Challenging Samsara: Using the Buddhadharma for Guidance

By Marilyn K. Merritt

Challenging Samsara is a book of poems that ultimately provides guidance for more positive behaviors. Learning to work with a loved one, a friend, or employee who has anger or impatience is challenging. Patience is the one virtue where you really need to work with another in order to develop loving kindness, and compassion. The Buddhist teachings offer ways to address problematic areas of behavior. This book will provide readers with mindful solutions which will help them benefit all sentient beings.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Resource Publications
• Release date: Feb 24, 2023
• ISBN: 9781666761436

Marilyn K. Merritt

Marilyn K. Merritt spent the majority of her career as a certified Family Nurse Practitioner, certified Healing Touch Practitioner, and faculty member at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and is currently retired. She is not new to writing poetry, but this is her first book compiling her poetry. She has been writing poetry since the early 1980s. Through her poetry, you will journey with her in discovering her search for the path, her awakening and preparation for the challenges of samsara.

Book preview

Introduction to Challenging Samsara¹

These poems are the culmination of years of journeying and journaling. In the early 1980’s, I understood, somehow, that some new spiritual path would be opening to me and for me. Call it intuition, or call it spiritual development. I also came to understand that nirvana² would eventually come. I did not know how, or when, but I felt its certainty. During that time, I was undergoing some familial changes. These were difficult and challenging.

I first discovered the benefits and joys of Tai Chi³. I started making new friends who supported me. You will see some intense anger in The Cold War poem and some positive reckoning in The Tea Ceremony poem. These can be found in the Searching for the Path section.

In the Awakening section, you will see poetry flowing from me, as my heart opened to the Buddhadharma⁴. At that time, many Tibetan Buddhist Monks were coming to America and I found my Root Lama⁵ from whom I took Refuge⁶.

In the Challenging Samsara Section, I am in the earthly world trying to apply the Buddhist teachings. Between my earlier Christian education, which I still see as a blessing, I find the Buddhist ways to be more difficult, but I realize the principles are essentially the same. The two unique paths are intertwining for me. Making choices aren’t always easy. However, mindfulness⁷ plus devotion is a win/win situation.

Currently, my family situation has healed, but I still am faced with the daily unrelenting challenges of samsara, such as: impermanence, ignorance, impatience, jealousy, anger,