On this day in 1867, Nova Scoita, New Brunswick & the Province of Canada formally united. While they’re sometimes called the good America, I’m not so foolish as to think they’ve avoided all our mistakes, and haven’t pulled off a few entirely their own, as well. As some of my friends appear to think. And as all things in this world composed of parts, they’re in constant danger of spinning apart. But, you know, given all the difficulties of human... Read more

Noticing how religious images are co-opted for commercial purposes is nothing new. Think Quaker Oats. But it does seem that in recent decades Buddhism and Zen have become a particularly popular source of images for hustling product. Rod Meade Sperry, web publications editor at Shambhala Sun has been archiving them for ages at his site The Worst Horse. He’s even given them a name, Dharma-burgers. Rod tells us “a ‘Dharma-Burger’ is… any example of Buddhist ideas or imagery in the... Read more

I’ve just deleted a comment to a recent posting, my reflection on protesting the Maricopa county “tent city” jail. I did this only after fretting a bit. My concern has nothing to do with a concern about “censorship,” which some people like to throw around when confronted with limitations on comments. Me, I figure this is my blog, and I allow what I want on it. And, if someone else has something to say, well, they can put their own... Read more

Zen teachers Melissa Blacker & David Rynick being interviewed… Read more

I’ve been thinking about various responses I’ve read to news reports of the Unitarian Universalist and allies protest at Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s notorious “tent city” outdoor jail last week. A common theme expressed among those less than impressed with the protests is, hey, they’re criminals and they’re just getting what they deserve. And a subset of the commentators cite being military who served in Iraq or Afghanistan, and speak of the terrible heat they endured while serving as a reason... Read more

  Norman Fischer is a Soto Zen Buddhist priest and teacher in the line of Shunryu Suzuki. He is also a past co-abbot of the San Francisco Zen Center. A poet and writer, Norman’s teaching style is gentle, inviting and authentic. This video is a nice introduction to both the teacher and the teachings. Worth a visit, I suggest… Read more

Jan & I lived in Arizona for five years, leaving for New England some dozen years ago now. There’s much to admire about the state. It is astonishingly beautiful, at least once one gets outside the limits of the Phoenix metroplex which hunkers over the Valley of the Sun a great lumbering sprawl… And like Phoenix, a city without charm, and arguably the least sustainable city in the nation, Arizona is haunted by a long history of bizarre politics. Not... Read more

Andy Lambert’s review published first at Zen Chalice. You can listen to it here. I hope you’ll consider “liking” my book’s Facebook page. It posts on matters of interest to Buddhists, Zen practitioners and folk with a taste for liberal religion, particularly Unitarian Universalism. Read more

Perhaps you’re stressed. No doubt this is the age of stress. Fortunately, there are many things you can do about it. Among them, a number of styles of meditation will help to slow things down, give you a bit of space, a moment of calm in the storm. There sure seem to be a lot of storms that need calming. So it’s natural that many are turning to meditation as a significant help toward mental and physical well-being. Of course... Read more

Over at the Dalai Grandma blog there’s a reflection on interconnectedness and how it does or does not adequately speak to Buddhist insight. She quotes a Tricycle interview with Gil Fronsdal who says “…the American Vipassana movement emphasizes interconnectedness when teaching anatta, or “not-self.” This is emphasized so much that a person might get the idea that realizing interconnectedness is the ultimate goal of Buddhism. It’s not; this is a very American emphasis. I think interconnectedness is inspiring to us... Read more