Saturday, September 17, 2016

Buddhist Answers to Question asked 023 : How can we love without suffering

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6_WZ8llpyQ


Published on Oct 16, 2014
Venerable Pasura Dhantamano was born in Thailand and has over 25 years of meditation experience. He studied a master’s degree in International Relations. He is the chief of international relations division, Wat Phra Dhammakaya, Thailand, an organization dedicated to spreading world peace through inner peace.

China’s Ven. Xuecheng Attends Mideast-Far East Interfaith Summit in Jerusalem

By Craig Lewis Buddhistdoor Global  2016-09-13
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday met with leaders of Asian spiritual traditions in Jerusalem. From jpost.comIsraeli President Reuven Rivlin and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday met with leaders of Asian spiritual traditions in Jerusalem. From jpost.com
Revered Chinese Buddhist monk Ven. Xuecheng joined a delegation of religious leaders in Jerusalem on Monday for the first day of a four-day interfaith conference aimed at deepening ties between Israel and Asia. The forum will examine a range of issues, such as the role of religion in modern society, the rights of individuals and what constitutes a just society, and safeguarding the planet and the environment.

That is the Dharma....

Does a Doctor Promote Disease? - by S. N. Goenka

An expert doctor comes to examine a sick person. He explains to the sick person: “This is your disease; this is the cause of your disease; and here—I have a medicine for your disease. The medicine will remove the cause of the disease and thus cure the disease.” The sick person takes the medicine and becomes healthy. Now, would we say that this doctor is promoting disease or promoting health?
In exactly the same manner, the Buddha explains to the suffering people what their misery is; what the root cause of their misery is; then he gives the solution to eradicate all misery. He clearly explains to them that if they practise the solution, they will come out of their misery. People suffer from impurities of the mind. When they follow this wise man’s advice, they come out of misery because mental impurities are removed. Is it then logical to say that the Buddha is promoting misery?
( extract from “Was the Buddha a Pessimist?” a translation and adaptation of the VRI Hindi publication “Kyā Buddha Dukkhavādī The?” written by Goenka.)

Buddhists Concerned About Mindfulness 'Marketing'

By Kalinga Seneviratne, The Buddhist Channel, Sept 8, 2016


BANGKOK, Thailand -- Mindfulness, the meditative practice, which has its roots in Buddhism as Vipassana Bhavana, encourages people to focus on the present, rather than on the anxieties of the past or future.

In the previous decade, however, it has become somewhat of a fad around the world. Particularly in the U.S., it is now everywhere: in schools, law firms, banks, governments, and even in the U.S. military. They are all offering mindfulness sessions to staff.

But Buddhists are worried about 'secularisation' of the practice that pays little heed to its moral and ethical aspects.

While welcoming the fact that a 2500 year old teaching that originated in Asia is now offering a panacea for Westerners and others around the world to overcome the stressful life they have created for themselves, they fear that it could be used for the wrong purpose such as making military officers become better snipers by improving their concentration or corporate bosses better exploiters of their workforce to increase productivity.

Friday, September 16, 2016

Buddhist Answers to Question asked 022 : What should we do if we’re afraid to die

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RoUD1UyP7_8

Published on Oct 16, 2014
Venerable Pasura Dhantamano was born in Thailand and has over 25 years of meditation experience. He studied a master’s degree in International Relations. He is the chief of international relations division, Wat Phra Dhammakaya, Thailand, an organization dedicated to spreading world peace through inner peace.

MN 9 - Ignorance

"Not knowing about suffering, not knowing about the origin of suffering, not knowing about the cessation of suffering, not knowing about the way leading to the cessation of suffering—this is called ignorance."

China’s Tech-Savvy, Burned-Out and Spiritually Adrift, Turn to Buddhism

By JAVIER C. HERNÁNDEZ, New York Times, Sept 7, 2016
BEIJING, China -- For centuries, Buddhists seeking enlightenment made the 
journey to Longquan Monastery, a lonesome temple on a hilltop in the hinterlands
of northwest Beijing. Under the ginkgo and cypress trees, they meditated, 
chanted and pored over ancient texts.

