Tricycle | Awake in the World

May 06, 2015

The poetry of ritual Tenzin Dickie

This is how it will be:we will take a walk on concrete, not blue tiles, and you will pretend to be disappointed.This will have the quality of a ritual. In the morning, the sun will fall from the sky;we will protect ourselves against its fire.It is not so unbearable, but we have learnt to be wary of arrivals from the east. We are unbeautiful here;our stay in the plains has rendered us so.But whispers now carry endearments,and we will not have it any other way. More »

• Exile
• pilgrimage
• Poetry
• ritual
• Tibetan Buddhism
• Tibetan
• Books & Media

May 05, 2015

How do we motivate ourselves to live true to our best aspirations?  Thupten Jinpa

Framing our days between intention setting and joyful dedication, even once a week, can change how we live. It's a purposeful approach of self-awareness, conscious intention, and focused effort—three precious gifts of contemplative practice—by which we take responsibility for our thoughts and actions and take charge of our selves and our lives. As the Buddha put it, "You are your own enemy / and you are your own savior. " More »

• Buddhist Teachings
• Dalai Lama
• Intention
• intrinsic motivation
• Motivation
• Thupten Jinpa
• