In fact, we actually don’t have to develop confidence. It’s more that we have to acknowledge the confidence that already exists.

We need to remind ourselves over and over that this approach always has to be accompanied by the sitting practice of meditation. Meditation acts as a training ground, a stronghold, and out of that, the seed of friendliness to oneself is planted. The main point is to appreciate our world, which becomes the vajra world, the warrior’s world, which is

Cultivating mindfulness is the attitude that allows us to see ourselves and our world quite accurately and precisely.

The heart of the matter, the technique that seems to be the only way to realize this, is the sitting practice of meditation. Meditation is the key to seeing yourself as well as to seeing beyond yourself.

This unconditional confidence manifests in our lives as appreciation: appreciation of our intelligence, our sympathy toward ourselves and others, appreciation of good food and drink, appreciation for our meditation practice. Appreciating the details of life begins to open up our life so that it is no longer purely a struggle but a jolly good life.

Without the practice of meditation, it is difficult if not impossible to achieve this understanding. Even though you may have only ten minutes a day in your schedule to practice, it is worthwhile to meditate for those ten minutes. It will help you to discover gentleness and goodness in your life, and it will help you to organize your life properly,

Often, when someone tells us not to be afraid, we think they’re saying not to worry, that everything is going to be all right. Unconditional fearlessness, however, is simply based on being awake. Once you have command of the situation, fearlessness is unconditional because you are neither on the side of success nor on the side of failure. Success

Sacredness comes from developing gentleness toward ourselves. Then the irritation of being with oneself is taken away.

When you acknowledge that you feel so wretched, you can be fully cheerful. That is the interesting twist. You are being a wholesome, honest person. Usually, we aren’t this honest. You may think you can cheat the universe, and out of that, you develop all sorts of naughty or neurotic potentialities, convincing yourself that you do not have to look