No happiness through anger (Beliefnet)

Even in the case of individuals, there is no possibility to feel happiness
through anger. If in a difficult situation one becomes disturbed internally,
overwhelmed by mental discomfort, then external things will not help at all.
However, if despite external difficulties or problems, internally one's
attitude is of love, warmth, and kindheartedness, then problems can be faced
and accepted. (HH the Dalai Lama)

The oneness of existence

According to Advayavada Buddhism it is through insight into the
non-substantiality of all phenomena that the oneness of existence is
revealed.

Anger and desire not inherently evil (Beliefnet)

It is not that anger and desire are inherently evil or that we should feel
ashamed when they arise. It is a matter of seeing them as the delusions that
they are: distorted conceptions that paint a false picture of reality. They
are negative because they lead to unhappiness and confusion. (Kathleen
McDonald, "How to Meditate")

Rexroth on San Francisco (BPS)

Just added at the Bureau of Public Secrets website:

Kenneth Rexroth's review of Harold Gilliam's "San Francisco Bay"
http://www.bopsecrets.org/rexroth/essays/gilliam.htm

The site also presents a rich selection of Rexroth's San Francisco newspaper
and magazine columns -- http://www.bopsecrets.org/rexroth/sf . Sometimes
chatty, sometimes scathing, but always provocative, Rexroth examined every
facet of San Francisco's cultural and political life as it was happening
during the pivotal period from 1960 to 1975.

Partial list of contents:

A Night Out in the City
Beckett and Ionesco
The Civil Rights Sit-ins
Kabuki Theater
The Tao of Fishing
Why I Like Opera
Why I Don't Like Jazz Festivals
"Aida" and Ornette Coleman
Pacifica Radio KPFA
Hemingway
Golden Gate Park
The Film "Elektra"
The Chinese Theater
Victor Serge's "Memoirs of a Revolutionary"
H.L. Mencken
Charles Mingus
Greeks and Buddhists in Afghanistan
The Harlem Riots
Wonder and Meditation in the Sierras
Mysticism, Ethical and Chemical
The Mafia Invasion of North Beach
Proposals for Chinatown
Bob Dylan
Wine -- French versus Californian
After the Watts Riot
Urban Alienation Renewal
Marijuana
Marxism and the Persistence of Alienation
The International Cultural Revolution
The Provos of Amsterdam
Bolshevism as State Capitalism
Tintoretto and the Painters of Venice
Buddhism and Hinduism in India
The May Revolt in France
Radical Movements on the Defensive
The Ecological Revolution
Women's Liberation
Old Chinatown
Bohemian San Francisco Between the Wars
Organized Vice, Then and Now
The San Francisco Renaissance
The Beat Era
Haight-Ashbury and the Sixties
The New Rock Music
End of a Golden Age

BUREAU OF PUBLIC SECRETS
P.O. Box 1044, Berkeley CA 94702, USA
http://www.bopsecrets.org

"Making petrified conditions dance by singing them their own tune."

Fwd by
John Willemsens,
Advayavada Foundation.
<http://www.euronet.nl/~advaya/index.htm>

Advayavada Study Plan - week 9

Friends,

In Advayavada Buddhism, the Noble Eightfold Path is interpreted dynamically
as an ongoing and autonomous, non-prescriptive, investigative and creative
process of progressive insight reflecting in human terms overall existence
advancing over time. By following the Noble Eightfold Path thus you get in
tune with wondrous overall existence advancing over time; sorrow, doubt and
remorse immediately start disappearing; and your life at once gathers new
impetus.

Last week's ASP subject was the Third Step on the Noble Eightfold Path: our
very best (samyak, samma) enunciation, definition or explanation, i.e. the
putting into objective and criticizable words, of our intention.
This week's subject is therefore the Fourth Step on the Noble Eightfold
Path: our very best (samyak, samma) disposition, frame of mind or attitude
to carry out our intention

The purpose of the ASP is that we study and discuss the meaning and
implications of the weekly subject particularly in the context of whatever
we ourselves are presently doing or are concerned with, or about, such as
our health, relationships, work, study, and our place and responsibilities
in the group, sangha, society at large, etc.

