Because I am presently taking Reggie Ray's Sutrayana study course, I have been revisiting some of my favorite dharma texts, including Chogyam Trungpa's Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism and Reggie's Indestructible Truth. Recently I reread the chapters on the six realms, and I was again amazed at how deeply these texts and this teaching in particular resonate with me, so I thought I'd revisit the six realms in my post today.
As far as a summary of the realms goes, you can't do much better than Reggie's chart on page 276 of Indestructible Truth:
Hell Realm: Anger, aggression: Intense, inescapable, searing cold; intense, inescapable, claustrophobic heat
Hungry Ghost Realm: Passion, hunger: Intense, insatiable hunger, thirst; poverty mentality
Animal Realm: Delusion: Being exploited, tortured, devoured by others
Human Realm: Passion: Suffering of change; suffering upon suffering; suffering in the making
Jealous God Realm: Jealously, paranoia: Constantly struggling and fighting with competitors
God Realm: Pride, delusion: Dullness and stupidity of intoxication and continual pleasure
Let's begin by looking at the six realms as "objective realms of experience." Look, as metaphysics go, Tibetan metaphysics are pretty elaborate. Karma is not just a metaphor for ethical behavior, rather, how we behave in this life has very real consequences for
our birth into the next life. The Six Realms explain these
possibilities. We can be born into hell, come back as a human or an
animal, or even ascend into the god realms. While this view may sound
a little far-fetched to a more western-tuned [read: scientific
materialist, physicalist, and/or Christian] ear, if you think about it,
this kind of thinking about the effects of moral behavior has been
around in the West since Plato with his Heaven of Forms and has
continued well into the present with the Christian idea of heaven and
hell. The difference is, in short, in Buddhism, one cycles through
samsara, continually finding rebirth in one of the Six Realms of Mt.
Meru.
Now what I find even more engaging is the teaching on the six
realms as psychological states of mind...
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Tuesday February 9, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Talking Dharma
Dharma Worm: The Six Realms
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Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Buddhism and dating: would Sid join Match.com?
I just like to kick it with my friends, hike, take long walks on the beach.
My favorite movies are Braveheart and the Lion King. I love Italian food
but hate doing the dishes. J/k! Also, I have 1000 arms.
- Avalocutie, online dating profile
photo courtesy of www.fpmt.org
By Lodro Rinzler
Many people look to Siddhartha Gautama as an example of someone who attained nirvana, a buddha. Each week in this column we look at what it might be like if Siddhartha was on his spiritual journey today. How would he combine Buddhism and dating? How would he handle stress in the workplace? What would Sid do? is devoted to taking an honest look at what we as meditators face in the modern world.
Each week I'll take on a new question and give some advice based on what I think Sid, a fictional Siddartha, would do. Like us, Sid is not yet a buddha, he's just someone struggling to maintain an open heart on a spiritual path while facing numerous distractions along the way. Because let's face it, you and I are Sid.
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What would Sid say about online dating? - Anonymous
Filed Under: buddhism and dating, dating, dating services, dating site, dating sites, eHarmony, match.com, OKCupid, online dating, singles, what would Sid do
Friday February 5, 2010
Categories: Buddhism
Love and Auspicious Coincidence
By Stillman Brown
At the last meeting with my meditation instructor while on retreat last summer at Karme Choling, I was floating. We re-capped the experience: I had battled fierce resistance in the first week and found deep calm in the second. I had learned to enjoy the chants and become proficient in the Zen ritual style of eating, orioki. Most exciting, though, was that I had met a wonderful girl (after years of romantic frustration) and we were leaving retreat together - re-entering the world after sharing a profound experience. "It's a miracle," I said, in the grip of my crush. "What are the odds that I would meet someone here, on retreat?" As it turns out, perhaps not as unlikely as I thought.
Wednesday February 3, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Everybody Hurts
Addiction, Meditation Practice, and Space
Guest Post by Rosemary McGinn"Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom." Victor Frankl
When I came across this line last week, it reminded me of Sharon Salzberg's lecture at the Interdependence Project during last fall's Heartcore Dharma series. She spoke on the three "doors of liberation", which comprise the way to vipassana (insight): impermanence, unsatisfactoriness (Sharon's preferred term for dukkha/suffering), and selflessness (emptiness). But for me, it was all about the great gift of mindfulness and the space it creates for coping with compulsion and addiction.
Tuesday February 2, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
So, how 'bout a drink with your Sutra?
That's the question a reporter poses in this segment on CNN about monks in Japan, where Buddhism is said to be a "religious in crisis," who have started rapping to appeal to the younger generation. They've also opened a bar in the temple.
Thursday January 28, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
The Buddha at Work - "All we are is dust in the wind, dude."
"The only true wisdom consists of knowing that you know nothing." - Alex Winter, as Bill S. Preston, Esq. in Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure"That's us, dude!" - Keanu Reeves, as Ted "Theodore" LoganWhoa! Excellent! I've had impermanence on my mind recently....
Monday January 25, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Interdependent Activism & Politics
Buddha was a conservative
by Ellen ScordatoAt least, that's what this article in the American Thinker proposes. In "Tiger, the Buddha, and Me," writer Robin of Berkeley sets out to prove "Why the Buddha was more Mark Levin than Saul Alinsky." She asks, "So who...
Monday January 25, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Everybody Hurts
Buddhist Quote of the Day: Chogyam Trungpa on Early Morning Depression
posted by Ethan NichternFor me, a rough night followed a rough weekend. But if I remember correctly, one of the favorite and simplest instructions of Buddhist master Chogyam Trungpa was to tell his students to: "Cheer up." Sort of for no...
Filed Under: buddhist, Chogyam Trungpa, depressed, depression, quote of the day, working with depression
Friday January 22, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do: I'm stuck in a rut
By Lodro RinzlerMany people look to Siddhartha Gautama as an example of someone who attained nirvana, a buddha. Each week in this column we look at what it might be like if Siddhartha was on his spiritual journey today. How...
Filed Under: appreciation, boredom, Chogyam Trungpa, contemplation, Myth of Freedom, what would sid do
Thursday January 21, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
The Buddha at Work - "Blame it on the A-a-a-a-a-alcohol"
Dharma is everywhere, if we look for it. This song seems to be about doing things we know are going to cause suffering to us and to others, with a ready excuse - blame it on the alcohol. Drink up!...
Tuesday January 19, 2010
A History of Mindfulness
by Greg ZwahlenIn our What are the Suttas? study course last Saturday at the IDP New York City center, we had a look at a translation from Pali of the Satipatthana Sutta, and a session of meditation practice based on the instructions contained...
Monday January 18, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Everybody Hurts
The Causes of Happiness
by Ellen ScordatoWhat makes us happy? Nicolas Kristof recently wrote a thought-provoking piece in the New York Times on what makes us happy: "Our Basic Human Pleasures: Food, Sex and Giving." Since we are reading and writing a buddhist blog...
Friday January 15, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do about the crisis in Haiti?
By Lodro RinzlerMany people look to Siddhartha Gautama as an example of someone who attained nirvana, a buddha. Each week in this column we look at what it might be like if Siddhartha was on his spiritual journey today. How...
Thursday January 14, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
The Buddha at Work - "Beans, Beans, the Musical Fruit"
There's a tradition in Mali and Senegal called "joking cousins," or cousinage. Certain ethnic groups are considered cousins of each other, and as cousins, they're expected to make fun of one another. Here's an example from an Utne Reader article...
Wednesday January 13, 2010
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Buddhist Warfare?
