Thirteen leading Buddhist teachers, joined by more than 140 additional signatories, call on Buddhists and all people of faith to take a stand against policies of the new administration that will create suffering for the most vulnerable in society. As long as a society protects the vulnerable among them, they can be expected to prosper and not decline. —The Buddha, in the [...]
About Jan Willis
The Dalai Lama: The Lamp for Our Path
In the July 2017 issue of Lion’s Roar, 12 leading teachers, writers, and activists reflect on why we need the Dalai Lama and his message more than ever. Jan Willis reflects on the importance of his life's example of compassion, peace, and joyfulness. Some people’s very presence in the world gives hope, solace, and courage to the rest of us. Their life and being is a gift [...]
Eight Buddhist Views on the Practice of Politics
Politics and Buddhism might seem antithetical, but in truth Buddhist practice is inherently political. From the July 2004 Lion's Roar, Here are eight views on how to move society along the path to freedom from political suffering. A Buddhist Brawl By Richard Reoch Not so long ago a brawl broke out in a Buddhist shrine room. A close friend of mine was involved. The retreat [...]
We Cry Out for Justice
There will only be social justice in America, says Jan Willis, when we see all people as our equals. She offers an ancient Buddhist meditation to help us do that. We have too often and for too long seen white men with guns take the lives of young, unarmed black men and do so with seeming impunity and without accountability. We cry out: Where is justice? When will human [...]
A Peaceful World Begins With Small Peaceful Actions
To change the world, says Jan Willis, we need hope. And hope grows from nonviolent actions, no matter how small. Sharing this tiny planet amidst a vast universe, we are all interconnected beings, incapable even for a nanosecond of complete independence. Yet we conduct our lives as though we each possessed complete and ultimate control of our individual, isolated universes. We [...]
Let’s foster today’s Thai Forest Tradition
In the foothills nestled among the many sugarcane fields that blanket the plains of Uthai Thani, Thailand, stands the red roof of Wat Pa Sak Thong’s main temple. There are five resident monks at this monastery, ranging in age from thirty to seventy. The Abbot, Luang Po Maan Noon, is fifty-eight. There are normally three nuns (or, maechee) here as well, aged fifty-five to [...]
Why We Can’t Breathe
In December, 2014, a grand jury chose not to indict police officer Daniel Pantaleo over the death of Eric Garner, whom Pantaleo had wrestled while Garner said repeatedly, “I can’t breathe.” He later died. The incident sparked protests across America and #ICantBreathe trended on Twitter globally. In response, Buddhist scholar Jan Willis wrote this poignant essay — one whose [...]
Yes, We’re Buddhists Too!
Jan Willis examines the subtle—and not so subtle—racism that exists in American Buddhism. On occasion, people have said to me, “Oh, I didn’t know that there were African American Buddhists!” Mostly my reaction is demure, but I sometimes want to respond with the question, “Why shouldn’t there be?” After all, African Americans are human beings who think and breathe and [...]
A Professor’s Dilemma
I have taught undergraduate-level courses in Buddhism for almost thirty-five years, but I still wonder whether I've succeeded in imparting to students what I see as the compelling qualities of this compassionate religion. In short, I find myself asking, is there anything “Buddhist” about a college course in Buddhism? I wonder what particular skills and qualities we [...]
The Cho-mos of Ladakh: From Servants to Practitioners
Jan Willis reveals why and how life is getting better for the nuns of Ladakh after the Sakyadhita conference in 1995. Tucked away on a high plateau in the far northwest of India lies the dry and windswept region of Ladakh, one of the most beautiful and remote outposts in the Buddhist world. To the east it is bordered by the Himalayas. To the west lies war-troubled Kashmir and [...]