Tip: Write down this week's subject (e.g. 'my best attitude') in your pocket
diary!

John Willemsens,
Advayavada Foundation.
<http://www.euronet.nl/~advaya/index.htm>

Links

Friends,

Remember to check out our Links from time to time at:

<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AdvayavadaNetwork/links>

John Willemsens,
Advayavada Foundation.
<http://www.euronet.nl/~advaya/index.htm>

Israel's progressives need our help today (Avaaz)

Dear friends,

It's a dark day in the Middle East: the right-wing has won the most seats in
Israel's elections, and racist extremist Avigdor Lieberman is now the
kingmaker in forming the next government.[1] Lieberman and his fellow
leaders are promising to bomb Iran, re-invade Gaza and abandon any
ceasefire, stop negotiations and crack down on Israel's large Arab minority.
This could kill all we've worked for in the Middle East. But many
progressives in Israel (both Jews and Arabs) share our feelings -- and they
desperately need our solidarity today.

Wherever extremists have triumphed, we have to organise to beat them. Many
thought all hope was lost in the USA after the neo-conservatives' victory --
then progressives used the internet to come back from the wilderness, and
achieved the unthinkable by putting Barack Obama in the White House.[2] In
Israel today, the despair of the old peace camp opens up a powerful moment
to build a fresh new voice against hatred and for peace.

Just $10,000 could help two young Israeli activists use the Avaaz model of
internet organizing to reach and mobilise tens of thousands of other
Israelis this year -- $5000 would buy billboards in Jerusalem to launch
their first campaign with a splash. Follow this link to watch our shocking
short video of Lieberman's extremist agenda -- and let's donate now to help
a new generation in Israel urgently speak out for peace and change:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/change_in_israel

We have a strong network in Israel to work with already, with almost 10,000
Avaaz members and contacts with promising young organisers who are hungry
for change. They just need our support to organise across divides, uniting
Israel's scattered constituencies for peace and justice. Many Israelis
supported our global campaign for a Gaza ceasefire and joined their voices
with ours on climate change, Burma, Tibet and Zimbabwe -- now it's time for
us to stand with them.

Even if they are in a minority at first, a strong progressive voice in
Israel should make our efforts for the right kind of US and international
diplomacy much more effective. We know the forces we're up against. But
beneath the surface we often find Israeli majorities for peace, social
justice and pragmatism. Before these elections, when Israel's government
broke off talks and launched the Gaza offensive, a majority polled wanted to
renew the ceasefire with Hamas instead, and we've seen broad support for a
wider peace at many times.[3]

Lieberman's rise itself demonstrates how effective, targeted organising can
shape Israel's path for ill -- now a new generation of Israelis need
solidarity from us to mobilise against this extremism, and to advance the
values and causes we share. Everyone who donates to help fund this Israeli
organising effort will be kept informed with reports on its progress. Watch
the short video of Lieberman's savage campaign now at the link below, and
help support a new generation in Israel to organise for change:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/change_in_israel

With hope and determination,

Paul, Graziela, Ricken, Ben, Alice, Paula, Iain, Pascal, Milena, Brett and
the whole Avaaz team

Sources:

1. "Key to who will govern Israel: Avigdor Lieberman", Christian Science
Monitor (12 February 2009):
http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0212/p01s04-wome.html

Ha'aretz: "Unite to block Lieberman's march on Jerusalem" (1 February 2009)
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1060124.html

2. See this report from MoveOn.org on the impact of the online organising
efforts they pioneered:
http://s3.moveon.org/pdfs/moveon_postelectionreport_ah14.pdf

3. See this Hebrew University poll published in December 2008:
http://www.bicom.org.uk/background/opinion-polls/truman-psr-poll--16-december-2008

Advayavada Study Plan - week 8

Friends,

Last week's ASP subject was the Second Step on the Noble Eightfold Path: our
very best (samyak, samma) determination in view of our personal situation at
this time. This week's subject is therefore the Third Step on the Noble
Eightfold Path: our very best (samyak, samma) enunciation, definition or
explanation of our intention.