A view of Longquan
Monastery, in the hinterlands
of Beijing. In success-driven
China, many people marvel
at the decision of the
temple’s monks to leave
behind lucrative careers in
the tech sector to devote
themselves to Buddhiststudy.
Credit Giulia Marchi for The
NewYork Times


Dhammapada 20


Exclusive Interview: The 17th Karmapa and the Buddhist Nuns of the Tibetan tradition

By Dominique Butet; images, Olivier Adam Buddhistdoor Global  2016-08-19 

His Holiness the Karmapa in Paris, 2016His Holiness the Karmapa in Paris, 2016
Our initial motive for documenting the lives of Tibetan Buddhist nuns through our photography stemmed from the fact that for many years, the Western world has largely ignored their very existence. Other aspects have since emerged that have enriched this documentary approach as the question of gender equality was being played out before our very eyes with regard to the gradual emancipation of nuns through improved access to education and progressive changes to their status in society.

Thursday, September 15, 2016

Buddhist Answers to Question asked 021 : How can we help someone who is close to death

Published on Oct 16, 2014
Venerable Pasura Dhantamano was born in Thailand and has over 25 years of meditation experience. He studied a master’s degree in International Relations. He is the chief of international relations division, Wat Phra Dhammakaya, Thailand, an organization dedicated to spreading world peace through inner peace.

Some came here for war, but India brought Buddhism here with message of peace: PM Modi in Vietnam

Newslaundry, Sep 5, 2016


Narendra Modi invited all the monks to visit India - the land of Buddha - and especially to Varanasi "which I represent in the Indian Parliament." 

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam 
-- Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday visited the historic Pagoda temple in Hanoi and the stilt house where revered leader Ho Chi Minh lived, apart from enjoying fishing with his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc. Addressing Buddhist monks at the temple, Modi said Vietnam was an inspiration for everyone to shun violence and follow Buddha’s path of peace and harmony.


<< PM Narendra Modi interacting with monks at Quan Su Pagoda

“World should walk on the path of peace that brings happiness and prosperity, while war only brings transient greatness,” the prime minister said.

“The advent of Buddhism from India to Vietnam and the monuments of Vietnam’s Hindu Cham temples stand testimony to these bonds,” Modi said.

We were born for enlightenment


We were born for enlightenment, so don't let anything make you hot and bothered. We can't blame anyone else - we wanted to be born. Stay with the Knowing and let the mind be calm, happy and peaceful. Whatever it is, watch it pass away. However, trying to develop insight without samadhi is like trying to cut down a tree with a razor blade. It's sharp but only when combined with the weight of an axe can the tree be cut down. Make your mind serene and don't look too far ahead or you will step on a thorn. Let your mind be cool. Sabaay Sabaaay.
~ Ajahn Gunhah

SN 56.18 - Knowledge


Vijjāsuttaṃ
Atha kho aññataro bhikkhu yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkami. Upasaṅkamitvā bhagavantaṃ abhivādetvā ekamantaṃ nisīdi. Ekamantaṃ nisinno kho so bhikkhu bhagavantaṃ etadavoca: "vijjā vijjāti" bhante, vuccati, katamā nu kho bhante, vijjā, kittāvatā ca vijjāgato hotīti? yaṃ kho bhikkhu, dukkhe ñāṇaṃ, dukkhasamudaye ñāṇaṃ, dukkhanirodhe ñāṇaṃ, dukkhanirodhagāminiyā paṭipadāya ñāṇaṃ ayaṃ vuccati bhikkhu, vijjā, ettāvatā ca vijjāgato hoti. Tasmātiha bhikkhu, idaṃ dukkhanti yogokaraṇīyo, ayaṃ dukkhasamudayoti yogo karaṇīyo, ayaṃ dukkhanirodhoti yogo karaṇīyo, ayaṃ dukkhanirodhagāminī paṭipadāti yogo karaṇīyoti.
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Sunflowers brighten up P.E.I. thanks to Buddhist Monks

By Natalia Goodwin, CBC News, Sep 3, 2016


'We just thought it's a great way to bring in some sunshine into everyone's life,' says monk

Prince Edward Island, Canada
 -- Close to 50 businesses are a bit brighter on P.E.I. this week, all thanks to the monks at the Great Enlightenment Buddhist Institute Society.
<< Monks invite public to pick from the sunflower field

They've given more than 5,000 sunflowers from their field to local businesses to pass out for free. It's part of their ongoing effort to do good in the community, said monk Venerable Dan.



