The Mind
“All that we are is a result of what we have thought.” —Buddha
Ever had a bad day and felt the world was feeling down with you? Or experienced joy so great that good fortune greeted you around each corner? This section takes a closer look at the workings of the mind, through lenses like Yogacara (“Consciousness Only”) Buddhism, Western and Eastern philosophies, psychology, and our own personal reflections.
We added another video on the Zen Chan Buddhist Catholic Dialogue, which took place at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas. It is a short video conversation, featuring Sister Mary Ann Donovan and Professor Ronald Epstein. For further info and full listing of videos on the dialogue, please visit this page. [...]
“If people wish to fully understand All Buddhas of the three periods of time, They should contemplate the nature of the dharma realm: Everything is made from mind alone.” — Avatamsaka Sutra My understanding of the above verse has evolved since I first read it as a teenager. I no longer read it as mainly [...]
… it is extremely difficult to stay alert and attentive instead of getting hypnotized by the constant monologue inside your own head. Twenty years after my own graduation, I have come gradually to understand that the liberal-arts cliché about “teaching you how to think” is actually shorthand for a much deeper, more serious idea: “Learning [...]
On our way back from a visit to Dharma Realm Monastery in Liugui, a rural district of Kaohsiung, Taiwan, our local host took us to visit another Buddhist establishment in the vicinity. This particular monastery sits half-way up one of the many hills in this mountainous region in Southern Taiwan, and like many other hill-side [...]
Recently, great posts by Alexandra and Audrey got me thinking. In their posts, along with my previous conversations with others who are trying to gain a little insight into their minds, often the word or the image of “edge” comes up. Alexandra wrote about becoming aware of one’s subconscious thoughts, of going to the “edge [...]
The hardest thing I have ever done is to teach high school for one semester. In the grand scheme of things, I realize how ridiculously lucky this makes me. But I have to admit it’s true; I’ve never struggled or suffered so much as I did in that endless five month stretch in the classroom. [...]
There is hope! There is a place of inner confidence from which we can see what’s going on. This isn’t the false bravado of ego that represents an over-compensation for not knowing. Nor is it the misguided sense of certainty through which we set up an external symbol and to which we give up our [...]
September 29, 1977 Feelings that can’t be described, only felt: the steam-fire energy sometimes crescendos past my control. If I can turn it (like a stampede of cattle) and slowly and quietly gather it in, “everything is okay.” It passes. This is called “Waiting out the fire.” If I can’t, all hell breaks loose. Very [...]