Category Archives: Advaita
meditation on the last sunday of advent – a buddhist perspective
“For me, “God” is not a word or a mystical being… not the fabled ‘creator’ of the phenomenal world… nor some tyrant living in an imaginary kingdom in the sky. God is an experience… an allness… an awareness that is … Continue reading
Why Struggle?
Dogen Zenji, founder of the Soto School of Buddhism, reminds us that a flower withers and dies, even though we love it; while a weed grows, even though we consider it unwanted. So why do we struggle to control those … Continue reading
Advent… a Dharma Reflection
We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves. – Buddha Sakyamuni The physical or phenomenal world does not become spiritual, but the spiritual can … Continue reading
Whose yoga is it anyway?
Possessiveness and narrow-mindedness are two of the hallmarks of a spiritually immature individual — someone who has clearly not begun to understand the empty nature of all phenomena, and whose spiritual practice likely remains superficial at best. So when a … Continue reading
What is Pain?
Pain is not the result of bad karma. Karma is not a punitive system. To think so is to confuse it with the superstitious notions found in the Abrahamic religious, pop culture, and New Age ideologies. Pain is an unpleasant … Continue reading
Self-proclaimed Tulkus, Gurus and the Middle Way
If there were on characteristic that seems to be shared by those dubious and incredulous self-proclaimed tulkus, self-appointed lamas and gurus, and the Lee Press-on Metaphysical Teachers™ we’ve recently seen in the West, it’s that they just don’t know when … Continue reading
One Path or All Paths?
Ordinarily, a person strives for realisation via one particular path. This is the approach most often considered to be “conventional wisdom”. It may even be the most direct approach. I don’t know, if I believe that, but it’s certainly possible. … Continue reading
Understanding the Nature of Suffering
I woke up this morning to the incessant scratching and twitching of the parasitic mites in my eyelids. Every joint in my body, (where the mites seem to be breeding most), ached, and the resulting anemia from their blood-feeding, left … Continue reading
Transforming the World
“To transform the world, we must begin with ourselves; and what is important in beginning with ourselves is the intention. The intention must be to understand ourselves and not to leave it to others to transform themselves or to bring … Continue reading
Her True Name
As I tearfully watched the ashes of my Guru laid to rest in the waters of our Ganga, at Kashi, listening to the recorded sound of her voice one last time, I began to realise that Ma has always been … Continue reading
Why a Contemplative Community?
Karen Davis, of Stone Mountain, GA writes: “Dear Khenpo: I hope I am not out of line for asking, but you said no question was off-bounds, so here goes. I’ve noticed you seeming to distance yourself from certain individuals and … Continue reading