The march started with a meditation led by monks from Green Gulch Farm Zen Center. On Saturday, Buddhists from fifteen different communities marched alongside thousands of others in San Francisco to call attention to climate change. The Rise for Climate march was one of many that took place around the world this weekend highlighting the impacts of the current climate [...]
Italian president honors Buddhist teacher Namkhai Norbu
President Mattarella gave Norbu the title of "Commander in the Order Of Merit of the Italian Republic." Dzogchen teacher and Buddhist scholar Namkai Norbu was bestowed the title of Commander in the Order Of Merit of the Italian Republic by President Sergio Mattarella. Norbu is the president of the International Dzogchen Community, as well as the founder of Merigar West [...]
Artist installs sculptures made of fog in Boston parks
Inspired by Buddhist philosophy, Japanese artist Fujiko Nakaya sculpts impermanence in fog. Inspired by impermanence, Japanese artist Fujiko Nakaya has created fog sculptures that roil, billow, and dissipate at the hands of nature. From August 11 to October 31, five of Nakaya’s fog sculptures will enshroud the Emerald Necklace, Boston’s 1,100-acre park system. The [...]
Pioneering Buddhist chef Seng Luangrath wants you to know “Lao food is good food”
Shortly after Lao-American chef Seng Luangrath opened a Thai restaurant, she found herself asking, “Why am I not serving Lao food?” Now, she’s on a mission to popularize the cuisine of her native country. As a child, Seng Luangrath fled her home country of Laos during the Vietnam War. Her family lived in a Thai refugee camp for two years before moving to California, where [...]
Claire Wineland, Cystic Fibrosis activist, dies at age 21
Influenced by Buddhism, Wineland spoke openly about living with cystic fibrosis. Claire Wineland, an activist who lived with cystic fibrosis and was influenced by Buddhist practice, passed away Sunday evening. She was 21. Wineland dedicated her life to breaking down the stigma shrouding terminal illness and mortality. Her candid social media posts inspired millions, and [...]
UN accuses Myanmar military leaders of genocide
After interviewing more than 850 witnesses, the UN says the Myanmar military is "killing indiscriminately." On Monday, the United Nations Human Rights Council released a report that accuses Myanmar’s military of committing acts of genocide against Rohingya Muslims. According to The Guardian, UN investigators interviewed more than 850 witnesses who fled the country, [...]
Lead to Life transforms guns into shovels
Lead to Life repurposes weapons as tools, planting healing seeds for a cleaner earth. From the September 2018 issue of Lion's Roar. Rev. Martin Luther King dreamed that people would “beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.” He dreamed of weapons transformed into tools. On the fiftieth anniversary of King’s death, Kyle Lemle and Brontë Velez [...]
Advice From a Queer Sangha Leader
“We are all spokes on a wheel. Can you have respect for another spoke?” Haleigh Atwood talks to Against the Stream's Qsangha leader, Steve Levitt. As a gay man in the '80s, Steve Levitt lost many loved ones in the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Coupled with the death of both parents, his suffering morphed into a deep, seething anger — until he learned to meditate. Today, Levitt is [...]
LGBTQ Buddhists: Teachings, Profiles, and Conversations
A collection of teachings from, profiles on, and conversations with LGBTQ folks in Buddhism. Featuring Larry Yang, Rev. angel Kyodo williams, Steve Silberman, George Takei, Roshi Pat Enkyo O’Hara, Finn Enke, Ellen Krug, Issan Dorsey, Lama Rod Owens, Jeff Wilson, Justin Simien, Caroline Contillo, Koshin Paley Ellison, Robert Chodo Campbell, Pablo Das, Ray Buckner, and [...]
Buffalo park sees population boom after Buddhists take over management
Five calves were born this spring at Buffaloland Park in Prince Edward Island, Canada. Buffaloland Park in Milltown Cross, Prince Edward Island (PEI), welcomed five new additions to its buffalo herd this spring, raising the total population to 56. “It was surprising for us this year,” Floyd Sanderson, operations manager, said about the five births. “But it’s something [...]
