Buddha then asked, “What do you think, Subhuti, does one who has entered the stream which flows to Enlightenment, say ‘I have entered the stream’?” “No, Buddha,” Subhuti replied. “A true disciple entering the stream would not think of themselves as a separate person that could be entering anything. Only that disciple who does not […]
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Tag Archives: bodhisattva
Thich Nhat Hanh – “Contemplation” – Poem and Music
2011/06/11 
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Contemplation A Poem by Thich Nhat Hanh Since the moon is full tonight, let us call upon the stars in prayer. The power of concentration, seen through the bright, one-pointed mind, is shaking the universe. All living beings are present tonight to witness the ocean of fear flooding the Earth. Upon the sound of the […]
Continue reading The Bodhisattva Vow-the whole thing is hopeless, but we’ll do it
2011/05/06 2 Comments
A hazy autumn moon, solitary and full, falls as it may on the winding river ahead. There are those who seek perfect clarity, yet sweep as you may, you cannot empty the mind. (The Capping Verse to Dongshan and Shenshan Cross the River) “You can’t teach someone to walk a tightrope wire by telling them […]
Continue reading Did you know that the Buddha almost didn’t teach the Dharma?
2011/05/05 4 Comments
According to the Pali canon, not long after the Buddha attained enlightenment, he mused to himself: “This Dhamma that I have realized is profound, hard to see and hard to understand, peaceful and sublime, unattainable by mere reasoning, subtle, to be experienced only by the wise.” The Buddha then apparently seriously questioned whether he could […]
Continue reading The Marriage of the Princess and the Dragon-A Dharma Story
2010/12/30 4 Comments
I’ve been thinking about “dragons” recently and thought I’d share this wonderful retelling of a Swedish fairy tale by dharma teacher Jack Kornfield from his wonderful bookAfter the Ecstasy, the Laundry: How the Heart Grows Wise on the Spiritual Path. We all have our own “dragons” in our hearts. May this simple tale help us […]
Continue reading Thich Nhat Hanh-Can We Understand the Suffering of our Enemy?
2010/08/06 6 Comments
Few people in the world have worked as tirelessly for the cause of peace, individual and collective, as Thich Nhat Hanh. His effort to bring peace—to be peace—began during his days as a young Buddhist monk during the Vietnam War and led Martin Luther King Jr. to nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize in […]
Continue reading A Buddhist Mantra based on the Prayer of St. Francis
2010/07/14 19 Comments
Here is a mantra I often work with during the day. It’s an adaptation I made of the much-loved Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi. (St. Francis is my favorite Christian saint, among other things, because of his love of animals, and especially birds! See: The Compassion of the Swans) In Buddhism, working with a […]
Continue reading Prayer and Metta for all beings affected by the BP Gulf oil disaster
2010/07/14 10 Comments
Like millions of others in the United States, and around the world, I’ve been keeping a close watch on the tragic situation with the BP Deepwater Horizon oil disaster. I don’t live in the Gulf area, but I’ve tried to help by various forms of advocacy and by getting good, solid scientific and technical information […]
Continue reading The Three Poisons-How Greed, Ill Will, and Delusion Corrupt our Institutions
2010/06/17 0 Comments
This is a companion post to Transforming the Three Poisons: Greed, Hatred, and Delusion. The Three Poisons are not just an individual problem. They affect every aspect of society and all our institutions. This brilliant article by Zen teacher Dr. David Loy explores how we can skillfully deal with the collective manifestations of greed, ill […]
Continue readingThich Nhat Hanh-The Five Mindfulness Trainings
2010/06/02 3 Comments
I still remember vividly taking the Five Mindful Trainings vow in 2002 from Thich Nhat Hanh at Stonehill College in Massachusetts. By now, the Trainings are written in my heart, but I still look at them once a week, renewing my vow and sending to Thây, his monks and nuns, and his students, any merit […]
Continue readingEngaged Buddhism-How to Help with the Gulf Oil Disaster
2010/06/01 4 Comments
One of the things that attracted me to Thich Nhat Hanh was his embodiment of what he called “engaged Buddhism.” While Buddhist monastic life and retreats have their crucial place, our day-to-day actions and their kamma are what show whether we are developing sila—the moral and ethical awakening this is every bit as important as […]
Continue readingThich Nhat Hanh on Buddhism, Mindfulness, and the Holy Spirit
2010/05/21 16 Comments
“We can touch the living Buddha. We can also touch the living Christ. When we see someone overflowing with love and understanding, someone who is keenly aware of what is going on, we know that we are very close to the Buddha and to Jesus Christ.” Thich Nhat Hanh One of the things I love […]
Continue reading Zen Wisdom-The State of No-Mistake is Called Nowness
2010/05/03 7 Comments
After my heart teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh, one of the first Zen teachers I read and studied extensively was Roshi John Daido Loori. Founder of the Mountains and Rivers Order of Zen Buddhism, Roshi Loori is considered one the great American masters of the Zen koan system. Although he recently passed on, you can find […]
Continue reading Spiritual Practice and Learning to Surrender (w/music)
2010/04/28 5 Comments
Here are some insights on surrender from various spiritual teachers, paths, and poets that I have found comforting and inspiring. At the end, I share a moving instrumental piece by pianist Solomon Keal from his beautiful album Peace of Heaven. Some of us have to be dragged, kicking and screaming, before we let go, and […]
Continue reading The Selfish King and the Compassion of the Tree Spirit
2010/03/01 7 Comments
Doing some dharma study this weekend, I came upon this wonderful story in a document I downloaded from internet years ago. I regret that I no longer know the source of this, but the message is a relevant as ever: A long time ago there lived a selfish king. He wanted to build a large […]
Continue reading If You Dislike Christianity, You’ll Hate Buddhism!
