Last Thursday night, my wife and I attended a fund raising event for the American Himalayan Foundation with guest speaker, Matthieu Ricard, “The happiest man in the world!” Matthieu Ricard has a PhD in biochemistry and became a monk in the Tibetan tradition shortly after receiving it. He is also a humanitarian, advocating altruism and […]
Only YOU Can Prevent World War III
January 1, 2019 by
As we begin the new year, I want to remind the world that only YOU can prevent World War III. I say this because most of the world is fast asleep when it comes to issues like climate change, poverty, homelessness, inequality, racism and discrimination of all kinds. The US isn’t the only place were […]
The Zen Teachings of Bagger Vance
November 2, 2017 by
A few nights ago, we re-watched The Legend of Bagger Vance in which Rannulph Junuh, played by Matt Damon learns the Zen teachings of Bagger Vance, played by Will Smith. Junuh is in a golf tournament with two top players in Savannah, Georgia and has fallen 12 stokes behind. Bagger Vance gives Junuh the following […]
Interbeing with All Life
June 8, 2017 by
When I discussed interbeing with all life with Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson several years ago, he said, I would say in modern times, (I need to define modern as in the last century). What you said recent times was 25 years. In modern times, we have come to learn about ecology. I’ll use a single […]
Can We Learn to Laugh at Ourselves?
April 4, 2017 by
Can we learn to laugh at ourselves for the situation we’ve created in the United States now with money being more important than people, nature or life on earth? Can we learn to laugh at ourselves for destroying the only planet that we know of that can support life as we know it? Isn’t it […]
A Song For All Beings
March 3, 2017 by
Last Saturday night, I attended a performance of A Song For All Beings to a packed house. Composed and produced by Jennifer Berezan and friends, A Song For All Beings is based on the Buddhist practice of metta and the four immeasurable minds or Brahma Viharas (divine abodes) of loving kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and […]
7 Ways to be More Grateful
February 28, 2017 by
These 7 ways to be more grateful in life were written by Luminita Saviac – The Purpose Ferry. I find them to be very useful in light of my daily practice of gratitude. If you are not practicing gratitude on a daily basis, maybe you should begin. It is one of the fastest ways to […]
Include All Things
February 23, 2017 by
The insight of interbeing tells us to include all things. This inclusiveness pertains to people, animals, plants and minerals all the way down to the smallest atom (hydrogen) and all the up beyond the visible universe. But this is not a new idea as many think. For example, in my interview with Neil deGrasse Tyson […]
Man is Not the Enemy
January 20, 2017 by
With lots of unrest in the world and in the United States about the inauguration we have to remember that man is not the enemy. So who or what is the enemy? I would say that greed, aggression and delusion are the enemy – the three poisons taught by the Buddha. For example, in Tanzania, […]
Reverence for Life
December 1, 2016 by
Reverence for Life is the first of the Five Mindfulness Trainings authored by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh (known as “Thay” by his followers.) In the time of the Buddha it was known as the first precept and, in fact, at that time, all of the precepts were simple statements like, “Not to kill,” “Not […]
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