While much of Buddhist thought and practice is devoted to inner cultivation based on strong ethical foundations and the goal of perfect realization of impermanence, non-self, and the nature of suffering; some Buddhists surely still find a little time to take in a baseball game or two. And with this year marking 108 seasons exactly since the last time the Chicago Cubs won an MLB championship, Buddhists might be forgiven for thinking there is something special in store for the... Read more
I am fortunate enough to have a tiny bit of spare time now to tune in to Shambhala Mountain’s wonderful summit on “The Science of Meditation” with presenters ranging from the wonderful Susan Piver to Patheos contributor Rick Hansen and a list of the who’s who of meditation, mindfulness, and Buddhism research and practice. If I understand correctly, the videos from every day will be up and available to the public for two full days, so the one below, for... Read more
A Guest-post By Tom Clements When I first discovered Buddhism, I was severely depressed and was looking for a way out of the squalid depths of misery and despair an illness like depression inflicts on an individual. Following the dharmic path enabled me to become more altruistic, compassionate and made falling into destructive patterns of routine self-absorption impossible. When you delight in making others happy and shift your focus to others, it really is difficult to be bitter and cynical.... Read more
On Friday the website Religiousmind.com published a story claiming that “Dalai Lama Says Trump is a Threat to Humanity, Says He Is Worse Than Hitler.” In the story the Dalai Lama is quoted as saying that “I see another Hitler in the making… If American people vote for Trump, it will be the end of great American civilization.” The quotes claim to come from the Dalai Lama’s recent teachings in Zurich, Switzerland. However, no such comments were made. Some further searching... Read more
Another month, another survey of readers on political preferences in the 2017 US Presidential race. This month the poll of 91 (self-selected, online, non-randomized) respondents swung strongly toward Clinton, the vast majority of those giving their preference even before the Oct. 7 tape of Donald Trump discussing sexual assault was released. Last month, in contrast, Clinton was supported by only 49.4% of respondents and Stein drew 23.6% with Johnson also getting 12.9% (Trump was under 7% then). This month, along with Clinton’s and... Read more
The beloved Vietnamese Zen teacher Thich Nhat Hanh turned 90 yesterday. He has been living peacefully at his retreat center in the south of France after a stroke nearly two years ago set off a long and steady period of recovery, partially spent in the care of expert physicians in the US. All has been quiet from Thich Nhat Hanh and his students in France in recent months, but yesterday this photo of him enjoying a meal surrounded by friends... Read more
Today’s Daily Buddha Vaccana from the Digital Pali Reader contains a poignant tale, taken from the commentary to the Dhammapada, in particular the chapter on happiness. There, the Buddha literally thinks, “it is my duty to go” deal with disputing parties.* Add to that some good humorous attacks, one group calling the other “lepers” and “those who have slept with their sisters” and the other calling their opponents “brats” and saying they live up in trees. Fairly tame by current... Read more
Buddhist teacher Ethan Nichtern has an excellent article over at Lion’s Roar, a handy “guide” to the current US election. It is a guide indeed, as it gives more than a simple single command or opinion. It takes readers through six options, taking into consideration that swing state voters have different roles and obligations in the election. These options, in brief, are: Vote for Hillary Clinton Vote for Donald Trump by staying home (in a swing state) Vote for Donald... Read more
King’s College London Buddhist Studies Research Seminars (2016-17) Room VWB 3.01 at 5.00pm Theology and Religious Studies Virginia Woolf Building 22 Kingsway, London WC2B 6NR Friday 14 Oct 2016 Tristram Riley-Smith (University of Cambridge) Buddhist God-Makers and their Gods: An Anthropology of Art Abstract Tristram Riley-Smith is Director of Research in Politics & International Studies, and Associate Fellow at the Centre for Science & Policy, at Cambridge. He studied Social Anthropology, undertaking doctoral and post-doctoral research in Nepal and Thailand, making the film Birth of... Read more
I have long believed that positions, religious or otherwise, can be strengthened or (wisely) abandoned when met with careful argumentation. Do your claims to “X” hold up? If not, why not let them go? So I was pleased to read a post today on the Atheist Channel here at Patheos asking “Was the Buddha enlightened?” There, Eric Sotnak presents a well-reasoned case against the Buddha’s enlightenment (or awakening) based on the doctrine’s connection to rebirth and the lack of evidence for... Read more
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