As they say Tibet is the roof of the world. The Tibetans are people of peace and live in harmony with each other and the natural world around them. This is due to their commitment and devotion to the Dalia Lama and their faith in the Buddhist religion. The Tibetan people’s flight is not a … Read more
I’d love it if you could meet at Chippy! He’s very cute. He is the guinea pig of my youngest son. Chippy isn’t full grown yet. He has a spacious cage and a large plastic igloo as his hiding place and nest. He has his food dish and a large water bottle. My son takes … Read more
Buddhism is not a Club religion The most important difference between Buddhism and other religions is that Buddhism is not a Club religion. In Club religions when you join the club, you become special in some way and closer to truth and God. You may begin to discriminate between those in your club and those … Read more
Buddhism is a religion that was founded in India in the sixth century BC by Siddhartha Gautama, known as the Buddha. The Buddha is not a God, or a messenger of God, and cannot act as a savior or redeemer. It is the Buddha’s teachings, known as Dhamma, that is at the core of Buddhism. … Read more
In western culture, a good majority of the population does not have a clue about eastern spirituality. There are many different religions in eastern culture; the focus of this article is Shinto and Zen Buddhism. Described below are the fundamental principles of both Shinto and Zen Buddhism, You will notice the differences and similarities between … Read more
Case: In China, at the base of a mountain, an impoverished young man sat in meditation in front of his hut facing a great rushing river. A monk from the mountain monastery hiked down a long, steep path past the hut carrying two huge wooden basins to transport water from the river back up the … Read more
In her article “Praying for Tibet,” the author hoopee writes that many years ago, the Chinese decided that a portion of their country could not be ruled by a religious leader, the “honorable Dalai Lama.” This is a gross oversimplification of hundreds of years of Chinese and Tibetan history. Such an oversimplification indicates a limited … Read more
Case: A monk decided to test the wily old teacher, Roshi Joshu, by tugging sharply at his beard with the question, “Does a dog have Buddha-nature, yes or no?” Giving this monk the fish-eye, Joshu Roshi answered, “Mu!” Pointer: This monk is either a fool or a courageous seeker of truth; only one or the … Read more
Case: It is meal time at the temple’s Great Hall and a line of monks are performing ‘kin-hin’ – awareness walking – between their living areas and the Great Hall. As the monks pass through the courtyard they notice Roshi sitting on a bench. In his lap, he holds a rough-hewn brick selected from a … Read more
Furiously Zen The problem with the zen philosophy is the constancy of the fluidity. Always ready to accept what comes, always ready to live in the exact present moment, enjoying *now*, rather than *then*, either forward or backward. There is a zen story about the man who is hanging by a weakening branch with a … Read more