Buddha Weekly's Latest Features
Meditation for children: Peer-reviewed studies support structured meditation in classrooms and homes to help children deal with depression, negative coping and self-hostility
Meditation is an essential component of Buddhism that enables us to settle, concentrate, and connect body and mind. Study after study has shown the many benefits it can bring us, including a greater sense of calm, understanding, and empathy. Why leave all its benefits for adulthood? Meditation should be taught from the...
Family lay Buddhism: What the Teachers Say about keeping motivated in your Buddhist Practice as parents — and coping with every-day family life in a modern stressful world
A single-father reader wrote in with a question (abbreviated here, as much of it was personal). He was struggling with raising his beloved daughter, yet finding his Buddhist practice was suffering due to stress and distraction. Two teachers answered this parent directly — H.E. Zasep Rinpoche and teacher Theodore Tsaousidis — and...
Why Reciting Buddhist Sutras Out Loud is Important; Sutras Help Us Remain Mindful of the Teachings and Disengage the “Clinging” Conscious Mind
In many Buddhist disciplines we are taught to value the meritorious practice of reciting sutras. Often this is done from memory, in a mantra-like chant, which begs the question why do we recite sutras? A Buddha Weekly Special Feature Sutras are the teachings of the Buddha. To speak them is to put us in...
Youth Buddhist Societies in the World — encouraging the young Sangha
The Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha – those are the three Jewels of Buddhism. For most people who just started discovering Buddhism, the Buddha and the Dharma immediately make sense. But what about the Sangha? That’s the community of practitioners, which was originally limited to the monastic order. Today, the term...
Acchariya Abbhuta Sutta: “Wonderful And Marvelous” Qualities of the Buddha
What are the wonderful and marvelous qualities of a Buddha? In this amazingly joyous sutta, Buddha interrupts the Bikkhus, who are discussing the virtues of a Buddha, and asks them to explain what they believe are the virtues of the Tathagata. [Full translated Sutta below.] This sutra is a wonderful "recap" of...
Padmasambhava, the Lotus Born: “giving up idling and laziness” the importance of practicing incessantly and the path to self-discipline ; as recorded by Lady Tsogyal
Padmasambhava, Guru Rinpoche, the Enlightened Padmakara, once taught Lady Tsogyal how to practice perfectly with self-discipline — basically, the message: I can't do it for you. In the teaching, "The Crystal Garland of Faultless Practice", the great and perfect Buddha taught the importance of overcoming laziness and "practicing incessantly" and — preferrably...
Palden Lhamo, the Terrifying Female Protector; Dalai Lama: “Sole Mother, Lady Victorious Over the Three Worlds”
As a child, who did you go to for protection — the parent who let you do anything and smiled while you did it, or the parent who yanked you back from the brink with a stern voice and scowl? "It is this ignorance and stupidity that ... wrathful deities are directed...
Tsog dates: Happy Dakini Day — Introducing the Wisdom of the Female Enlightened Dakinis
Dakini day, celebrated on the 25th day of each lunar month in Vajrayana Buddhist traditions, celebrates the feminine energy of wisdom. Devoted Buddhists will celebrate with a Tsok (Tsog), a feast including food, singing, a group (or single) sadhana full of sound and celebration. The 10th is also celebrated with Daka Tsog...
Making Healthy Choices in Addiction Recovery: the importance of mindfulness, rest, nutrition and exercise; part 4 in a series
Adam Cook returns with Part 3 in his series on addiction and recovery. Part 1, “Reclaim your mental well-being” from addiction is here>> Part 2, “Thriving post-rehab: achieving long-lasting addiction recovery” is here>> Part 3, "Finding your niche: advice for those in recovery who seek employment, is here>> By Adam Cook Addiction...
Purify Karma and Accumulate Merit with Mandala
Modern life affords us so little time to practice accumulating of merit and purification—and so many excuses to postpone for today. Who has time for daily offerings? It's all most of us can do to fit in ten minutes of meditation. Isn't it better to attend the next Vajrasattva Retreat or Empowerment than...
Initiation or Empowerment: what is it, why it is important in Vajrayana, how it helps, when you need it, how to receive it
The great Lama Thubten Yeshe, one of the pioneer teachers who brought Vajrayana and Tantric Buddhism to the West, defined initiation this way: The much revered Guru Lama Yeshe. "What is initiation? It is the beginning of the experience of meditation and concentration, of penetration into the...
Samatha meditation teaching: “Resting the mind in the natural state,” video of session 1 of a Mahamudra weekend retreat
The first session of a teaching and meditation retreat on advanced Mahamudra, taught by H.E. Zasep Rinpoche, the author of Gelug Mahamudra: Enlightened Speech of Manjushri. In session one, Rinpoche introduces Mahamudra, then speaks about the nature of mind and its obstructions. He then gives detailed, and often humorous instructions on Samatha...
