Category: Buddhist Wisdom
The Primal Vow
The foundation of the Pure Land path, explains Takashi Miyaji, is Amitabha Buddha’s vow to liberate anyone who calls on him.
What do all of the terms for Buddhist meditation mean?
I’m confused about all the different terms for meditation, like shamatha, vipassana, zazen, mindfulness, calm abiding, insight, just sitting. What's what?
Finding Home on My Path of Transition
On the Transgender Day of Visibility, Ray Buckner shares his journey to find home on both the Buddhist path and the path of transition.
The Doors of Liberation
No self, no form, no goal: Thich Nhat Hanh on the truth we’re distracting ourselves from.
10 Steps to Tame the Elephant
For generations, Tibetan practitioners have been guided by a chart outlining the nine stages of samatha meditation. Jan Willis takes us through the map and introduces us to the characters along the way.
Compassion Without Calculation
How do we practice ethical conduct, or sila, without falling into judgment, and without ignoring the complexity of each moment? According to Norman Fischer, the way has always been there.
Lean In to the Suffering
Sister Clear Grace Dayananda left the monastery, packed her life into a little van, and went out into the world to meet people where they are and where they are suffering. Here, she considers khanti, the paramita of forbearance, and the work it requires.
No Separate Thing
I am grateful to have come upon a path that asked me to “buck up,” to throw myself in completely, to take my yearnings for awakening seriously, and to commit to an arduous road. I am grateful because this is how life is. Life is vigorous. My teacher didn’t ask me to give up family,…
First, an Open Hand
In any presentation of the paramitas, dana, or generosity, always comes first — Nikki Mirghafori explains why.
The Freedom of Emptiness
At the heart of the path of the paramitas is prajna, or wisdom—but a wisdom that goes beyond our conventional ideas about it. Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche unpacks how that kind of wisdom works.