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Daily Buddhism, Reviews

Book: Buddhas, Bohisattvas, Khadromas, and the Way of the Pilgrim

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Book: Buddhas, Bohisattvas, Khadromas, and the Way of the Pilgrim: A Transformative Book of Photography and Pithy Sayings
By Simhananda
Orange Palm Publications Inc. 2007, 205 pages
ISBN 9780973443981
Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/0973443987/?tag=askdrarca-20

This is a large “coffee table” style art book that is in a consistent format throughout. On the right-hand page is a full-page photo of some Buddha, Bodhisattva, or Khadroma. On the left-hand page are two or three “pithy sayings” written in English, French and Italian. There are also two or three small photos on the left-hand page, usually of different views of the same subject from the right-hand page. Although there are a few photos of humans, and a handful of paintings, the vast majority of photos are of statues, idols, and sculptures.

The Good:

The book has a high-quality hard cover and the pages are made of sturdy, glossy paper that really shows the desire to make this a long-lasting and durable keepsake. The images, especially the full-page ones, are astounding. Extremely colorful and sharp, most of these just exude history and reverence. Some of the art looks well-maintained and new, while many are flaking paint or are otherwise showing their age. Some are so old that the faces and features are gone. Buddhism is up to 2500 years old, and there is real history shown here. Whether the images are Buddha, a bodhisattva, a mythical daemon, or a painting of a legendary figure, you know that each image has a wondrous story to tell.

The Bad:

Unfortunately, that story isn’t told. The ‚Äúpithy‚Äù sayings, while wise in themselves, have little to do with the images. Do you really like the images on the page you are looking at? Well good luck identifying it; there is no list of sources, no explanation, no titles, not even a name or location for any of the images. They sure are pretty pictures, but there is no way to identify any of them. What the publishers were thinking when they decided to leave everything unidentified, I cannot fathom. The only reason I can imagine for this lack is that due to the triple-language translations of everything, it might have complicated things somewhat.

I will admit that I am not a student of Eastern art, but there were very few images here that I recognized; these are not the same old photos of Buddha that you’ve seen elsewhere, which makes the lack of labeling even more galling. If you enjoy sculpture or photography, and want to see some really beautiful photos of ancient art that you very possibly haven’t seen before, then give this one a look. The photos really are outstanding.

Bottom Line: Beautiful, but essentially useless as a reference.

Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/0973443987/?tag=askdrarca-20

Daily Buddhism

Why all the Chanting?

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Question:

A caller phoned in a question to the Voicemail Hotline: 937-660-4949:
Can you talk about chanting? It seems that many different sects do it. Why?

Answer:

Well, you are right in that Buddhism has a lot of chanting, but that’s not really exclusive. If you think about it, just about all religions do chanting in some form. If you listen to Muslim or Christian services, you’ll often hear chanting. Whether it’s the ‚ÄúLord’s Prayer‚Äù or the ‚ÄúAdhan,‚Äù the Islamic Call to Prayer, chanting and religion go hand in hand. And yes, Buddhists do it too.

Why?

The majority of Buddhist chants are not prayers, since asking a god for intervention is not really the way of Buddhism. While we have seen in the past that prayer does exist in Buddhism, it’s not really related to chanting. Instead, most chanting is done as recitation of sutras (written works attributed to the Buddha), either to help teach the sutra or to simply keep it in mind via repetition.

Examples would be chanting the Bodhisattva vows, the three refuges, the five precepts, loving-kindness (Metta Sutta), the Heart or Diamond sutras, or the very famous nianfo of Pure Land: Namu Amida Butsu or Namo Amituofo. Sometime koans or poetry are also commonly chanted.

Generally, the purpose it to set one’s mind in a particular place for a specific ritual or meditation.

Here is a site submitted by PDXyogini that has several chants in MP3 format that you can download:
http://www.zendust.org/chantsmp3.htm

Here are some Youtube examples to enjoy:

Om Mani Padme Hum:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=633eH4yajHE

Zen Chanting:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1evxMA7yYw

Buddhist Chant: The Heart Sutra:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-c9-XaA2f00

Daily Buddhism

Kindness in Daily Living

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As with last week, we have another new guest writer. This time, Lori Deschene tells us how she applies Buddhist ideals to her everyday life. If you would like to do a guest article, drop me a note at brian@dailybuddhism.com with your topic idea, and I’ll contact you with a few easy requirements.

