Wildmind's meditation blog
Wildmind's blogs are where you'll find book reviews, commentary, podcasts, and articles that don't fit neatly into the more structured guides to meditation that you'll find on the main part of the site. Articles are arranged below by date, and you can also browse by author and category using the links on the left.
Mindfulness, parenting, and happiness
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Most people will tell you the greatest happiness in their lives comes from having children, but research shows that most people aren’t all that happy while parenting. Can mindfulness make parenting more enriching? Bodhipaksa thinks it does.
In an article in Atlantic magazine, author and Yale University professor of psychology Paul Bloom makes a provocative observation about parenthood and happiness:
Pretty much no matter how you test it, children make … Click to read more »
Meditation zeitgeist, Nov 15 2008
A not-entirely-random selection of blog posts on meditation.
Just who do you think you are?
There’s a compelling article in Atlantic on the theory that the self is not unitary but a composite of multiple selves.
“First Person Plural,” is written by Paul Bloom, a professor of psychology at Yale University and the author of Descartes’ Baby: How the Science of Child Development Explains What Makes Us Human. He’s writing a book on the theme of pleasure, and I imagine it’ll be well-worth reading.
His article shows that … Click to read more »
Teenage ‘Buddha’ draws crowd as he ends year of jungle meditation
The Scotsman: A TEENAGE boy who many believe is the reincarnation of the Buddha has re-emerged from the jungle in southern Nepal, attracting thousands of devotees.
After retreating into the jungle for more than a year, Ram Bahadur Bamjan, 18, re-emerged on Monday near Nijgadh town, about 100 miles south of the capital, Katmandu. Read more here.
Research launched into Ruby Wax’s Mindfulness ‘cure’ for depression
Wales Online: THE comedienne, Ruby Wax, has revealed how she has learned to cope with depression by practicing “Mindfulness”, an approach that blends modern therapy with ancient meditation practices. Ruby claims mindfulness was an important element in her cure. Read more here.
Meditation zeitgeist, October 31, 2008
A not-entirely-random selection of blog posts on meditation.
Meditation zeitgeist, Oct 29, 2008
A not-entirely-random selection of blog posts on meditation.
Wildmind’s latest newsletter
Wildmind’s monthly newsletter goes out tomorrow at 11:00 EST. It offers articles on the theme of “Solitude” by Kulananda, Sunada, and Bodhipaksa. Kulananda writes about a pilgrimage to an Irish island where hardy monks lived lives of intense spirituality for 600 years.
Sunada reflects on being an introvert in a world of extroverts, and how that’s a good thing! Lots of encouragement there for you “I”s. Bodhipaksa takes a quote by French thinker … Click to read more »
Online courses starting November 3
Wildmind offers a range of online courses on meditation, practice in daily life, and Buddhism.
Starting November 3, 2008:
- The Path of Mindfulness and Love (4 weeks)
- Change Your Mind (4 weeks)
- Awakening the Heart (4 weeks)
- Entering the Path of Insight (4 weeks)
More information about all of our courses is available on Wildmind.
Spirituality protects against depression better than church attendance
ScienceDaily: Those who worship a higher power often do so in different ways. Whether they are active in their religious community, or prefer to simply pray or meditate, new research out of Temple University suggests that a person’s religiousness – also called religiosity – can offer insight into their risk for depression. Read more here.
Religion: with god on our side
Psychology Today: Psychologist Nick Epley explores how we attribute beliefs and attitudes to other minds, including those of deities. In ongoing research at the University of Chicago, he and his collaborators are finding that people’s own beliefs line up much more closely with the beliefs they attribute to their gods than to those they peg on other people. If you manipulate people’s views, their gods’ assigned views change, too. Read more here.
600 years of solitude, by Michael Chaskalson (Kulananda)
On the Irish isle of Skellig Michael, Celtic Monks once pursued a tough life of meditation. Kulananda (Michael Chaskalson) feels a connection across the centuries with these vanished contemplatives, and senses a continuity between his own efforts and theirs.
I am traveling about the Kerry coast with the team that runs the Dublin Meditation Center. As the Center’s president, I visit from time to time, helping out where I … Click to read more »
From Snow White to sadhana: Growing up under the influence of Ratnasambhava
Ratnasambhava is, amongst other things, the Buddha of generosity. Danamaya explores the open-handed Buddha of the south.
In some ways, I may have known Ratnasambhava all my life, although I didn’t learn about Buddhism until high school, and then only from an introductory article in a comparative religion class. But looking back I can see all sorts of important themes in my life that got their start in little experiences long before. As a kid, … Click to read more »
Blaise Pascal: “All of man’s misfortune comes from one thing, which is not knowing how to sit quietly in a room”
Everyone is prey to distractedness, to seeing solace in activity as an escape from experiencing ourselves. In fact this is one of the major obstacles to a meaningful life. Bodhipaksa argues, however, that the force underlying our distractedness is a creative one, and that properly channeled it can take us all the way to enlightenment.
I’ve always been fond of this saying from Pascal’s Pensées, which reminds me that not being at peace with … Click to read more »
Chogyam Trungpa on Warriorship
In these extracts from a forthcoming book from Shambhala Publications, the late Chogyam Trungpa defines his vision of the peaceful Buddhist warrior and explains the joys of the warrior’s path.
THE WARRIOR’S WEAPONS
If victory is the notion of no enemy, then the whole world is a friend. That seems to be the warrior’s philosophy. The true warrior is not like somebody carrying a sword and looking behind his own shadow, in case somebody is lurking … Click to read more »
Meditation zeitgeist, October 24, 2008
A not-entirely-random selection of blog posts on meditation.
Thrive: don’t hesitate to meditate
Fort Collins Now: For the past several years, an organization called The Mind and Life Institute has been coordinating a yearly dialogue between the Dalai Lama and Western scientists. Increasingly, these scientists are neurologists and psychologists interested in such things as how emotions can be controlled and how attention can be marshaled to perform tasks more efficiently than before. They believe that meditators throughout the long history of Buddhism have uncovered some insights into such topics. Read more here.
Don’t hesitate to meditate
Fort Collins Now: For the past several years, an organization called The Mind and Life Institute has been coordinating a yearly dialogue between the Dalai Lama and Western scientists. Increasingly, these scientists are neurologists and psychologists interested in such things as how emotions can be controlled and how attention can be marshaled to perform tasks more efficiently than before. They believe that meditators throughout the long history of Buddhism have uncovered some insights into such topics. Read more here.
Being an introvert in an extroverted world
Introverts can feel disadvantaged when everybody else seems so comfortably extroverted. But Sunada feels that the world benefits from the influence of qualities that come naturally to introverts. She explores ways that quieter types can be more “out there” without having to compromise who they really are.
Are you an introvert? When you’re feeling tired or stressed out, do you prefer to be by yourself – and do things like curl up with … Click to read more »
Meditation is a path to finding peace of mind
The Florida Times UnionJacksonville resident Roger Cochran viewed meditation as his fast pass to Nirvana when he became a Buddhist about 15 years ago. “I thought that was a surefire way to reach an enlightened state of mind,” said Cochran, 64. “I thought [meditation] was the slickest thing around.” But the ensuing years and a harrowing encounter with cancer have since convinced Cochran that - in this lifetime, anyway - meditation is more about seeking refuge from daily stress than … Click to read more »