Buddha was a data scientist

Posted  by 
Editor’s note: Tara Cottrell is a writer and digital strategist, and works as the web content manager at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. Dan Zigmond is a writer, data scientist and Zen priest, and is director of analytics for Facebook. They are the authors of the book Buddha’s Diet.
More than two millennia ago, wandering the footpaths of ancient India, preaching in village huts and forest glens, Buddha was biohacking his health. He tried holding his breath so long his ears exploded, and even the gods assumed he was dead. (He wasn’t.) He then tried extreme fasting, reducing down his daily meals until he was living on just a few drops of soup each day. He got so thin his arms looked like withered branches and the skin of his belly rested on his spine.

Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Remembering Sept 11

Image may contain: text
Remembering the Victims of Sept 11, 2001
and reflecting on the Dangers of Anger & Hatred

Buddhist Answers to Question asked 020 : Why would someone want to ordain as a monk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5VxytexduI

Published on May 4, 2015
Buddhist Answers to Questions Asked presented
by Venerable Sander Khemadhammo
Master's degree in Psychology from Radboud University-Netherlands, Wat Phra Dhammakaya Thailand.

Remove the weeds


The Promise of Nibbana

BY 

According to the Buddha, final liberation is marked by an end of craving and, ultimately, all suffering. What does that look like and how is it achieved? The late Burmese meditation master Mahasi Sayadaw explains.

Mahasi Sayadaw, Lion's Roar, Buddhism, Theravada, Enlightenment, Nibbana, Buddhadharma
Journey of My Teacher. Tenzing Rigdol, 2011. Collage, silk brocade, and scripture.

Nibbana is not like a splendid palace, city, or country. It is not like a bright light or some kind of clear, calm element. All of these things are not unconditioned ultimate realities but concepts or conditioned realities.

Dhammapada 76

Regard the person who sees your faults
As a revealer of treasures.
Associate with that skilled person 
as one who is wise, who speaks reprovingly.
Keeping company with such a person,
things get better, not worse.

Tuesday, September 13, 2016

Buddhist Answers to Question asked 019 : How to abstain from alcohol

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBVVCLdLBCY

Published on May 4, 2015
Buddhist Answers to Questions Asked presented
by Venerable Sander Khemadhammo
Master's degree in Psychology from Radboud University-Netherlands, Wat Phra Dhammakaya Thailand.

Mogok Vipassana... in English!


Bhikkhu Obhasa shares his experience practicing Mogok Vipassana for the first time. The above photo shows the American monk's secluded dwelling for the Rains in 2016 in Kalaw, Shan State. For more information Mogok in English, see here.



"Last year I had the chance to attend an eight-day Mogok Vipassana course on the outskirts of Yangon. It has always been sort of an enigma as it's by far the largest and most widespread Vipassana technique in Myanmar with its famous Paticca Samuppada wheel seen everywhere, yet it has remained almost entirely off the radar to foreign meditators.

Vipassana Acharya Dr Paul Fleischman, An Ancient Path

"A person who meditates day after day, trying to focus their mind on the sensations of their body, thinking no doubt, forgetfully daydreaming no doubt, but constantly making an effort to return attention to the body and the body only, will, paradoxically but inevitably, be put in touch with mental contents that are revelatory and revolutionary. It is not just trauma that is stored in the body. Wisdom is stored in the body. Calm is stored in the body. Peace is stored in the body. All ideologies are stored in the body. All fears, all ignorance, everything that we call good or bad in ourselves is stored in the body. We are bodies just as much as we minds. All of us can be located, brought to life, met, understood, in our bodies, if and when our mind perseveringly, sensitively, and continuously travels through the body’s sensations. Where the mind contacts the body, the mind-body junction, there is always three-dimensional existence: sensation, mentations, and insight.