Lori Deschene
Lori Deschene

Kindness in Daily Living

At my big, fat Italian Christmas gathering two family members got in a fight that ended with screams and tears. Though it doesn’t happen often nowadays, I grew up around similar chaos. Oftentimes I drowned it out, but sometimes I fueled it, and other times I caused it. Then I discovered a few Buddhist principles that changed the way I acted and reacted. I learned to offer compassion instead of judgment;to diffuse hostility with understanding and kindness. When I saw how profoundly that affected my state of mind and everyone around me, I decided to practice and get better at it.

That, I believe, is the core of Buddhism: clearing your mind of fears, selfishness, and anger so love can work its magic. And it truly does take practice. It starts with meditation or yoga. They’re like mental maintenance; you stop your persistent internal monologue and find a sense of stillness. From that place of just being;instead of seeing the world around you with a critical eye;you can respond to people with loving-kindness, also known as ‚Äúlove without attachment.‚Äù That’s selfless love. And its effects are addictive.

So how do you practice in daily life? I take it off the yoga mat in four steps:

1. Commit to at least three random acts of kindness every day. Maybe it’s something simple, like telling someone they’re great at their job. Or perhaps it requires more effort, like helping an elderly woman with bags. Of course there is no limit! Kindness is like a fire;the more you stoke it, the brighter it burns.

2. Work toward kinder thinking. Example: a friend snaps at you for something that’s not your fault. You’re human;at first you might feel annoyed and think she’s being unfair and irrational. Choose a more compassionate thought, like: She’s feeling defensive, and that must be painful. What can I do to help? Kindness in thinking leads to kindness in action.

3. Ruminate on the kind deeds and thoughts of people greater than yourself. Martin Luther King, the Dalai Lama, Mother Theresa;these leaders inspired millions with their strength, humility, and kindness. We all carry the exact same potential to change lives by being better, stronger, and kinder every day. Even if you inspire just one person, you’ve tapped into your personal power.

4. Remember kindness is contagious and addictive. Many times when you act with kindness it comes back to you. When it doesn’t, you’ll still feel blessed. Positive intentions;and their ripple effect on your self esteem and state of mind;are greater than any validation you could get from someone else.

“My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness.”– Dalai Lama

Lori Deschene lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and writes for Discovery Girls Magazine. Follow her inspirations at http://twitter.com/BeMeaningful

Daily Buddhism

Meditation on a Whoopie Cushion

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Meditation on a Whoopie Cushion

Here’s a little story and a lesson that I learned just this week:

As I explained a few weeks back, I always celebrate a traditional Christmas with my extended family on Christmas Eve and then again on Christmas Day with my closer family. It’s fun, and more of a family gathering than anything overtly religious.

On Christmas Eve, at the big extended family party, there are aunts & uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews, second cousins and friends of the family and always a few I can’t quite identify. Always lots of people. In order to avoid paying out a fortune in gifts to exchange, everyone brings a gift valued at $10 and we play this oddball game where you can pick a known gift or unwrap a random one. I’m not going into the details of the game, but somehow, while others got DVDs, books, coffee cups, and store gift cards, I wound up with a deck of cards and a whoopie cushion.

I personally spent a good it of time looking for my contribution to the game, a nice set of frosted glass candles. Whoever bought the whoopie cushion not only wasn’t thinking about age-appropriateness, they couldn’t possibly have spent $10 on it. To make a long story short, I got ‚Äúripped off‚Äù in the game.

I know it would have bothered me a few years ago. I’d have sat there and seethed through the rest of the party and then griped about it for weeks to come. The thing is, it didn’t bother me. I was able to let go of it, not to be attached to my anger, and not to develop my resentment. I’m not going to say it wasn’t there at all, or I wouldn’t have noticed the slight and would never have considered writing this post, but the resentment was in control and limited and I was able to get rid of it quickly and mindfully. I was able to simply tell myself that anger was wrong and to let it go; and it went away. I even remember telling myself that it was better that I got the junk prize rather than someone who would have been disappointed with it or let anger take over.

I sat there in silence, enjoying watching others play the game and walk off with the good gifts. When the game was over, I handed my bag over to my 5-year-old nephew, the youngest one there, and he had a great time running around with the whoopie cushion, blasting it in everyone’s face. He loved it, and everyone got a kick out of him playing with it.