At Religion Dispatches is an article by Michael Jerryson, one of the editors of the just released book Buddhist Warfare. I haven't read the book yet, but the article has some interesting points that are worth addressing. Jerryson writes that the book has...
Wednesday January 13, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Talking Dharma
The Buddha is My DJ
Scott Mitchell is a Shin Buddhist practicioner and scholar from Oakland, CA, with a Doctorate in Buddhist Studies. He's the co-host of the podcast The Dharma Realm (with Rev. Harry Bridge) and also runs his own excellent Buddhist blog The...
Tuesday January 12, 2010
Podcast: Dealing with Anger Pt. 1 with Ethan Nichtern
The Buddhist philosophical and psychological teachings include in-depth instructions on the destructive power of anger, as well as the possibility of channeling it to unvail insight and compassion. This three part series focuses on an understanding of what anger is...
Monday January 11, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Meditation
Buddhist Quote of the Day: Misunderstanding the Ego by Mark Epstein
posted by Ethan NichternI am pretty darn psyched (no pun intended) to be co-teaching a four week series on Buddhism and Psychology at the Interdependence Project with my friend Dr. Miles Neale. If you are in the New York Area,...
Friday January 8, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do: My boss is a bully
By Lodro RinzlerMany people look to Siddhartha Gautama as an example of someone who attained nirvana, a buddha. Each week in this column we look at what it might be like if Siddhartha was on his spiritual journey today. How...
Friday January 8, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Everybody Hurts
A year to live
by Davee Evans It is time to contemplate the uncertainty of my death. That's a specific project of mine for 2010: to imagine that this is the last year of my life. In doing that, I'm planning a series of...
Thursday January 7, 2010
The Buddha at Work - Notes from Mali on Practice
View Larger MapI'm writing this from Mali, where I've been working on an education project with Save the Children. It's a beautiful country, with an incredibly bright-spirited people. It's also one of the poorest countries in the world, ranking 175th...
Thursday January 7, 2010
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Brit Hume, Tiger Woods, and...Me: A Buddhist Response in Mainstream Media
posted by Ethan NichternOver the past 24 hours I had the opportunity to do two interviews with Rick Sanchez of CNN and Michel Martin of NPR's "Tell Me More," respectively. The subject was: A Buddhist Response to Brit Hume's claim...
Wednesday January 6, 2010
Brit Hume and Tiger Woods: Redemption Buddhist Style
by Patrick GronemanEarlier this week Fox News Anchor Brit Hume made a mini controversy when he appealed for Tiger Woods to turn to Christianity to deal with his recent scandal, Brit said this: "He is said to be a Buddhist....
Tuesday December 22, 2009
An Amazing Decade for Dharma
Over the past ten years we Buddhists have been the beneficiaries of a staggering wealth of new resources. We've been incredibly fortunate in the number of new translations of sutras, commentaries, and new studies that have emerged over the last...
Tuesday December 22, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Best Buddhist Book of the Decade: Turning the Mind into an Ally
End of the Decade - Day One of Tenposted by Ethan NichternAccording to a NBC/Wall Street Journal poll, this decade--which currently has T-minus 10 days remaining--might just be the worst decade ever. Time Magazine called it the "Decade from...
Friday December 18, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid post?
by Lodro RinzlerBefore Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to do with his life, drinks...
Friday December 18, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Buddhism in Hospital Care
By Stillman BrownThe New York Times healthcare blog Prescriptions has an excellent post on Buddhist chaplains who are a growing presence in New York hospitals.This is what hospital officials call Zen care, which is nondenominational and more about stress reduction,...
Thursday December 17, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
The Buddha at Work - Lessons in Noticing from a Magical Six Year Old
My favorite six year old, Eli, was feeling sick this morning. My tummy hurts, he said. Last night, he'd complained of a headache. Anticipating that he might need to miss school, Amy and I figured out that the best thing...
Tuesday December 15, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Hardcore Dharma
What the Buddha Taught: SuttaCentral
by Greg ZwahlenLet's say you're interested in discerning which teachings can most reliably be attributed to Śākyamuni Buddha, the historical man. Seems reasonable enough--after all, it's been a primary concern of Buddhists and scholars over the last two hundred years. You're not...
Friday December 11, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
WWSD: Can Buddhists celebrate Christmas?
photo courtesy of zazzle.comby Lodro RinzlerBefore Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to do with...
Thursday December 10, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Holiday Spirit and Pie
by Davee Evans Toooo many holiday gatherings: Thanksgiving to the New Year is a non-stop eating marathon and I'm the one getting stuffed. Perhaps the short days and imposing, cold air inspires richness. Prolific holiday music isn't cutting the gloom...
Thursday December 10, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
The Buddha at Work - "Right Here, Right Now" - Urban Dharma from High School Musical!
I was listening to Buddhist Geeks' podcast recently; Vince Horn interviewed Seattle Insight Meditation Society Guiding Teacher Rodney Smith and I was really struck by his attention to what he calls, "urban dharma," the dharma found and practiced in everyday...
Tuesday December 8, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Buddha of the Week
by Ellen ScordatoOn a recent visit to San Francisco, I visited the Japanese Tea Garden and ran into this wonderful bronze buddha statue. photo courtesy mark rifkin/twi-ny.comThere really was something that struck me about this statue at that moment. It...
Friday December 4, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
How would Sid treat the homeless?
It's not always this straightforward to tell where your money is goingby Lodro RinzlerBefore Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing...
Friday December 4, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
"Mom, Dad... I'm Buddhist!" - Breaking it to Your Parents, Without Making them Wrong
Mom, Dad, (cough, sob). I have something to tell you. Share with you, really. I've felt terrible. I've been hiding something. Something big. Sneaking around. Being so... evasive. Lying, even. Dad, when you found that book in my bag, Hardcore...
Thursday December 3, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
The Buddha at Work - "Turn and Face the Strange... Changes."
Look out, you rock and rollers. Pretty soon now, you're gonna get older! I heard somewhere that Bowie did some time in a monastery before he wrote this song. Can't say if that's true but I'd like to believe it's...
Monday November 30, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Meditation
Buddhist Quote of the Day: Thich Nhat Hanh Says Do Your Dishes Before You Change The World
posted by Ethan NichternThis is one of my all-time favorites quotes, and we discussed it in the Meditation in Everyday Life course last week, part of the awesome Way of Shambhala curriculum. It always brings me back to Earth...
Friday November 27, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Would Sid eat meat?
Unlike Sid, Lodro's dog Tillie is a big fan of the turkeyby Lodro RinzlerBefore Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing...
Friday November 27, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Black Friday, Cyber Monday 2009: What Would Jesus Buy? Heifer International?
posted by Ethan Nichtern(for more about IDP, visit the Interdependence Project's main website)Welcome to the day of the year with the strangest name: Black Friday 2009. Next comes Cyber Monday 2009. The name feels like an apocalypse, or a shop-ocalypse,...
Thursday November 26, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Thanksgiving Quotes: The Dalai Lama on Precious Human Life
posted by Ethan Nichtern(Something to contemplate while basting turkey or tofurkey) A Precious Human Life Every day, think as you wake up, today I am fortunate to have woken up, I am alive, I have a precious human life,...
Wednesday November 25, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Can You Give Thanks for Enough? ...the Real Thanksgiving
by Jerry Kolber, IDP, follow me on Twitter . For more about the IDP check out The Intderdependence Project websiteAs talk turns to turkey, pilgrims, stuffing, and Black Friday, I offer you the best and most accurate children's Thanksgiving presentation...