The purpose of the ASP is that we study and discuss the meaning and
implications of the weekly subject particularly in the context of whatever
we ourselves are presently doing or are concerned with, or about, such as
our health, relationships, work, study, our place and responsibilities in
the group, sangha, society at large, etc.

In Advayavada Buddhism, the Noble Eightfold Path is interpreted dynamically
as an ongoing and autonomous, non-prescriptive, investigative and creative
process of progressive insight reflecting in human terms overall existence
advancing over time. By following the Noble Eightfold Path thus you get in
tune with wondrous overall existence advancing over time; sorrow, doubt and
remorse immediately start disappearing; and your life at once gathers new
impetus.

Tip: Write down this week's subject (e.g. 'put into words') in your pocket
diary! 'Putting our ideas into words, or better, writing them down, makes an
important difference, for in this way they become objective and
criticizable.'

John Willemsens,
Advayavada Foundation.
<http://www.euronet.nl/~advaya/index.htm>

We are a self-manifestation of the absolute

For Nishida, we are always already born as a self-manifestation of the
absolute, but our task as individual humans is to recolledct this fact, to
rediscover that truth is within ourselves, and then to live our lives in the
recognition of what it is that we really are. To do so is to pave the way
for an even greater oneness than we had originally, for to yearn for oneness
as a discrete and separate seat of consciounesss is the goal and the weave
of enlightenment itself. To know that one is divine, while knowing that this
is a distinctively individual entity, yield a passion to throw oneself into
the flux of experience, gathering ever-new awareness and a deeper love of
this incredibly wonderful flow of creation. To love - oneself, another,
one's world, and the universe of which one is a part - is to preserve and
cherish all that exists. It is to preserve the unique worth of everything
that exists in the best way that one can, even though it is impossible not
to stand in the way of some of that flow in the very course of living. When
we alter the flow of another existing thing, or, sadly, even end its flow
altogether, we would still be mindful of the worth of that which is being
affected, and we should feel a deep sorrow that it had to be so, from our
perspective on life. We would have become sensitive instruments, brought to
tears of joy by the dew on a rosebud, or to tears of sadness by the roadkill
on our highways and byways. (from God and Nothingness, by prof. Robert E.
Carter, in Philosophy East and West, January 2009)

Sri Lanka, Asia's often forgotten war (Avaaz)

Dear friends,

In Sri Lanka, Asia's longest-running and often forgotten civil war is coming
to a bloody climax, with 250,000 desperate civilians trapped in the
crossfire.

The US government, Sri Lanka's biggest trade partner and one of its biggest
development and military aid donors, has the most influence. The US has
called for safe zones to protect civilians, but needs to use real diplomatic
pressure to persuade both sides to agree to this, making clear that aid and
trade deals as well as international legal consequences could be at stake.

Senior US diplomats have agreed to brief Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
on the number of messages sent by Avaaz members over the next few days --
and to respond to our messages in writing. This is a real chance to persuade
the Obama team to play a constructive role in this serious crisis. Click
here to easily send a pre-written or personalized message now:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/sri_lanka_civilians

There have been atrocities and tragedies on both sides of Sri Lanka's long
war -- most of them unrecorded and hidden from the world, due to the
government's brutal campaign against independent journalism. The end of the
fighting won't, by itself, resolve the injustices that ultimately caused it;
after the guns are silenced, the legitimate concerns of the Tamil and other
minority groups must be addressed throughout the political dialogue and
reconstruction that will follow.

But right now, in these final weeks or days of fighting, the quarter-million
trapped Tamil civilians must not become the war's final casualties.

Let's add our voices to those activists and human rights advocates who
throughout the years have fought against the marginalisation of minority
groups and the deterioration of basic rights across Sri Lanka.

