Latest writings

Someone asked Elder Zhao-Zhou (Joshu) how he practiced, and he said "For thirty years my mind remains undistracted, except perhaps when eating and putting on robes. Most people dwell on what they know, I alone remain in the not-knowing." I find the idea of being un-distracted really intriguing. Some distractions are obvious, we become fidgety and chatty in social situations. Less…

As our human minds continuously and unconsciously give rise to mind functioning, certain patterns emerge. These patterns channel our thinking in a particular, fixed direction. Every stressful experience in our lives emerges…

Life is filled with 'things', both material and otherwise. There are relationships and feelings. There is the summer heat on your face, and the hunger for food, success, and recognition that drives you to eat, to work, to play and to rest. Then there are those ideas in your head. Every moment you are bombarded with 'things' - you see them, hear them, feel them, or think about them. But in the midst of them all, do you know…

So what is this everyday mind? It is in the sound of a coffee machine and ringing cell phone. It is in the warmth of your chest and the tingling in your elbows. It is the computer screen and the people around you. It is the angel and the devil that talk in your head. It is the irritation in your gut and the urge to take a breath. It is in the air you breathe and the chair you sit on. It is the formless container from which…

A mala, a string of prayer or mantra-counting beads, tangibly expresses our desire to align with the principles of peace, love and oneness. Whether we use it as originally intended by various world cultures,…