Understanding our estrangement from our true nature, and how can we can return to our authentic selves
existentialism
The meaning of religion in our time in Taitetsu Unno’s “Shin Buddhism” (excerpt)
Taitetsu Unno (1929–2014), renowned Shin Buddhist scholar, reflected comprehensively on the role of religious belief in our era
Freedom, predestination, and fate in the characters of Monkey and Lucifer
One of 2024’s biggest video games is replete with Buddhist themes while also raising existential questions about destiny and fate
How Prince Siddhattha became the perfect human being
How the Buddha came to be foremost among human beings, discovering the enlightened path of liberated tracelessness
Simple and Direct
A simple solution was the right solution to my meditation problem. But the principle of simplicity when applied on its own can lead to reductionism that ironically makes finding the solution to a problem even more difficult and complex. That’s because following a basic principle cannot provide a complete picture of reality. Simplicity must be […]
Atammayata
Birth and death, love and hate, the burnt scent of cloves on fingers and campfire on jeans, nothing is attached for long. In the butter soft leather light of purple fog, a royal procession of swans announce themselves.Not made of that, the lake is restless for now George Cassidy Payne is a poet from Rochester, […]
River Teach Me
Inspired by a sacred Ute prayer River teach me changeas falling leaves decompose in the formless current River teach me hopeas the source and end, both come from mountains River teach me how to get lostas two young lovers walk along your bank not needing to be found River teach me how to savor the […]
Halloween Rising
Halloween rising,and I’m riding shotgunwith an incandescent raver girlat the wheeland a junkie on the back seatwhen the bars are closingand the desert a mirrorof the moon — Phoenix, Arizona, 2007
A Midnight Oracle
Spread on the seagrass, curved as fishing knives, the cards of my past arrive unexpectedly, three swords piercing the heart, the only organ that won’t bleed to death, while the sleepy moon turns its encrusted eyes from molten tears falling on the gray, blushingcheeks of a corpse. I am no knight, but no one said I was. I am no devil either, although some declare […]