I have been studying and practicing Buddhism for a couple of years. I have been pondering how do Buddhist principals relate to house sharing.

Sections / Concepts

These are all equally important.

The numbers are for finding the section you want in body of the page.

1 - For the Benefit of all Beings

2 - Patient Acceptance

3 - Interdependence

4 - All beings have Buddha potential or Positive potential

5- Delusions are the Cause

6- Everyone has Positive potential and Delusions / Faults

7 - Love

8 - Karma, cause and effect

9 - What is more important, one person or many

10 - Subtle impermanence

11 - Everything is a projection of Mind

1) ----- For the Benefit of all Beings

This can turn the most boring tasks for maintaining a house into a joyful experience.

I clean the dishes, sweep the floor, clean areas, etc. with motive to help others. I imagine how others in the house benefit by me doing these tasks.

What if other house activities were done with the intention to benefit all housemates, including yourself ?

​What if Landlords and Renters thought of this concept ?

Landlords takes care of physical building and legal for the current and future tenants. Also, for the future owners of the buildings. It is very likely the building will outlast the Landlord.

Renters take care of physical buildings for future tenants. And paid the agreed upon rent, so the building can be maintained for future tenants.

Meditations:

Ask a person how he/she/they are affected when seeing a chore completed, how did you feel hearing how you helped another human being ?

Remember what you felt hearing the person and meditate on that feeling for a few minutes before doing the chore, then remember that feeling while doing the chore.

2) ----- Patient Acceptance

This is about connecting with Wisdom.

This helps me shift from reaction to choice.

When I react I am very likely to follow old patterns and act unconsciously.

This helps me connect with and act from Wisdom.

I accept what has just happened, has happened. Two seconds have passed. It is now in the past. What is the wisdom action/move going forward ?

Meditation:

Sit or stand, focus on my breath for a few minutes. I let thoughts come and go. When I notice myself reacting or following a thought. I let the thought go. In the beginning, success is noticing I am lost in thought. With practice over time, gaps between thoughts may appear.

3) ----- Interdependence

Everything is made up of parts. Each person is a part of the whole house.

What I do impacts others in the house and vice versa.

Ignoring what for others, leads to unending difficulties.

Ignoring what for me or others, leads to unending difficulties.

Paying attention to what works for me and others is critical to sharing to work

A meditation based on this principal:

Reflect on how many people were involved in creating the materials, moving the materials and putting the material together to make the house you are in.

The same with food, electricity, etc.

4) ----- All beings have Buddha nature or Positive Potential

​This helps me get out of negativity.

​When someone does something I don’t like. I can see them as essentially bad. Bad describes everything about them.

​Or, I can remind myself, there is more to a person than what he/she/they says and does. This changes the energy I am acting from. The result is my “no” and or setting boundaries is more effective.

When I do something I don’t like. I can myself as bad, always bad.

Instead of getting stuck in see myself as bad, I can remind myself I have Positive Potential. The mistake is not the entirety of my being.

​

A meditation:

Imagine seeing them when they were a baby. Often, when I see a baby, I think what positive potential.

5) ----- Delusions are the Cause

The person’s delusion is causing them to act with out care. They are hurting and disconnected from their Positive Potential.

​This changes how I go about setting limits and saying no.

This raises a question for me. How often do I want people to treat me based on my good intention, instead of the results of a mistake that I wish I could take back or can’t fix ?

6) ----- Everyone has Positive Potential and Delusions / Faults

This can help me maintain balance and maybe prevent fights.

When someone says you did a job or a great person. Or someone says you suck, did a bad job.

I can say to myself for both, you are partially correct. I have Positive Potential and Delusions.

A meditation:

I take a moment to remember a moment I did something to help someone in the house.

I take a moment to remember a moment I made a mistake, was not helpful in the house.

7) ----- Love

Wishing love is wishing another person wellness. I can do this regardless of other person’s behavior/opinions

Compassion is desire to relieve other people’s suffering, I can have this desire regardless of other person’s behavior/opinions

Instead of hoping or waiting for love or compassion to come from my housemates, I can seek ways to develop this ability in me. Then, I can choose moments to use my mind to see my housemates with love and compassion.

The ability to see a housemate with love / compassion, shifts the energy behind my words and actions when saying yes or no. It helps me connect with Wisdom.

​

Meditation:

​A) just like me, he/she/they are seeking happiness,

sometimes their methods are successful, sometimes not successful

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B) write a list of everyone in the house. Then, say one of the names and wish that person wellness. Do this for everyone on the list.

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8) ----- Karma, cause and effect

Doing positive actions, creates conditions for sharing to go smoother

Doing negative actions, creates conditions for sharing to become difficult

When people act kindly towards housemates, this creates conditions for sharing to be positive or joyful.

When people act unkindly towards housemates, this creates conditions for sharing to become negative or unpleasant.

​

People sharing could decide to intentionally create positive Karma in the house. Since everything is interconnected, the more positive energy in the house, the more positive energy in the community and country and world.

​Mediation

Write a list of everyone in the house. Then, say one of the names and wish that person wellness. Do this for everyone on the list.

​9) ----- What is more important, one person or many

​Putting this with Patient Acceptance helps me get thru a rough moment.

This is for a moment, not forever.

This is about remaining calm, so I can connect with Wisdom to take effective actions.

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10) ----- Subtle impermanence

Whatever I see, hear, feel is gone in a second. The next second arises. It may look the same or sound the same, but at subtle level it has changed. The process of arising and going every second is endless.

This helps me shift out of this is hopelessness because it is and will always be this way.

To the hope, it will change. Nothing lasts forever.

I connect with hope and helps me feel calmer. The calmness connects me to Wisdom. So, my actions are more likely to be effective.​

11) ----- Everything is a projection of Mind

​This helps me shift from powerless victim to wondering if there is something I can do about this.

Maybe there is something I can do to create peace in myself, self heal, that will impact how I experience something.