Cultivating critical thinking and questioning in spiritual seeking and religious practice
Thailand
Eye on Southeast Asia: How Buddhism Wields Influence in Thailand’s Political Life
How Buddhist ideas of negotiation, power, and patronage influenced this year’s general election in Thailand
Tea Please
More wisdom from the layman Mr. Nam, and insights from Thai monastics about the roots of practice
The Throne of Origins: The Pulsating Heart of Pre-Sectarian, 2000-year Buddhism
The “Throne of Origins,” ruins of one of the oldest Buddhist temples in the world, is alive and flourishing in Pakistan
The Grace of Gold: Buddhist Exhibit Highlights at The British Library’s “GOLD: 50 spectacular manuscripts from around the world”
In lieu of physically attending a private viewing of The British Library’s “GOLD: 50 spectacular manuscripts from around the world,” I was privileged to enjoy a rich and informative virtual tour of the exhibit in the early hours of the Hong Kong morning with others that could not be in London this month. Gold is grandeur. […]
Why is Nature Peaceful?
On a bright, moon-lit night, while walking back to my kuti in a forest in Thailand, I spotted a huge scorpion that had come out of hiding from under a rock. Out of curiosity, I pointed my flashlight directly at it for a moment, then continued to walk the path back to my resting place […]
Let It Rain
I heard the crack of thunder as it whipped across the sky and prepared myself for the downpour to come. I was sitting cross-legged in a tiny wooden kuti that was nestled among the tall trees and rugged rocks on land that was part of a remote forest monastery in Northern Thailand. As I sat […]
Ajahn Brahm’s “Karuna-virus” – A book for these times
Why do we tell stories? Throughout history, the storyteller was the sage, the wise one. Stories have a mythic, primeval place in human society and culture. They are expressions of our deepest intuitions, our oldest folk memories, and our sense of ultimate destiny. At a social level, they speak to our times and advise us […]
Bodhgaya International Theravada Bhikkhuni Ordination January 2019
Fully accepted, fully ordained. New bhikkhunis with their teachers, preceptors and their ordaining Dual Sangha upon the completion of two full days of bhikkhuni ordinations. Photo courtesy of Kanjana Suthikul By Ven. Tathaloka Theri Sukha Sanghassa Samaggi—“Happy is the Harmony of the Sangha” [1] Buddhagaya, the site of the Buddha’s Great Awakening or Maha Bodhi, is […]