Wrapping up what has been an unexpectedly interview-filled month here at American Buddhist Perspectives, I am pleased to present Eileen Flynn, who co-moderated last week’s interfaith panel on the topic of “why am I here?” Video from the event should be up at Deily.org on March 1st. My hope is that between this interview and the earlier one with Rev. Dr. David Zuniga, more people will go see the video and feel encouraged to start conversations like this in their own... Read more
The fake Buddhist monks made famous (or infamous) last summer when they were featured in a story by the New York Times are back, and this time in San Francisco, “a city filled with newcomers to urban life,” according to sfist.com. As Terry Firma wrote for the Patheos Friendly Atheist blog last summer, quoting the story from the NYTimes: They are mostly men of Chinese descent, with shaved heads, beatific smiles and flowing robes of orange, but sometimes brown or gray. They... Read more
Today I am delighted to introduce readers to La Sarmiento, a long time Vipassana meditator and teacher who will be co-leading a retreat at the Garrison Institute called “Embodying Presence in Our Lives: A Mindfulness Meditation Weekend for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, and Queer Communities” in April along with fellow teachers Madeline Klyne, Eric Kolvig, PhD, and Jacoby Ballard. Many thanks to Sam Mowe of the Garrison Institute for connecting us and to La for taking the time to... Read more
UPDATE: As happened back in November, an unofficial update seems to have gone out and made the rounds before Plum Village’s official health update for Thay. This time, however, the message is the same: Thich Nhat Hanh continues his progress in the hospital. Second UPDATE: the earlier, unofficial update from wkup.org, which is listed as an initiative of Plum Village, has been removed. The later official update remains in place at plumvillage.org. ~ An announcement dated February 3rd and posted on Tuesday the 17th... Read more
Last week I caught wind of an event with a very intriguing title “Why Am I Here? An Austin Interfaith Dialogue” and an even more interesting set of speakers representing Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and Zen Buddhism. Very happily, I was able to get in touch with Rev. Dr. David Zuniga, who will represent Zen in the discussion and arranged an interview on the topic. I sat down (via email) over the weekend to discuss the upcoming event: First, thank you... Read more
Wearing what appears to be a Japanese Zen robe and a shaggy beard with his hands in good meditation position, complete with wooden mala, Brian Williams, according to The Onion, has absconded to the remote mountains of Tibet (never mind that the picture looks like it was taken in the summer). Williams is quoted by the paper as saying: “Truth itself is in many ways the one universal constant—that which indisputably conforms to reality. But the question remains: Can we as humans understand... Read more
Frank Rogers Jr’s book, Practicing Compassion, is a welcome addition to the field of books bringing the positive insights and wisdom of religious traditions to a wider audience. The book sets out with the premise that while compassion is much talked about in religious settings and ever more in popular psychology, not many people know how to cultivate or practice it (although the caveat is given that there are numerous Buddhist teachings on cultivating compassion).* Rogers is a teacher of applied... Read more
The mere sight of the Dalai Lama smiling brings joy to many of us. Knowing that his smile – and perhaps some sort of influence – is in the same room, and just yards away from, President Barack Obama can doubtless bring a sense of hope for the world. And if not the world, at least the Dalai Lama’s beleaguered homeland of Tibet. But as Jay Michaelson writes for Salon, “don’t get your hopes up, Tibet.” In his insightful essay,... Read more
In the first public meeting of the two world leaders,* President Obama took a moment in his speech to praise the Dalai Lama: I want to offer a special welcome to a good friend, His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, who is a powerful example of what it means to practice compassion and to inspire us to speak up for the freedom and dignity of all human beings. I’ve been pleased to welcome him to the White House on many occasions,... Read more
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