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by Rajeshwari K, The Tibetpost International , 30 December 2011 Dharamshala, India -- In an address the 17th Karmapa, officially known as His Holiness the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, made to the media regarding the end of the current year and the fast approaching new year, he stated that he wishes we live this year with mutual love and respect for one another and for the earth that is our common home. Referring to the popular belief that the world might end in 2012, he said "In fact, we never know what any given year might hold. But if we are sincerely committed to following a path of compassion and wisdom, this uncertainty about the future need not cause us any concern. Whatever happens, we can simply keep our focus directed steadily at what matters most-cultivating compassion and equanimity, and acting to benefit others.""If we harbor this attitude in our hearts, we can make anything that occurs positive for ourselves and for others," he added. Speaki

You can, of course, start meditating any time. But maybe you're the type who goes in for New Year's Resolutions. If so: why not let 2012 be your year to get started with meditation? You'll find plenty of guidance in our special online How to Meditate Spotlight . And don't miss Diana Winston 's helpful (and playful) "Sit Every Day" — a reader favorite — complete with its "Ten Suggestions for Having a Regular Daily Practice Even if You Would Rather Be Thrown into a Shark-Infested Ocean." (If you saw our recent posting here  about Diana's guidance for a greed-free holiday season, then you know friendly and plain-spoken she is.) Thank you for a great 2011 , and may you, your loved ones, and all beings everywhere have a safe and happy 2012. Read More @ Source Basic meditation instruction Plus a thought or two about meditation and creativity Video Rating: 0 / 5

I asked the father and mother to which Tibetan ethnolinguistic category they belonged (i.e. Aba, Chabao-Jiarong, Zhugqu), but the father admitted he didn't know; he was, he said, simply Tibetan. Indeed, such classifications are made by a government on the other side of the country, not Tibetans themselves. http://redroom.com/member/tom-carter/writing/the-pilgrims-of-langmusi-a-day-in-t... added by: china1   0 comments Read More @ Source

Sometimes, when things don't work, you just have to get out of the car . And then get back in it again. And that's what I did with my laptop yesterday. I reinstalled Windows, returned the computer to it's factory settings. A first for me and it was relatively painless. Far better than a car that, in the end, wouldn't even start! How interesting it is to notice how we can put up with mal functioning, work around them, try to ignore them, hope they will go away, take a walk and see if anything is better on returning. This can happen not only with machines and the like. It happens with us on all the levels that we can 'mal function'. Over the holidays I'd eaten more sugar than I ever do. But, I reasoned (unreasonably), it's just a bit more, no problems. But, and a big but, there are consequences and it's commonly known as a 'sugar low'. I don't think I'd noticed how extreme that low can be. It lasted a day, with a head ache to beat the

The author of Writing Down the Bones recalls taking time, on New Year's Eve, for what matters. I snapped my Yaktrax to the bottom of my snow boots and trudged under a full complement of stars in a black sky to Upaya Zen Center across the road. There seventy of us sat for two hours, then listened at midnight to 108 bells ring out the night, a short talk by the roshi (Joan Halifax, my dear friend) and had tea and cookies in the kitchen. I ate way too many but insisted this was just what I needed. At the time I meant the cookies, but really it was sitting still in the dark zendo, breathing with others, coming together in this sober way on the last night of the year. More than deep or spiritual or any of the words one would associate with Manjushri, his sword of wisdom slicing through  ignorance, his statue on the altar and candles flickering, what I felt was relief. To stop at the end of a hectic year that I was trying so hard to rein in, then surrender to, then wonder what this h

The clinic shares the property with a beautiful monastery. Photo via tristanstoch.tumblr.com Tristan Stoch, a 21-year-old Port Townsend filmmaker, is currently on location in Nepal, working on his latest project. The film, tentatively titled Compassion Connects: Acupuncture and Primary Care in Nepal , will focus on a health clinic adjacent to a Buddhist monastery that is run by the Acupuncture Relief Project (ARP). Stoch plans to finance his latest documentary with funds raised through his KickStart campaign , which to date has raised just over $ 6,000 (about half of his ultimate goal). Stoch wishes "to show the potential ARP's model has for primary care in the Third World, to expose caregivers from the health care community to the work that ARP is doing in Nepal, and to attract future volunteers and expand ARP's work to the rest of the Third World." Stoch says that "pledged money will help cover his medical, insurance and equipment expenses in Nepal and al

