Inconsequential Content

A few points of note after watching Total Recall

Cast aside all involvements and cease all affairs. Do not think good or bad. Do not administer pros and cons. Cease all the movements of the conscious mind, the gauging of all thoughts and views. Have no designs on becoming a buddha. Zazen has nothing whatever to do with sitting or lying down.

Unfortunately, we can easily confuse nonattachment with avoidance of attachment. Avoidance of attachment, however, is not freedom from attachment. It’s another form of clinging—clinging to the denial of your human attachment needs, out of distrust that love is reliable.

Instead of focusing on some thoughts and feelings and pushing away others, just look at them as feathers flying in the wind. The wind is your awareness, your inborn openness and clarity.

Buddhism asks us to go beyond the self, not to perfect the self.

For Buddhism, faith doesn't mean the blind acceptance of teachings as unquestionable dogmas. Rather, faith suggests a combination of trust in the Buddha as a fully enlightened teacher, confidence in the Buddha and in his guidance, and feelings of devotion and reverence towards the Buddha. This quality of faith is to be strengthened because it's what builds our own commitment to the entire practice.

All I can say about the upcoming fiftieth is that obviously there's a big Dalek story opening the new series which is absolutely brilliant and any expectations you've got, double them, it's that good. It's so, so, so, so brilliant. And then the fiftieth which obviously is going to be a big hark back to everything that's gone before, there's going to be lots of nostalgia for Doctor Who fans over the next year or two years.