Like ascending the steps of a staircase, you should also train step-by-step and endeavor in my profound teachings. Without jumping any steps, proceed gradually to the end.
Just as small children gradually develop their body and strength, so does our Dharna practice, from the first steps of entering, until the complete perfection.
—Buddha Shakyamuni, Nirvana Sutra
Those who kill do so for profit. They kill creatures and sell them in the marketplace, where ignorant people use the net of money to catch their prey.
Among those who take the lives of others, some use money, and some use hooks and nets to catch creatures that move through the air or in the water or across the land. […]
When it comes to eating animals, there is no such thing as ‘not seeing, not hearing, and not suspecting’ that the creature was killed for you. For this reason, you should not eat meat.
—Buddha Sakyamuni, Lankavatara Sutra
The idea that we must choose between benefiting “me” and benefiting “others” is an artifact of the wrong view of separation.
The choice is between favoring the false self, “me,” and benefiting ALL beings.
No one is excluded from the Buddha’s loving-kindness and compassion, not even “me.”
Do not retaliate with anger when attacked.
Do not retaliate with abuse when reviled.
Do not retaliate with criticism when blamed.
Do not retaliate with blows when struck.
—Buddha Shakyamuni
With compassion we have all Dharmas;
without compassion, we have no Dharma at all.
—Lama Shabkar
When it happens that you feel excited and joyful or are honored and served, don’t fall prey to the demon of exhilaration, with your feelings soaring high in the sky. Bow your head, keep your feet on the ground, and let your body and mind rest totally at ease.
When it happens that you are sick and suffer, are robbed, or your things are stolen, when you are scolded, defamed, or physically abused, have misfortune, or are starving, then don’t let your head hang low, don’t let your complexion pale or your tears drop, but remain happy, smiling, and in good spirits.
—Patrul Rlnpoche
What is dignity? It is to avoid what is objectionable in my eyes, and its function is to provide a basis for refraining from unwholesome behavior.
What is modesty? It is to avoid what is objectionable in the eyes of others, and has the function of doing just that.
—Asanga
