Barbara's Buddhism Blog April 2008 Archive

Pain and Buddhism
The last two posts -- Pain and Suffering and Suffering and Clinging -- explained Buddhist teachings on suffering and pain. In this third post in the series I want to ... Read More

Wednesday April 30, 2008 | permalink | comments (2)

Suffering and Clinging
The last post began as an explanation of the nature of pain and suffering. To recap, the Buddhist understanding of pain and suffering is that pain is a physical sensation, ... Read More

Monday April 28, 2008 | permalink | comments (0)

Pain and Suffering
Full disclosure: I'm a wuss about pain. I do not bear pain silently and stoically. My dentist can confirm that the mere anticipation of pain makes me squirm. But as somebody ... Read More

Sunday April 27, 2008 | permalink | comments (1)

Metta for the Earth
Among the many teachings of Buddhism, three relate directly to caring for our planet, its environment and its organisms. One of these teachings is Pratityasamutpada, also called "dependent co-arising," "interdependent origination" ... Read More

Thursday April 24, 2008 | permalink | comments (0)

An Eco-Friendly Karmapa
His Holiness the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, is speaking out on environmental issues. The Karmapa is the 22-year-old head of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. In an essay ... Read More

Wednesday April 23, 2008 | permalink | comments (2)

Following a Path
Speaking in Ann Arbor, Michigan, over the weekend, His Holiness the Dalai Lama told his audience to embrace their own religious traditions. Niraj Warikoo writes for the Detroit Free Press: ... Read More

Tuesday April 22, 2008 | permalink | comments (2)

Tale of a Torch
Today the Buddhist monks of Zenkoji Temple, Nagano, Japan, announced the temple would not be hosting any part of the Olympic torch run. The Japanese portion of the run had ... Read More

Friday April 18, 2008 | permalink | comments (1)

Praying for Democracy
Today is New Year's Day in Myanmar (Burma). By tradition this is an auspicious day for good deeds, such as helping the elderly, taking care of animals, and paying obeisance ... Read More

Thursday April 17, 2008 | permalink | comments (0)

Children Hear Talk by Dalai Lama
Today (Wednesday, April 16) His Holiness the Dalai Lama will be speaking at a conference in Rochester, Minnesota. The conference, "Mind and Life XVI: Investigating the Mind-Body Connection: The Science ... Read More

Wednesday April 16, 2008 | permalink | comments (0)

Buddha Behind Bars
The Dhamma Brothers is a documentary about a Vipassana meditation program inside an Alabama prison. I started to call it a "gritty" documentary, but in truth it wasn't quite gritty ... Read More

Monday April 14, 2008 | permalink | comments (0)

Breath by Breath
April is Stress Awareness month, and Buddhism has a lot to teach about stress, anger and fear management. Meditation in particular has attracted much attention as a stress-reduction technique. Josh Sims ... Read More

Saturday April 12, 2008 | permalink | comments (3)

The Dalai Lama in the U.S.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama arrived in Seattle today to attend the Seeds of Compassion conference, which begins Friday. His Holiness will take part in a panel discussion called "The ... Read More

Thursday April 10, 2008 | permalink | comments (0)

Buddhism and Politics
Paul Harrison, professor of Buddhist studies at Stanford University, discussed Buddhism and the acceptable role of monks in politics with Jayshree Bajoria of the Council of Foreign Relations. This interview ... Read More

Wednesday April 9, 2008 | permalink | comments (3)

Happy Birthday
Buddha’s birthday, often called Vesak or Visakha Puja, is celebrated on myriad dates by various schools of Buddhism. It most often is observed on the first full moon date of ... Read More

Tuesday April 8, 2008 | permalink | comments (0)

Atheism and Devotion in Buddhism
Buddhism is supposed to be a religion with no belief in gods. Yet it is also a religion of devotional practices. In many parts of Asia, the Buddha is prayed to ... Read More

Monday April 7, 2008 | permalink | comments (0)

Applying Buddhism
Deepak Chopra wrote something at Huffington Post this week that expresses a common misunderstanding of Buddhism. Chopra is, of course, an Indian physician who has written extensively about spirituality, so ... Read More

Friday April 4, 2008 | permalink | comments (10)

Zen and the Art of Haiku
April is National Poetry Month, so what better time for a lovely spring haiku? Here's one I wrote this morning -- Workmen on the roof of my apartment building. Every breath, hot tar. OK, ... Read More

Wednesday April 2, 2008 | permalink | comments (2)