Tuesday November 24, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Meditation
Me, myself, and I and I
by Greg ZwahlenI've always been fascinated by multiple personality disorder (or dissociative identity disorder, as it is now properly called). My fascination increased a couple of years ago when I read a rather lurid book called The Myth of Sanity:...
Monday November 23, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Meditation
Gratitude and Thanksgiving
by Ellen ScordatoThanksgiving, a particularly American holiday, is coming up on Thursday.What are we giving thanks for? What am I grateful for? What are you grateful for? These kinds of questions get asked a lot around this time of year....
Friday November 20, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do: My underage son is drinking
by Lodro RinzlerBefore Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to do with his life, drinks...
Monday November 16, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Interdependent Activism & Politics
Women In Buddhism: The Thai Nun Controversy
by Rafi Santo, Director of the Interdependence Project's Integral Activism ProgramIn an unprecedented historical act, Ajahn Brahm (full name: Ajahn Brahmavamso), a senior monk in the Thai Forest Tradition of Theravadin Buddhism, conducted a full ordination at his Australian monastery...
Sunday November 15, 2009
Back to the Basics: The Four Noble Truths and The Eightfold Path
By Evelyn Cash Over the past few weeks I've been taking a step back and revisiting some of the very basic teachings of the Buddha. I think it can be helpful from time to time to go back and...
Saturday November 14, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do: Trust and Forgiveness in Buddhism
by Lodro RinzlerBefore Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to do with his life, drinks...
Thursday November 12, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Talking Dharma
Shopping For a Spiritual Practice: Intro to Zen
by Patrick GronemanLast weekend I continued my search for a spiritual practice by taking part in the Zen Mountain Monastery's "Intro to Zen Training" Retreat, a weekend toe dipping into the Mountain and Rivers Order manifestation of Soto and Rinzai...
Tuesday November 10, 2009
Building and safeguarding Buddhism in the West
by Greg Zwahlen People study meditation and Buddhism for all sorts of reasons, with varying levels of interest. That said, it seems safe to say that the vast majority have modest aspirations for it, modest levels of interest in it, and...
Monday November 9, 2009
Meditation Marathon and the Inextricability of Disco and Tonglen
by Ellen ScordatoSO much to say about the Interdependence Project 24-hour meditation marathon in the windows of ABC Carpet & Home, a high-end home furnishings store in Manhattan, this weekend.My angle here: Was this anything more than a stunt, from...
Friday November 6, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do: Working with fear
by Lodro RinzlerBefore Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to do with...
Friday November 6, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Podcast: Guest Lecture - "Buddhism and Shamanism: Working with Energy" with Robert Chender
Robert Chender has been a practitioner and teacher in the Shambhala tradition for many years, and is also a student and practitioner of certain shamanic traditions, including the Munay-ki initiations of the Inca shamanic tradition. In this talk he explores...
Thursday November 5, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Medical Marijuana and Tantra
from Davee Evans The recent shift in medical marijuana policy reminded me of the infrequent and yet ongoing conversation about Buddhism and drugs. I recently read a paper published at Erowid, titled Psychoactive Plants in Tantric Buddhism, specifically discussing...
Thursday November 5, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
The Buddha at Work - "Ethics, Shmethics, So Long as I Get Paid."
Often in business, we are confronted with shortcuts, with opportunities to bend our integrity just a little bit, in order to enrich ourselves. This might mean financially, or taking credit where it isn't due, or avoiding a difficult situation we...
Thursday November 5, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Meditation
Why We Meditate: Sittin' In The Morning Sun, Sittin' When The Evening Come
by Ethan Nichtern This is the last installment of "Why We Meditate" before the 24 Hour Meditation Marathon.On Friday and Saturday, the Buddhist-inspired Interdependence Project (which creates this blog for your education and/or amusement) will be hosting our largest...
Wednesday November 4, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Meditation
Buddhism is Not a Religion Part 5: Why I Sit
by Jerry Kolber Jerry is a writer and producer of film and TV based in NYC. His site about how to cook cheap delicious organic meals is at www.ThreeDollarDinner.com.It's hard to believe in Judaism and also believe in Christianity, but...
Wednesday November 4, 2009
Meditating, In Public, on Broadway For 24 Hours. No, I Am Not David Blaine
by Ethan NichternThis Friday 7pm, Until Saturday 7pm, The Interdependence Project is putting on what promises to be a very cool event. We are meditating, as a group, for 24 hours straight, in the storefront windows of this place,...
Wednesday November 4, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Meditation
Meditate New York!
Closely following on Greg Zwahlen's excellent post, "Why I am not a Tibetan Buddhist " with its thoughtful look at the panorama of Buddhist traditions available to practitioners in the USA today comes Meditate NYC, an opportunity to sample...
Tuesday November 3, 2009
Why I am not a "Tibetan Buddhist" (anymore)
by Greg ZwahlenIf you've received meditation instruction at a Shambhala center, or at an Insight Meditation Center, a zendo, or the ID project, the very first thing you probably learned was that it is possible to look directly into your...
Monday November 2, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Everybody Hurts
Bill W. and Buddha: Connections Between Meditation and the Twelve Steps of AA
by Rosemary McGinn I've always wanted to eavesdrop on a conversation between Siddhartha Gautama and Bill Wilson (the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous). I think they'd get along great: Both of these men found paths out of suffering in their own...
Friday October 30, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
A Kiss Halloween Contemplation! How Dressing Up as Paul Stanley Might Provide Access to Buddha Nature
I'm dressing up as Paul Stanley this Halloween. My six year old son Eli's going as Gene Simmons, and my wife, Amy, as Peter Criss. Our nine year old daughter Lily is going as Hermione Granger. As much as we...
Friday October 30, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Halloween Quotes: Chogyam Trungpa on Fear and Fearlessness
posted by Ethan NichternWhat better time than All-Hallows'-Eve for halloween quotes about fear and fearlessness? What better teacher than Chogyam Trungpa, Rinpoche. Happy Halloween everyone! Go to the places that scare you, homies.(ugly Golden Buddha costume from buycostumes.com -...
Thursday October 29, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Hip Hop Legend The RZA Discusses Buddhism on Shambhala Sun Blog
by Ethan NichternFrom the "Never-Thought-I'd-See-The-Day" Department, Hip Hop Legend and Wu Tang Clan charter member, The RZA, was interviewed about Buddhism, Right Speech and the Heart Sutra for the Shambhala Sun blog by my good friend Rod Meade Sperry. Check...
Wednesday October 28, 2009
Larry Johnson Suspended for Twitter Slurs
by Jerry KolberThis week finds Kansas City Chiefs running back Larry Johnson suspended for anti-gay Twitter slurs against a coach.Of course, he is free to say whatever he wants to whoever he wants. Twitter may find that he has violated...
Tuesday October 27, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Podcast: Natural Wakefulness Pt.2 with Crystal Gandrud
"Wakefulness is our natural state: enlightened, complete, perfect in wisdom and compassion. It's not something outside ourselves that we need to attain or become. But it's also true that some effort is required to get in touch with it--and that...
Monday October 26, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Why We Meditate: Because Practice Can Cure Hangovers?
by Ethan Nichtern On November 6 & 7, the Buddhist-inspired Interdependence Project (which creates this blog for your education and/or amusement) will be hosting our largest fundraiser and event to date in the form of a 24- hour Meditation...
Friday October 23, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do: Living with a non-meditator
by Lodro RinzlerBefore Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to do with...
Wednesday October 21, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Twitteleh, Balloon Boy, and Reality Television
Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 by Jerry Kolber. Jerry is a media obsessed Buddhist televison producer in New York City. follow him at twitter.com/JerryKolber - or on Twitteleh. /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal";...
