Yin or Yang?

[dan27]

Every morning you have one choice to make: To be Happy or Sad.

How about You?

Any other suggestions?

Sober or High?

Brave or Fearful?

 

[Claudia1794]

I want it all. Unfortunately, I usually just end up pissed off because that balance is hard to achieve and even harder to maintain.

 

[dan27]

 

[Claudia1794]

Yin and yang is a balance-at least I thought. I just meant that I want the good and the bad, the light and the dark,the love and the hate, the happy and the sad, the one and the other. I don’t want to have to choose. If you are one or the other all the time it’s going to get boring. So I guess it comes down to self-control. Hard to achieve and harder to maintain. I don’t know, apparently I misunderstood.

 

[dan27]

To me...it is a constant battle of extremes.
A Duality of Good versus Evil.
Positive vs negative.
The one you choose gets your result.


In the end, I'd rather be happy than sad.
Sober instead of stoned.
Striving instead of failing....etc.

 

[dan27]

 

[Adamridge79]

Cull the wheat from the chaff. Always be the scythe

 

[user 135671]

30 minutes of yoga and 30 of meditation every morning and my yin & yang are in equilibrium. Followed by a bowl of porridge and my cholesterols taken care of for the day too.,

No matter how good or bad you have it, wake up each day thankful for your life. Someone somewhere else is desperately fighting for theirs.

 

[dan27]

In Ancient Chinese philosophy, yin and yang is a Chinese philosophical concept that describes how obviously opposite or contrary forces may actually be complementary, interconnected, and interdependent in the natural world, and how they may give rise to each other as they interrelate to one another.

 

[dan27]

 

[dan27]

 

[dan27]

View attachment 5095

comedy and tragedy

 

[NoxApex(N/A)]

I experience neither, most of the time.
More often than not I'm simply just not emotionally present.
It took me many years to achieve that stillness and balance.
I was emotionally wild in my teens and throughout my 20s.
But in my late teens and early 20s I realized that this was not good, and so I began practicing trying to find more positive outlets.

The only tradeoff is that unfortunately it results in stirring the jealousy of many people in my life who try to bring me down. Sometimes that works, I'm only human, but the thing is that once you've made the path clear, getting back to that point is not too difficult.

While I enjoy alcohol, marijuana, and LSD, I've mostly stopped indulging entirely.
Part of the reason is because of my age, and the other part of the reason is because of cost.

I wouldn't say bravery or fear is something that ever dichotomously comes under my radar. I got to where I am through exploring the darkness of fear and coming to terms with it. The things that I used to be afraid of I no longer am, and so now I just have solutions to those things instead.

 

[TropicalStarfish]

*shrugs*
here or there

you or me

 

[TropicalStarfish]

There was once a village, where lived, two zen masters. One was studious and steadfast, very often to be found meditating, studying, or helping others. The other was the opposite. He slept when he felt like it, ate when it was amenable to him, drank often, and enjoyed the company of others.

They were both well known in the town. The serious Zen Master, was known for his constant charity and good deeds. The other Zen Master was known for his lack of punctuality, good cheer, and was the life of every occasion.

One day, the serious Zen Master, after many years of building slight irritation and resentment towards the other, finally sought out the other. He rebuked him for his lack of seriousness in his meditations, studies, and charity. He especially rebuked him for his drinking.

The other Zen Master replied in a slightly irritated tone, "A person who can't tolerate even a drink or two, now and then, to me, isn't even human..."

The serious Zen Master, now properly vexed, replied, "Oh, well if I am not human, than what am I?" "I'm some how sub-human because I am mindful of my Zen Practice?"

"Quite the contrary," replied the other Zen Master. "I'd suppose they were a Buddha."

The other Zen Master was stunned for a second. He became at ease, for the first time after many years. Then he suddenly became embarrassed at the prospect of his former trouble, quickly regained himself, laughed, and said, "you are a ******* to the last aren't you?"

The other smiled and replied, "Perhaps; now, care for a drink?"

"Perhaps," replied the other.

The other poured him a drink and they proceeded to sit together, share stories, laugh, and enjoyed each other's company, for the first time, in a long time. The other, however, became a bit drunk, after a few hours. The Serious Zen Master, having drank in careful moderation, observed this in charity, and good spirits. He put the other to bed, tidied up, and left quietly, with a genuine smile on his face. He felt light, as he walked home. The autumn leaves, and the shimmering moon, were particularly beautiful, that night...

(I got this one from "101 Zen Stories", you can find it read by Coyote Peterson on youtube. I recalled this one from memory and embellished a bit...)

 

[dan27]

 

[dan27]

 

[NoxApex(N/A)]

View attachment 5096

Dr. Albert Hofmann rode a bicycle once.

 

[Finished]

I poop first thing every morning. Then I eat breakfast right after that. So, I consider my Yin and Yang all taken care of for the day.