Wonhyo never completed his journey to Tang China, but it is said that before turning back he found
enlightenment in a cool drink from a loose skull. Today an international group is following in the footsteps of the 7th century Korean monk. Conveniently, they keep a
blog.
posted by Winnemac
on Dec 12, 2011 -
7 comments
"As teachers and leaders of communities that promote the development of compassion and mindfulness, we are writing to express our solidarity with the Occupy movement now active in over 1,900 cities worldwide....
"The structural greed, anger and delusion that characterize our current system are incompatible with our obligations to future generations and our most cherished values of interdependence, creativity, and compassion. We call on teachers and practitioners from all traditions of mind/body awakening to join in actively transforming these structures."
Occupy Samsara. [more inside]
posted by 2or3whiskeysodas
on Nov 9, 2011 -
53 comments
Teachings on Right Practice by Shunryu Suzuki, as compiled in
Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind, read by Peter Coyote:
"Posture", "Breathing",
"Control",
"Mind Weeds",
"The Marrow of Zen",
"Bowing",
"Nothing Special"
posted by Trurl
on Nov 8, 2011 -
16 comments
William Lawrence Cassidy has been
indicted for a series of threatening tweets directed towards Alyce Zeoli, aka Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo, the leader of a Buddhist organization known as Kunzang Palyul Choling (KPC) to which Cassidy had belonged. There is however a small problem that federal prosecutors are employing a
vague anti-stalking law that makes 'intentional infliction of emotional distress' through the use of 'any interactive computer service' a felony, rather than focussing more narrowly upon the outright threats.
[more inside]
posted by jeffburdges
on Aug 1, 2011 -
34 comments
“Life is fulfilling when you are rooted in the essential Beingness of ‘I Am.’ . . . Then you bring that state of consciousness—that spacious state of consciousness—you bring that into your interactions with other people of great importance. It’s only then that you will stop treating other people as possible sources of fulfillment or as a threat.” —Eckhart Tolle, spiritual teacher and author, on his June 26
live meditation broadcast.
posted by Houyhnhnm
on Jul 12, 2011 -
83 comments
Dare 2 Share Ministries offers
profiles and tips on how to "share your faith" with fourteen different types of friends a teen Christian might have, such as
Andy the Atheist,
Marty the Mormon,
Jenna the Jew,
Sid the Satanist,
Mo the Muslim and
Willow the Wiccan. If none of those strategies work, they also offer
articles on how to "use the buzz in current teen culture to initiate God-talk with your friends" by "sharing your faith" through
Indiana Jones,
Halo 3,
Brokeback Mountain,
Kung Fu Panda and
The X Files.
posted by jardinier
on Apr 8, 2011 -
299 comments
In 2009, four Buddhist nuns (Bhikkunis) were
secretly ordained in Australia - the first ever ordination of Bhikkunis in Australia, and a first for the
Thai Forest tradition anywhere. London-born
Ajahn Brahm, a
long-time supporter of women's equality in Buddhism, facilitated the ordination. For this he was
expelled from his community, the
Wat Pa Phong Sangha, and his monastery's status was
revoked. This
video summarizes the conflict, and is possibly the first use of the Downfall meme related to Buddhism. This March,
more nuns were ordained in the UK for the first time since the Australia controversy, but they're
still not equal to male monks.
This blog post discusses sexism, fundamentalism, and the conflict between East and West.
The modern opposition to bhikkhuni ordination is no ancient Buddhist tradition. It can be traced no earlier, so far as I am aware, than the abhorrent 1928 ruling against bhikkhuni in Thailand, made by monks who thought it reasonable to arrest nuns and throw them in jail for ordaining. [more inside]
posted by desjardins
on Apr 14, 2010 -
72 comments
"'I am going to get rid of everything, including mosquitoes, that bothers me, anywhere in the world, and then I will be a very happy, content person.' We're laughing, but it's what we all do." SLYT: A wry two-minute teaching about avoiding pain by Buddhist nun
Pema Chodron, based on
these writings of the 8th century scholar
Shantideva. For those who don't like video, here's a
transcript (scroll down.) For those who
really like video, here's
55 minutes of Chodron with Bill Moyers. (This too has
a partial transcript.)
posted by escabeche
on Jan 11, 2010 -
81 comments
The Dalai Lama's Buddhist Foes contrasts "the tolerance and rationalism that the Dalai Lama represents globally and the theological hardball over mystical principles that he seems to play on his home turf." But the
Shugdenpas aren't the Dalai Lama's only Buddhist opponents. Tibetan Buddhism's only female living Buddha, the twelfth
Samding Dorje Phagmo, who chose to stay in Tibet when the Dalai Lama fled,
has said, "The sins of the Dalai Lama and his followers seriously violate the basic teachings and precepts of Buddhism and seriously damage traditional Tibetan Buddhism's normal order and good reputation."
[more inside]
posted by shetterly
on Jun 11, 2009 -
95 comments
At 14 months, Spanish infant Osel Hita Torres was brought by his parents to Dharamsala, where the Dalai Lama decreed him to be the reincarnation of the recently deceased Lama Yeshe. Torres became Lama Tenzin Osel Rinpoche, and spent most of his life growing up in a gilded cage in the Tibetan exile capital, venerated as a living deity and isolated from the corrupting influences of the world.
But then he escaped.
[more inside]
posted by acb
on Jun 1, 2009 -
66 comments
Tenzin Bob Thurman became a Tibetan monk at age 24. He's a professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist studies at Columbia University, the first American ordained by the Dalai Lama. Here is his
TED talk. If you are really interested in Tibetan Buddhism, check out his many
podcasts.
posted by RussHy
on Apr 9, 2009 -
30 comments
Historic,
beautiful and
interesting footage of
Tibetan lamas and
yogis teaching
Buddhism, just 4 years after their escape from Tibet, when the Chinese invaded in 1959. "In 1963, for the first time, the Dalai Lama allowed a Westerner, Desjardins, to film the heart of the Tibetan tradition." Some meditation instruction taught by yogis: Tantra as practiced in Tibet,
1,
2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Lerab's Youtube channel has all kinds of video gems for those interested in Buddhist and Hindu spiritual practice.
[more inside]
posted by nickyskye
on Dec 20, 2008 -
12 comments
