Lean into the unpleasantness....

Lean into the unpleasantness...

Unpleasant

Unsatisfied

Unfullfilled

I am often unwilling to face the fact that I create many unpleasant thoughts in my mind.  I think about something "I want" and I think about something "I hate" or I think about something "I just got to have".  These are thoughts not brought on by others or by the objects I desire themselves.  These thoughts are my creation, born out of boundless desires and cravings that, at times overwhelm me.

Is it possible to work through the unpleasantness of life?

Can one "lean into the unpleasantness" and face it head-on with the knowledge of the Dharma as a guide?

When one understands that we experience unpleasantness once born into this world

and

when one understands that unpleasantness just doesn't magically appear from outside of our minds

and

when we realize that the root of unpleasantness comes from our deluded perspective on life itself

and

when we discover that Jodo Shinshu offers a path that sheds light on the unpleasantness that we create

it is only then

that we come

to the understanding that 

each of us

full of blind passions

and delusion

are saved

never abandoned

through Amida's

saving Vow.

Lean into the unpleasantness without fear....

Lean into the unpleasantness without hesitating...

Lean into life itself....just as you are!

Namu Amida Butsu

Thank you,

Jishin