Dhammapada 150


Coming Home: A Buddhist transitions genders

BY ELLIE KRUG| SEPTEMBER 2, 2016 Lion's Roar

In September, 2010, at fifty-three, I surgically transitioned from male to female. It happened only after years of therapy, great soul-searching, and grudging self-acceptance. As with many transgender persons my age, transitioning genders came with a huge cost—the loss of my wife and best friend, a teenage daughter’s crushing grief and disappointment, and the eventual loss of my law practice.
ellie krug lion's roar transgender buddhist transition gender zen

Monday, September 12, 2016

Buddhist Answers to Question asked 018 : How do we cope with depression when a relationship ends

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fWQKalhf0g


Published on May 4, 2015
Buddhist Answers to Questions Asked presented
by Venerable Sander Khemadhammo
Master's degree in Psychology from Radboud University-Netherlands, Wat Phra Dhammakaya Thailand.

Chef Eric Ripert on How Buddhism Changed the Way He Operates in the Kitchen

By Lauren Effron, ABC News, 7 Sept 2016
Chef Eric Ripert is seen here during an interview with ABC News Dan Harris for "10% Happier."
Chef Eric Ripert of the famed Le Bernardin in New York City is one of the world’s best chefs, an Emmy-winning cooking show host and a cookbook author. But while Ripert was building a name for himself in the heat and the stress of a fine-dining restaurant kitchen, he also became a practicing Buddhist.

A refuge of monastic discipline in Mandalay

29 Aug 2016 By NYAN HLAING LYNN | FRONTIER Photos TEZA HLAING

Disciplined decorum is a distinguishing feature of a monastery at Amarapura that is well known for requiring its monks and novices to rigorously observe the rules of monastic conduct.

HUNDREDS OF monks and novices are walking side-by-side in a long, silent procession along a wide lane, eyes downcast and clasping black offerings bowls. The lane is lined with tamarinds and other big shady trees common in central Myanmar.

The current abbot of Mahagandayon, Nayaka Sayadaw Abhidhaja Maha Rattha Guru Eindra Basabivansa. (Teza Hlaing / Frontier)The current abbot of Mahagandayon, Nayaka Sayadaw Abhidhaja Maha Rattha Guru Eindra Basabivansa. (Teza Hlaing / Frontier)
About 100 tourists of all ages and nationalities have gathered under the shade of the trees. Nearby, on tables at the entrance of a dining hall are large aluminium tubs of food. As the monks and novices quietly accept their late morning meal, offered by donors, the tourists take pictures.

Obama, in Laos, highlights the strength of Buddhist faith


BY 



Sunday, September 11, 2016

Buddhist Answers to Question asked 017 : How can meditation lead to world peace

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9FJFyOKXeE

Published on May 4, 2015
Buddhist Answers to Questions Asked presented
by Venerable Sander Khemadhammo
Master's degree in Psychology from Radboud University-Netherlands, Wat Phra Dhammakaya Thailand.

Dhammapada 5

Na hi verena verāni sammantīdha kudācanaṃ
Averena ca sammanti esa dhammo sanantano.

Hatred never ends through hatred.
By non-hate alone does it end.
This is an ancient truth.
- Gil Fronsdal

Lord Buddha and Wakkali Thero




"Pamojjabahulo bhikkhu
pasanno buddhasasane
adhigacche padam santam
sankharupasamam sukham."
The bhikkhu who frequently feels joy and is devoted to the Teaching of the Buddha will realize Nibbana  the Tranquil, the Unconditioned, the Blissful. (~ Dhammapada )

See Things Clear Through



BY 


Photo by Sean Brown.
Photo by Sean Brown.