Click here to urge U.S. Secretary of State Clinton -- Obama's top
diplomat -- to support the threatened civilians in Sri Lanka:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/sri_lanka_civilians

With hope,

Luis, Ben, Graziela, Ricken, Paula, Alice, Iain, Pascal, Paul, Milena, and
the rest of the Avaaz team

SOURCES:

Press Release by Human Rights Watch on appalling situation of civilians in
Sri Lanka
http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/02/03/sri-lanka-disregard-civilian-safety-appalling

United States and United Kingdom Joint Statement on the Humanitarian
Situation in Sri Lanka, 3 February 2009
http://srilanka.usembassy.gov/sdpr-3feb09.html

"Sri Lanka Rebuffs Pleas for Truce, Says Rebellion Near End" - New York
Times, 5 February 2009
http://www.avaaz.org/sri2b

Joint Statement by the so-called Tokyo Co-Chairs (Norway, Japan, US and EU)
expressing great concern about the plight of Sri Lankan civilians
http://www.avaaz.org/sri1

News release by the International Committee of the Red Cross on repeated
shelling and evacuation of hospital in the conflict zone
http://www.avaaz.org/sri2

Q&A: Sri Lanka crisis, by BBC News
http://www.avaaz.org/sri3

Global media rights groups condemn "culture of impunity and indifference" in
Sri Lanka
http://www.avaaz.org/sri4

Fwd by
John Willemsens,
Advayavada Foundation.
<http://www.euronet.nl/~advaya/index.htm>

Advayavada Study Plan - week 7

Friends,

Last week's ASP subject was First Step on the Noble Eightfold Path: our very
best (samyak, samma) insight into the circumstances of our own life at the
present moment. This week's subject is therefore the Second Step on the
Noble Eightfold Path: our very best (samyak, samma) determination in view of
our personal situation at this time.

In Advayavada Buddhism, the Noble Eightfold Path is interpreted dynamically
as an ongoing and autonomous, non-prescriptive, investigative and creative
process of progressive insight reflecting in human terms overall existence
advancing over time. By following the Noble Eightfold Path thus you get in
tune with wondrous overall existence advancing over time; sorrow, doubt and
remorse immediately start disappearing; and your life at once gathers new
impetus.

The purpose of the ASP is that we study and discuss the meaning and
implications of the weekly subject particularly in the context of whatever
we ourselves are presently doing or are concerned with, or about, such as
our health, relationships, work, study, our place in society, etc.

Tip: Write down this week's subject (e.g. 'take decision!') in your pocket
diary!

John Willemsens,
Advayavada Foundation.
<http://www.euronet.nl/~advaya/index.htm>

Obituary: The Most Venerable Master Sheng Yen (1930-2009)

Dear Colleagues,

I am saddened to inform you that Venerable Master Sheng Yen of the
Dharma Drum Mountain in Taiwan and the Chan Meditation Center of New
York passed into Nirvanic bliss in Taipei on February 3rd, 2009, 3 am
(Taiwan time: February 2nd, 4 pm) at National Taiwan University
Hospital at the age of 79.

Master Sheng Yen was born into a humble farming family in Nantong
County, near Xiaoniang Harbor, in Jiangsu Province on January 22, 1930
(December 4 in lunar calendar). Master Sheng Yen became a monk at age
thirteen. He began as a frail novice, yet he was destined to become one
of the most influential Buddhist clerics in modern Chinese history and
in the renaissance of Western Buddhism. Master Sheng Yen was a Chinese
lineage holder of both the Linji and Caodong Chan Buddhist schools, the
founder of the Dharma Drum Order of Chan Buddhism, the founder of the
Dharma Drum Mountain Center for World Education, the first Chinese
cleric who received a Ph.D. degree in Buddhist studies from Rissho
University in Japan, a stellar Buddhist scholar of Ming Buddhism and of
Master Ouyi Zhixu (1599-1655), and an active advocate of environmental
protection.

Master Sheng Yen came to New York in 1976, soon after receiving his
Ph.D. He might have confined his activities to the pastoral guidance of
the immigrant Chinese community. Instead, he embarked upon the more
difficult challenge of teaching Chan to Americans. He overcame many
obstacles: language, culture, prejudice, logistics and financial
difficulties. Until 2006 when he became ill, he divided his time
between New York and Taipei, training generations of Chan practitioners
with methods skillfully adapted to the contemporary problems facing his
students.

