Almost every week I go to a Zen meditation group near my apartment. This group meets in the beautiful sanctuary of a large Unitarian Universalist church. Our small handful of practitioners, usually 5-10, join in a circle just in front of the main stage. We chant a liturgy, meditate, walk, meditate, and then have tea […]
Month: April 2018
Dharma Dispatch, 16-27 April 2018: Prayers on the Korean Peninsula, Chinese IPOs, and Ambedkar Memorial
Good morning! Before the landmark meeting between South Korean president Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, which led to the official ending of the Korean War, Buddhist organizations met in South Korea to pray for peace, stability, and unification on the Korean Peninsula. On 12 April, 400 Buddhist nuns from 12 countries, including South […]
A Message from Master Shandao
A text about “embrace and transform by the Name in the form of light” cited from In Praise of the Rite of Rebirth: Amitabha Buddha made a profound, weighty vow to embrace all beings of the ten directions with his light and transform them with his name, in the event that they have faith in […]
Women as Spiritual Partners in Vajrayana Buddhism
From the perspective of Vajrayana, if a woman has a strong aspiration and the necessary karmic prerequisites to overcome the instinctive need for procreation, her capacity for higher awareness is greater than that of a man. But even if she does choose to be a mother, she still has a chance to use her karmic […]
The Forever Beggar
Original story in Chinese by Prof. Lee Chack-fan; retold by Raymond Lam There is a bustling street somewhere, far removed from our eyes and limited perceptions. Beside this road stand cafés that never close their doors and shops that stay open even when their owners have long since moved on. Spirits—strange things we don’t quite […]
Exploring Todai-ji Temple, Kofuku-ji, and Deer Park in Nara
Nara, the capital city of Japan’s Nara Prefecture, is one of Japan’s most popular tourist destinations. In March 2018, when I was in Japan for a second time (I was attending a conference), I had an opportunity to visit this ancient capital. On 25 March, three of my friends came to Kobe from Tokyo to […]
Your True Face
Original story in Chinese by Prof. Lee Chack-fan; retold by Raymond Lam Abel Dubois liked taking his Lamborghini to Pierre’s Car Repairs. He would sometimes stop there, on the outskirts of Paris, before driving into his favorite nightclub district on hilly Montmartre. The service was crisp and efficient, his car always emerged as if it […]
Impermanence
The lies in my mind are so many From the complete denial of impermanence To my weak and superficial recognition We claim the right to express our personality as sacred. This so-called freedom, this is a false kindness. It’s the big modern samsaric hoax. I see in myself so much rebelliousness in applying the methods […]
Liberating Animals Destined for the Dining Table
Master Jingzong; English translation by Foyuan, edited by Jingxin Mahatma Gandhi of India once said, “The most terrible weapons are the knives and forks on one’s dining table.” Hundreds of millions of lives are snuffed out by these weapons every day. Yet, most people are unaware of the scale of the daily slaughter for food; in fact, […]
Dharma Dispatch, 2-11 April 2018: World Buddhist Forum, Vajrayana International Center, and Plastic-free Supermarkets
Good morning! The China Religious Culture Communication Association (CRCCA) has announced that the fifth session of the World Buddhist Forum will be held at the coastal city of Putian, in China’s Fujian province. The announcement was made by Chen Zongrong, vice chairman of the CRCCA, at a press conference, on 8 April in Beijing. Several senior […]