By Laura Bennett Lately, I’ve been on a journey to be more compassionate towards myself. For me, this has meant learning to offer more compassion towards the thoughts, sensations, emotions, perceptions, and habitual patterns that arise. This journey has also naturally lent itself toward learning how to truly receive compassion. When I say compassion here,…
Category: Buddhist practice
A Prayer in Every Breath (It’s ok to suck at meditation)
By Kelly Branan I want to begin with something very simple:the sound of breathing. Let’s start by listening to a few of our own breaths. What do you notice? What parts of your body feel loud right now?Which parts feel quiet? Before we do anything else, before we try to understand anything, before we try…
Attend to All and Each
Chris Leibow’s dharma talk invites us to embrace the Buddhist mantra “come as you are” through Namu Amida Butsu, focusing on compassion, interdependence, and mindful presence. He reflects on the meaning of attending to ourselves and others within a unique, trans-ectarian Buddhist fellowship inspired by Pure Land teachings. This talk blends poetry and ancient wisdom to guide listeners toward awakening and wholeness in everyday life.
Is not impermanence the very fragrance of our days?
Good morning. So the title of this dharma talk is actually a quote from Rainer Maria Rilke: “Is not impermanence the very fragrance of our days?” I love this quote because it reminds me that our impermanence is what gives life meaning. The fleeting, unknowable, ephemeral, impermanent nature of being alive can bring heartbreak and…
Build-a-Buddhism: Choosing what spirituality means to you
By Rio Branham I want to start by talking about a favorite book of mine. The Alchemist by Paulo Cuelho. It’s a story about a boy named Santiago who decides to leave all he has and all he’s known behind to follow a dream. Without knowing much about what will come of his pursuit, he…
On Humility: The Path of Studentship
DHARMA TALK by CHRISTOPHER KAKUYO Today, I want to share a few thoughts on humility. Some years ago, I came across a profound teaching by Nubuo Haneda in his book Dharma Breeze. In the first chapter, he recounts the origins of the Shin Buddhist tradition when Shinran meets his teacher, Honen. Here is the passage….
Kintsugi: The Beauty of Imperfection
For Today’s dharma talk, I want to share some ideas and feelings about the beauty of imperfection. To do this, I want to use a metaphor from Japanese material arts, Kintsugi. Metaphor helps us learn by adding a deeper, more emotive dimension. Metaphor tends to be the language of the heart. For me, kintsugi is…
THIS VERY BODY IS THE BODY OF THE BUDDHA
DHARMA GRETCHEN SEIYO SENSEI AUG 18 2021 There’s a Buddhist concept that our teachers are all around us. A little while ago I received a Dharma lesson from one of my brothers, although he didn’t know it and is very Christian. He lives in Michigan and we had been catching up on the phone. It…
Thank you, Jesus!
Dharma Glimpse by Gretchen Seiyo Sensei Given the title of this Dharma Glimpse, you may think I’ve gone completely off the rails. But, stay with me. I’m going to tell you about something people do that I really don’t like, and something I also don’t like about myself. Here’s what gripes me; have you ever…
Haiku as Awareness Practice.
I would like to talk about Kobayashi Issa and Haiku, well technically senryu as practice. Haiku’s focus us usually nature and senryu is like haiku but the focus is primarily on human nature and emotion. For today, when I say haiku I mean both haiku and senryu. So who is this Issa fellow. He…
Everyday Nembutsu 