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Quote by Kenneth S. Leong

“Like avoidance, indulgence is also a form of escape. The objects of indulgence, be they drugs, alcohol, or sex, are simply used as painkillers. Experienced healers know that the real problem often does not lie in the drug or whatever object an addict is addicted to. For most addicts, the problem existed long before they started taking their drug of choice. Experienced healers also realize that getting rid of the drug does not get rid of the problem. In fact, it is critical to address the real problem at the time the drug is removed. More often than not, the drug-taking behavior is a symptom for a deep-seated unwillingness to face life as it is, i.e., a lack of gentleness. Thus, forced abstinence, without treating the root of the problem, may do more harm than good.”

Quote by Kenneth S. Leong

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The Zen Teachings of Jesus

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Kenneth S. Leong

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“When we find the dark side of life too much to take, when we feel an urge to fight or escape from it all, perhaps we should visualize a lotus flower, the timeless Buddhist symbol for purity. While the lotus itself is clean and beautiful, it is nevertheless rooted in dirty, stinking mud. Unsightly as the mud may be, it provides the necessary nutrients for the lotus flower. Should the flower be disconnected from the mud, it cannot continue to live. Perhaps we should think of our greed, anger, and lust in the same way: they provide the necessary food for our soul.”

“In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus asked us to turn to nature as our teacher. Nature does not make any distinction in its treatment of the good and the evil, nor does it discriminate between the just and the unjust. To treat all things and all people as equal is the way of nature. Jesus said that our love of others should also be like that. True love is indiscriminate. In this light, the instruction to "love your enemies" and to "pray for those who persecute you" is more a reflection of this nondiscriminatory mentality than an intention to go overboard.”

“[A]ll beings in the universe are interdependent. Thus, the love of God means the love of All There Is. The one who loves God is the one who adopts a loving attitude to all things in life, for all are intimately connected and do not exist apart from one another. Therefore, the second greatest commandment is simply a derivative of the first one. Our love for others is due to our recognition that each one of them is also an integral part of God, inseparable from Ultimate Reality.”

“Many people have completely missed out on the joy, humor, and profundity of Jesus' teachings because they keep holding on to the first interpretation they were taught back in Sunday school. In a way, they are like butterflies that are too afraid to come out of their cocoons or grown-ups who will not let go of their childhood clothes. By refusing to let their understanding grow with their personal experience, they are ensuring that the scriptures remain as a dull document progressively fading into oblivion rather than metamorphosing into the living words of God.”