Monday October 19, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Meditation
Buddhist Quote of the Day: Meditation in Everyday Life
by Ethan NichternGreetings from the Shambhala Sangha Retreat in gorgeous Vermont, where I am acting as a meditation instructor under the awesome mind-heart training, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, the coolest Buddhist teacher this side of the Himalayas, in my humble opinion....
Friday October 16, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Buddhism and activism: How would Sid produce social change?
by Lodro RinzlerBefore Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to do with...
Friday October 16, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Talking Dharma
Enlightenment without retreat?
by Davee Evans How about a year off? NY designer Stefan Sagmeister does this every seven years. He shuts his design firm, and heads off to work on personal projects for creative renewal. Watch his views on taking time off...
Thursday October 15, 2009
The Buddha at Work: Right Speech in the Movie Business
by Jon RubinsteinI'm a talent and literary manager. Recently, a problem was brought to my attention regarding an upcoming release. So we all got on the phone--movie studio executives, publicists, agents, and myself--to discuss the situation and see if we...
Wednesday October 14, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Senate Committee Passes Health Care Reform Bill
by Jerry KolberWhat the hell happened to health care reform? It turns out that not only is Barack Obama not some sort of savior, messiah, or angel, as his post-election pre-office halo seemed to suggest, he is also not even...
Tuesday October 13, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Everybody Hurts
Buddhist Quote of the Day: Do You Need To Be A Vegetarian To Practice Meditation and Yoga Properly?
by Ethan NichternBoth yoga and Buddhist meditation philosophy ask practitioners to refrain from the act of killing - whether directly or indirectly - as much as possible. In the American yoga communities I am part of, vegetarianism is fairly prevalent....
Sunday October 11, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Interdependent Activism & Politics
Dalai Lama Talks To Wolf Blitzer About Apparent Snub From Fellow Nobel Winner Obama (Video)
by Ethan Nichtern CNN's Wolf Blitzer asked Nobel Laureate, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, about his apparent brush-off from the newest Nobel Peace Prize Winner, President Barack Obama. The Dalai Lama, in the fashion of embodying peace, was quite gracious....
Friday October 9, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Buddhism and Alcohol: What would Sid drink?
image courtesy of the Museum of anti-alcohol postersby Lodro RinzlerBefore Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for...
Friday October 9, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Talking Dharma
Letterman. Mitterrand. What about your guru?
from Davee Evans Sex is in the news again, surprise surprise. I'm hearing nightly about David Letterman's confession of romantic affairs, and recently rehashing Frederic Mitterrand's prior sexual purchases as well. The latter, according to the AP, stemming from...
Thursday October 8, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Why We Meditate: To Be Less of A Jerk
by Ethan Nichtern On November 6 & 7, the Buddhist-inspired Interdependence Project (which creates this blog for your education and/or amusement) will be hosting our largest fundraiser and event to date in the form of a 24- hour Meditation...
Wednesday October 7, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Interdependent Activism & Politics
Obama, The Dalai Lama, and The GOP: Are Republicans the Defenders of Tibet and Human Rights?
by Ethan NichternFile this under world turned upside down--or under political opportunism--depending on your viewpoint. According to The Hill, Republican lawmakers are criticizing the Obama administration for failing to support Tibetan rights and human rights in general by not meeting...
Tuesday October 6, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Buddhist Quote of the Day: Dealing With Emotions
by Ethan NichternDzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche is one of the finest Tibetan Buddhist teachers in America, in my humble opinion. Funnier than most comedians and sharper than most scholars, I would encourage you to check him out. Somebody buy this man...
Monday October 5, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Vampires, Zombies, Buddhism and the Undead
by Ellen ScordatoPop culture thermometer: Cold. Deathly cold. Cold and dead is hot. Zombieland was the top-grossing movie this past weekend. . Pride and Prejudice and Zombies was one of the near-moribund book publishing industry's few runaway success stories last year....
Monday October 5, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Interdependent Activism & Politics
Obama Postpones (Avoids?) Meeting With Dalai Lama: Change We No Longer Believe In?
by Ethan NichternAccording to the Washington Post, President Obama has postponed meeting with His Holiness the Dalai Lama until after a summit with Chinese Leader Hu Jintao. The Post claims this is an attempt to avoid ruffling feathers and to...
Sunday October 4, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
The Death Knell of "Funeral Buddhism" in Japan
by Evelyn CashI came across this story yesterday from the Buddhist Channel reporting that as the religion dies in Japan, Buddhist priests are resorting to desperate measures to try and regain followers. The priests are trying everything from anime DVDs...
Friday October 2, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do: 7 steps that make for a "good Buddhist"
by Lodro RinzlerBefore Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to do with...
Thursday October 1, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Why We Meditate: Because Alan Grayson, Kanye West, and Joe Wilson Don't (Yet?)
by Ethan NichternOn November 6 & 7, the Buddhist-inspired Interdependence Project (which creates this blog for your education and/or amusement) will be hosting our largest fundraiser and event to date in the form of a 24- hour Meditation Marathon...
Thursday October 1, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
October Quotes: (A Buddhist?) Walt Whitman on a Spiritual America
by Ethan NichternAn October Quote to start the month. Question Number One: What does a Spiritual America look like, and is there a difference between "spiritual" and "religious?"Question Number Two: Was Walt Whitman America's First Buddhist? Or just a spiritual...
Wednesday September 30, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Talking Dharma
Buddhism is Not A Religion Part 3: The Truth Shall Set You Free
Jerry Kolber is an award-winning film and TV producer and writer and is on the board of directors of The Interdependence Project. Past projects include Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, The Eden Myth, and Inked. Upcoming projects include Bank...
Tuesday September 29, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
"Nones" to go Buddhist? Andrew Sullivan and the God and Country Blog
by Greg ZwahlenThe US News and World Report God and Country blog reported last week that a recent Trinity College survey found that in the next twenty years, the percentage of Americans who report "no religion" may increase from...
Tuesday September 29, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Interdependent Activism & Politics
Thich Nhat Hanh monks ejected from Vietnamese monastery
Nonviolent followers of Vietnamese Zen teacher and world-renowned author Thich Nhat Hahn were violently ejected from the Bat Nha monastery in Lam Dong province in Vietnam on Sunday. The monks' ejection followed months of tension.(photo AFP)...
Monday September 28, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Everybody Hurts
Yom Kippur 2009: Atonement - Karma isn't Just a Buddhist Thing
by Ethan NichternAs your typical half-jew, half-protestant, God-loving agnostic and Buddhist practitioner, I wanted to wish everyone a very fruitful Yom Kippur 2009. Someone mentioned to me that they think atonement and fasting, seem un-Buddhist, because of the possibility of...
Monday September 28, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Buddhist Quote of the Day: Pema Chodron on Tea Boys, Race Riots, and World War III
A good Buddhist quote on how annoying people can turn into bitter enemies, and how Buddhism uses the "tea boy" analogy to keep your enemies as close as you can."The story goes that Atisha was told that the people of...
Sunday September 27, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Pop Zen or The Branding of Buddhism: Remix
by Evelyn CashA few weeks ago, Jerry Kolber wrote an article on this blog about the Branding of Buddhism. His piece presented an intriguing argument for branding and popularizing Buddhism in order to make the Buddha's valuable teachings available...
Friday September 25, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do: Buddhism and abortion
by Lodro Rinzler Angulimal, photo courtesy of shunya.netBefore Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he...
