Spiritual Awakening

Last week, Pema Chodron began her 80th year and we wished her a Happy Continuation! She has been pursuing spiritual awakening for more than half of her life! Here is what she says about it: “Spiritual awakening is frequently described as a journey to the top of a mountain. We leave our attachments and our […]

The Six Paramitas

After almost two weeks of articles about giving and the six paramitas, we come to a great video by Pema Chodron from a retreat she led in 1999 called, “Awakening Bodhichitta.” Bodhichitta literally means “heart-mind,” and is refers to awakening the mind of love, compassion, and awakening. The subject of the retreat is the training […]

Foundations Of Buddhist Thought – The Eightfold Path

In the previous segment of the Foundations of Buddhist Thought, we learned about The Four Noble Truths and The Eightfold Path. The Eightfold Path is the fourth noble truth of the Buddha. The elements of The Eightfold Path can be characterized in three groups, which serve as the cornerstones of Buddhist practice. The first group is […]

Comments On The Bodhisattva Vows

Yesterday, I presented the Vows of the Bodhisattvas in two versions. One of the versions was from the San Francisco Zen Center and their founder, Zen Master Shunryu Suzuki Roshi. It goes like this: Beings are numberless. I vow to awaken with them. Delusions are inexhaustible. I vow to end them. Dharma gates are boundless. […]

The Unexpected Journey Taken By The Hobbit

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey opens today. As you probably know, the movie is based on J. R. R. Tolkien’s fantasy novel, The Hobbit or There and Back Again. The books was first released in 1937 to rave reviews and re-released in 1966 with illustrations by J. R. R. Tolkien (see below). The story in the book is […]