Master Sheng Yen was a dedicated scholar and prolific writer. His
collected work, /Fagu Chuanji/, amounts to over 100 volumes, covering
topics as diverse as Tiantai and Huayan philosophies, vinaya, Buddhist
scriptural commentaries, Indo-Tibetan and East Asian Buddhist
histories, Chan Buddhist studies, and comparative religions. He also
wrote many popular books introducing Buddhist teachings to both
beginners and those with a more advanced understanding of Buddhism.

He spoke out for what he called spiritual environmentalism: the
essential task of purifying our environment by first purifying our
minds. This is more than just philosophy. It is a call for personal
commitment coupled with practical goals that will benefit all the
peoples of the world. Many in Taiwan and in other countries have
responded to this exhortation with great enthusiasm.

Master Sheng Yen was one of the foremost contributors to the vital
Humanistic Buddhism of Taiwan that blossomed in the 20th century. He
was an exemplary leader of contemporary Chinese Buddhism, combining a
deep understanding of Buddhadharma with an equally profound concern for
the welfare of all sentient beings. He was a warm, insightful, and
inspirational teacher to his many students around the world. All who
encountered him were touched by his personal concern and his remarkable
ability to communicate difficult ideas simply-always with wit,
compassion, and a profound sense of humor. Master Sheng Yen will be
deeply missed by Buddhist practitioners, scholars of Chinese Buddhism,
and everyone who had the good fortune to meet him.

His death poem reads:

Busy with nothing, growing old.

Within emptiness, weeping, laughing.

Intrinsically, there is no "I."

Life and death, thus cast aside.

Sincerely,
Jimmy Yu

Dr. Jimmy Yu
Assistant Professor of Religion
Buddhism and Chinese Religions
Florida State University

Fwd by
John Willemsens,
Advayavada Foundation.
<http://www.euronet.nl/~advaya/index.htm>

IHEU February 2009 update

This is a monthly update of news from International Humanist and
Ethical Union (IHEU). You can find the full versions of these news
stories on our web site <http://www.iheu.org>

Notice of IHEU General Assembly 2009

The IHEU General Assembly 2009 will be held in Conway Hall, London,
United Kingdom, on Sunday 7th June 2009 (9.30 am to 5.30 pm) and
Monday 8th June 2009 (9.30 am to 12.30 pm). Forms are now available to
register, to make nominations to fill the positions of President and
one Vice-President (who are on the IHEU Executive Committee) and to
propose resolutions for the GA. Read more
<http://www.iheu.org/node/3403>

World Conference on Untouchability - 9-10 June 2009 - London

Do you want to know -- How Humanism can provide an answer to the
problems of Untouchability? -- What Humanists, Rationalists and
Secularists are doing to make a difference at the ground level? --
What the IHEU is doing to make a difference at the international
level? -- What the Adopt a Dalit Village Humanist scheme is? Read more
<http://www.iheu.org/node/3463>

IHEU publishes hard-hitting UN briefing notes

IHEU's team at the UN in Geneva has been busy trying to bring
Humanist wording to the upcoming Durban II Conference. IHEU prepared
three briefing notes for the preparatory meeting. These hard-hitting
texts urged delegations to focus on vital issues including Slavery,
Discrimination based on Work or Descent and Freedom of Expression. The
briefing notes and associated reference documents are now available on
our web site. Read more <http://www.iheu.org/node/3453>

In memoriam Harold Blackham: an IHEU founder

Harold Blackham (1903-2009) died on 23 January 2009 at the age of
105. He was a founder of both IHEU and the British Humanist
Association. The BHA has provided an obituary. Read more
<http://www.iheu.org/node/3402>

Atheist bus campaign reaches Madrid

Unión de Ateos y Librepensadores reports: From Monday January 26
2009, buses on routes 1 and 17 will be on the move in Malaga bearing
the slogan "Probablemente dios no existe. Deja de preocuparte y
disfruta la vida" (There's probably no god. Now stop worrying and
enjoy your life). Also, on Tuesday 27 January 2009, the bus
advertising campaign will begin on routes 3 and 5 in Madrid. Read more
<http://www.iheu.org/node/3399>