IANS, December 29, 2011 New Delhi, India -- When Ogyen Trinley Dorje is not busy managing his 900-year-old religious order, the 17th Karmapa likes to do more human and colourful things - painting and writing poetry, songs and plays. An accomplished artist, the Karmapa sketches and paints with water colour. "Art for me is a way of resting and replenishing my mind. As the person who holds the name of Karmapa, I hold so many responsibilities that need to be completed, to be accomplished, but not everything goes according to plan. It can be exhausting sometimes. What I like about painting a picture is that when I sit down to paint, I complete it," the Karmapa told reporters here. The `sense of completion that goes along with completing the picture and the artistic ability` inspire him, the Karmapa said. "Even when I am drawing, there is something about the process of painting that brings peace and relaxation to my mind," the Karmapa said. A series of six of his

by Lewis Richmond, The Huffington Post, Dec 29, 2011 Lewis Richmond, author of "Aging as a Spiritual Practice: A Contemplative Guide to Growing Older and Wiser" gives five key tips on being happy in our golden years San Francisco, CA (USA) -- I often teach that Buddhism is about how to be truly happy, so I have been studying the new research field of "happiness studies," which focuses on the objective measures and causes of happiness. Researchers have found three factors that reliably increase happiness as we grow older -- gratitude, generosity and reframing (seeing your situation from a more positive perspective). Not surprisingly, the Buddhist tradition offers these same three factors as spiritual practices for cultivating happiness. I would add two more -- curiosity and flexibility. Gratitude. When I ask audiences what they like about being older, people often answer "Gratitude," and then say what they are grateful for: grandchildren, good health

by Marci Shatzman, The Sun Sentinel, December 28, 2011 Florida, USA -- When Buddhist nun Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo speaks about her new book, "Into the Heart of Life," at Florida Atlantic University's Peaceful Mind/Peaceful World outreach series on Jan. 7, it will be her first visit to Florida. "I was in the U.S. last June, and I'm there every one or two years," Palmo said in a phone interview. That rare visit to the United States is why Boca Raton philanthropist Barbara Schmidt wanted to bring Palmo here to share her world view with the public. "I had been reading her for years; she's an amazing human being and I love the way the writes," said Schmidt, whose Schmidt Family Foundation partners with FAU for the peace program. She will introduce Palmo. When she learned Palmo would be speaking at a retreat at the well-known Omega Institute for Holistic Studies in the Hudson Valley, N.Y., Schmidt went there to hear her. "She spoke to me; s

Xinhua, Dec 29, 2011 ZHENGZHOU, China -- Baima Temple, the oldest Buddhist temple in China, will see a new exotic shrine, funded by the Myanma government, rise in its courtyard next year, local religious affairs authorities said. << Baima is famed among Chinese people as the country's first Buddhist temple Construction on the shrine, which will be designed, funded and built by the government of Myanmar, will begin in April next year, said an official with the religious affairs bureau in Luoyang, capital city of central Henan province, where the temple is located. The 1,943-year-old Baima Temple, or White Horse Temple, is the first Buddhist temple in China and is considered "the cradle of Chinese Buddhism" by most believers. The 35-million-yuan project (about 5.56 million U.S. dollars), which will include a shrine, a pagoda and a museum, will cover an area of 7,000 square meters, and construction is expected to take about 18 months, the official said. In ord

