The Nature of a Sunset

What is the nature of an exquisite sunset or the artist who paints a smoke-scape upon a palette of crystalline blue?
To see the fan-like strokes; to drink deeply of the flaming pink and tangerine.
The tiny rainbow hidden in the heart of pearl colored clouds, glowing unseen, 
but felt.
 Looking deeply into this majestic canvas to know the elements of atmosphere; atoms of liquid reflecting light, fleeting gases imparting tints and hues. 
Energy from solar flares, and water that has been oceans and streams; resting on
the dust of meteors, or the dust of the dirty streets of New York.
Knowing how ephemeral is the nature of this concordance: 
Just now, just this moment as such; and then transforming into another such-ness.
Never gone but never again, just like this. 

Nothing is from nowhere, no thing becomes nothing. 

My life bursting gloriously across the sky of this lifetime; brilliant, ecstatic. In its very nature aspiring to be, all it is meant to be...the nature of this exquisite sunset.



May these words benefit you, those you love, and all sentient beings, everywhere.

-Ellen Adelman


©Ellen M. Adelman 1/2013

Mind Body Intelligencetm is a trademark of 
Ellen M. Adelman PhD and the Sage Healing Institute. 

For more information visit www.sagehealinginstitute.com.

Other Sentient Beings: Our Family, Our World.

In Buddhism animals are seen as just as important as human beings. In Buddhist literature this is expressed so powerfully as the invitation to think of any animal as the possible reincarnation of a relative, like a grandparent or a parent.
 When viewed through this lens the life of the animal becomes a sacred thing. No compassionate being would want to hurt or starve a member of their own family. 

The unseen benefits:
For those of us who choose to live with animals and cherish them, this is an easy request to fulfill. We experience the animals that become a part of our lives as people; with desires, thoughts and feelings, like ours. We love them and many of them can express their love in return. In addition, it has been shown in numerous studies that folks who live with animals receive many significant health benefits; like lowering blood pressure and reducing heart disease. For more specifics, visit this link: http://www.pawssf.org/document.doc?id=15.
Understanding the Connections
Fostering a connection to animals and the natural world increases the opportunity to experience our shared one-ness. We can begin to feel on some deeper level, the unity of the planet and how we must care for all of it in order for any of us to flourish. Just as forgetting to put out a bowl of water will cause our pet dog to suffer, using too many pesticides can cause wild birds to suffer. When the chicks die because the shell of their eggs are too thin, we have fewer birds to eat the mosquitoes that suck our blood and transmit disease; or to manage the insects that destroy our crops. With uncontrolled pests we lose crops and more people go hungry; or we use more pesticides and develop more disease from contaminated food.
How we disconnect
It is easy to disconnect from the natural world. For many children, it seems that produce comes from the refrigerator  or the supermarket and not the farmer’s fields. We are unaware of the practices that deplete our farmlands or cause suffering to our fellow sentient beings like dolphins and chimpanzees. The connection to other living beings is there and it is real. We can experience it only if we are mindful.

We can begin to heal this ignorance and the resulting harm by inviting ourselves to become more aware, and by educating the generations that will succeed us. Many of us provide temporary shelter for homeless pets or donate to charities that work to stop animal torture or experimentation. 
Many of us refrain from eating animals or animal products that were obtained by causing pain or distress. These might seem like big commitments of time, energy, money, or life-stye changes.

How we heal
But anyone can take a moment to notice a sparrow and send lovingkindness to that little precious being. It costs nothing to give a tender caress to our pet dog or cat. Some of us are even lucky enough to live with a cat who meditates (see photo)!

Breathing in I look deeply into the eyes of my fellow being.

Breathing out I send compassion to their heart.

Breathing in I am reminded of my deep bonds with all the living beings on the planet.

Breathing out I set an intention to be part of the healing of all sentient beings.


May this information benefit you, those you love, and all sentient beings, everywhere.

-Ellen Adelman




Mind Body Intelligencetm is a trademark of Ellen M. Adelman PhD and the Sage Healing Institute. 

For more information visit www.sagehealinginstitute.com.

Psychotherapists who practice mindfulness have been shown to have better treatment outcomes with their patients. 

A fascinating study published in 2007 in the journal Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics reports on a randomized, double-blind, controlled study.

Therapists participated in a Zen meditation group daily from 7 to 8 in the morning before their treatment day began. Patients, however, were not exposed to the meditation training. 

Patients who were in treatment with the Meditating therapists showed significantly more progress in terms of symptom reduction and their ability to assess their own problems. They also reported significantly more satisfaction with their treatment, than the control group, whose therapists did not practice meditation. 

This study reminds us of the value of the use of the self of the therapist. . The authors point out that the development of the therapist as the instrument of therapy is a very different perspective from the current,pervasive emphasis on therapy techniques, (such as CBT or EMDR).

Mindfulness meditation practices enable us, as therapists, to be fully present with our patients and see them deeply and compassionately. These skills enhance our abilitiy to refrain from judgment and criticism, and from imposing our own agenda or counter-transferance onto our patients. 
This is one way that we can empower them to heal themselves. 

May this information benefit you, those you work with, those you love, and all sentient beings, everywhere.

Dr. Ellen Adelman
Sage Healing Institute

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Kind Resolutions 

As we point ourselves in the direction of the new year, our custom is to examine our flaws and shortcomings. Turning a harsh and critical eye on our bodies, minds and behaviors, we generate a comprehensive list and resolve to change in the coming months.

What if the starting point of our resolutions was a heart of kindness? What if we offered  ourselves affirmations,Instead of criticisms?:

• I know that I would enjoy being more generous with my time.
  

• I know that I would benefit from being more mindful about nutrition.
  

• I know that my relationships would benefit if I were less reactive.
  

• I know that I would feel better if I incorporated exercise into my schedule.
  

As Pema Chodron,a wonderful contemporary Buddhist teacher, tells us in her book “Start Where You Are”, 1994, When we are self-critical it is like doing violence to ourselves. Beginning from a place of kindness and compassion allows us to set a course for growth and change without the damage done by harsh criticism.

The power of kindness was demonstrated in a recent study at an elementary school in England, reported by the BBC. The study found that the 9 to 11 year olds, who performed three acts of kindness each week of the study, were rated as significantly more popular companions by their peers, than their counterparts who did an unrelated activity.