THE DAY THE WORLD AWAKENED The Buddha’s Enlightenment, and Ours A Teisho James Myoun Ford 8 December 2008Benevolent Street Zen SanghaProvidence, Rhode Island Today is the eighth day of the twelfth month, generally marked in the Buddhist world as the anniversary of the moment Gautama Siddhartha, Shakyamuni, the sage of the Shakyas, watched the morning star rise in the sky and came to his great realization. In the Zen tradition, at least within the Japanese inheritance, this is called Rohatsu.... Read more

According to Buddhist Tradition on the eighth day of the twelfth month, Gautama Siddhartha looked up and saw the morning star, and had his great awakening. From that moment he was called the Buddha, which means awakened. An important day in the Buddhist tradition. Worth noting… Read more

TO LIGHT ONE CANDLE Amnesty International as a Guide to a Complete Spiritual Life A Sermon byJames Ishmael Ford 7 December 2008 First Unitarian ChurchProvidence, Rhode Island Text There’s a story I would like to share with you. It was inspired by the writing of Loren Eiseley. Eiseley was a very special person because he combined the best of two cultures. He was a scientist and a poet. And from those two perspectives he wrote insightfully and beautifully about the... Read more

Thank you, Chalicefire! Read more

Evelyn Underhill was born on this day in 1875. In my youth trying to sort out my own intuitions and longings, and very, very rudimentary experiences, I found her quite helpful. Evelyn Underhill’s major work, published in 1911, Mysticism: A Study of the Nature and Development of Man’s Spiritual Consciousness was informed by two other studies of some merit, Maurice Bucke’s Cosmic Consciousness and William James’ Varieties of Religious Experience. As valuable (and limited) as I found those other books,... Read more

How many chances do we get to see a naked Zen master? Thanks, Markus! Read more

I’m writing a sermon for Sunday that features a reflection on the amazing work of Amnesty International. Literally, now. Taking only a brief break to throw this note up onto my blog. I just received a note from Amnesty International (and if you’re not on their email list, I hope after reading this you’ll consider doing so…) They’re launching a “one hundred days commitment to human rights” campaign, hoping to reverse some of the astonishingly wrongheaded actions of the outgoing... Read more

As we roll into the Christmas season, I find myself thinking about that holy day and its connection to Unitarianism. As most people know Christmas came late to the Christian calendar, being in fact a Christianized version of a pagan Roman holiday. In Massachusetts, the Puritan theocracy, which what ever else might be said of them, were well read and smart, knew without any doubt Christmas was a pagan celebration and did all they could to suppress it. They did... Read more

Rainer Maria Rilke was born on this day in 1875. It is my contention that if the assertions of the Zen way are “true,” then they are “natural,” and therefore we should find similar insights bursting forth across cultures. And here we are. I think Rilke is a shinning example of a spiritual artist drawing upon the common inspiration that gives life meaning and direction… While preparing for this entry I found a lovely web page at the Nebraska Zen... Read more

http://player.ordienetworks.com/flash/fodplayer.swf See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die Thanks to both Danny & Ed… Read more