2010/02/03 2 Comments
Although I didn’t plan it, an emerging theme of posts this week seems to be the skillfulness of challenging of orthodoxy and mere conceptual thinking. Whether we agree or disagree with them, iconoclast teachers make us think—or maybe in the case of these two teachers, not so much think, as pay attention and wake up! […]
Continue readingAvatar-A Movie that Inspires Loving-kindness
2010/01/22 6 Comments
As followers of this blog know, I also have a science blog, Goodheart’s Extreme Science, and a blog about the wonders of nature in the Berkeley Hills of the San Francisco Bay Area called Berkeley, Naturally! Since the practice of metta includes loving-kindness mediation for all creatures and beings everywhere, I have occasionally mentioned posts […]
Continue readingMore Buddhist Forgiveness-Using Tonglen
2010/01/14 3 Comments
Tonglen for Self-forgiveness ~♥~ In my last post, All-Embracing Compassion-The Heart-Practice of Tonglen, I shared some introductory teaching on the Tibetan Buddhism practice of tonglen. In tonglen, we learn how to take suffering into our hearts—but without harm to us! And then to breath out love and compassion to the source and sense of suffering. […]
Continue reading All-Embracing Compassion-The Heart-Practice of Tonglen
2010/01/13 5 Comments
The devastating earthquake in Haiti is a terrible blow to good hearts everywhere. Already there has been a huge outpouring of physical aid and spiritual support to the suffering people of Haiti. In the days and months ahead, this support will need to grow and continue to help bring recovery and healing to Haiti. As […]
Continue readingChristmas Metta 2009-The Four Immeasurables
2009/12/25 8 Comments
My Christmas gift to all is this wonderful explanation of The Four Immeasurables from the wonderful Naljor Prison Dharma Service, located in Boulder, Colorado. Metta is one of the four sides of the Four Immeasurables, and though this site’s emphasis is on metta, or loving-kindness, you can no more separate metta from compassion, sympathetic joy, […]
Continue readingMay All Beings Be Happy
- Looking at the Ninth Zen Precept-I Do Not Indulge In Anger
- True God, True Buddha
- The Difference Between Compassion and “Idiot Compassion”
- Ajahn Brahmavamso teaches Loving-kindness Meditation
- Now-and-Zen-Are you still carrying her?
- A Buddhist Mantra based on the Prayer of St. Francis
- Mindfulness of Breathing-The Anapanasati Sutta
- Buddhist Forgiveness-When We Have Hurt Another-Part 3
- Healing the Body with Mindfulness of Breathing
- Practicing the Middle Way-not too much, not too little
- Look at the Three Characteristics in Terms of Actions
- Thich Nhat Hanh – Healing Through Resting in the Breath
- How Metta Can Help You When Meditation is Hindered by Overwhelming Feelings
- The Importance of Taking the “Should” out of Spiritual Practice
- Can We “Choose” to Be Happy? No—and Yes!
- Ken Mcleod on how to use Thich Nhat Hanh’s Five-Step Method of Emotional Releasing
- Non-resistance and the Art of Resisting without Resisting!
- Don’t be fooled! There is a Way and We Can Walk It!
- The Importance of Compassion in Assessing Our Dharma Progress
- Jesus and the Buddha on Good Friday
Metta Refuge 