American Buddhist Net

TURTLE FEET: The Making and Unmaking of a Buddhist Monk,
by Nikolai Grozni.
Riverhead Books. 326 pages. $24.95.

BY BETH TAYLOR
Special to the Journal
Sunday, July 6, 2008

Nikolai Grozni, who lives in Providence, was a gifted pianist from Bulgaria who, in the midst of absorbing Coltrane, dope, and booze at Berklee College of Music, suddenly decided to leave behind materialist, “finish line” careerism and head to India to train as a Buddhist monk.

His Bulgarian parents were not pleased, having nurtured his musical genius as a ticket out of Communism and the limits of a childhood reading Das Kapital. But Nikolai had always resisted institutional thought and he believed the monks would teach him how to live a life liberated from frivolous and mindless habits.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

http://www.buddhanet.net/audio-lectures.htm

The Buddha's Teaching As It Is
~ An Introductory Course ~

BuddhaNet Audio

Ten Audio lectures in on the fundamentals of the Buddha's Teaching, by Venerable Bhikkhu Bodhi

Bhikkhu Bodhi Bhikkhu Bodhi is an American Buddhist monk from New York City. Born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1944, he obtained a BA in philosophy from Brooklyn College (1966) and a PhD in philosophy from Claremont Graduate School (1972).

Drawn to Buddhism in his early 20s, after completing his university studies he traveled to Sri Lanka, where he received novice ordination in 1972 and full ordination in 1973, both under the late Ven. Ananda Maitreya, the leading Sri Lankan scholar-monk of recent times.

He was appointed editor of the Buddhist Publication Society (in Sri Lanka) in 1984 and its president in 1988. Ven. Bodhi has many important publications to his credit, either as author, translator, or editor, including The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha — A Translation of the Majjhima Nikaya (co-translated with Ven. Bhikkhu Nanamoli, 1995) and The Connected Discourses of the Buddha — a New Translation of the Samyutta Nikaya (2000)

Copy and paste play list..

[playlist]
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File2=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT01B.MP3
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File5=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT03A.MP3
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File7=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT04A.MP3
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File9=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT05A.MP3
File10=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT05B.MP3
File11=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT06A.MP3
File12=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT06B.MP3
File13=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT07A.MP3
File14=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT07B.MP3
File15=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT08A.MP3
File16=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT08B.MP3
File17=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT09A.MP3
File18=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT09B.MP3
File19=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT10A.MP3
File20=http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/bkikkhu-bodhi/BT10B.MP3
~

A change of pace. Tibetan talks are great but sometimes some more down to earth Dharma is needed.

Play list with hundreds of talks by Thanissaro Bhikkhu
http://home.earthlink.net/~root.man/than.pls

Talks by Thanissaro Bhikkhu given at insight meditation center.
http://www.audiodharma.org/talks/ThanissaroBhikkhu.html

A Question of Skill
An Interview with Thanissaro Bhikkhu
http://www.urbandharma.org/udharma3/interview1.html

22 Jun 2008

Are you the happiest person you know? Not necessarily the luckiest, richest, or most successful, just the happiest?

If not, why not? Most people will reel off their current worries — the job, the kids, the car, the price of fish. I don’t mean to sweep these aside: problems need to be solved, if you can, or waited out until they disappear . But as far as living happily is concerned you have to face a crucial fact. If you can only live happily after all your problems are solved, you are never going to live happily, because when today’s problems are gone and forgotten, others will take their place. So either living happily is just impossible, or you have to do it in spite of your problems.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Thai tradition is believed to bring good fortune

By Johanna D. Wilson

Blessing businesses is big in Thailand culture, and Parinya Popra is pleased her eatery will finally get a visit Monday from Buddhist monks.

