James Stanford, “Budding Buddha.” From artfixdaily.com James Stanford is a longtime Buddhist artist with a distinct aesthetic and inspiration. Last November, he donated his “Budding Buddha” art to the Art for Tibet exhibit and auction at Gallery Eight in New York, which was organized by Students for a Free Tibet. Can you describe a bit your background in […]
Raymond Lam
Rima Fujita: Art and Action
Rima with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. ©Tenzin Choejor/OHHDL An enlightened, ineffably wise face deep in contemplation of the bottomless realities of the cosmos. Yet the colours are so vibrant as to have an almost childlike, playful quality. This vibrant and vivid aesthetic is Rima Fujita’s instantly recognizable artistic style, which has captured the attention of […]
Nritya Mandala Mahavihara’s 10th Anniversary
From 21-22, Prajwal Ratna Vajracharya’s center in Portland, Orgeon, celebrated its tenth anniversary, with much of the discussion centered on its unique position as the only Nepalese Buddhist temple in the West: it is well known that the unique expression of Newari Buddhism is gaining both academic and popular attention in Europe and North America. […]
Observations on the Indo-Mongolian Buddhist Partnership
It was no coincidence that just a fortnight after the third Samvad conclave from 6–7 September in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolian President Khaltmaagiin Battulga paid a state visit to India from the 19th to 23rd. This month has seen, from the perspectives of both Mongolia and India, a significant diplomatic victory over some years in the making.
Mongolia’s Buddhist Diplomacy and India’s Union of Religious and Foreign Policy
The Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF), along with Indian, Japanese, and Mongolian partners, hosted its third Samvad (which, in Hindi, means “dialogue”) conference in Ulaanbaatar over last Friday and the weekend. As reported in BDG’s news article on the conclave, Mongolian political and religious leaders took this event very seriously. In his closing speech on the […]
Different Abilities, Different Individuals: Shifting Perceptions About Disability
In most schools with a progressive curriculum and solid ethics, students living with disabilities are welcomed, their needs accommodated, and encouraged to participate as fully as they can in the life of the school. However, once they graduate, many feel thrown into a world where diverse institutions neither have nor care to have the kind […]
A Circle of Buddhist Democracies: India’s Buddhist Strategy for Asia
In May’s Indian elections, PM Narendra Modi’s BJP fared considerably well, indirectly securing a mandate for its Buddhist diplomacy. This “quiet” exercise of power began several years ago in September 2015, with the Vivekananda International Foundation’s (VIF) first Samvad conference. For this event we were taken to the diplomatic enclave of Chanakyapuri in New Delhi, […]
400 Million Miles From the Sun
Beauty is located insidea gravitational tango, one where we become a celibate partner with Jupiter; where we are grateful just to drink from muddy waters, clean as it was first drunk by thecephalopods 400 millionmiles from the Sun. George Cassidy Payne is a poet from Rochester, NY. His work has been included in such publications as the Hazmat Review, […]
Kumarajiva Project: A 60-year Tibetan-Chinese Translation Initiative from Khyentse Foundation
Statue of Kumarajiva outside the Kizil Caves. From China Discovery There are two “buzzwords” in the Buddhist world today. One is obviously mindfulness and has dominated contemporary discourse for decades. The other is translation, and despite being overshadowed by mindfulness to some extent actually remains one of the most important activities of the global Buddhist […]
The Shuilu Fahui at Tung Lin Kok Yuen Canada Society
The 25th anniversary of Tung Lin Kok Yuen Canada Society (TLKY CS) in Vancouver was marked by the shuilu fahui ritual last month. It is so grand and taxing that not every temple can host it. Those that do, commit considerable time and resources of both a financial and human nature to ensure this ritual’s […]