Want to support the people of Tibet and their spiritual leader, His Holiness the Dalai Lama? We've gathered information and links for some of the many fine organizations who do just that. Tibet Fund Since 1981, the Tibet Fund has been the primary funding organization for health care, education, refugee rehabilitation, religious and cultural preservation, elder care, and [...]
My Bully Became a Buddhist
When Eric Steuer discovered his childhood bully was now a Buddhist teacher, he asked him the question he’d always wanted to: Why did you treat me that way? When I tell my dad I’m going to hang out with Jeff Zlotnik, he laughs. “Once, when you were a kid, I asked why you were so scared of Jeff. You said, ‘Because he’s so much bigger than me.’” In reality, I was a head [...]
The Insight Revolution
Determined to save Buddhism in Burma during colonial rule, Ledi Sayadaw popularized the teachings of the Abhidharma and introduced thousands of laypeople to the practice of insight meditation. As Erik Braun tells us, he set in motion a revolution in Buddhist practice still being felt around the globe. More than a century ago, as the British were taking over his country, a [...]
Where Everyone Can Thrive
East Bay Meditation Center in Oakland is a leader in developing dharma for people who don’t feel welcome elsewhere. Lindsay Kyte explores EBMC’s focus on respect, safety, and the joy of being seen for who you are. In a society where many fight to be seen and heard, Mushim Ikeda sees a great need for well-being for the oppressed through spirituality and community. “For [...]
Report alleges sexual misconduct by leader of Shambhala community
Buddhist Project Sunshine released its second report today, containing allegations of sexual assault and clergy sexual misconduct by Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, leader of the Shambhala Buddhist community. The report includes three victim impact statements by female members of Shambhala. The anonymous statements detail allegations of sexual assault in the form of unwanted sexual [...]
Shambhala leader makes public apology
Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, the leader of the Shambhala community, published a letter on Monday apologizing for hurt caused by past relationships with women in his community. In the letter, addressed to the Shambhala community, Sakyong Mipham writes that “there have been times when I have engaged in relationships with women in the Shambhala community. I have recently learned [...]
A Buddhist Chaplain Disrupts Suffering in Rikers Island
No one escapes suffering in Rikers Island. Not prisoners, not staff. Jennifer Keishin Armstrong profiles Justin von Bujdoss, the first-ever Buddhist chaplain in America’s most notorious jail. In a small, cinder-block room lit by shards of afternoon sun sneaking in through windows in the ceiling, thirteen jail guards in dark blue uniforms sit quietly on gray plastic chairs. [...]
Kunga Dawa, first Western teacher trained by Trungpa Rinpoche, dies at 78
Buddhist teacher Kunga Dawa, also known as Richard Arthure, died in Colorado on Monday at 78 years old. Dawa met the pioneering Buddhist teacher Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche in England in 1966 and served as his private secretary for several years. In 1968, Dawa was with Trungpa Rinpoche when he composed the Sadhana of Mahamudra, an important contemporary Buddhist text. Dawa [...]
Interview Crushes
Each Friday, we share three topical longreads in our Weekend Reader newsletter. This week, Lion's Roar magazine associate editor Lindsay Kyte talks about her favorite profiles. Sign up here to receive the Weekend Reader in your inbox. Our editor-in-chief, Melvin McLeod, says I sometimes get “interview crushes.” He is right. I am really lucky — I have a job where I get to ask [...]
What About the Cost of Retreats?
Many Buddhist practitioners can’t afford to go on retreats. Pamela Ayo Yetunde says it’s time we start thinking about how to make the practice less exclusive. I first learned about meditation retreats when I was a volunteer with Zen Hospice Project. My co-volunteers—professional financially stable white men—often talked fondly about their meditation teachers and retreat [...]
