Tagged with Buddhism

The bodhisattva way of life brings connection, love, and compassion into every facet of our lives. You don't have to be a Buddhist, a theist, or anything in particular to benefit from these perspectives. (more)

Many people who call themselves "new agers" like to say "I'm spiritual not religious." But what if there is no difference between the two? Why is everyone so reluctant to admit that they might be religious, and where does the urge to separate the two come from anyway? (more)

The greatest protection against the evil aspects of wetiko is to be in touch with our intrinsic wholeness. In Buddhism, the wholeness of our true nature is likened to a mirror, which reflects whatever is put before it but is never tainted nor stained by its reflections. When we are in touch with our true nature, the evil of wetiko cannot ‘touch' us. (more)

In a nonlocal universe such as ours, the accuracy of our psychic awareness is found to be independent of space and time. Such spatial and temporal independence is what we mean by the nonlocality of the space in which we live. The idea of entanglement of separated quantum particles that were once together is now well accepted by physicists. (more)

By definition, a conspiracy is a "surreptitious plan formulated in secret by two or more persons." But within dominant reality constructs of socialized consciousness, the most conspicuous conspiracy is often self-perpetrated. The mechanisms of our perpetual self-creation are obfuscated by the meandering of our Monkey Mind. (more)

When I was an undergrad, I would do a lot of things that my peers would do, but it took me a long time to figure out how to walk that fine line between being a meditation practitioner and living the life of a young person.  Recently I was asked to head up Shambhala Publications' Under 35 Project, a digital hub for a new generation of meditators. (more)

Lucid dreaming beckons us to awaken within our nocturnal dreams -- to become aware that the dreamed persona that we think is us, along with all other dream phenomena, are illusory. Dream yoga asks us to go further, to awaken to the true nature of an analogous situation that we mistakenly call "waking reality." (more)

Darrin Drda's core insight is that only by truly coming to terms with the reality of our collective suffering (dukkha), can we develop the immeasurable states of joy, compassion, loving kindness, and equanimity that we wish to characterize the state of the human existence in the wake of history. [Click the link for information regarding the online Evolver Intensive hosted by Darrin Drda entitled, "Awakening the Global Heart Mind," starting April 28 at 3pm EST 12pm PST, 8pm London]. (more)

Yes, Virginia, there is such a thing as spiritual progress.  Like anything else, as you practice, you get better at it in terms of observable changes to the mind. If you do the work, it happens at its own pace.  You can't rush it, but you needn't supervise it either.  (more)

The original shamans and their external technologies induce a sense of freedom from embodiment. The early yogis carry that freedom into the disentanglement of consciousness from phenomena and the world. The Vedantic tradition recognizes that the self and the divine are actually one, and the non-dual traditions recognize that all is divine. (more)

Successful meditation is doing it, developing gentleness toward yourself and enough awareness to know what's happening when it's happening with a non-judgmental attitude. Progress happens when you start to recognize what you're feeling when you're feeling it. (more)

Just outside my door at Norbulingka in northern India was a magnificent rendering of the Bhavachakra, the Wheel of Suffering. The more I thought about it, the more it seemed that American culture is a charicature of the human condition, similar to the one in the Tibetan painting.  The cartoonist in me couldn't resist. (more)

We all want to change the world for the better. Even political nut jobs want this; they just want the world to resemble their personal vision of it. When you slow down and ponder how to make the world a bit better, you may come to the same conclusion that so many Buddhist masters have come to: we must base change in compassionate wisdom, not speed and aggression.  (more)

The tragic sense is the power behind religion. God is an impossible concept. This has led, on the one hand, to rampant agnosticism and, on the other, to the silence of the Buddha. Today, instead of recognizing and accepting impossibility, we defiantly demand the impossible. (more)

All religious traditions employ the theme -- Abraham, Moses, Buddha, Jesus, and Mohammad left home. Indigenous seekers go into the wilderness alone to fast and pray. Exile is basic to the great epic literatures. It means setting aside security and comfort and shoving off for parts unknown with no road map and no guarantee of finding your way. (more)

The unconscious bait and switch of communing with reality becomes engraved into the synaptic patterns of a soon to be disappointed, nostalgic sucker who thinks the reflection is actually in the mirror. The yoga I'm interested in teaching is to perceive the mirror-like nature of all objects. (more)

While reflecting on Buddhism and Burning Man, I learned of a wildfire encroaching on a meditation retreat. It's an analogy for our crisis. As temperatures rise and natural systems decline, can people of conscience (and privilege) afford to spend so much money and time playing on the playa? (more)

With a background in punk rock and Japanese monster movies, Brad Warner isn't your hippie aunt's idea of a Zen master. In this interview, Warner discusses his latest book, an attempt to bridge the divergent terrain of contemporary sexuality to Zen's approaches to morality and sexual relationships. (more)

We live in a greedy, competitive society with a strong belief in "self" and expectations of a perfect life, and we have a lot of anger. Instead of venting anger, or rejecting it as "un-spiritual," or dumping it on someone else, you can work on it internally. Here's how to do it. (more)