Thursday September 24, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Envisioning a Dzong
an actual dzong. photo by miles_laneby Davee EvansSome things poignantly remind me that I've just moved back to San Francisco — a city that I so dearly love — like cold, foggy evenings; bells ringing from street cars; or discovering my housemate...
Thursday September 24, 2009
Why We Meditate: It's Cheaper Than Adderall
by Ethan NichternThis November 6 & 7, the Buddhist-inspired Interdependence Project will be hosting our largest fundraiser and event to date in the form of a 24- hour Meditation Marathon in the window displays of ABC Carpet & Home, a...
Wednesday September 23, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Hardcore Dharma
Buddhism is Not a Religion: The God Problem
by Jerry KolberI am going to continue exploring where I left off last week with my question: is Buddhism a religion or a way to approach living? The ONLY reason I think this question matters is that the ideas that...
Wednesday September 23, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Dalai Lama in Memphis: Fist Bump is the New Namaste
by Ethan NichternAccording to the Associated Press, the interim Mayor of Memphis, Myron Lowery concocted a new way to greet His Holiness the Dalai Lama: Fist Bump! Yes, that's right. He also said "Hello, Dalai." Apparently his Holiness was a...
Tuesday September 22, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Autumn Quotes About Fall: Chogyam Trungpa on the Natural Hierarchy of Four Seasons
Happy Autumn! Enjoy this quote about fall from Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, founder of Shambhala:"The Four Seasons have a natural hierarchy of restriction, openness, celebration, practicality--and then restriction again. We could talk about the functioning of governments or any organization,...
Monday September 21, 2009
The ultimate truth is fearless
by Greg ZwahlenOver the last few days our friend Waylon Lewis, editor at elephant journal, blogged about allegations he had recently discovered about Chogyam Trungpa. Waylon was convinced they were false, and suggested that a reference to it on Wikipedia, be deleted pronto,...
Monday September 21, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Buddhist Leader Karmapa: "Video war games satiate my feelings of aggression"
Today is The International Day of Peace! The Karmapa recently shared one of his methods for avoiding aggression ... by playing video games!"All of us have emotions, happy emotions, sad emotions, displeased emotions and we need to figure out...
Monday September 21, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Buddha of the Week
B-B-B-Buddha of the week!A lovely wheatpaste piece up onBogart Street, inBushwick, part ofBrooklyn, it'sBuddha! Thanks to IDP member Patrick Groneman for this photo.Would be great if the wheatpaste artist came forth too -- spread it around!...
Sunday September 20, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Buddhist Quote of the Day: Economist Jared Bernstein on Hell and Heaven
Since the last quote provoked a surprising discussion, here's another from Economist Jared Bernstein, Chief Economic Adviser to Vice President Joseph Biden, and apparently, a fan of Buddhism. His book was given to me by Senator Eric Schneiderman, recently honored...
Friday September 18, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do about my party-hardy neighbor?
What would Sid do?Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to do...
Thursday September 17, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Interdependent Activism & Politics
Buddhist Quote of the Day: What Kind of Karma Do You Drive?
"There is another issue that has important implications for how Buddhism will adapt to a more global role in the future. Karma has been used to rationalize racism, caste, economic oppression, birth handicaps and everything else. Taken literally, karma...
Wednesday September 16, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Talking Dharma
Buddhism is Not A Religion Pt. 1: Buddhists on a Plane
In today's post I'm going to continue explaining why Buddhism, despite there being religious organizations called Buddhism, is not inherently a religion and is a technique and way of living that is applicable to anyone, EVEN IF they choose to...
Wednesday September 16, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Talking Dharma
Podcast: Reflections on 21st Century Dharma with Ethan Nichtern, Julia May Jonas and The Buddhist Geeks
One City Bloggers Ethan Nichtern and Julia May Jonas recently teamed up with Buddhist Geeks Vince Horn and Ryan Oelke to discuss the state of the Dharma in the 21st Century. Some of you may remember Vince's guest post on...
Tuesday September 15, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Buddha of the Week
Buddha of the week, courtesy of Dharma Dave S, Maloneki, and boingboing.netPears grown in the shape of a buddha. Whoa!...
Sunday September 13, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Buddhist Quote of the Day: Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche on Joy
"There is something suspect about our inability to enjoy anything."-Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, founder of the Shambhala Buddhist tradition.Pioneer of contemporary Buddhism and meditation master, Trungpa Rinpoche was my parents' teacher and my teacher's parent (figure out that lineage tree). He...
Sunday September 13, 2009
The Best Laid Plans
My husband and I have a motto that we try to keep in mind when ever we go on a trip: "Don't let the plans get in the way of the journey." It's a line from an episode of the...
Friday September 11, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do: is it okay to masturbate?
photo shot by the author in williamsburg, nycWhat would Sid do?Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations...
Thursday September 10, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Interdependent Activism & Politics
President Takes Bill Moyers' Advice: Obama's Speech on Health Care Reform
I especially loved the end of President Obama's speech last night. I am not sure if Obama saw Bill Moyers on Real Time with Bill Maher, or watched Bill Moyers Journal on PBS, but he did speak verbatim of Health...
Wednesday September 9, 2009
Getttin' Busy Gettin' Quiet
Autumn, siren of red and gold, harbinger of tweed and velvet jackets, of renewed promises and vigor, clear sun-ed autumn you come to us once again. You have come Autumn, shoving the margarita out of our hand and replacing...
Wednesday September 9, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Talking Dharma
The Branding of Buddhism
One thing that the Buddhist community doesn't seem to think about very much is branding. Gasp! Branding and Buddhism? I'm sure some Buddhists would find this hideously inappropriate, and they may be right. But, following up on my post two...
Tuesday September 8, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Young People Meditate to Deal with Facebook Stress
A recent Boston Globe article points to a trend of young adults turning to Meditation as a means of dealing with the speed up of life that comes from becoming an adult in the age of the internet:"At a time...
Monday September 7, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Dances With Skunks: My Summer Dathun
Folks who've been to Karme Choling, Shambhala's retreat center in the Green Mountains, agree that it's a pretty special place. After all the striving and frustration and noise of daily life, it's extraordinary to find yourself in a spacious, verdant...
Monday September 7, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Happy Labor Day: Buddhist Quote on Relaxation
Take it easy today, ladies and gentlemen, before the fall madness gets into full swing, before Obama's Speech Wednesday on Health Care Reform, before we all die sooner than we think. Relax. That's really the point (or one point) of...
Thursday September 3, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Dharma Arts and Dance
Silvery wading pools! Dance! People in the trees! . Queens, New York: center for dharma artsBuddhism and the arts: From Zen calligraphy to the compositions of John Cage and Meredith Monk, to the Beasties and Lou Reed, dharma and arts...
Thursday September 3, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Everybody Hurts
Zen and the Art of the Scam
Last Saturday, I fell victim to one of the oldest scams in the book. A young man came to my door working on a "contest" and looking for my help. He said that in order for him to gain points...
Wednesday September 2, 2009
Ben & Jerry's Hubby Hubby: Gay Marriage and The Americone Dream
In honor of the passage of Vermont's same-sex marriage law, Ben & Jerry's has announced that for 30 days (only in Vermont), "Chubby Hubby" ice cream will be sold as "Hubby Hubby." Stephen Colbert's Americone Dream could not be reached...
Tuesday September 1, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
September Quotes: Summer is Impermanent, So Is Thich Nhat Hanh's Pneumonia
This September Quote is attributed to the great master Thich Nhat Hanh (who has been discharged from the hospital, awesome!)...
