Speed creates its own power and momentum, which begin to rule us, says Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche. When we speed around, are we mastering our life or hanging on for dear life? A month or two after returning from a trip to Tibet, I ran into Aaron, a physician who had traveled with me. I asked him how it felt to be back in the West. He said that he felt as if he were winding up [...]
What Is Dream Yoga and How Do You Do It?
Buddhist practitioners have understood for centuries that the illusions we encounter in dreams are the same ones we encounter in waking life. Andrew Holecek shows us how to harness the Vajrayana techniques of dream yoga in order to wake up to reality. According to legend, when Siddhartha was glowing right after his enlightenment, people asked him if he was a god, a [...]
13 Buddhist Apps to Help Recognize You Don’t Really Need a Buddhist iPhone App
Sam Littlefair learns why there are so few Buddhist apps and how — even if they're not totally necessary — they might help you on your spiritual journey. I select Stop, Breathe & Think on my iPad, and the app opens to a friendly drawing of a meditator, next to a large “Begin” button, which I tap. I’m swept into my guided meditation. Close your eyes, reads the next [...]
It’s Not Us and Them
The fear so many of us are feeling these days can stress us into freezing our world and getting caught up in dualism. But, says Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, we can get past that by practicing mindfulness and gentleness. In the face of the economic hardship the world is now suffering, it is possible for us to spin out and become very dualistic. When we are not sure what’s going [...]
Ocean of Dharma
Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, a seminal figure in twentieth-century Buddhism and founder of this magazine, died on April 4, 1987. Barry Boyce surveys his vast body of teachings and their lasting impact on how Buddhism is understood and practiced. 1. Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism In the summer of 1968, a twenty-nine-year-old Tibetan monk traveled from Scotland to Bhutan to [...]
Iliana: A Winter Solstice Tale
Iliana: A Winter Solstice Tale is the story of a little girl who lives with her family in the kingdom of Shambhala. The days start growing shorter and shorter, and people become afraid that they'll lose the sun forever. Iliana sets off alone to find it, and along her journey, she meets magical friends and ends up learning more than she ever imagined. Written by Walter [...]
Friends of master thangka painter raise $20,000 to cover medical costs
A fundraiser for master thangka (Tibetan Buddhist scroll painting) artist Noedup Rongae has raised almost $20,000 to cover medical costs for the artist, who fell dangerously ill in India recently. The illness came shortly after Rongae unveiled his masterpiece. Rongae began studying thangka painting under his father, at the age of eight. In 1958, traveled to India, fleeing [...]
The Warrior Tradition: Conquering Fear
This article is based on a seminar Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche conducted in 1979 for teachers in Shambhala Training on meditation and the view of warriorship. That seminar was about fearlessness, and as well, about how to recognize and conquer real enemies in the world outside. (The material presented is now the core of Trungpa Rinpoche's book, Smile at Fear.) Chögyam Trungpa had [...]
Georgia Buddhist Jampa Pawo executed
Jampa Pawo, a member of the Atlanta Shambhala community, was executed on the evening April 27. In a final statement, according to the Associated Press, Pawo apologized to the family: 'I would like to say I'm sorry to Mrs Moss and the family,' Lucas said when given a chance to make a final statement. He added that he loves his friends and family and then said a short prayer: [...]
Are We Basically Good?
The question of human nature is the most important global issue that we face today, says Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche. If we conclude that humanity is not basically good— that we do not possess inherent wisdom—what hope does the future hold? It has been fifty years since my father, Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, came to the West to introduce his vision of how to create a good human [...]