I credit my equanimity entirely to my Buddhist practice. I am far more mindful now than I was even only a year ago. When I got home from the party, I got on Twitter and joked about the cushion for a while with other Twitterites. Eventually someone suggested that the Dalai Lama would probably love to receive a whoopie cushion and that I should mail it to him. If you’ve ever seen the Dalai Lama interviewed, his sense of humor is very strong. There were a couple of rounds of great posts between myself and a few Twitter friends, and I probably ended up having more fun because of that stupid little rubber toy than I would have from a more ‚Äòserious‚Äù gift. Everything is subjective and open to interpretation. YOU make your own reality, whether it is contentment or resentment.

During the Twitter chat, someone asked, ‚ÄúIf one sits on a whoopie cushion, does one attain instant enlightenment?‚Äù My answer to him at the time was a joke, ‚ÄúYou’ll certainly attain something, but enlightenment probably isn’t it.‚Äù Upon further contemplation though, I could have been wrong. Maybe a whoopie cushion CAN be a step toward enlightenment.

Follow Brian on Twitter: http://twitter.com/DailyBuddhism

Daily Buddhism

Chanting and Prayer on Schedule?

Question:

Should meditations or chanting be on a daily schedule?…. like the way muslims pray in the morning/evening for example.

Answer:

Not technically like Muslims, no. Muslims have to pray five times a day at very specific times. Buddhists can meditate or chant at any time, there is no rule about when to do it. Monks do have specific times of day when they must do their chanting or meditating, but even then, that’s just a schedule set by the individual monasteries or leaders.

Laypeople get more flexibility. Everyone is different; I prefer meditating in the early evenings, while some prefer to meditate every morning. Whatever works best for you is best. when you are starting out, it’s probably a good time to experiment with meditation and learn what seems to have the best effect on you.

Once you do know when your optimal time of day is, I believe that it’s a good idea to try to do it at the same time every day if you can. You get used to the routine, and your body gets used to calming down when it’s time to meditate.

Daily Buddhism

Buddhism and the 12-Step Recovery Process

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Special Guest Post

I received a question on the voice mail hotline last week (at 937-660-4949) which asked how to adapt Buddhist beliefs to the famous 12-step program. I know virtually nothing about the Program, so I asked Darren Littlejohn, an expert and author of an upcoming book on the subject, to help. He explains:

Darren Littlejohn 12-Step BuddhistMy name is Darren and I am a 12-Step Buddhist. I got hooked on drugs when I was about 16, got sober at 22 and stayed that way until 32. Then something happened and I found it necessary to get loaded again. I returned to sobriety in 1997 and have been clean and sober since. The way I work my recovery program integrates Zen and Tibetan Buddhism, psychotherapy and the 12 Steps.

Buddhism is a supplement to my program, not a substitute for recovery meetings. In my book, the 12-Step Buddhist, I tell the whole story, outline the depth and severity of the problem of addiction borne out by the latest research, give an overview of 12-Step programs and Buddhism and finally, practical exercises on each of the 12 Steps. Each step is then treated in detail by introducing several levels of meditation practices from beginning to advanced practices. There are even ways to create Buddhist oriented recovery meetings, called 12-Step Sangha, as I discuss in a recent How-to article on the website.

From the book, “…spiritual principles defined in AA literature show that the purpose of the 12-Step program goes further than “to dispel the obsession to drink.” The point is to “enable the sufferer to become happily and usefully whole.” It also says, “We feel that elimination of our drinking is but a beginning. A much more important demonstration of our principles lies before us in our respective homes, occupations, and affairs.”

The 12-Step program does afford the opportunity to move beyond

such a static, rigid, and otherwise unhappy experience in sobriety, yet many are at a loss for how to make it happen within the confines of the

program. The practicing of Buddhism along with the 12 Steps is powerful and can help you work through these difficulties. It helped me after my relapse, and I credit my Buddhist practices as the reason for my second ten years of sobriety. It is why I wrote this book.”

By understanding the principles of Buddhism along with the principles of recovery, we can create a spiritual life that is beyond imagination. Using ideas from Buddhism for our higher power, we can see that the Judeo-Christian view of the 12-Steps is not the only approach. In fact, the 12-Step Buddhist approach allows us to take the mere beginning of a spiritual awakening all the way to complete enlightenment.

