The Hero’s Journey — is imagination the path to Enlightenment? Can truth be discerned with creativity? Why visionary Buddhism is about “practice” rather than “study”
Meditation, Vajrayana
Buddha taught abhutaparikalpo’sti, which translates as something like “unreal imagination exists.”[1] Buddha said, "All teachings are preceded by imagination." This is why both Buddha and Jesus taught in parables — bridging imagination with intellect. It is also why ...
Transform your life with the four protective meditations taught in Buddhism
Meditation
Today’s modern world can leave you spinning. Finding time to look inward is challenging with all the external stimuli demanding your attention. However, the human soul cries out for the deeper understanding and peace that only contemplative practices ...
Mahamudra, vast like space and beyond mind; polluted by nothing with nothing to obscure openness
Buddhist Practices, Meditation
Mahamudra is the ultimate practice in Tibetan Buddhism in many ways — yet it is profoundly simple. Maitripa, Tilopa's great Mahasiddha student, described Mahāmudrā as: "Mahāmudrā, that which is unified and beyond the mind, is clear yet thoughtless, ...
Arya Supreme White Tara, ultimate Tara is more than a “long life” Tara — she is the ultimate of the Taras
Bodhisattvas, Buddha, Buddhist Practices, Dakini, Dakini Wisdom, Deities, Dharma, Mahayana, Mantra, Meditation, Tantra, Tara
Vajrayana Buddhist teachers are universal in their enthusiasm for White Tara. Almost every teacher has real-life stories of people close to them who have been helped by White Tara, especially for health and auspiciousness. In fact, when we ...
Shabkar’s Song of Practice: the entire path, from refuge to generation to completion in one song by one of the great sages of Tibet
Buddhist Practices, Deities, Dharma, Meditation, Tantra, Teachers, Vajrayana
Only a true visionary Yogi could distill a path that fills lifetimes and books into a single song. Such a Yogi is the great Shabkar Tsokdruk Rangdrol, an emanation of the great Milarepa. Both were famous for their ...
Six ways to focus the mind: Metta, mindfulness, breath, progressive, transcendental, or Zazen
Meditation, Zen • Chan • Seon
Our society is rife with stress, competition, fear, and commercialism – yet we're at a time when spirituality has become a buzzword. On one hand, there’s definitely an increased need for spiritualism in a stressful environment, but there ...
Settling the Mind or Activating the Mind — which meditation works, why and how? One’s good for health, the other for mind, and…
Meditation
Meditation is an important practice in virtually all schools of Buddhist thought, and in one form or another, most Buddhists practice it. But did you know there are two main types of meditation? From formal Chan practice, such ...
Targeted Calm-Abiding Meditation: Dalai Lama and Lama Tsongkhapa teach how to target the main affliction for a more precise meditation result
Buddhist Practices, Dalai Lama, Lama Tsongkhapa, Meditation, Mindfulness, What the Buddhist Teachers Say
His Holiness the Dalai Lama presented a profound and brilliant method to "target" your meditation on the affliction, in his powerful commentary on Lama Tsongkhapa's Great Exposition of Secret Mantra. When we think of calm-abiding meditation, we might ...
5 ideas for people who find seated meditation difficult — and ways to re-motivate your practice
Meditation
Did you know, in the United States, meditation is the second most popular body and mind practice; first is yoga? Many studies have revealed that medication has several psychological and health benefits. Meditation allows you to relax and ...
Zazen is “good for nothing” — the journey to Enlightenment starts with “just sitting” — and it’s good for your health, stress or anxiety (studies)
Meditation, Mindfulness, Zen • Chan • Seon
Zazen is a type of meditation that is central to Zen Buddhism, and first taught by Shakyamuni Buddha as an insight practice — and it's good for nothing! Just sit. That is all. Don't get us wrong, it's ...
Mindfulness in action and every-moment awareness: learning to live life to the fullest; meditation through living
Buddhist Living, Meditation, Mindfulness
We often lack the focus necessary to become aware of all of our experiences and genuinely comprehend what we desire in the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Although mindfulness necessitates ongoing work, it requires a specific sort ...
Ten confirmed health and wellness benefits of meditation: the science of mindfulness, with 17 cited research studies
Meditation, Mindfulness, Scientific Buddhist
Buddha taught the many benefits of meditation more than 2500 years ago — in the Satipatthana Sutta and others — and modern medical science confirms and reinforces those benefits in study after study. In this feature, we cite 17 ...