In order to practice, we have to surrender, we have to take a risk. Otherwise what we’re doing is standing back in order to judge, in order to feel superior. Often the obstacle is fear: we don’t think we’ll ever succeed. And so we’d rather stand apart and be cynical, to feel protected in that [...]
When we’re idealistic, we—and many practitioners in Asian Buddhist countries as well—imagine that nirvana exists somewhere high in the Himalayas, reserved for monks who have meditated for the whole of their life. My own teachers—and other wonderful masters like Shunryu Suzuki Roshi—emphasize that nirvana is to be found here and now.
In the morning and evening [...]
The Buddha has suggested that we are without a mother and father to take care of things for us. Mother Earth, once thought to be all-forgiving and capable of absorbing any abuse we could heap upon her, is not the infinitely benevolent resource we thought she was. As we learn of our own mothers at [...]
To be truly happy in this world is a revolutionary act because true happiness depends upon a revolution in ourselves. It is radical change of view that liberates us so that we know who we are most deeply and can acknowledge our enormous ability to love. We are liberated by the truth that every single [...]
Fear is what happens when reality collides with our personal fiction. Our practice is based on expectations—expectations about who we are, why we are practicing, and what our practice should be. As our hope disintegrates, it may be replaced by fear. Our characteristics, personality, all of our beautiful plans and ideas are like snowflakes about [...]
Sharon Salzberg, who is leading Tricycle’s first online retreat, also found the time to pen this piece for the Huffington Post: “A Crossed Wire: A Call for Help.” Here’s a sample:
I had a strange experience the other day. The landline in my NYC sublet had intermittently stopped working, for days on end. No dial tone, [...]
The mind can do wonderful and unexpected things. Meditators who are having a difficult time achieving a peaceful state of mind sometimes start thinking, “Here we go again, another hour of frustration.” But often something strange happens; although they are anticipating failure, they reach a very peaceful meditative state. My first meditation teacher told me [...]
The New York Times reported on the much-needed hospital chaplaincy work of monks from the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care. The piece sheds light on the increasing need for chaplaincy work in hospitals, where resources are stretched very thin and bedside care isn’t what it used to be (if it ever was.)
Wendy Cadge, [...]
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