Upper Hamlet to the New Hamlet
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so, we drive.
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We also try to look into vehicles that
are not so polluting for the environment
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so the choices we make are very important.
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When we have a profession
that is in the media
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we reach many, many people.
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It's very clear,
the impact we have on the world
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When we are an artist
we also reach many people
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We also have an impact on the world
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We know that art has always been
a messenger to educate people
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So, for today we have invited two
of our friends, two practitioners
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to share with us a little bit
about their personal spiritual journey
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I would like to invite Paz and Jo
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and Sister True Dedication who will be the
facilitator of this part of our program