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Understanding Zen Meditation: Embracing Wandering Thoughts
Shared by Kaz The bamboo: straight and upright, yet flexible and resilient. This simple yet profound metaphor beautifully captures the essence of Zen practice. Shared by Roshi Joan Halifax in an NHK program I recently watched while in Japan, it offers a powerful way to understand meditation and mindfulness. The NHK program explored why meditation…
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Finding Oneness: Reflections on Goodness
By Ann This morning, as I sat in silence, I found myself reflecting on a moment from years ago that shifted my perspective in a profound way. It was around Christmas time, much like now, when Rev. Ito, a Buddhist priest, walked into the room and said, “Jesus was a good man.” Hearing those words…
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The Power of Ritual: Strengthening Community Bonds
By SusanRecently I’ve been wondering about the importance of ritual. I read an article about how important ritual is to a community and it mentioned a study by an anthropologist, Dimitris Xygalatas. And I started to wonder more about this topic. I know that in a community, in a society, there are rituals that are…
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Things You Cannot Control
By Aaron One thing though I’ve been thinking about a lot lately is how I should react when there are things in the world outside of my control that trouble me. So I collected a few quotes on that topic that maybe will help me or maybe will spur thoughts among others. The first one…
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Embracing Imperfection: Finding Light in the Cracks
By Taylor I recently found myself contemplating what to discuss and was reminded of a song lyric by Leonard Cohen: “There’s a crack in everything; that’s where the light gets in.” This sentiment feels particularly relevant to Buddhist practice in our daily lives. When we examine anything closely enough, we discover flaws and inherent changes…
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Life’s Best Lessons Come from Doing, Not Reading
Shared by KazYou know that moment when someone says something that doesn’t quite make sense at first, but later it hits you like a lightbulb? That’s exactly what happened to me about fifteen years ago when I started practicing zazen meditation. My teacher, Rev. Ito, once told me: “Kaz, steal from others on how to…
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