The event, which begins at 9 a.m. and ends about 2 p.m. at Supannahong, will have religious leaders in attendance from Wat Carolina Buddhajakra Vanaram, a Thai Buddhist Monastery in Bolivia, N.C.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Jun 13, 2008 08:33 AM
DONNA GORDON BLANKINSHIP
Associated Press

SEATTLE–A hiker who lost his life on Mount Rainier lay down in the snow and used his body's warmth to protect his wife and a friend from the 112-kilometre per hour winds of a freak June blizzard, national park officials said.

When it became obvious the trio could not find their way back to base camp in whiteout conditions, they dug a snow trench with their hands. Eduard Burceag, 31, lay down in the snow while his wife and friend lay on top of him. Later, when they begged him to switch places, Burceag refused, saying he was okay.

"In doing so, he probably saved their lives," park spokesperson Kevin Bacher said Thursday.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Be sure to see this for deep context: His Holiness the Dalai Lama's Advice Concerning Dolgyal (Shugden). ABN
____________________

June 11, 2008 - 8:57PM

The Dalai Lama arrived in Australia today to a warm welcome from supporters but was branded a "liar" and a "hypocrite" by some 50 protesting Buddhist monks and nuns.

Members of a Buddhist group known as the Western Shugden Society (WSS) accuse the Dalai Lama of suppressing religious freedom and driving them out of the Buddhist community.

They chanted "Dalai Lama stop lying" and waved placards calling for religious freedom when the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader held a meditation seminar at Sydney's Olympic Park.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Good, short piece, worth reading. ABN
______________

by Rajah Kuruppu

Man comprises of mind and body. Modern medical science is now according an important place to the mind, but the Buddha over 2,500 years ago emphasised the invaluable role of the mind. In fact the opening lines of the Dhammapada, a collection of important sayings of the Buddha, state that the mind is the forerunner of all states of being, mind is supreme, mind made are they. Accordingly, Bhavana commonly translated to English as meditation, is assigned a crucial role in the practice of the Dhamma. Bhavana means the culture or the development of the mind and perhaps the English word meditation does not adequately describe Bhavana but it may be used for convenience provided the true meaning of the term Bhavana is understood.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Friday 06 June 2008

The Auvergne is a popular tourist destination, famed for its volcanoes. But there’s another attraction drawing dozens of Buddhists from across Europe. Three years ago, a group of Buddhists embarked on a long spiritual retreat and are just about to return to the world after 1,190 days of meditation.

The retreat is a unique experience of a particularly austere form of voluntary isolation, complete with a severe daily regime, including 12 hours of meditation per day. They returned to the world last month.

It was in the Auvergne, in these majestic environs, that the community of Dhagpo Kunfrun decided to set up its hermitages and its meditation centers in 1984.

On the eve of their exit, the entire community is present and preparing for their departure. One of the Buddhist, Bruno, talks about his decision to make the retreat. “For me, it’s a gift, a life experience. People who do not know might be afraid. We are there to reassure them, to show to them that we are really happy for them. That it really comes from us, from our souls.”

LINK TO ORIGINAL

http://www.shenpen-osel.org/

Shenpen Ösel is a tri-annual publication of Kagyu Shenpen Ösel Chöling (KSOC), a center for the study and practice of Tibetan vajrayana Buddhism located in Seattle, Washington. The magazine seeks to present the teachings of recognized and fully qualified lamas and teachers, with an emphasis on the Karma Kagyu and the Shangpa Kagyu lineages.

Modern healthcare professionals can learn much from the Tibetan Buddhist belief that it as important to die with dignity as it is to live happily. Another look at a classic, a book by Sogyal Rinpoche, that had its 10th anniversary reprint recently.

ENNAPADAM S. KRISHNAMOORTHY AND NIRANJANA BENNETT
June 1, 2008

Most books tell stories about life and living happily ever after…The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying not only addresses life, but brings the reader face to face with Death.

