Greetings from Hong Kong! I am still around – though busier than ever (with very mixed feelings about that). I’m working full time now at Buddhistdoor Global, which has been fantastic. You can find regular writings from me in the news there and–less frequently–in the features section. And while I work “in the city” I live on an island about 30 minutes away (by ferry, which is where I am now, en route home after the day’s work). I am also… Read more
March 10, 2019
Spend a month in a Chinese Buddhist Monastery this summer – Woodenfish HBMLP in China
March 10, 2019 By Justin Whitaker
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In 2009 I traveled to China to experience Chinese Buddhist monastic life and learn about the practice, philosophy, and history unique to Chan/Zen Buddhism. Back then, it was focused mostly on graduate students in Buddhism or Chinese culture/religion/history but it has since grown in size and scope to look a bit like the program that was then run separately at Fo Guang Shan monastery in southern Taiwan. My experience with the 2009 program was so positive that I applied for and participated in… Read more
February 27, 2019
pause, breathe, smile: awakening mindfulness when meditation is not enough, a Review
February 27, 2019 By Justin Whitaker
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Some time in the winter of 2017, Gary Gach reached out to a number of friends and colleagues about reviewing his -then in rough draft- forthcoming book. By mid-spring I replied that I would be very grateful to receive an advanced copy. And by June I was actually sitting down to read it over. As I told Gach by email early into my reading of the draft, “It’s direct, fluid, and wise; a beautiful mix of story-telling and dharma pushing.”… Read more
February 19, 2019
Buddhist generosity: Yokoji-Zen Mountain Center in California raises over $5000 to repair storm damage
February 19, 2019 By Justin Whitaker
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I am sometimes happily reminded that Buddhism in the West or the world isn’t just quiet private practices punctuated by occasional scandals. It’s worth being cognizant of the idea, propagated by evolutionary psychologists, that we need about five good interactions with something or someone for every bad one. The idea is that we are hard-wired to over-react to negative stimuli because that is what we’ve needed in order to survive. So just one bad interaction with a person after one… Read more
February 17, 2019
Further abuse accusations against Sakyong Mipham, head of Shambhala Buddhism
February 17, 2019 By Justin Whitaker
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A thirty-five page letter was issued yesterday by six of the closest attendants of Mipham Mukpo (Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche) detailing their experiences of verbal, physical and sexual abuse in vivid detail. Recollections include female students being “pushed to rationalize [sex] as a generous offering to their revered teacher”, stories of Mukpo hitting his attendants and forcibly biting people, students crying in a circle in their underwear, a culture of fear, and this is just the first of the six stories…. Read more
February 13, 2019
Valentines Day for Buddhists, a Warning
February 13, 2019 By Justin Whitaker
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Or “Looking for Love (advice) in all the Wrong Places”* I once had the occasion to oversee a study on the topic of “Buddhism and Love.” The question, pondered my student, was “what is the ideal Buddhist romantic relationship?” At hand we had: books written by and for contemporary Westerners about Buddhist practice tons of historical material and scholarly works, and actual Buddhists from various backgrounds to talk with about the subject. The contemporary books had plenty of relatively good, if not platitudinous,… Read more
February 11, 2019
Progressive Buddhism: An Australian Buddhist Nun Speaks on Tibetan Buddhism, Patriarchy, and India
February 11, 2019 By Justin Whitaker
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In “Life in Red – A Journey from Sydney Suburbs to Nagpur Slums” Tibetan Buddhist nun (or Bhikkhuni in Pali), Ayya Yeshe speaks of her journey into Tibetan Buddhism, her disillusionment with what she describes as “internalized patriarchy, [not] just our bad karma [as nuns or females]”, and her move to India, where she found it easier than Australia to live as a monastic. In a beautifully filmed video, Yeshe offers us an insider’s view of what a woman might… Read more
February 8, 2019
Petition: Shambhala Buddhism Students seek to split from “authoritarian” structure
February 8, 2019 By Justin Whitaker
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An online petition asking for local Shambhala Buddhism centers to be split from the inner circle of followers of Osel Mukpo (a.k.a Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche) has been created. It is directed to the Shambhala Interim Board, Shambhala International, Osel Mukpo, Local Shambhala Centers, Local Leadership, and the Shambhala Press Team. They cite the recently released investigation into Mukpo, which affirms likely sexual misconduct, as a “third strike” on the leadership after numerous alleged abuses on the parts of Thomas Rich and… Read more
February 2, 2019
Does this Comment Spark Joy?
February 2, 2019 By Justin Whitaker
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Can we “Marie Kondo” our Facebook feed? Last month, my wife and I sat down to watch some of the Netflix show Tidying Up with Marie Kondo. We made it about 60% through an episode before giving up. The premise, based on the practice of KonMari, is great, but the reality show format became a bit much. My sister worked in reality TV for a number of years and gave me some insight into the way that they ‘skilfully’ manufacture outrage and… Read more
January 23, 2019
Anonymous redditor shares troubling experience in Shambhala Buddhism
January 23, 2019 By Justin Whitaker
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A person who claims to know the inner workings of the current Shambhala leadership, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche and his advisory board or “Kalapa Council” has opened up an ongoing AMA (Ask Me Anything) on the reddit site devoted to discussion of Shambhala Buddhism, saying, in part, “I know his teachings as well or better than anyone currently involved with shambhala” and “I am definitely trying to help others get out of shambhala. That is my only intention here. I wish… Read more
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