Master Jingzong; English translation by Foyi, edited by Fojin Time is like a river of boiling water. We jump and scurry frantically in it to avoid being scalded. But all our efforts are of no avail. With the rapid development of technology and the economy, has there been a corresponding reduction in human suffering? Namo Amitabha […]
life
Humanism and Zen
Authentic humanism, in Pierre Furter’s words, “consists in permitting the emergence of the awareness of our full humanity, as a condition and as an obligation, as a situation and as a project.” – Paolo Feire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed These days my Buddhist practice life spins around, tumbles through, and is, ultimately, anchored by a […]
Master Huijing’s Dharma Words about the Purpose of Life
If we step back and pause to reflect a little, we’ll realize just how many concerns dog us in our daily existence. As Buddhists we shouldn’t seek to ignore the conventional realities that can cause concern and vexation to arise in us. I’d be the first to confess that I have plenty of worries. But […]
Life, Death… All a Matter of Perspective
We like to tell ourselves that we intellectually (even if we struggle to emotionally) grasp the significance of death as the end of our present existence. But time, life, and death are nowhere near as commonsense as we think. In an article in The Independent, professor Robert Lanza lays out the concept of biocentrism: ‘the universe […]
Postcard from Raymond: We Never Truly Die
One of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s most eloquent and moving teachings is a summation of Buddhist doctrine about life after death: we do not leave this world until full, total enlightenment. We are integrally part of it and even when our personal time expires on this beautiful but hurting planet, we don’t disappear. […]
No Tomorrow
Inspired by the Maranassati Sutta The moment she was born Gemma knew she was about to die. By all accounts she was unlike any other child: she never got excited about Christmas and she never got upset when she was grounded. In fact her brother tells me she didn’t even bat an eyelid when her […]
Who’s Qualified to Teach the Children?
From Master Jingzong Facebook; English translation by Foying, edited by Jingnian Are we qualified to educate a child, simply because we are adults? Are those who have teachers’ credentials competent enough to teach youngsters? Are more knowledgeable people capable of teaching kids? Aren’t children more innocent, honest and joyful than we are? Are they not more […]
Who knows what else might come?
Ratnadevi ‘Ready’, called the egg when it was laid. ‘Now I’m ready!’ called the tadpole when it had hatched. ‘Now I’m completely ready! ‘ called the creature, animal when it had two legs. ‘Now, finally, I’m absolutely completely ready! ‘ called the creature when it had four legs and a long tail. ‘Who knows what […]
Five Worms – A Preamble
Steve Braff I saved five worms today as they lay plump and limp upon the wet pavement – blind altar of ignominious death by the coming heat or passing car. I saved five worms today as I plucked their slippery bodies stretched supplicant, almost inert from the indifferent asphalt and tossed each to shelter in […]
Setting the Stage
John Cannon A careful reflection of the path I have followed while “shuffling my way along this mortal coil” brings into sharp relief some of the events that have moulded me as a person from youth onwards: founder, teacher and administrator of a cultural and language programme for Chinese immigrant children in Toronto; two solo […]