John 13:35

Compare translations:

KJ21 By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples: if ye have love one for another.”
ASV By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
AMP By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you have love and unselfish concern for one another.”
AMPC By this shall all [men] know that you are My disciples, if you love one another [if you keep on showing love among yourselves].
BRG By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
CSB By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
CEB This is how everyone will know that you are my disciples, when you love each other.”
CJB Everyone will know that you are my talmidim by the fact that you have love for each other.”
CEV If you love each other, everyone will know that you are my disciples.
DARBY By this shall all know that ye are disciples of mine, if ye have love amongst yourselves.
DLNT By this everyone will know that you are disciples to Me: if you are having love in-the-case-of  one another”.
DRA By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one for another.
ERV All people will know that you are my followers if you love each other.”
EHV By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
ESV By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
ESVUK By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
EXB All people will know that you are my ·followers [disciples] if you love ·each other [T one another].”
GNV By this shall all men know, that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
GW Everyone will know that you are my disciples because of your love for each other.”
GNT If you have love for one another, then everyone will know that you are my disciples.”
HCSB By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
ICB All people will know that you are my followers if you love each other.”
ISV This is how everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
PHILLIPS When he had gone, Jesus spoke, “Now comes the glory of the Son of Man, and the glory of God in him! If God is glorified through him then God will glorify the Son of Man—and that without delay. Oh, my children, I am with you such a short time! You will look for me and I have to tell you as I told the Jews, ‘Where I am going, you cannot follow.’ Now I am giving you a new command—love one another. Just as I have loved you, so you must love one another. This is how all men will know that you are my disciples, because you have such love for one another.”
JUB By this shall everyone know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
KJV By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
AKJV By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
LEB By this everyone will know that you are my disciples—if you have love for one another.”
TLB Your strong love for each other will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
MSG “Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other.”
MEV By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
MOUNCE By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
NOG Everyone will know that you are my disciples because of your love for each other.”
NABRE This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
NASB By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
NCV All people will know that you are my followers if you love each other.”
NET Everyone will know by this that you are my disciples—if you have love for one another.”
NIRV If you love one another, everyone will know you are my disciples.”
NIV By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
NIVUK By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.’
NKJV By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
NLV If you love each other, all men will know you are My followers.”
NLT Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
NMB By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
NRSV By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
NRSVA By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.’
NRSVACE By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.’
NRSVCE By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
NTE This is how everybody will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for each other.’
OJB By this will kol Bnei Adam have da’as that my talmidim you are, if ahavah you have one for the other.
TPT For when you demonstrate the same love I have for you by loving one another, everyone will know that you’re my true followers.”
RSV By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
RSVCE By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
TLV By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
VOICE Everyone will know you as My followers if you demonstrate your love to others.
WEB By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
WE This is how all people will know that you are my disciples.'
WYC In this thing all men shall know, that ye be my disciples, if ye have love together.
YLT in this shall all know that ye are my disciples, if ye may have love one to another.'

Possession

Not sure what book this is from, got it off Reddit, but I thought it was interesting. Reminds me of doing the 6 element practice.

Dump

Pearls of Winter

Lisa J. Jisa has written Pearls of Winter (Goodreads). I went to high school with Lisa and she's a friend. We often have spiritual discussions and swap links. She is a Christian and believes God is love. She can see the problems with certain churches and religions and is not a fundamentalist or anything like that. I find interfaith discussion important. In the past she wrote for her newspaper in Arizona. Check out her book.

8 verses of mind training without commentary

With a determination to achieve the highest aim

For the benefit of all sentient beings

Which surpasses even the wish-fulfilling gem,

May I hold them dear at all times.



Whenever I interact with someone,

May I view myself as the lowest amongst all,

And, from the very depths of my heart,

Respectfully hold others as superior.



In all my deeds may I probe into my mind,

And as soon as mental and emotional afflictions arise-

As they endanger myself and others-

May I strongly confront them and avert them.



When I see beings of unpleasant character

Oppressed by strong negativity and suffering,

May I hold them dear-for they are rare to find-

As if I have discovered a jewel treasure!



When others, out of jealousy

Treat me wrongly with abuse, slander, and scorn,

May I take upon myself the defeat

And offer to others the victory.



When someone whom I have helped,

Or in whom I have placed great hopes,

Mistreats me in extremely hurtful ways,

May I regard him still as my precious teacher.



In brief, may I offer benefit and joy

To all my mothers, both directly and indirectly,

May I quietly take upon myself

All hurts and pains of my mothers.



May all this remain undefiled

By the stains of the eight mundane concerns;

And may I, recognizing all things as illusion,

Devoid of clinging, be released from bondage.

#5 (37 practices of Bodhisattvas)

When you keep their company, your three poisons increase,
Your activities of hearing, thinking and meditating decline,
And they make you lose your love and compassion
Give up bad friends--
      This is the practice of the Bodhisattvas.

My initial reaction to this verse is that I don't like it. I think that's the whole point of the bodhisattva is to leave the monastery and be in the world (like the Buddha) with all it's complications and negativity. You don't flee for your own spiritual development, you rush into the world.

But you can't be friends with lack of virtue. Friendship is only with a person who possesses virtue. There is no such thing as a bad friend, there is only a person who does not participate in friendship, maybe comrades in samsara.

You can monitor your feelings and be aware. There is not sin in taking care of yourself and guarding your development. You can't help people if you can't take care of yourself. Self care is very very important.

So when someone is draining your ability to hear, think and meditate, you make sure that they do not snuff out these abilities. You nurture and cherish your abilities to do these things, for everyone. If you're going to go down a dark spiral if you associate with someone, then don't associate with them. Being a bodhisattva isn't sacrificing yourself, unlike the Christian martyr. You are going for enlightenment for the sake of all beings, but destroying yourself doesn't do that. You could choose to sacrifice your body for others, but going down a negative path is not the same thing, and this life is precious.

I think of Ksitigarbha from the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva Pūrvapraṇidhāna Sūtra, who vows not to achieve Buddhahood until all hells are emptied.

But by no means do you need to constantly put yourself into harm's way either. It's OK to surround yourself in nourishing relationships and rarely challenge this setup. You should not pretend you are more spiritually advanced than you really are to please others.

You may have an Iago who gaslights you because he can't outright murder you, but feels he can undermine you, sabotage you under the guise of a loyal servant. Or maybe a Lady Macbeth, who encourages you to be murderously ambitious, and shames your concept of manhood to help get you there. Or maybe you listen to the flattering daughters like Lear, that support your grandiosity. Or maybe a Tybalt can draw you into a conflict to your detriment.

If you go on r/family on Reddit you will encounter people who realize their family is undermining them and perhaps are a not the all good that family is portrayed. On r/relationships on Reddit you will find that relationships change and people can realize or see someone has changed to be undermining. People change. They can be supportive and helpful for a while, and then change. Perhaps you give a friend the benefit of the doubt, or you give them a little more of a chance to be a full person with the negative and the positive that everyone has. But clinging to the idea of how someone is in the past might also be masochistic and unhelpful.

(go back to #4 here (there are actually 44 verses in the text, 2 preface, and 5 postscript))

Thich Nhat Hanh quote

"Understanding someone's suffering is the best gift you can give another person. Understanding is love's other name. If you don't understand, you can't love" -- Thich Nhat Hanh

Dhamapada