The Buddhist Channel, Dec 30, 2011 DELHI, India -- A strong contingent of 600 Monks and Nuns led by His Holiness the Gyalwang Drukpa (spiritual head of the Drukpa Lineage) are on a Pad Yatra (walking pilgrimage) from Mumbai to Sanchi via Ajanta Ellora spreading the message of peace, harmony, goodwill and respect for the environment. The Pad Yatra was formally flagged off from Mumbai, India's corporate capital on 10th December. This Pad Yatra will pass through Ajanta Ellora (a UNESCO world heritage site) between 24th to 29th December, and ends in Bhopal on 6th January 2012. The walk will finally conclude formally in Delhi on 8th January with a public discourse by His Holiness the Gyalwang Drukpa wherein he will again reinforce his message of respect for nature and the environment. His Holiness is the recipient of United Nation's Millennium Development Goal (MDG) award for his efforts towards the environment. Earlier, in 2010, his Holiness had led a drive to safeguard the H

by Jayadeva Ranade, DNA India, December 27, 2011 New Delhi, India -- Foreign Affairs establishments of major nations usually include, among their practitioners of 'realpolitik', a select band of Sinologists, Kremlinologists and the like. China's foreign affairs establishment appears to have a group of professionals specialising in kasaya (garments worn by Buddhist monks and nuns) politics, or 'kasayapolitik'! These experts are mainly in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s United Front Work Department (UFWD) and China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. << Chinese government support for Buddhist is increasing Since the CCP indicated approval of Buddhist slightly over five years ago, describing it as an "ancient Chinese religion", the Chinese authorities have sought to use it to achieve strategic and domestic objectives. They convened World Buddhist Forums to appeal to the Buddhists in China as well as portray to neighbouring, predominantly B

by Lucy Craft, NPR, December 29, 2011 At Vow's Bar in Tokyo, Buddhist monks run the place and serve up advice along with cocktails. Here's a monk serving drinks on Monday. Tokyo, Japan -- Another Friday night at this tiny neighborhood watering hole in Tokyo: By 7:30, the bar stools and tables in this cozy joint are filling up; office workers settle in with their cocktails and Kirin beers. And by a little after 8, it's time for the main act. Vow's Bar in the Yotsuya neighborhood has no house band, no widescreen TV, no jukebox. But it does have a chanting Buddhist monk so tipplers can get a side of sutras with their Singapore Slings or something even more exotic. A pair of younger monks — conspicuous with their shaved heads, bare feet and religious garb — man the bar. For a non-Buddhist American like me, they shake up an order of the house specialty, shakunetsu jigoku, or "Burning Hell," and boy, they're not kidding. This city is said to be honeycomb

With best wishes from Sumeru… Sentiments we share with the card's creators at the Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance. http://www.religioustolerance.org/ Read More @ Source

Via KagyuOffice.org: the Seventeenth Gyalwang Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, has released a New year's message; it follows in its entirety here. "Many people have expressed anxiety about disasters that might befall the world in the year 2012. In fact, we never know what any given year might hold. But if we are sincerely committed to following a path of compassion and wisdom, this uncertainty about the future need not cause us any concern. Whatever happens, we simply keep our focus directed steadily at what matters most—cultivating compassion and equanimity, and acting to benefit others. If we harbor this attitude in our hearts, we can make anything that occurs positive for ourselves and for others. "The year 2011 itself brought many unanticipated challenges—to our natural environment and to many human communities. My heartfelt prayers go to all those who suffered in the turmoil of this year. "I wish especially to offer my prayers to all those who connected with

My parents are buried in the cemetary at Throssel Hole Buddhist Abbey. Just in case you can't read the inscription on my mothers grave marker it says, The lord is my shepard. Sending greeting and remembering the kindness of parents. They made it possible for us to live a good life; a unique life, a beneficial life. For that, at the very least, one can be grateful. Read More @ Source The Nature and Practice of Compassion In this teaching for the Buddhist communities of Atlanta and the southeastern US, His Holiness the Dalai Lama explains the nature of compassion and the practices for cultivating it as understood in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. The teaching took place at Emory University on October 17th, 2010. (www.dalailama.com). Video courtesy Emory University. Video Rating: 5 / 5

