Anyone who grew up in a fundamentalist or doctrinaire religious environment can tell you how hard it is to to think for oneself and choose one’s own spiritual path. In a child’s mind, the authority of one’s parents becomes totally merged with the authority of her religious teachings and teachers. Because a child is totally […]
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Tag Archives: God
Sogyal Rinpoche on God and Emptiness
2011/02/17 
4 Comments
A recent discussion with a friend on Facebook about the nature of the Absolute, brought to mind something I had transcribed years ago from a CD, but had forgotten about. So, I thought I’d dig it up from my dharma archives and share it here on my blog. The passage is from a talk by […]
Continue readingIf We Could Poll the Dead Iraqis-Poem, Music, and Interview with Thich Nhat Hanh
2010/06/17 2 Comments
I wrote this poem this week after listening to an American soldier talk about his deep regret over his part in the Iraqi war and his sorrow over his role in the destruction and loss of so many lives. After the poem, please have a listen to John Gorka’s powerful song, “The Road of Good […]
Continue reading Kabir – “Breath” – Poem and Music
2010/06/09 3 Comments
Breath by Kabir Are you looking for me? I am in the next seat. My shoulder is against yours. You will not find me in stupas, not in Indian shrine rooms, nor in synagogues, nor in cathedrals: not in masses, nor in kirtans, not in legs winding around your own neck, nor in eating nothing […]
Continue readingA Buddhist Response to Albert Camus and the Absurdity of Life
2010/05/25 8 Comments
“I see many people die because they judge that life is not worth living. I see others paradoxically getting killed for the ideas or illusions that give them a reason for living (what is called a reason for living is also an excellent reason for dying). I therefore conclude that the meaning of life is […]
Continue reading True God, True Buddha
2010/02/02 26 Comments
True God, True Buddha Zen Master Seung Sahn Adapted from a talk during a retreat at Providence Zen Center in December, 1990. Question: I’m a Christian, and I would like to know, is there anything you would like us to understand that we tend not to understand? Zen Master Seung Sahn: Christianity says God made […]
Continue reading How Does an Atheist Come to Believe in God?
2010/01/29 5 Comments
This post’s title might seem an unusual one for a blog oriented toward Buddhism, but being a “lamp unto myself,” I celebrate light and love wherever they appear, and there’s a lot of both in this interview with philosopher Jacob Needleman. The article I’m referring you to comes from Religion Dispatches, one of my very […]
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
- Practicing the Middle Way-not too much, not too little
- Healing the Body with Mindfulness of Breathing
- 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 