Tricycle | Awake in the World

While Tricycle is a nonsectarian and independent publication, most of our content reflects a perspective of what might be called meditation-oriented Buddhism. Most of our readers and contributors know Buddhism primarily in terms of the meditation traditions of Zen, Vipassana, or Vajrayana as they have been presented to a Western audience. Indeed, it is probably not an exaggeration to say that, for many of our readers, approaches to Buddhism, such as Nichiren, that are not based on a practice of quiet, focused sitting meditation are, other than in name, scarcely recognizable as Buddhist at all. More »

Here's another preview of one of the talks at BuddhaFest this year. If you haven't already heard about about Congressman Tim Ryan's new book and personal advocacy for mindfulness in our nation, here's a chance to see him deliver his vision to the crowd at BuddhaFest this year. Already have a pass to this year's festival? Check out the rest of the congressman's talk here. Still haven't signed up? The online festival is continuing through Sunday, July 8th. Get your pass here. More »

We are happy to share the the first dharma talk from the Tricycle | BuddhaFest Online Film Festival. Watch a preview of Tara Brach discussing the power that a minfulness practice brings to freeing our hearts, and to bringing intimacy and transformation to our closest relationships. If you're keen on watching the rest of Tara Brach's talk (and more from Tim Ryan, Sharon Salzberg, Tsoknyi Rinpoche, Ven. Pannavait Bhikkhuni, Rick Hanson & Krishna Das) be sure get your online festival pass. For those already taking part in the festival, the full video can be viewed here. More »

About a year ago, Tricycle interviewed Ogyen Trinley Dorje, the 17th Karmapa, head of the Karma Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. (Editor's Note: There are actually two claimants to the Karmapa's seat, read more about the controversy here.) This was long before we knew that he would be the subject of Bodhisattva, one of the films now playing at the Tricycle | BuddhaFest Online Film Festival. In the interview the Karmapa discussed his work as a poet and artists, spiritual bypassing, his environmental concerns, and his daily life in India. It's the perfect introduction to the star of Mark Elliot's Bodhisattva: The Journey of the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa. Watch the interview below and then BuddhaFest Pass holders can watch the film here. More »

BuddhaFest was a great success! It was capped by a guest appearance by Ram Dass, who attended via Skype, as you see here. The live event closed on a high note, but the online event continues for another three weeks! Like Ram Dass, you can participate without leaving home. If you haven't already, get your festival pass here.   More »

As mindfulness has spread into the corporate world, there have been some who have expressed their reservations about it. Is mindfulness being appropriated to serve ends of corporate greed? Is it promoting good business ethics or, as some suspect, merely teaching people to concentrate better on making money? If we take this article—"Corporate Buddhism Training Helps Employees Understand that Job Dissatisfaction and Malaise Are Actually Nirvana"—the answers to these questions are a very frightening yes. From the article: More »

Internet troll (from Urban Dictionary): 1. Noun. One who posts a deliberately provocative message to a newsgroup or message board with the intention of causing maximum disruption and argument. 2. Noun. A person whose sole purpose in life is to seek out people to argue with on the Internet over extrememly trivial issues. Such arguments can happen on blogs, Facebook, Myspace, and a host of others. The best thing you can do to fight an Internet troll is to not answer. (My addendum: this is also known as "Don't feed the trolls!") More »

The 2012 Presidential election is the most fractious in memory—just another example of the partisan rancor ruling national politics today. (“Washington is broken,” stated Republican senator Olympia Snowe of Maine, a noted moderate, as she announced her decision not to run for a fourth term.) Contributing to the problem, insiders suggest, is that bipartisan socializing—a Washington tradition—has all but ceased, as pols spend their free time drumming up support back in their home districts. But if Congressman Tim Ryan, a five-term Democrat from Ohio, has anything to say about it, cultivating mindfulness not only can help us reconnect with our kindness and compassion individually and collectively but also could trickle up and help Congress reconnect, leading to more cooperation at the top. More »

Last week I spoke with Mark Verkerk, the Dutch filmmaker and the director of Buddha's Lost Children, this week's BuddhaFest film (you can read about the film and watch the trailer here). Mark shot Buddha's Lost Children over the course of a year in the remote regions of Thailand. The documentary, released in 2006, won many awards, including Best Spiritual Film in the European Spiritual Film Fest, the City of Rome Prize, and the Grand Jury Prize AFI in Los Angeles. More »