Seek a deeper understanding of the fundamental and enduring questions that have been raised by thoughtful human beings in the rich traditions of the East.
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The Obon Festival, honoring the dead, and the last of the Japantowns
The Obon Festival is a Japanese Buddhist three-day observance during which families honor their deceased ancestors. According to scholar and Shin priest Alfred Bloom, The Obon observance has deep roots in Asian ancestor cults from India to Japan. It is based on the legend of the monk Mogallana's rescue of his mother from the hell of hungry ghosts. The story dramatizes the son's anxiety for his mother's welfare after her death and how it was resolved through Buddhist practice. Practicing meditation, Mogallana gained spiritual insight and vision, which enabled him to see his mother's true condition. He then asked the Buddha how to free her from her suffering. More » -
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Watch: Elizabeth Mattis-Namgyel on Empowerment
Teacher, scholar, and author Elizabeth Mattis-Namgyel speaks about the essential purpose of empowerment: to awaken our potential. She begins, Like all things on the Buddhist path, all the rituals, teachings, and practices have to do with awakening your Buddha potential, or clarity of mind. The promise for all this is that we naturally have this wakeful mind but it gets obscured or confused. More » -
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Watch Bonnie Myotai Treace: "Whole Life Offering"
The new Tricycle Retreat for July is led by Bonnie Myotai Treace, the Founder and Spiritual Director of Hermitage Heart, and Bodies of Water Zen. More » -
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Hothead? Cool your mind
Today the temperature in New York City is supposed to reach a sweltering 103 degrees. On the subway I watched as uncomfortable New Yorkers pushed past one another on the way from air-conditioned point A to air-conditioned point B with little regard for anyone else. Not only does the heat cause physical discomfort, it often turns us into hot heads—making us irritable and quick to anger. I myself find it hard to cool my mind when I can see the heat rising in waves from the pavement, so this morning I turned to the Tricycle archives for help. There I found "Hot and Heavy, Cool and Light," a piece on the Tibetan practice of tonglen by Judith Simmer-Brown: We begin tonglen by taking our seats in meditation with good posture, very simply and naturally. We ask, why would we want to do this practice? Fundamentally it is vast and choiceless. More » -
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FB Page for Buddhist members of the military
A few days ago I reported that the Dalai Lama had sent his good wishes on Armed Forces Day to the UK's men and women serving in the military. Some took that report to be implicitly critical. It wasn't. If you want to read the Dalai Lama's entire statement, the Buddhist Military Sangha has posted it here. I also came across at an invitation to join a new Facebook group for Buddhist members of the Armed Forces at the BMS site. The page was set up by USMC LCpl Luke Jamison. If you are a Buddhist member of the military, you can join here. A few years back, an American soldier at Abu Ghraib wrote us asking for support in his practice. More » -
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Paintings of the 10th Karmapa
Himalayan Art Resources' Jeff Watt writes: Probably one of the most famous Tibetan contemporary artists of his time was the 10th Karmapa, Choying Dorje (1604-1674). Take a look. More »