Gay humanists welcome Barack Obama's humanistic agenda

The UK gay Humanist charity the Pink Triangle Trust has welcomed the
humanistic agenda set out by President Obama in his inauguration
speech, in which he called for a more inclusive and progressive
America. Making a commitment to "restore science to its rightful
place", Barack Obama said: "We are a nation of Christians and Muslims,
Jews and Hindus and non-believers", and spoke of "our common
humanity." Read more <http://www.iheu.org/node/3401>

Levi Fragell, Sam Ayache, Roy Brown, Babu Gogineni and Jim Herrick
speak at Atheist conference in India

An eventful 7th World Atheist Conference was held on January 5-7,
2009 at Vijayawada, India. The conference was organized by IHEU member
organization Atheist Centre. We have just received a full report of
the conference. Read more <http://www.iheu.org/node/3400>

IHEU attacked at the UN by the Republic of Benin

In response to an IHEU statement at the United Nations Human Rights
Council in Geneva highlighting modern-day slavery in Ivory Coast,
Togo, Benin, Niger, Mali and Sudan, the Benin delegation told IHEU to
"mind its own business" and a French TV crew was ejected from the
meeting. Meanwhile, IHEU was the only NGO to circulate proposed
wording in the early days of the Durban II preparatory meeting. Xavier
Cornut reports on an extraordinary week at the UN. Read more
<http://www.iheu.org/node/3398>

President Obama's inaugural address: an inclusive presidency?

In his inaugural address, the new President of the United States
Barack Obama called for a more inclusive and progressive America. The
President's speech suggested a remarkably humanistic agenda, with a
commitment to "restore science to its rightful place." Significantly
for Humanists, the new President said, "We are a nation of Christians
and Muslims, Jews and Hindus - and non-believers." This is believed
to be a first for a United States President. Read more
<http://www.iheu.org/node/3397>

IHEYO Youthspeak - January 2009

In its January issue, IHEYO's Youthspeak has features on the IHEYO
Youth Conference 2009 in Nepal, Charles Darwin, IHEYO member
Bundesjuhes, a column "Being Humanist" by Yemi Johnson, the
announcement of a Youth Campaign - Youth against terrorism and
violence in India and book advice and more: Darwin online. Read more
<http://www.iheu.org/node/3382>

800 Atheist Buses hit the streets

The UK's first ever atheist advertising campaign launches this
week. 800 buses with the slogan "There's probably no God. Now stop
worrying and enjoy your life" are running in cities across England,
Scotland and Wales, along with 1,000 adverts on the London underground
and two large LCD screens on Oxford Street in London. Read more
<http://www.iheu.org/node/3377>

GALHA celebrates 30 years in 2009

IHEU member organization The Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association
(GALHA) will celebrate its 30th Anniversary in 2009 with a series of
special public meetings. GALHA Secretary David Christmas commented,
"There are very few LGBT organisations that have lasted 30 years and
probably none at all that have held regular public meetings". Read
more <http://www.iheu.org/node/3378>

Fwd by
John Willemsens,
Advayavada Foundation.
<http://www.euronet.nl/~advaya/index.htm>

Advayavada Study Plan - week 6

Friends,

We have handled the preliminary subjects, and this week's ASP subject is
again the First Step on the Noble Eightfold Path: our very best (samyak,
samma) comprehension of or insight into our own life at the present moment
in time - in other words, what is, honestly, my personal situation at this
time?

In Advayavada Buddhism, the Noble Eightfold Path is interpreted dynamically
as an ongoing and autonomous, non-prescriptive, investigative and creative
process of progressive insight reflecting in human terms overall existence
advancing over time. By following the Noble Eightfold Path thus you get in
tune with wondrous overall existence advancing over time; sorrow, doubt and
remorse immediately start disappearing; and your life at once gathers new
impetus.

The purpose of the ASP is that we study and discuss the meaning and
implications of the weekly subject particularly in the context of whatever
we ourselves are presently doing or are concerned with, or about, such as
our health, relationships, work, study, our place in society, etc.

Tip: Write down this week's subject (e.g. 'my situation') in your pocket
diary!

John Willemsens,
Advayavada Foundation.
<http://www.euronet.nl/~advaya/index.htm>