The book, authored by Sogyal Rinpoche, a renowned Buddhist teacher, has been revised and updated to commemorate its 10th anniversary. The book begins rather impressively with a foreword by the Dalai Lama, who sets the tone: “No less significant than preparing for our own death is helping others to die well”. Sogyal Rinpoche places life and death contextually together for our consideration, describing why we must address death during our lives. The realm of gods in the Buddhist teachings, who lived lives of fabulous luxury and pleasure with little thought or time for spirituality until death appeared, and who were unprepared for it, are alluded to here, as is active laziness whereby unimportant tasks become responsibilities, part of a rigid schedule, and begin to dictate one’s existence.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

The patient sat with his eyes closed, submerged in the rhythm of his own breathing, and after a while noticed that he was thinking about his troubled relationship with his father.

“I was able to be there, present for the pain,” he said, when the meditation session ended. “To just let it be what it was, without thinking it through.”

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Some of the things you should know before taking a course in vipassana meditation

May 23, 2008

Are you one of those who can't help feeling surprised - and maybe suspicious - when you hear of people deciding to go on a vipassana meditation course? Do you, perhaps, think it's just because it's a trend? Or do you think more charitably that these people must be suffering and in need of a temporary retreat from this cruel world?

For overseas visitors, its attraction is that the classes are easily available here and that this form of meditation is non-denominational - you don't have to be Buddhist to appreciate it, even though the teachers may be Buddhist monks. They generally seem to be rather proud of welcoming people of all faiths, or none.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

April 29, 2008
Laurie Desjardins

Empathy and compassion are two emotions that make us human. It's the ability to identify with another person, to place ourselves in another's shoes, which allow us to have a greater connection with our fellow man.

Unfortunately, with the stress and general busy-ness of life, it becomes harder for us to place ourselves in the lives of others, as we're too busy worried about our own lives and our own families. Though it is easy for us to empathize with those close to us, it's a lot harder to summon compassion for people we've never met.

However, it's possible to learn compassion and empathy through meditation techniques.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Apr 22, 2008

PATNA, India (Reuters) - Hundreds of villagers have flocked to a remote Indian village to see a baby girl who was saved by stray dogs after she was abandoned in a mound of mud by her mother, officials said on Tuesday.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Dear Dhammafarers,

Republish online, Distribute on CD, Store in Library or Read Offline
the What-Buddha-taught.net website...

http://www.what-buddha-taught.net/WhatBuddhaTaught.zip ~ 120MB

"Know the Dhamma, Make the Dhamma Known." This is the Highest Blessing.

mahakaruna,
~upasaka silananda

Delightful essay. ABN
______________

Henk Barendregt

Abstract

Analytical philosophers have criticized some phenomenological texts from buddhism, existentialism and mysticism, because of the presence of logical contradictions. Being interested in those phenomenological texts, people with a different philosophical inclination sometimes make the following claims. ``There are two ways of viewing the world: the rational and the irrational. The first view gives rise to science (with all of its drawbacks), the second one to the `higher' truths of mysticism." In his book Exploring mysticism (Penguin, 1975), F. Staal disagrees with such claims. He put forward the following views. 1. Mysticism consists of experience and is as such neither rational nor irrational. 2. As phenomenon mysticism can be studied in a rational way. 3. In order to do this, it is advisable to practice meditation in order to have first hand experience.

Following Staal's program, this paper will first explain briefly how contradictions occurring in phenomenological texts can be understood. Then the main part of the paper will be devoted to a description of phenomenological data collected during the practice of buddhist meditation.

Acknowledgments
The information contained in this paper is obtained by following several practice periods of intensive meditation under the skilled guidance of The Most Venerable M.T. Mettaviharee, teacher of buddhist meditation in Amsterdam. I wish to thank Dr. Dick de Jongh of the University of Amsterdam, for improving the English text.

2. The aim

Buddhism has been described in many ways. It has been called a religion, a philosophy, a way of life and a psychology. Each of these descriptions is correct and emphasizes different aspects. Buddhism is a religion as it deals with questions of life and death and the meaning of life. It is a philosophy as it does not need the hypothesis of a god or of life after death. Buddhism is called a way of life as it teaches the way of non-violence and compassion. Finally, it is called a psychology as it investigates the working of our mind and distinguishes different types of consciousness.