The 12-Step Buddhist is available for pre-order at Amazon.com. Please visit http://the12stepbuddhist.com for articles, resources, podcast with guided meditations and more.

Copyright 2008 Darren LittlejohnAtriaBeyond Words Publishing. All Rights Reserved.

Pre-order Darren’s book at Amazon

Announcements, Daily Buddhism

Being in the Present. Be Here Now.

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Question:

I wonder if you can give me a pointer for following the path. My understanding is that we should be in the here and now as much as we can yet as a teacher I have to be aware of what I’ve taught so I can plan what I will teach next… this means I’m often not in the here and now… (I teach French and German at secondary school…)

Answer:

“Be here, now.” There is a lot to this simple phrase that goes way beyond planning for the future and remembering the past. There are two concepts important to this idea; time and place.

Time:

I don’t think ‚Äúbeing in the present‚Äù means you cannot think about the future or past. We all have to make plans and have certain expectations about the future, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Even monks, or abbots at least, have to make some kinds of plans, otherwise they couldn’t manage a monastery or organize any kind of dharma teachings. Actually, NOT planning for the future can cause no end to suffering; the current global economic crisis is proof of enough of that.

It’s fine to consider and plan for the future, just don’t get too attached to your plans. When situations change, be flexible, and adapt. Don’t get caught up in the plans, and don’t spend time worrying about them. As a teacher, you create lesson plans, possibly for weeks in advance. You also know that no matter how carefully you plan, things are going to come up that will derail your plan. You have to accept that in advance and take the surprises as they come. Don’t worry about changes and problems; expect them and deal with them as they arrive. Worry is a terrible distraction, and it’s unhealthy as well.
Place:

Place:

Are you present? Is your mind here, or is your mind elsewhere?

Whatever you are doing, be present and aware of it while you do the task. It’s more about your concentration than anything else. Being present means that you are focused on what you are doing. In your case, let’s say you are working on a lesson plan for next week. You’re thinking about next week, and that’s fine, you have to do that as part of the task. If, however, you are also thinking about the latest episode of American Idol, or what color to paint the house, or what you’re having for dinner, that’s not good. Your task at hand is making that lesson plan, and all the other ‚Äústuff‚Äù is a distraction.

Whatever you are doing in the present (time), be fully present (location), “Be here, Now.”

Basically it concerns focusing on the task at hand, thinking clearly and on one thing at a time without distracting thoughts. If you have twenty items that you are mentally dealing with at one time, you cannot be fully present. Clear your mind and whatever you do, pay attention to that and lose the distractions. Meditation is a big aid in mastering this, as you quickly learn to put aside distractions.

This idea also involves moving from moment to moment, taking each moment for what it is, not letting the past or future influence you in any way. This is another form of non-attachment.

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Daily Buddhism, Reviews

Book: The Tao of Now, by Josh Baran

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Book: The Tao of Now
By Josh Baran
Reviewed by Brian Schell
Publisher: Hampton Roads, 400 Pages, ISBN 9781571745842
Buy from Amazon

Note: This book was previously published under the name “365 Nirvana Here and Now.”

“The Tao of Now: Daily Wisdom from Mystics, Sages, Poets, and Saints” is essentially a huge collection of wisdom quotes from all kinds of people, not necessarily just Buddhists. Quotes from Rumi, Buddha, Jack Kornfield, Pema Chodron, Thich Nhat Hanh, Dogen, Jesus, as well as many literary notables. Edited and compiled by Josh Baran, a former zen monk and Soto Zen teacher. These are “wisdom quotes,” not necessarily religious quotes, so you get ideas from every faith and outlook.

This isn’t the sort of book you read through from cover to cover. It’s fun to just flip through and read a page at random. There are 365 quotes, making it possible to go through one quote a day for a year with this book. Although these are not koans in the traditional sense, most are reasonably short and deep enough to allow for some real contemplation.

The introductory section is short, and explains much of the author’s background and reasons for writing the book. I especially like his reasons for being a “former” monk. He got up and walked out of the monastery one day. I suspect this happens quite a lot, and his reasons are interesting. He also points out in the introduction that some of the quotes in the book are contradictory, but that doesn’t necessarily make them wrong. You just need to think about where the original speaker was coming from contextually.