Monday August 31, 2009
American Casino - Interdependence and the Subprime Mortgage Crisis
I'm a buddhist. I read the Wall Street Journal as often as I can. I don't see how anyone interested in interdependence can ignore the WSJ. I think any buddhist interested in relieving suffering in this world of relative reality...
Monday August 31, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Best Buddhism and Meditation Website...Ever!
Well, of course that's sort of a silly thing to say. That's like saying Buddhism is the World's Best Religion. Who would ever make such a claim? But the new Interdependence Project website is pretty great. Lots to check out...
Saturday August 29, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Interdependent Activism & Politics
Bill Moyers, Bill Maher, And Pema Chodron: Health Care Reform
Below is a video from Real Time with Bill Maher, where journalist Bill Moyers sends a great message to President Obama on standing up for change, and brilliantly diagnoses what's wrong with our political system, and especially, the non-progressives in...
Friday August 28, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Talking Dharma
Top Five Method's for Having an Awesome Retreat
A few weeks ago I wrote about how amazing my first week long meditation retreat was. What I didn't mention was the extra helpful advice about retreat practice I got in the form of a handwritten note from my friend...
Friday August 28, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Buddhism and Sex: Would Sid have a threesome with my roommate?
The original threesome of Buddhism: the three jewelsWhat would Sid do?Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations...
Thursday August 27, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Buddhism For Dummies - I Don't Think So
I recently noticed that the "For Dummies" franchise had a book called "Buddhism for Dummies". This made me laugh. Buddhism is a philosophy (and, in some areas of the world, a religion) full of deep-sounding expressions, lots of quiet time...
Wednesday August 26, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Thich Nhat Hanh in Hospital with Pneumonia
Beloved Vietnamese Zen teacher Thich Nhat Hanh is in Massachusetts General Hospital being treated for pneumonia. The text of his letter from the hospital and more details are available at the Oxherding and Zencast blogs.(photo from Plum Village)The author of...
Tuesday August 25, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Talking Dharma
I Am (Not) The Blue Cheese
This past weekend I went to a homecoming party for a friend who I haven't seen in about a year. Seeing this friend for the first time in such a long time brought up some things that made me think...
Sunday August 23, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Constant Immigrant: District 9 Review and The Lazarus Project
This week I had the opportunity to read and see two radically different narratives about the traumas of immigration, and I thought I'd offer each a short review: the movie was District 9 by South African Neil Blomkamp and the...
Friday August 21, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Buddhism and Sexuality: What would Sid say about me being gay?
What would Sid do?Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to do...
Friday August 21, 2009
Woah Frosting!
I've never been so shocked by someone unveiling a cake to me as I was when last Friday my girlfriend Jen showed me the special Mandala Birthday cake she made for me.It was a delicious as it looks. May...
Thursday August 20, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Young. Black. Buddhist. Woman... In Kansas?
This is a guest post for the One City Blog. -----Evelyn Cash is a Soto Zen and Vipassana meditation practitioner living in Wichita, Kansas. She works as an engineer. -----No matter how you slice it, I am definitely in the...
Thursday August 20, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
In the Times today . .
An interesting piece by Robert Wright about his first experience with a Vipassana retreat, and his anticipation of the second one he will shortly undertake.. . . I attended my first and only silent meditation retreat. It was just about...
Wednesday August 19, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
10 Of the Best Websites for Buddhism
I wake up early every morning, meditate, make coffee, write a bit and usually check out a few sites online. Besides the Interdependence Project One City blog, which I humbly submit manages to have a more relevant, lively, and consistent...
Wednesday August 19, 2009
Podcast: "The Mindful Leader" with Michael Carroll Part 2
"Let the greatness infuse every detail" - Michael CarrollThis week on the ID Project Podcast we have Part 2 of a very lively Guest Lecture by Michael Carroll. Michael is author of Awake at Work and The Mindful Leader and...
Monday August 17, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Buddha of the Month
This month there's two BoMs!Two friends of mine, who don't know each other, just ran into one another in Bangkok on their peripatetic ways. This walking buddha is posted in their honor.Fotograf / Photographer: Heinrich Damm I just returned from...
Friday August 14, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do: sometimes the sangha are just jerks
photo courtesy of hollywoodtoday.net. Yes, really.What would Sid do?Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what...
Tuesday August 11, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Secularizing Buddhism--Making it Accessible or Stripping the Roots?
A Guest Post for the One City Blog by Vince Horn of Buddhist Geeks (Full Bio Below). It's a very common and hip thing today to want to make Buddhism secular. Many very worthwhile organizations and movements have this as their guiding...
Tuesday August 11, 2009
5 Reasons My Dharma is Better Than Your Dharma
I've been putting this off for a while, but since yesterday's conversation here with Buddhist Geeks Vince Horn pretty much started a blazing meteor shower of comments, it's time to come out and say it - my dharma is better...
Tuesday August 11, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Shopping For a Spiritual Practice - Insight Meditation Retreat
(photo courtesy of Doug Olsen)This past week I endeavored on my first ever week-long meditation retreat in the beautiful and inspiring Massachussettes Landscape at the Insight Meditation Society Retreat Center. The most consistent question I have been asked by friends...
Friday August 7, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Right Livelihood: Would Sid do it for the money?
What would Sid do?Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to do...
Wednesday August 5, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Practice Check-in
I thought it might be useful to share a quick check-in on my own personal practice. Lately I've had plenty of opportunities for distracting thoughts, which is just great for practicing meditation. I mean, if you want to hone your...
Wednesday August 5, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Buddhist Meditation, Global Warming, and the Great Pacific Garbage Patch
How can mindful people do something about Global Warming and the Great Pacific Garbage Patch? What does Buddhist Meditation have to do with healing the planet? Interdependence Project and One City's very own Jerry Kolber was published today over at...
Tuesday August 4, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
The Sickest Buddhist (Video Removed), Lululemon and Spiritual Materialism: So Overrated
So Arj Barker of the great HBO show Flight of the Conchords (well, Season one was great at least) made this send-up of meditation students and people who practice yoga for all the wrong reasons. (UPDATE: The Video is now...
Monday August 3, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Hardcore Dharma
Buddhism and Baseball
I'm practicing lovingkindness meditation as part of Hardcore Dharma's investigation of three specific meditation practices. Specifically, I've been following the very explicit directions in Sharon Salzburg's* classic book, Lovingkindness.But I've been applying them to baseball. Specifically, the New York Yankees.*Sharon...
Sunday August 2, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Followers of Thich Nhat Hanh Face Trouble in Vietnam
The Associated Press is reporting that Buddhist monks at nuns at the Bat Nha monastery in central Vietnam are being ordered to leave by Communist authorities. According to reports, telephone, power and water have been shut off and the monastery...
Sunday August 2, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Interdependent Activism & Politics
Buddhism and the Environment: Is Mindfulness Meditation Enough?
I had the honor to be interviewed about Buddhism and Ecology by Rod Meade Sperry at the Shambhala Sun Blog last week. Check out the audio interview at the above hotlink. Also check out Rod's great website, The Worst Horse...
Friday July 31, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Do You Meditate? Who's your Favorite Buddhist Meditation Teacher?
If you meditate or study Buddhism, you eventually have to find a meditation teacher, either through books on meditation, Buddhist podcasts, meditation lectures, Dharma talks, or hopefully good old fashioned human contact. There are lots of great teachers out there,...
Wednesday July 29, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Top Ten Reasons To Start Meditating Today
"Meditate Daily" has been hovering on my to-do, someday, or maybe lists for more than ten years, since the late 1990's. Two years ago the universe conspired to deliver me to the doorstep of the Interdependence Project, where the...
