..read more

We can put it all down. I wonder what would happen, how it would feel, how it would be, if we dropped everything.  Like Japan’s greatest Zen Master, Dogen Zenji, said 800 years ago –  like a stick of incense on the altar that has burned down and still just has the shape of a stick, but it’s just ashes.  And then phhhhht back into the flower pot or incense holder.  Just drop everything.  He says, drop body and mind and then sense beingness – what Kant called ‘ens’ – if we must translate ‘being’.  Drop everything, drop body and mind, speech.  ..read more

May His Holiness the Great 14th Dalai Lama live long and strong And his liberating Buddha activity, Enlightenment activity, continue And benefit the whole world, the whole universe. May the beleaguered people of Tibet, All those who are oppressed, Be eased, be freed, Be liberated. May all in this country, the Baltic, the Black Sea area, Southeast Asia, those who are in developing countries, The poor and starving, which could be the majority of this world, The violence, hatred, selfishness, cruelty, meanness, recede And the Bodhisattva, bodhicitta heart, rise, shine Like the ever-rising, great ..read more

It’s  now or never as ‘tiz said.  We can get there from here. Being here right now.  That’s our practice today. We are all artists in the art of life.  We are all adventurers!  (Like Titin in Tibet!)   Every day is a good day if we are in a good state of mind, way of heart. How fortunate we are!  We get to do this life.  We get to do what we are doing right now.  It’s inherently meaningful, beautiful, and purposeful. Let’s just be aligned with ourself, our body.  Sit up straight. Not over-thinking.  Not looking out the windo ..read more

Finding Unity in Diversity During his last teaching time at Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat in the Bahamas, Lama Surya Das discussed unity in diversity, and finding the “one” in the “many.” This helps us to see others in ourselves, contributing to a peaceful existence. He also shared stories about renowned spiritual guru Neem Karoli Baba and his first-hand experiences ..read more

Finding Inner Balance Meditation Town Hall ~ April 17, 2022 “Take a breath. Step off the wheel of samsara, the vicious conditioning, the treadmill.  Stepping off the gerbil wheel.  Breathing, relaxing, smiling.  ….  Let’s find the inner balance, have some ballast in our ship, our great vehicle, our Mahayana.  Ballast in the belly of our ship, in the hull, by letting go and letting be just for now.” ~ Lama Surya Das ..read more

“Om Shanti, Shanti, Peace. …It’s good to find refuge, something to rely on, solace, beyond this saha world, so tenuous, so bubbly, so fickle, like a dewdrop. Finding something reliable. In Buddhism we call it ‘taking refuge’, finding a port in the storm of samsara, of confusion and delusion. Something to rely on – the higher power, the inner power.  We have our higher power in Buddhism too – don’t think we don’t – Awareness – with a capital A+. Awareness, cosmic consciousness, beyond mere thoughts. We can find this within.  Just Being.  Peace.  Harmony.  Inc ..read more

Finding Spiritual Alignment “Spirit is sovereign, the Dharma is timeless and boundaryless. … So grateful and fortunate to be able to take refuge, to know there is something more than the sunlight and shadow of the many mountain peaks of the vacillating graph of our outer and worldly life. That there’s a deeper source of refuge, solace, reliance. Refuge means reliable, not relying on the impermanent things of this world, outer things or inner vacillations, the vagaries of experience.  We can be deeper people, live in our spiritual center.  Where is our spiritual center?  ..read more

“Who do we think we are, how long ago did we form up that opinion?… Who do we think we are and what are we stuck with? Maybe we could check the ‘screen,’ reboot, and refresh. I’m sure there are some commands on here that could re-enlighten. Look into the Dzogchen tradition – Erik Schmidt has Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche talking about re-enlightenment. Buddha-nature is already perfect and pure from the beginning, but we need to be re-enlightened. Not just wait for enlightenment. Maybe we can notice our frozen-ness, our habits, our dazed-ness – just staring at the ‘screen.’ We’re all like wooly mammot ..read more

A Moment of Silence These days we have war, oppression, humanitarian crisis, refugees, indiscriminate bombing, death…. dare I say insanity. Let’s have a moment of noble silence, noble solitude, alone together. Standing with all of those who are beleaguered and oppressed. Over 84 million political refugees in the world are seeking asylum, seeking safety and security for themselves and for their loved ones, as the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees tells us.  A moment of silence, noble silence – quieting the mind, not just the lips. Breathing in, calming and quieting the min ..read more