I’m not going to say this is a “must have” book, but it’s fun, informative, and does contain a lot to think about.

Daily Buddhism

Mini Topics: Past Lives, Mantras, Sutras, and Chants

Questions:

I am very new to Buddhism… I have started my journey into Zen Buddhism. I wanted to first tell you that the podcasts are phenomenal and has helped me in so many ways – Thank you. I had just a few quick questions…

1) What do you think about past soul regression therapies? Is it REALLY possible to remember our past lives?

2) What are the differences between Mantras, Sutras and Chants?

Answers:

1. Past life regression therapy. Personally, I don’t believe in it. The link between this life and the previous is just too small. For example, the Dalai Lama, who is, by definition, the reincarnation of previous Dalai Lamas (The current D.L. is the 14th), was tested as a child. He was able to identify a few items that were his in his previous incarnation from a selection on a table. That, to me, shows that there is some link between the current and past lives, but it’s such a limited test that I have a hard time believing people can dig deeply enough into their pasts to get any real detail. Buddhist rebirth just isn’t supposed to work like that; there is no soul that is reincarnated. In fact, reincarnation is not really the right word for it at all.

Still, regardless of what I may think, many do believe in it, and here are a few additional links;

Pro:
http://www.lifepositive.com/Mind/personal-growth/past-life-therapy/past-life-therapy.asp

Con:
http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2008/9/7/lifefocus/1957870&sec=lifefocus

2) A Mantra is a word or sound that is repeated, usually while meditating. the sound itself is supposed to have some power. “Om Mani Padme Hum” is the most famous; people recite these all the time, as the sounds have a bit of power behind them. I covered mantras a little at this link; http://www.dailybuddhism.com/archives/192

A Sutra (also sometimes spelled Sutta) is a written text. Most of them contain sayings attributed to Buddha. The important thing is that they are in writing.

A Chant is the repetition of a phrase over and over. You can chant a mantra for example. You can also chant song lyrics, poetry, sutras, or anything else, although they are usually chanted in a way that sounds musical. Almost all forms of Buddhism do some style of chanting.

Daily Buddhism

The Four Immeasurables

The Four Immeasurables

Question:

What are the four Immeasurables?

Answer:

Good question! The four immeasurables are a collection of meditation practices that are designed to increase four specific virtuous ideals. We’ve already talked quite a bit about the first one:

1. Loving Kindness

Remember when we talked about loving-kindness meditation a few weeks back? The practitioner sits in meditation and thinks or recites to him or herself, “May I be kind to myself. May I rest in this moment. May I be at ease. May I be happy,” and then gradually aims these and similar thoughts outwards towards other individuals and the whole world. This is often called metta.

2. Compassion

Wanting others to be free from suffering. Unselfishly desiring to help others with no gain whatsoever to yourself is the goal to aspire to here. This is a huge part of being a Bodhisattva.

3. Sympathetic Joy

When someone you know has good luck or succeeds are you happy? Are you really happy, or is it more of a ‚Äúquietly jealous‚Äù happy? It’s not always easy to truly rejoice in the success of others, but it is one practice that must be mastered.

4. Equanimity

It’s all the same to you. Every person you meet has equal worth. Whether you win or lose, profit or loss, succeed or fail, it will not affect you. This is not the same as apathy, but it is a removal of attachment. Don’t be attached to results, expectations, ideas, or outcomes.


THE FOUR IMMEASURABLES

How wonderful it would be if all sentient beings were to abide in equanimity,
Free of hatred and attachment!
May they abide in equanimity!
I myself will cause them to abide in equanimity!
Please, guru-Buddha, grant me blessings to be able to do this.

How wonderful it would be if all sentient beings had happiness and the cause of happiness!
May they have happiness and its cause!
I shall cause them to have these!
Please, guru-Buddha, grant me blessings to be able to do this.

How wonderful it would be if all sentient beings were free of suffering and its cause!
May they be free of suffering and its cause!
I myself will free them from suffering and its cause!
Please, guru-Buddha, grant me blessings to be able to do this.

How wonderful it would be if all sentient beings were never separated from the happiness of higher rebirth and liberation!
May they never separated from the happiness of higher rebirth and liberation!
I myself will cause them never to be separated from these!
Please, guru-Buddha, grant me blessings to be able to do this.