An interview with the authors of Living This Life Fully, a book reviewed earlier this year in Buddhadharma. By Danny Fisher Anagarika Sri Munindra (1914-2003) was the much-beloved Bengali master whose many students included such luminaries as Dipa Ma, Joseph Goldstein, Sharon Salzberg, and Lama Surya Das. Many generations of young practitioners and up-and-coming scholars also had the fortune to study with Munindra-ji at Bodh Gaya on Antioch Education Abroad's Buddhist Studies in India Program, which he faithfully served for years as a vipassana teacher. (I was lucky to study with him as a program participant in 1999.) He is the subject of Mirka Knaster's new book (with C. Robert Pryor) for Shambhala Publications, Living This Life Fully: Stories and Teachings of Munindra . I caught up with Mirka and Robert to discuss Munindra-ji and the book. Mirka and Robert, for those who are perhaps less aware of Munindra-ji and his contributions, would you put him into historical

The problem, as a recent comment thread on this site highlighted, is that some religions are demonstrably better than others. The example given was "social Christians" vs. "evangelical Christians." There is no Consumer Reports Best Buy for religion. Religions themselves aren't very good at defining the metrics of "good" and "bad." For the most part, followers of a religion define "good" as the one they belong to and "bad" as the one someone else belongs to. It's time to add a little science to this thing. Let's do a little thought experiment. Let's score the religions. added by: hoosierdaddy   0 comments Read More @ Source Buddhism and Charity. Video Rating: 5 / 5

By Adam Tebbe Gregory Burdulis is a former Theravadan Buddhist monk who spent several years in intensive silent meditation practice in Burma. Today he teaches mindfulness meditation to employees at the famous, 600-person advertising agency, Crispin Porter + Bogusky (CP+B). Participants are often looking for balance amid a hectic work schedule. "It's not that I am perfect or enlightened. It's that I think I can help," says Burdulis. In this TED video from last year, Burdulis discusses becoming a monk, practice, and his life and priorities today. Watch and read on for an update on his work below. In this recent piece from the Daily Camera out of Boulder, CO, Burdulis talks about how he feels more responsibility than ever in his current occupation. Employees at CP+B also share their experiences, talking about how meditation is improving their work lives. According to the piece, "the mindfulness training is meant to combine meditation techniques and counseli

BBS, Bhutan's National Public Service Broadcaster has reported that the Nyingma lineage master His Holiness Dungtse Thinley Norbu Rinpoche has died. The son of Dudjom Rinpoche and the father of Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, Thinley Norbu Rinpoche passed away today in New York at the age of eighty. He was considered to be an emanation of the fourteenth-century Nyingma master, Longchempa. His body will be brought to Bhutan after 21 days. A dedicated teacher, he left the world several books including White Sail: Crossing the Waves of Ocean Mind to the Serene Continent of the Triple Gem s and Cascading Waterfall of Nectar , in whose Foreword Alak Zenkar Rinpoche wrote of Thinley Norbu: "Although I never met His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche in person, I have a strong feeling of meeting him when encountering Thinley Norbu Rinpoche, the true son of his body, speech, and mind. He is the son of Kyabje Dudjom Rinpoche's Body, and their physical resemblance becomes more and more strik

"In order to become a follower of the dharma, the teachings of the Buddha, one has to become nonaggressive, beyond aggression. In order to do that, there has to be some kind of warmth in oneself, gentleness to oneself, which is known as maitri , or loving-kindness. There also has to be greater gentleness to others, which is known as karuna or compassion. When we begin to make a connection to the teachings, to dharma, we are willing to open our gates, to tear down our walls." — from "Aggression," in The Collected Works of Chögyam Trungpa, Volume Two . Via Ocean of Dharma . For more from Chögyam Trungpa, see our special online collection of his teachings from the Shambhala Sun, and don't miss "Ocean of Dharma," Barry Boyce's account of Trungpa's dramatic life and profound legacy, in our January 2012 magazine . (You can read Part 1, titled "Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism," here .) Read More @ Source

Uniqueness, the gem functions in relationship. Ah yes! The camera has come alive on the moors. Read More @ Source pre buddhist Video Rating: 3 / 5

Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche. Photo via dzogchenlineage.org The Dzogchen Shri Singha Foundation has announced that the Buddha Path Editing Conference and 9th Annual Dzogchen Winter Retreat will be held at the Dzogchen Retreat Center in Western Oregon this year. The two-week-long retreat will start at 3 PM on Tuesday, January 3, and will conclude on Wednesday, January 18, at 3 PM. This retreat will focus on "the editing and practice of the 3rd Edition of  The Buddha Path by Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche." According to dzogchenlineage.org , " The Buddha Path is a concise English language summary of all of Buddha's teachings and has been translated into several languages including Chinese and Russian." The original press release can be found here . Read More @ Source Tutorial2 3 Buddhism in China Video Rating: 0 / 5

