Apr 29, 2013
Tibet issue is raised by France with China
Examiner.com: On April 26, 2013, the Central Tibetan Administration reported, France Raises Tibet Issue with China. French President Francois Hollande has said he raised the issue of Tibet during his talks with the new leadership in China. The situation in Tibet has been becoming increasingly tragic as 117 Tibetans have set themselves on fire to protest against the Chinese government’s repressive policies in Tibet.
The Tibetan self-immolators have been calling for the return of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Tibet and freedom for Tibetans. President Hollande, who has been on a visit to China, told a press conference that during his talks with …
Apr 29, 2013
A new light on link between Buddhism and Kashmir
Madhur Tankha, The Hindu: To give the people a better understanding of Buddhism and its link with Kashmir, art historian Benoy K. Behl has now made a special documentary titled “The Monasteries of Rinchen Zangpo” which will be screened at Tibet House on Lodhi Road here this coming Sunday.
Describing this film as an extraordinary one, Benoy says he had to make adventurous expeditions to the treacherous mountains of Tibet, Lahaul-Spiti, Kinnaur and Ladakh. He discovered not only mesmerising unexplored monasteries but also learnt about the artists from Kashmir whose paintings and sculptures are testimony to a great tradition of art…
Apr 29, 2013
Is meditation Buddhism booming or fading…part I
Lewis Richmond, Speaking Tree: I have often written that we are approaching the 50 year mark of Buddhist meditation practice in America. In many ways this style of Buddhism has become well established and familiar to the mainstream culture. Meditation, dharma teachers, retreat centers and monasteries, as well as some core terms (dharma, karma, mindfulness, zazen, bodhisattva and metta, to name a few) have become well known and understood. The influx of Tibetan Lamas has provided a fresh Asian presence to a scene that otherwise is increasingly westernized.
But from another point of view it may seem as though all this activity is…
Apr 27, 2013
Peter Amato urges educators to introduce meditation practices to benefit students in many ways
Digital Journal: There is no denying that children today are faced with cumbersome challenges. Fierce competition. Social media pressure. Bullying. Ever-changing technology. Rampant violence. And so much more never imagined years ago.
School districts and private schools across the country offer a variety of tools to make learning easier and help children cope with the world around them. Yet there is a proven method to aid kids in reducing stress, avoiding self destructive activities, and finding inner peace that is not being employed to great extent. Meditation.
In the wake of the recent tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary and the shootings…
Apr 25, 2013
“White monk” searching for self in Buddhism
Danny Luong, Daniel Ball & Michael Chan, The Calgary Journal:
Calgary man becomes monk in quest for enlightenment…
In a country where non-Christian religions represent only 1 per cent of the total population, Buddhism is often misunderstood.
But one Calgary man is finding understanding by all means necessary.
20-year-old Brandon is a self-described, “white monk” living among mostly Vietnamese monks at Bat Nha Buddhist temple – known by its patrons as Prajna Pagoda – in southeast Calgary.
Brandon now goes solely by his dharma name – a new name acquired during a Buddhist initiation ritual – Prajna Kusala. Philosophy and spirituality…
Apr 23, 2013
How Shell is fostering innovation with meditation
Fastcoexist.com: A chemical engineer named Mandar Apte has created a program within the oil company to teach yoga and breathing techniques as a way to inspire creativity.
You’ve met them before. People who can walk into a room and effortlessly win the hearts and minds of everyone they meet. And thanks to this seemingly natural ability, achievement, influence, and happiness seem to land in their lap.
Mandar Apte is one of these people. When you meet him, it’s no surprise he won the People’s Choice Award at the inaugural League of Intrapreneurs awards, an event that convened the “who’s who” of the growing global…
Apr 23, 2013
Group feeds mindfulness with sangha meditation
Jessica Murri, The Montana Kaimin:
Nicole Dunn walked to the public library after work and waited for her husband to pick her up. It was sangha night, and Dunn looked forward to the group meditation all day.
Dunn hated being late. She paced in front of the library, seething about her husband’s tardiness. She grew more frustrated thinking about missing sangha, and she felt herself getting carried away by stress.
She stopped, sat on a bench and looked at the blue sky. It was a beautiful day. She felt like she could hear the day telling her, “Just enjoy me.” She felt…
Apr 23, 2013
Tibetan government in exile taking over Tibetan schools in India
Harold Mandel, Examiner.com: The Times of India has reported on Apr 21, 2013, Tibetan administration to take over Tibetan schools in India. It has been more than 50 years since India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru took the initiative to open schools for Tibetan refugees, and now the Tibetan administration in exile is set to take over the 71 institutions which are functioning across the country. This transfer process began this month and will take at least three years to complete.
The Tibetan schools were set up after the first Tibetan refugees came to India in 1959. The schools are presently being run by the Central Tibetan Schools… …
Apr 22, 2013
What is the main sacred writing for Buddhism?
Chris Deziel, Demand Media Siddhartha Gautama, or the historical Buddha, taught for 45 years, but none of what he said was transcribed as he spoke it. Instead, it was preserved in the memories of his disciples, who passed it on orally. By the third century B.C., some 200 years after the Buddha died, monks had compiled a collection of writings on leaves and stored them in three separate baskets. They are the earliest and most important collections of Buddhist texts.
The Tripitaka
In Sanskrit, a basket is a pitaka, so tripitaka (tipitaka in Pali, the probable language of the Buddha) means “three baskets.”…
Apr 22, 2013
Meditation yields great benefits
Alexander Vervloet, The Daily Barometer: After spending 10 days as a pseudo-monk, the world tends to look and feel quite different. The 240 hours of constant, silent meditation and reflection has an effect that is almost indescribable. Many people don’t take even five minutes of their day to reflect on their lives, because they’re so distracted by what’s going on around them. Because of this, when I tell people about the experience, most seem to be unable to even fathom the implications.
Meditation is a topic with a multitude of views and attitudes toward it. Some believe it to be “hippie crap” while…