Buddhists take refuge in three different expressions of awakened mind: buddha, dharma, and sangha. Each of these is a precious and necessary element of the Buddhist path, and so they are called the three jewels. 1. Buddha: The Teacher This refers, first, to the historical Buddha, the original teacher. He was not a god but a human being like us, and his example shows us that [...]
Shamatha Meditation: Training the Mind
"The process of undoing bewilderment is based on stabilizing and strengthening our mind," says Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche. "Shamatha meditation is how we do that.” We sometimes forget how the Buddhist teachings came into being. We forget why the Buddha left his father's palace. Dissatisfied with maintaining an illusion, he wanted to understand his life—and life itself. Why [...]
Who Was the Buddha?
What do we really know about Siddhārtha Gautama, the historical Buddha? And who are these other Buddhas we sometimes see and hear about? Barbara O'Brien answers your questions about the very real human being whose spiritual quest and awakening have inspired the world for some 2,600 years. Contents Who Was Buddha? What Do We Know About the Historical Buddha? Have [...]
Tara, the First Feminist
Since becoming ordained four decades ago, Lama Tsultrim Allione has faced her share of challenges and sexism. Throughout it all, Tara’s vow to work for the benefit of all beings in a woman’s body has been a source of guidance and inspiration. When I think about women and Buddhism, the first thing that always comes to mind is the story of Tara’s vow. This story expresses our [...]
Buddhism in the Age of #BlackLivesMatter
We need to update the traditional narrative of the Buddha’s life, says Pamela Ayo Yetunde, for people who know suffering all too well. She offers some alternative stories for the time of #BlackLivesMatter. I am a person of African descent practicing Buddhism in the age of #BlackLivesMatter. I am also trained in the Insight Meditation tradition to organize and lead Buddhist [...]
On Suffering and the End of Suffering
A friend of mine once had to explain to her four-year-old son that the woman who had been providing child care for him since he was born was going to move away. Because her child was very attached to this person, my friend carefully told him about this step-by-step, making sure to say that the caregiver loved him, that they could write and talk on the phone and visit, but that [...]
Do Buddhas think?
Question: Do buddhas think? Narayan Helen Liebenson: As I understand it, the awakened mind includes thinking; it’s just that the thinking is necessary, functional, and discerning rather than indulgent, unnecessary, and addictive. Without attachment to thinking, silence and peace are available. In not grasping after thoughts and taking them to be me and mine, there is freedom [...]
What Happens in the Lotus Sutra? Unpacking the events in this famous Buddhist Scripture
In his new book, The Lotus Sutra: A Biography, Donald S. Lopez, Jr. unpacks what may be the most famous of Buddhist scriptures, explaining how it came to be and how its influence has grown over centuries. Here, in Chapter 1 from that book, Lopez provides what he calls “The Plot Summary” of the Lotus Sutra, in plain language. Whether you’re experienced with the Lotus or have [...]
Playing With Buddha
“The Buddha is with you,” his mother used to say. “Believe in him.” At age seven, Ira Sukrungruang believed that the Buddha was more than a bronze statue. The Buddha was his best friend. I used to stare at the meditating Buddha in our living room: his straightbacked posture, his wide shoulders and narrow waist, his elegant hands resting humbly in his lap. This statue sat [...]
Trusting the Three Treasures
Taking refuge in the Buddha, dharma, and sangha, says Geoffrey Shugen Arnold, involves taking a leap forward with a deep sense of trust in our own basic nature and the natural wisdom of all phenomena. The three treasures are the path to the awakened mind, and they are that awakening itself. They point to the ultimate nature that is realized through practice, as well as to how [...]