Archives: BD Articles
10 Steps to Tame the Elephant
For generations, Tibetan practitioners have been guided by a chart outlining the nine stages of samatha meditation. Jan Willis takes us through the map and introduces us to the characters along the way.
The View from This Shore
Koun Franz considers what it means when a path of transcendence leaves us right where we always were.
Lean Into Suffering Through Khanti
Sister Clear Grace Dayananda left the monastery, packed her life into a little van, and went out into the world to meet people where they are and where they are suffering. Here, she considers khanti, the paramita of forbearance, and the work it requires.
How to Practice Sila Without Calculation
How do we practice ethical conduct, or sila, without falling into judgment, and without ignoring the complexity of each moment? According to Norman Fischer, the way has always been there.
No Separate Thing
The abbot of Toledo, Ohio's Buddha Eye Temple on the crucial quality of vigor. Its practice, he contends, "is here in this present step. How do we walk right now? What result is in the step itself?"
Generosity Comes First
In any presentation of the paramitas, dana, or generosity, always comes first — Nikki Mirghafori explains why.
The Freedom of Emptiness
At the heart of the path of the paramitas is prajna, or wisdom—but a wisdom that goes beyond our conventional ideas about it. Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche unpacks how that kind of wisdom works.
America has Zen all the time. Why, my Teacher, should I meddle?
Teachings and poems by the late Nyogen Senzaki. From Like A Dream, Like a Fantasy: The Zen Writings and Translations of Nyogen Senzaki.
Empty, Pure, Luminous: Mind in Dzogchen and Mahamudra
Roger R. Jackson explains how different Tibetan schools approach the nature of mind, and why it matters.
Can Meditation Actually Be Dangerous?
After seeing multiple headlines about the dangers of meditation, Randy Rosenthal decided to investigate it for himself. Here’s what he found.
The Many Faces of Cultural Appropriation
What does cultural appropriation mean in a Buddhist context? According to Chenxing Han and Trent Walker, the answer is not as simple as we might like it to be.
May All Be Well: The Aspirations of the Medicine Buddha
Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche shares the fundamentals of Buddhist medicine and the intentions behind it.
The Practice of Wonderment
When your life takes the shape of a question, says Guo Gu, then you have entered the practice of huatou.
Making Offerings to Our Ancestors
When we place offerings on the altar for teachers long past, do we understand what we are doing, or why? Zenju Earthlyn Manuel looks into the depths of that encounter between past and present.
Are my finances at odds with my Buddhist practice?
Sean Feit Oakes, Gendo Lucy Xiao, and Lama Liz Monson on balancing Buddhist practice and the financial realities of life.
When We Have No Choice
Sometimes, says Pema Khandro, there’s no way out. It’s at those times that we can discover the depth and resilience of the mind.
Is happiness really the central goal of Buddhist practice?
Anushka Fernandopulle, Ven. Thubten Chodron, and Kaira Jewel Lingo discuss the real meaning of “happiness” in Buddhism.
Meditating on the Mind Itself
A teaching on the practice of Mahamudra by the late Kagyu master Traleg Kyabgon Rinpoche.
What Meditation Can’t Cure
Meditation wasn’t designed to heal psychological wounds, explains Debra Flics. She cautions not to see it as a replacement for psychotherapy.
How Can the Dharma Help Us Work Through Grief?
Breeshia Wade, Tenku Ruff, Damchö Diana Finnegan share how the dharma can help us work through grief.