There is yet another way to describe buddhism, namely as a course. The aim of this course is first the lessening and in the end the elimination of human suffering. This goal is to be reached by using experimental phenomenology: investigation of our consciousness as it is presented to us by means of self-observation. The method, both in theory and in practice, and some methodological considerations will be treated in this paper.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

15 April, 2008

Seattle, WA, USA, 14 April 2008 (By Paul Nyhan, Seattle Post Intelligencer) - The Dalai Lama dedicated much of the fourth day of his visit to perhaps the most powerful population for his compassion message -- parents.

The Tibetan spiritual leader offered them a stream of ideas and techniques on raising healthier children.

Instead of fuzzy statements, University of Washington researchers suggested parents do everything from making eye contact when talking to their kids to truly listening to them.

"Be actively involved in your child, in family life," said David Hawkins, founding director of the UW's Social Development Research Group.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

15.04.08

French publisher XO Editions has conducted a series of auctions for the story of a Nepali Tibetan Buddhist nun, with translation rights sold to Blanvalet in Germany and Sperling & Kupfer in Italy.

XO says it has also seen much interest from UK publishers in Ani Choying's My Voice for Freedom. Choying has adopted 60 Nepali girls, fights for their right to education, and finances her actions by singing Buddhist mantras around the world.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Dear Dhammafarers,

Here is something to share that may give you some pointers towards treading on the Middle Path ...

http://www.what-buddha-taught.net/video_files.htm

mahakaruna
~Silananda

Tom Dick
April 12, 2008

FOR three years, three months and three days they meditated in a wooden temple perched on a lush hill top in northern NSW.

Each day of Australia's first three-year Tibetan Buddhist retreat, they rose at 4am to avoid worldly distractions by chanting mantras.

From January 2005, when the retreat's boundaries were closed, their world was limited to the Vajradhara Gonpa centre, comprised of the temple, their huts and 80 hectares of remote bushland, 20 kilometres north of Kyogle. The 28 retreat participants were not allowed out — except for medical emergencies — and only administrative staff were allowed in.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

April 10, 2008
By Janet Grist

WHAT can possibly be the attraction of a three-year Buddhist retreat, during which you rise at 3am and, apart from letters, have no communication with the outside world?

The answer is easy according to retreat participant Bridget Gebbie - because it works!

Ms Gebbie, a psychotherapist from Balmain in Sydney, said she was always a sensitive person. "I was kind of without a skin and always had a concern about what I was doing - is it the right thing, is it appropriate? All of those questions. They're not there any more and that is freedom."

LINK TO ORIGINAL

On March 10, 2008, the 49th annual observance of Tibetan Liberation Day, sixty monks were arrested in Lhasa, protesting China's occupation of their country. In the days that followed, thousands of Buddhist monks and ordinary citizens took to the streets of cities across Tibet. Much like their brothers and sisters in Burma last September, they were met with beatings and bullets. Their homes and places of worship have been invaded, and hundreds, then thousands of Tibetans were added to the undocumented ranks of political prisoners. Amnesty International has posted an alert on behalf of fifteen monks, whose whereabouts and wellbeing cannot be determined. According to recent reports, key monasteries remain closed or occupied by Chinese troops. Yet the monks are undeterred, and protests continue to flower in Tibet's cities wherever possible.

In solidarity with the people of Tibet, our brothers and sisters in dharma, we condemn the Chinese government's suppression of peaceful demonstrations, the closing of monasteries, and the broad imposition of martial law. The violent response of Chinese security forces only adds fuel to fires that they set many years ago.

The Chinese occupation, in place since 1951, continues throughout Tibet, amounting to de facto ethnic cleansing, destroying indigenous Tibetan culture by a massive Chinese population transfer and economic infiltration, backed up by the barrel of a gun. According to the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT), "In Tibet's cities and fertile valleys, particularly in eastern Tibet, Chinese outnumber Tibetans by two and sometimes three to one."