May all beings feel love
May all beings feel liberated
May all beings be at peace
Their lives are miracles of the cosmos
I vow to reduce suffering in the world
I will not support any violence in the world
In my words or actions
Category: peace
Heal Yourself, Heal the World
Looking at world affairs I can only come to one simple conclusion. Compassion, forgiveness and love are the only ways to heal ourselves and the planet. Violence will not end violence. Even our peace agreements are often not very peaceful. If we keep punishing each other we will keep suffering more misery. At the deepest level, hurting another person is to hurt yourself. New technology will not save us from the self destructive qualities of greed, hatred and fear that consume us.
If we take this model and apply it to our own individual life we can see a way out of our own suffering as well. Our mind doesn’t have to be a battlefield anymore but a beautiful sanctuary of healing. Through the power of compassion, love, and forgiveness we can heal any traumas from the past and live fully today without fear. We can develop a deep faith in something bigger than ourselves that keeps us grounded. We don’t have to be at war with ourselves ever again and we can be quite joyful at any moment. What would Jesus or the Buddha do? What would the best version of yourself do? They would forgive you and show deep love and compassion to even the most hurt and lost parts of you. 🙏🏻
Legacy
My life is impermanent
Knowing this, I vow to live deeply each day
Love unconditionally
Have deep compassion for all, even those who harm others
Forgive anyone who has harmed me
Including myself
Let this be my legacy
My legacy will not have dollar signs or job titles
My legacy is not purely words
But my actions
With Aloha,
Johnny
Peace In Every Step
We don’t need to pick a side in war
This doesn’t mean we ignore the suffering, we must not be ignorant of the pain & suffering of war
Instead we can be on the side of peace & non-violence
This is a dangerous but courageous stance
Both sides might hate us but we must carry on to help reduce the suffering of war
Do not allow hatred and anger blind you
Use compassion instead of anger to fuel your activism
In order to bring true peace
We must not get attached to any ideology
Peace is not a hope
It’s a practice of non-violence, compassion, and love
Peace in every step
Peace in every breathe
By practicing peace in our daily affairs and speaking out against violence we help ensure a more compassionate and peaceful future for future generations
War will end eventually but by practicing peace we can work towards ending current wars sooner to reduce suffering
With aloha,
Johnny
5 years Vegan
Veganism is not a diet
Not a weight loss strategy
My intention is not to reduce my carbon food print
It’s a radical shift in the way I look at non human animals
To see them as individuals with the capacity to feel pain, joy, and suffer
To harm them is to harm myself
5 years ago I vowed to look at all beings through the lens of compassion
To reduce suffering in the world by not supporting the exploitation of animals for food, clothing or entertainment
To practice peace in each meal
I don’t expect the world to understand or agree with my life choices
I understand many are not ready for this radical message of non violence
With aloha,
Johnny
What’s Good Or Bad?
What’s truly good or bad?
Thanks to impermanence everything changes.
My darkest times have led to moments of liberation, joy, and enlightenment
So I don’t know if it was bad or good when I have self destructed in previous relationships or with my gambling addiction.
When things appeared to be falling apart they were really falling in place.
In the dark, there is some light
In the wrong, there is some right
Every storms runs out of power, the trick is to not run from it
Embrace the darkness & allow it to transform you into someone you couldn’t of imagined
As my teacher Thich Nhat Hanh said..
No mud, no lotus
Through deep suffering there is joy
With aloha,
Johnny
Accepting Others
Accept others
For who they are today
Not what you think they should be
The ego wants to control everything & everyone
While the divine accepts & loves others for who they are today, no matter how “flawed” they are
There is a wise zen master in all of us knows that others will change on their own pace (or not change at all)
Focus the energy you have used arguing or controlling others on becoming the best version of yourself
Your life is your message
“We are all mangoes on the same tree, ripening at different times.”
With Aloha,
Johnny
Choosing Compassion 3 Times A Day
Will you choose compassion?
Or apathy?
Will you choose curiosity?
Or tradition?
Will you choose peace?
Or taste pleasure?
Each day we can choose what world we want to live in.
Each meal deciding the fate of innocent animals.
Each meal deciding the future of our species.
Each meal deciding our health outcome.
We vote with our wallets each day & meal.
The first step is awareness.
The next is action.
Consider a vegan diet & lifestyle.
With Aloha,
Johnny
Bringing Light into the Darkness
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.
-Saint Francis of Assisi
Loving Me
This poem is inspired by Kid Cudi’s song “Lovin’ Me” off Man on the Moon III: The Chosen One
Hell & heaven live within us
The inner voice that tells us that we aren’t good enough
Strong enough
Pretty enough
That we aren’t worth love
The seeds of self-hatred sprout into suffering
Only self compassion can lead us out of the dark
Into the light of peace & love
Self love being key to humanities transformation into a more peaceful species
If we don’t love ourself
If we can’t show compassion to ourself
How can we share love & compassion with others?
With Aloha,
Johnny
Link to “Lovin’ Me” by Kid Cudi
The Narrow Path 