I have some trouble labeling my thoughts during meditation. I’m the kind of person who often grits my teeth when I say “thinking” to myself, and when I try to soften my voice it can come with a condescending eyeroll, “There I go, thinking again, because I’m just too dumb do this right.” So I’ve … Continue →

I’m often on the lookout for Buddhist-themed novels, and Lincoln in the Bardo is a new novel that received numerous critical accolades. More recently, Lion’s Roar magazine featured an interview with the author, George Saunders. I was particularly drawn to the novel after I attended a sukhavati ceremony, which is intended to help a deceased … Continue →

Calligraphy by Stuart Rice Characters for Man and Life in different styles. The themes for this year’s weekthun were “It’s a Wonderful Life” and joining heaven and earth. It’s a Wonderful Life, by Teresa Gregersen Chorus: Great Eastern Sun is arisin’ Great Eastern Sun is shinin’ Woh oh oh Great Eastern Sun is alive in … Continue →

Thinking about the results of the presidential election at first filled me with disappointment, dread and fear.  As the weeks unfolded, I was tempted to be forlorn.  Yet I knew from my Shambhala teachings that ignoring  or withdrawing was not the solution. As I searched for a way to maintain some sense of equanimity while … Continue →

I love finding Buddhist themes in unexpected places, most often in books that are otherwise unrelated to Buddhism. Recently I read The Art of Asking, a memoir by rock/punk singer and songwriter Amanda Palmer, which describes not just her life and career in music but also her artistic aesthetic. It’s in part an expansion on … Continue →

My name is Stuart, your Culture and Decorum representative, and I have a confession: I’m a very messy person. And I can also confess that it was my messiness that, in a Shambhala sense, provided an opportunity for wakefulness and for an on-going practice of kindness. A few years ago, when my husband Patrick was … Continue →

One of Pema Chödrön’s best known teachings is to drop the storyline. As she describes in Taking the Leap: “Pete has a wonderful open quality and a great sense of humor, but when he’s having one of his meltdowns, he temporarily loses all his brilliance and lets the storyline take over, as in: ‘My younger … Continue →

When we meditate we are practicing synchronizing mind and body.  We are giving ourselves a chance to collect ourselves.   Often our body is ahead of our mind or our mind is ahead of the body, or our body is sitting in the room and our mind is in yesterday or tomorrow or a fantasy.  So … Continue →

Once in a while I discover things reminiscent of Buddhist teachings in unexpected places. Viral, a collection of short stories by Emily Mitchell, is another one of these examples. Like most short fiction in this literary style, the stories in this collection deal with the truth of the human condition, but the selection “Guided Meditation” … Continue →

Shambhala vision is rooted in the principle that every human being has a fundamental nature of basic goodness. This nature can be developed in daily life so that it radiates out to family, friends, community and society. This vision offers possibilities for a culture in which life’s challenges are met with kindness, generosity and courage. … Continue →