What a delight this little book is. To hold it in the hand is a very pleasing experience to begin with: it is light (for a hardback), is not much bigger than an adult's hand, and is wrapped in a beautiful brown and gold cover, illustrated with a painting by Sakai Hoitsu (see above). The contents of the book are even more impressive. As the title makes clear, it is a collection of haiku translated from the Japanese by Addiss and the Yamamotos. And what an excellent job they've done! Divided into three sections, 'The Pulse of Nature,' Human Voices,' and 'Resonance and Reverberation,' Haiku also features brief biographies of all the poets featured, as well as black and white prints by Japanese artists including the famous Zen priest Hakuin Ekaku. Beautiful. The Introduction gives the reader a concise account of the structure of haiku, its history in Japan, and an argument advocating a somewhat freer translation of haiku into English than the traditional seven

Here's an interesting article from the Bangkok Post  Business section, Christmas edition, presenting a quantitative analysis of Santa's logistics as he leaves his Canadian home at the North Pole and delivers gifts worldwide, prepared by B.A. Robinson, of the Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance. http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/economics/271773/santa-s-logistics-challenge For more information about the Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance, here's a link: http://www.religioustolerance.org/ Read More @ Source

by T. S. Subramanian, The Hindu, Dec 25, 2011 45 Buddha artefacts were on display for the first time at Government Museum in Chennai Chennai, India -- It is a Buddha sculpture in metal only 52 cm tall. But it is a masterpiece in the detail it contains. << The seated Buddha is a masterpiece in metal with musicians playing various instruments around him. This bronze, about 52 cm tall, establishes that the Sellur Collection belongs to the Mahayana Buddhism. Photo: V. Ganesan The Buddha is seated on a throne, his right hand in the upadesa mudra and an umbrella high above his head. An "ushnisha" (flame of knowledge) is prominent on his head and the creepers around the umbrella signify the Bodhi tree. Around the Buddha, in the outer row, is a full "orchestra" — several men are playing the lute and other stringed instruments, a couple of them are playing percussion instruments like the "mridangam" and there is also a "rasika" with his hand

IANS, Dec 23, 2011 New Delhi, India -- Asserting that the noble land of India owned the copyright to Buddhism, the 17th Karmapa Lama, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, flagged off a grand three-day service in the capital on Friday on the occasion of the Karma Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism completing 900 years, and said the faith had made a symbolic return to the land of its birth. The Karmapa called upon people to use the ancient wisdom of Lord Buddha and apply it to the contemporary world to promote world peace. The service began with a special homage to Lord Buddha?s relics at the National Museum in the capital, followed by interfaith prayers at the memorial of Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat. The prayers culminated in a mega-discourse in the evening on the relevance of Buddhism. The day's celebrations also saw the revival of the tradition of the recital of Buddhist doha (songs) - which was sung in its original Sanskrit version after a millennium by Karnataka-based musician and researcher

IANS, December 25, 2011 New Delhi, India -- The 17th Karmapa of the Karma Kagyu sect of Tibetan Buddhist, Ogyen Trinley Dorje is spearheading the revival of Sanskrit - the language in which several early Buddhist texts had been composed in India before the religion spread to Tibet. The Karmapa, who heads the Karma Kagyu school of Buddhist in India, has instituted a practice of opening his morning prayers with chanting of Sanskrit shlokas. "In 2010, the 17th Karmapa began a search for the original Sanskrit texts of dohas (sacred couplets) composed by the great Indian `mahasiddhas` whose dharma teachings and meditation practices are transmitted today in the Karma Kagyu lineage," documents provided by the Karmapa`s office said. "After locating two rare texts, his holiness commissioned south Indian music scholar R.S. Nanda Kumar, who is reviving India`s ancient musical heritage, to set the verses to music following traditional doha song forms as faithfully as possible