Writing Our Own Histories: A Fall Class
This is the second time this year I am facilitating a course on this do-it-yourself theme, which comes from Allen Ginsberg, “You have to write your own history, nobody’s going to do it for you.“…
Category: Buddhism
“C’mon, You Can’t Really Be Serious with All This Buddhism-Shmuddism!”
Geshe Rabten & Geshe Dhargyey, Advice from a Spiritual Friend The faults we criticize in others are only our own projected onto them; if they were not, they would not bother us, and…
Totally Alive
A book I am most looking forward to reading is not due to be published until November 10th of this year. The title: Sarasvati’s Gift: The Autobiography of Mayumi Oda–Artist, Activist, and Modern Buddhist Revolutionary. …
Reminder to Self
When you encounter those who are wicked, unrighteous, foolish, dim-witted, deformed, vicious, chronically ill, lonely, unfortunate, or handicapped, you should think: “How can I save them?” And even if there is nothing you can do,…
Making the Best of Tough Situations
Three summers ago, some friends came to our Chouteau home for two months of Wednesday evenings to reflect on Thich Nhat Hanh’s autobiography, At Home in the World. Just today a chapter from that book…
“You Are That Person”
A student asked Soen Nakagawa During a meditation retreat: “I am very discouraged. What should I do?” Soen replied, “Encourage others.” At the beginning of this year, I read Kazuaki Tanahashi’s autobiography, Painting Peace: Art…
“Doing Your Best Is the Surest Way to Remind Those around You to Do Their Best”
Today in Intercultural Studies class I shared some famous passages from the manual Thich Nhat Hanh wrote for Vietnamese social workers back in the 1970s. If you are familiar with this Zen Master, you may…
All Part of the Great Life Force
Mayumi Oda, I Opened the Gate, Laughing: An Inner Journey Mayumi’s inner journey meant getting divorced from her husband (John Nathan) and reconnecting with the Buddhism of her youth, as well as finding her path…
Now
1. Thoughts of the past and future spoil your time. –Dipa Ma, in Amy Schmidt, Dipa Ma: The Life and Teachings of a Buddhist Master 2. If I had to use one single word to…
The Good News of Dipa Ma
Dear Friends, There’s a phrase I came across in the last twenty years—“news you can use”—which I think came from one of Pema Chödrön ’s books. Which reminds me of U.S. poet Ezra Pound’s version…