As the conceptual, material world increases its hold on us, and inanimate objects become more lifelike, we humans must become more human. Open hearts, kindness and care-these are our most precious gifts. Sakyong Mipham More Quotes by Sakyong Mipham More Quotes From Sakyong Mipham If the mind is flexible, the world is flexible. Sakyong Mipham flexible mind world When the mind is totally present, it is relaxed, nimble, and sensitive. It feels lighter and clearer. It notices everything, but it is not distracted by anything. It is the feeling of knowing exactly where you are and what you are doing. Sakyong Mipham knowing mind feelings It seems we all agree that training the body through exercise, diet, and relaxation is a good idea, but why don't we think about training our mind? Sakyong Mipham exercise ideas thinking When stress is the basic state of mind, even good things stress us out. We have to learn to let go. Sakyong Mipham stress mind letting-go Our root fantasy is that "I" am real and that it's possible for "me" to be happy. Sakyong Mipham fantasy real roots When we appreciate something, that means we have allowed ourselves to relax and take it in. Sakyong Mipham relax appreciate mean Our mind is always subject to being distracted by thoughts of what happened in the past and ideas of what could happen in the future, but the living experience is what is happening NOW. Sakyong Mipham mind past ideas We want to infuse our day with good habits so that we can turn seemingly mundane situations into a ceremony of goodness. Sakyong Mipham habit goodness want Meditation practice is relevant because in meditation our conceptual mind relaxes and we can feel who we are at heart. Sakyong Mipham meditation-practice mind heart Shambhala vision is universal. It has no bias towards one type of culture or group. It is not ethnocentric and does not encourage one specific kind of person, race, or religion. Shambhala vision promotes a universality in relationship to basic goodness. All human beings are basically good and an enlightened society, at various levels of manifestation, can occur in any culture. Sakyong Mipham groups vision race When I ask people to contemplate selflessness, the sometimes react as if I've asked them to put their house on the market or give away all their money. If there was a self that existed in the way we think, discovering selflessness would be like putting our house on the market. But in the Buddhist tradition, the discovery of selflessness is called "completely joyful." It's not called "the raw end of the deal," or "I'd rather go back to bed," or "This is scary and depressing." Sakyong Mipham buddhist depressing thinking If we can feel confident in our goodness, it will illuminate our life and society Sakyong Mipham our-lives goodness feels ...This jewel is the wisdom and compassion that it takes to act not on behalf of ourselves but for all beings. This is where real confidence and competence come from. Once we possess this jewel, our life becomes blessed. Sakyong Mipham real wisdom blessed Enlightened Society is all about nurturing the human spirit - waking up to the goodness, kindness and strength that we already have. Sakyong Mipham waking wake-up kindness What distinguishes Shambhala is its intention of trying to create a society based upon certain principles. So, Shambhala's focus is not just on the individual, but on society as a whole. Sakyong Mipham focus principles trying If you rise with a positive attitude - because everything is possible, everything is doable - if you have that level of confidence, you exude it. It actually inspires the people around you. Sakyong Mipham attitude inspire people Running and meditation are very personal activities. Therefore they are lonely. This loneliness is one of their best qualities because it strengthens our incentive to motivate ourselves. Sakyong Mipham lonely loneliness running It's one thing to have the attitude of enlightenment and another thing to act in an enlightened way, which is conduct or activity. Sakyong Mipham enlightenment attitude way Caring for others is the basis of worldly success. Sakyong Mipham caring-for-others bases caring You need to eat well, sleep well, and have a roof over your head, but don’t go much further than that before extending yourself to others. Sakyong Mipham roof-over-your-head sleep needs