A friend I’ve known for some time has alcohol addiction problems. He is very concerned about the world’s suffering and has strongly held views about the cause of this, and how to change things for the better. The trouble is, … Continue reading →
One of the Six Worlds is the world of the hungry ghosts. It is depicted in Buddhist literature as one of the worlds into which one can be reborn after death; more important for us is to see that it … Continue reading →
I have recently moved to an idyllic house in France and although the winter has been very cold, the spring has come like a fanfare. My garden is full of blossom on the many fruit trees and the woodlands around … Continue reading →
The next thing on the retreat schedule is working meditation, and I’ve been asked to give you a talk as an introduction to this, why we do it, why it’s important, how to do it… With practice we can bring … Continue reading →
It was somewhere towards the end of the afternoon of King’s Day. We were in Amsterdam selling old clothes on the street market to get some extra money for our plan of traveling the world… The boy next to us … Continue reading →
When I was the Prior at the Eugene Buddhist Priory several people asked me about a sense of confusion regarding their meditation practice. These are some thoughts I had at the time, revised slightly for inclusion in this issue of … Continue reading →
I recently went to buy a new rug for my flat. This flat is the home that I shared with Jan, my wife of thirty-five years, until her recent death after a long illness. As part of the process of … Continue reading →
Many years ago, at the Shasta Abbey Gift Shop, I saw a fish with a ball in its throat. It was a pendant one could wear around one’s neck. I thought, “Why would anyone want one of these? Recently a … Continue reading →
The last few months I have been observing complaining—my complaining and the complaining of others. I recently came across the website www.willbowen.com. This is the website of Rev. Will Bowen, a Christian minister in Kansas City, Missouri, who — as … Continue reading →
What is it like when we wake in the morning? Before our brain wakes up and remembers what we have to do that day, there is a space — of being you could say; which is just an appreciation: we … Continue reading →