Friday July 24, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Podcast: "Practice Like Your Hair is on Fire" with Ethan Nichtern
In this week's podcast Ethan Nicthern takes us through the many obstacles to developing a regular meditation practice, how to overcome them and what the benefits are to doing so. What are the things we tell ourselves to avoid...
Friday July 24, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Buddhism and Addiction: What would Sid say about alcoholism?
"They tried to make me go sit shamatha and I said 'OM, OM, OM'"photo courtesy of indiespeaker.comWhat would Sid do?Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live...
Wednesday July 22, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Everybody Hurts
Meditation for Caregivers: Stress, Fear and Lovingkindness
This is another post by Sharon Salzberg for the One City Blog. Sharon is one of three Buddhist lineage mentors for the Interdependence Project. She is also one of the foremost (and most awesome) Buddhist meditation teachers in America. She...
Wednesday July 22, 2009
Buddhism is The Greatest Religion in the World, If It Was A Religion
My post Freedom From Religion: Buddhism Wins Best Religion in the World Award last week set off quite a stir around these here 'nets. Over at Paramita they offer to send an 11 month old girl to pick up the...
Monday July 20, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Interdependent Activism & Politics
Meditation: "Attachment" is the Worst Failure Ever (Apologies to Republicans)
Republicans "Bombed" Google so that a top search result for worst failure ever would lead to the Obama administration site.When it comes to translation of Buddhist terms and ideas, I can think of an even more massive fail. I have...
Saturday July 18, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Podcast: "How Karma Works: The 12 Nidanas" with Juan-Carlos Castro
This week on the ID Project Podcast, Juan Carlos-Castro takes us through the 12 Nidanas, a structure in Buddhist Philosophy that helps us to understand the "links in the chain of conditioned co-production", or put another way, the structure of...
Friday July 17, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Buddhism and Dating: Would Sid sleep with a Republican?
photo courtesy of barackobuddha.comWhat would Sid do?Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was...
Friday July 17, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Did Meditation Produce The World's Happiest Man? Daniel Goleman on Mingyur Rinpoche
A great blog post in the New York Times by Buddhist author Daniel Goleman about the young Tibetan master Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, who has been dubbed the happiest man in the world (apparently it's no longer fellow Buddhist Matthieu Ricard)....
Thursday July 16, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Hardcore Dharma
HeyJhana HoJhana
My experience of meditation lately feels like this: 1. Stabilize on breath. Having been doing lots of work on concentration lately, I feel like I'm getting to the point where instead of trying to pin down my attention on the breath,...
Wednesday July 15, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Merit/Demerit Badge
Freedom From Religion: Buddhism Wins Best Religion in the World Award
Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} In light of the ongoing Freedom...
Tuesday July 14, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Talking Dharma
Tāranātha on Padmasambhava's lotus-birth
According to Tibetan tradition, the eighth-century yogin Padmasambhava was born as an eight-year-old child on a lotus blossom in Lake Dhanakosha. His name, in fact, literally means "Lotus Born." This is what the early 17th-century Tibetan historian Tāranātha had to...
Monday July 13, 2009
Buddhism, Meditation, Psychology, and Therapy
Are you interested in Buddhist meditation and its link to psychology, therapy, healing arts, and a contemporary understanding of the mind? What might Carl Jung say about Buddhism or guided meditation? Would Pema Chodron and Freud get into a ballroom...
Saturday July 11, 2009
Podcast: "Understanding Karma" with Crystal Gandrud
This week on the ID Project Podcast Crystal Gandrud takes us past many of the common misconceptions surrounding the Buddhist Definition of Karma to a deeper understanding that reveals important connections between the concepts of interdependence, non-self and Karma.You can...
Friday July 10, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do: would Sid pick someone up at a bar?
"You ladies come here often?"Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to...
Friday July 3, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Would Sid ever bartend? Buddhism, bars, and depression
Not only would Sid bartend but he would also play in fountains with umbrellasWhat would Sid do?Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life....
Friday July 3, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Shopping For a Spiritual Practice - Episode 1 - Shambhala Training
I've just rolled my cart down aisle five at the spiritual supermarket under the sign that reads "Mind Training and Contemplative Based Spiritual Practices". After sitting regularly for over two years I'm ready to get down with the masters of...
Monday June 29, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Lazy Days of Summer?
Being that our weather has been rather wet and unpredictable as of late, I haven't been able to partake in too many outdoor activities and have become a little obsessed with taking full advantage of a nice hour or two...
Friday June 26, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do? Leopards, garudas, and players oh my!
Out of all the dignities the Garuda was known as the close-talker.Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad,...
Thursday June 25, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Summer Time is Retreat Time
Last summer I sat an introductory seven day retreat at Shambhala's Karme Choling, in Vermont. After seven days of sitting and walking meditation, delicious food (much of the produce was grown in Karme Choling's garden), and some of the nicest...
Tuesday June 23, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
In Review: Adi Shankaracharya
I recently rented "Adi Shankaracharya," the first and only movie made entirely in Sanskrit. It's a biopic of Shankara, an 8th century Hindu saint who was perhaps the most important exponent of Advaita Vedanta (a Hindu tradition). I can't say...
Sunday June 21, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Zen Chaplains Provide Contemplative Care
Anyone interested in contemplative care should check out Tina Sussman's article in the L.A. Times last week, Zen in Their Bedside Manner, profiling the work of Zen chaplains in New York's Beth Israel Medical Center. ...
Thursday June 18, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do? Buddhism and Lying
"Geez Buddha, don't get up on my account."Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he...
Wednesday June 17, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Shambhala Level One Weekend Retreat Real World Report
Today at the gym, riding an indoor bike in a glass enclosed room inside the place. Since this weekend's retreat, been trying to maintain the gap between habitual conditioned response and actual reality. Not easy. This lady comes in to clean...
Tuesday June 16, 2009
Norman Fischer's Plan B
Zoketsu Norman Fischer, a senior dharma teacher at the San Francisco Zen Center, has an interesting article in the latest issue of Buddhadharma magazine (a portion of which is available online). In the article he states that as a teacher, he has...
Tuesday June 16, 2009
Sonia Sotomayor Confirmation Hearings July 13 & Buddha of the Week
So the confirmation hearings for Sonia Sotomayor are set for July 13. Let the projections begin!There are lots of projections out there, but the most mystifying yet illuminating may well be this one, sent to me for this week's Buddha...
Tuesday June 16, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Everybody Hurts
Depression, Therapy, and Meditation, Revisited: Who Helps Us See the Truth?
So last month The New York Times published a controversial article on Zen by Chip Brown about a long-time practitioner of Zen meditation who came to the conclusion that his meditation practice was insufficient for working with his depression, and...
Friday June 12, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do? I'm insecure in my relationship...
"Excuse me, would any of you fine ladies care to dance?"Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations...
Monday June 8, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Meditation Retreat! Deep Healing for The Non-Self
So this is my last day at work before I go on a 13-day meditation retreat at one of my favorite meditation centers in the universe, The Karme Choling Shambhala retreat center in Vermont, which this time of year should...
Sunday June 7, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Is This The Next Dalai Lama?
Very interesting article today in the New York TImes about what will happen after His Holiness, the current Dalai Lama dies. One of his possible successors, The Karmapa, the young head of the Karma Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism, is...
Friday June 5, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do? Buddhism and Drugs
Amy Winehouse is one of many celebs who has put down the pipe and picked up a mala. photo courtesy of topnews.in Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn...
