Tony Blair in his recent address to the U.S. Congress said, "Our ultimate weapon is not our guns but our beliefs." The statement is grand and complex. No disrespect for Prime Minister Blair, but, isn't this the problem? I can imagine the terrorists in their cells saying exactly the same thing. Religious scholar, Karen Armstrong writes, "The Buddha had no time for doctrines or creeds; he had no theology to impart... no definition of the Ultimate Reality. 'Letting go' is one of the keynotes of the Buddha's teaching. The enlightened person did not grab or hold onto even the most authoritative instructions. Everything was transient and nothing lasted. Until his disciples recognized this in every fiber of their being,they would never reach Nibbana. Even his own teachings must be jettisoned, once they had done their job. He once compared them to a raft, telling the story of a traveler who came to a great expanse of water and desperately needed to get across. There was no bridge, no ferry, so he built a raft and rowed himself across. But, then the Buddha would ask his audience, what should the traveler do with the raft? Should he decide that because it had been so helpful to him, he should load it onto his back and lug it around with him wherever he went? Or should he moor it and continue his journey.... A religious idea could all too easily become a mental idol... To accept a doctrine on somebody else's authority was, in his eyes, an 'unskillful' state, which could not lead to enlightenment, because it was an abdication of personal responsibility." (p. 100-101. Buddha) So, let's take what Blair says, what Bush says, what the candidates say, what Karen Armstrong says, and what Buddha says, with a grain of salt. I'm off to Maine. Have a great Summer. Here are some Summer lists. 
Summer Listening

1. Time Out	Dave Brubeck Quartet
2. Sea Change	Beck
3. Jazz Masters17 (verve)	Nina Simone
4. Day Breaker	Beth Orton
5. Grace	Jeff Buckley
6. Come Away with Me	Nora Jones
7. Symphony no.3	Henryk Gorecki
8. The Artistry of Christopher Parkening (emi)
9. Cho	Choying Drolma (w/Steve Tibbetts)
10. Sketches of Spain	Miles Davis
11. Hail to the Thief	Radiohead
12. Red (www.soulriffic.com)	WILL

Summer Reading

1. Living the Magical Life	Suzi Gablik
2. Small Gods	Terry Pratchett
3. Life of Pi	Yann Martel
4. Is There No Other Way	Michael Nagler
5. Autobiography of a Yogi	Paramahansa Yogananda
6. The Snow Leopard	Peter Mattiessen
7. Moby Dick	Herman Melville
8. The Greater Trumps	Charles Williams
9. Ring of Bright Water	Gavin Maxwell
10.Reiki Fire	Frank Arjava Petter
11. Buddha	Karen Armstrong
12. Walking in this World	Julia Cameron

Twelve Things We Can Do Every Day for World Peace and Justice 

1. Use less fossil fuel.
2. Reduce, reuse and recycle.
3. Support one or more people who cannot (or cannot fully) support themselves.
4. Think of work not as a job, but as opportunities for service.
5. Process inner anger by following a spiritual path or getting some form of therapy.
6. Learn and practice conflict resolution techniques.
7. Cultivate an organic garden.
8. Treat property and possessions as held in trust for the benefit of others.
9. Find the good points, not the bad points, in other people's religions, and in their non-religious ethical philosophies.
10. Participate in extended families, family-like communities (e.g. a church), and in multi-generational recreational activities.
11. Buy union-made and environmentally friendly goods from cooperative, farmers market, nonprofit, public sector, socially responsible, and locally owned enterprises. 
12. Meditate and study about world peace and justice and then add to, or subtract from this list. 

From the American Friends Service Committee - Arizona
(www.ibite.org)
The Five Reiki Principles:

1. Today, don't get angry.
2. Today, don't worry.
3. Today, be grateful.
4. Today, work hard. 
5. Today, be kind to others. 

TEN WEBSITES

1. www.soulriffic.com: to hear WILL's Music 
2. www.misternicehands.com: for an hour of fun 
3. www.homestarrunner.com: for hours of fun 
4. www.ibite.org: for a personal odyssey 
5. www.un.org/terrorism: UN terrorism info. 
6. www.quno.org: Quaker United Nations Office 
7. www.fcnl.org: Friends Committee on National legislation 
8. www.afsc.org: American Friends Service Committee 
9. www.hrw.org: Human Rights Watch 
10. www.amnesty.org: Amnesty International 

Peace, Bo