Category: Buddhadharma
59 Ways to Turn Your Mind Around
The way to bodhicitta, the mind of compassion, is marked by the fifty-nine lojong slogans. Gaylon Ferguson points us in the right direction.
The Mind That Knows Itself
Until we begin to make the distinction between observing thoughts and observing the knowing mind, writes Ayya Dhammapida, "we have not yet begun to study or to experience the mind directly."
We’ve Been Here All Along
Funie Hsu says it’s time we recognize Asian American Buddhists and address the racism that marginalizes their ongoing role in the dharma in the West.
Imagine You Are a Buddha
In this second part of his series on tantra, Mingyur Rinpoche explains how visualization practice helps us recognize our buddhanature.
How can I frame my dharma practice in more positive terms?
Satya Robyn, Harry Um, and Valerie Brown discuss the "positive" and "negative" focuses of Buddhist practice.
Our Traditions Can — and Must — Change
Even as we uphold tradition, says Justin von Bujdoss, we also have to leave room for it to grow.
Everything Is Enlightenment
Enlightenment is everywhere we look, says Joan Sutherland — we can choose to notice it, but at the same time, we can also trust that it will find us, wherever we are.
The Complete Practice
Pamela White completes eight cycles of the intense purification process known as nyoungne, and finds it a joyous experience.
Our Path Is Limitless and Vast
While women may feel constrained by Buddhist institutions, the dharma itself poses no such limitations, says Joan Sutherland.
Comparing Mahamudra and Dzogchen
Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche (1920–1996) on the differences between Mahamudra and Dzogchen—and the relationship between them.
When Sadness Rages Like Fire
Pema Khandro Rinpoche shares the life of the Tibetan yogi Shabkar, whose practice and teachings were inseparable from loss and grief.
Chanting for Buddhahood
Shodaigyo meditation combines silent sitting with chanting to the beat of a drum. Ryuei Michael McCormick on how to do this calming yet exhilarating practice.
Full-Stop Mind
The late Burmese teacher Mahasi Sayadaw helped to revitalize the Vipassana tradition with his precise teachings on meditation. His student Bhante Bodhidhamma presents Mahasi’s simple and direct method for slowing down and ultimately halting conceptual thinking.
The Golden Chain: Guide to a Life of Love
The Golden Chain is a traditional recitation within American Shin Buddhist communities. For Camille Hamilton Pating, it comes as naturally—and joyfully—as saying the Name of Amida Buddha.
In Defense of Ritual
Richard Payne takes a serious look at the role of ritual in Buddhist practice and the reasons why Westerners might feel resistant to it.
Take Charge of Your Practice
Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche's advice for time management: organize your schedule, let go of distractions, and make a clear aspiration to practice.
Feeling Our Way to Awakening
The emotions we wish we didn’t have, that we’d like to just get over? Those feelings, say Jody Hojin Kimmel, are not obstacles on the path — they are the path.
Only Don’t Know
Whatever answers you think you have, says Judy Roitman, you don’t—and in that not knowing, we find the heart of Buddhist practice.
Here at the End of the World
Grief is how we love in the face of loss, as Joan Sutherland once wrote for Buddhadharma. Now, in an era of so much loss, her teaching on coming to terms with grief feels especially relevant.
How the Five Skandhas Build Our Sense of Self
We assemble the thing we call "self" ourselves, according to Buddhist psychology. Gaylon Ferguson breaks down the five-step process of ego development.