Wednesday June 3, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Podcast: "The Role of the Teacher on the Spiritual Path" with David Nichtern
Listen ya'll, you've got to give something up to get the teachings! David Nichtern, who wrote "Midnight at the Oasis", and who is also is a former student of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, stopped by the ID Project a couple of...
Wednesday June 3, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
National Running Day - Is Running Meditation?
I've been a runner on and off for the last fifteen years. Last year I (slowly) ran the New York City Marathon. Today is national running day, and as a Buddhist Meditator I thought it would be appropriate to tackle...
Tuesday June 2, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Finding Fearlessness in Fearful Times
This week we have a special guest post from Gaylon Ferguson, PhD, a senior teacher (acharya) in the Shambhala Buddhist tradition. He has led meditation retreats for thirty-three years. As core faculty at Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado, he teaches Religious and...
Monday June 1, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Reincarnation Lie? On the Empowerment of a Young Spaniard and the Tulku System of Tibet
This is interesting. The Dalai Lama empowered a young Spanish boy as an incarnate Lama. Now 24, the young man, Osel Hita Torres,is moving in another direction with his life (update on the Shambhala Sun blog). Lots of good questions...
Sunday May 31, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Hardcore Dharma
Striving for Pure Appropriateness
Our reading for Hardcore Dharma this week (Spectrum of Ecstasy by Ngakpa Chogyam and Khandro Dechen) included a phrase I quite liked- "pure appropriateness". It is described as follows: We neither give too little, nor do we give too much; because...
Friday May 29, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do? I cheated on my spouse...
Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to do with his life,...
Thursday May 28, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Ten Tips for Burgeoning Buddhists and an Open Letter to Kate Moss
Hi Kate Moss! I hear you're converting to Buddhism! I'm not sure what "converting" means, but that's cool. Welcome. I think your designs for Topshop are nice. Maybe you could get Johnny Depp to come to some dharma...
Friday May 22, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
What would Sid do? Waking up next to a stranger...
Before Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment at age 35 he was a confused twenty and thirty-something looking to learn how to live a spiritual life. He had an overbearing dad, expectations for what he was supposed to do with his life,...
Thursday May 21, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
In Search of Lost Time: Attending to Distraction and the Meaning of Mindful
A couple of months ago I was tripping about blithely with my gentleman friend in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn when the stream of conversation turned, as it invariably does, to the mental causality of the cruel mistress called Internet. "You know," I...
Wednesday May 20, 2009
Walking the Plank
There is no shortage of evidence that the earth is burning, flooding, asphyxiating and dying. 9 out of 10 dentists agree that something has to be done or our children (or their children) will inherit a planet that cannot support...
Tuesday May 19, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
This is Your Mind on Five Wisdoms
When I studied urban planning in grad school, one of my strongest interests was in the ways buildings affect how people feel, as a result of both their individual appearances and of the way they're massed around open space...
Tuesday May 19, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Leonard Cohen live!
Sunday night my husband and I saw famed singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen perform at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. He's what he looks like: And here's what he looked like from my seat:That show was fantastic! Well, that's...
Thursday May 14, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Sonia Sotomayor Confirmation Hearings July 13 & Buddha of the Week
So the confirmation hearings for Sonia Sotomayor are set for July 13. Let the projections begin!There are lots of projections out there, but the most mystifying yet illuminating may well be this one, sent to me for this week's Buddha...
Wednesday May 13, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Meditators have bigger brains
New research using MRI scans from UCLA Laboratory of Neuro Imaging shows evidence that meditators have larger brains than a control group of non-meditators. The lead author of the journal article, Eileen Luders summarizes,"We know that people who consistently meditate...
Tuesday May 12, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Flexible names, fluid world
Emily's post this morning reminded me of an article I encountered in Slate a couple of weeks ago about Chinese names and the prevalance of the use of English names in China. The author, Huan Hsu, writes that they have become de...
Monday May 11, 2009
Categories: Arts and Media, Buddhism
Buddha of the Month
Welcome to Buddha of the Month, a (roughly) monthly post that features images of the Buddha in contemporary art, popular culture, fine art - or wherever the tathagata catches our fancy. This one's by seminal video artist Nam June Paik:...
Thursday May 7, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Hardcore Dharma
Hardcore Dharma is Your Density...I Mean Your Destiny
For the next five weeks, I, in tandem with the ID Project Intermediate Hardcore Dharma class, will examine and explore teachings about the five wisdom energies. The five wisdom energies, (Buddha, Vajra, Ratna, Padma & Karma), relate to qualities or...
Wednesday May 6, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Interdependent Activism & Politics
I Buried Paul: From the Desk of Minimofo
From the desk of:MiniMoFoRe: volutionSitting on his cushion at 6:12AM, thoughts began flooding in. "Need to call Barry". "Need to pay storage bill." "Need to write post for IDP." "Should start running again." Don't attach; don't push away; observe. He started observing his thoughts;...
Monday May 4, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
Dharma Punx Numero Uno, Noah Levine
Check out the nice spread in the Los Angeles Times today about the work of my friend Noah Levine, Dharma Punx Founder and Buddhist Teacher. (Photo from Los Angeles Times Article)What do you think of Noah?...
Monday May 4, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
If You're Going To Slam Buddhism, Get Your Facts Straight
In a recent post entitled "Up From Buddhism," Andrew Sullivan quotes a journalist and a blogger who have a less than favorable view of our tradition: From 2003, John Horgan explains why he gave up on Buddhism:...what troubles me most about Buddhism...
Sunday May 3, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Right Lifestyle
Establishing a Daily Meditation Practice
Despite my best intentions, I still have days when I miss my meditation practice. I'm on point for a while and then something happens- I'm busy with school, going out and getting in too late, etc.- that I lose the...
Sunday May 3, 2009
Categories: Buddhism, Interdependent Activism & Politics
Suddenly Sonia: Is Sonia Sotomayor Supreme Court-bound?
Sonia Sotomayor, a Bronx-born New York City native, is a federal Appeals court judge, a 54-year-old Hispanic woman, a summa cum laude graduate of Princeton who received her law degree from Yale, and a potential Supreme Court nominee. The name...
Wednesday April 29, 2009
Categories: Buddhism
New Beginnings
This is a week of new beginnings for me. I spent Sunday and Monday keeping an eye on my best friend's four year old, my godson Sidney, as his wife April was preparing to deliver their second son by home...
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About One City: A Buddhist Blog for Everyone
Welcome to One City. You've lived here your whole life, whether you know it or not. One City blog is an outgrowth of The Interdependence Project, a Buddhist-inspired nonprofit organization led by Ethan Nichtern, dedicated to teaching the insights of Buddhism, meditation, mindfulness, and interconnectedness in the 21st century world.
If you're interested in how your mind works, are interested in meditation (but don't want to pretend you live in ancient Asia), care about the world, are into media, love contemporary culture, and above all, really dig the truth of interdependence-that nothing happens in a vacuum--then this blog is for you.
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About the Authors
Evelyn CashEvelyn is a Soto Zen practitioner and engineer living in Wichita, Kansas.
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Ethan NichternAuthor, founding director of the Interdependence Project, and the host of the I.D. Project’s popular weekly podcast
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Ellen ScordatoA business owner, editor, teacher, and board member of the Interdependence Project
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Jon RubinsteinJon writes about art and the media from a Buddhist perspective.
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Lodro RinzlerLodro Rinzler is a second-generation Shambhala Buddhist practitioner and teacher.
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Stillman BrownA photographer, writer, and meditation practitioner living in Brooklyn, NY
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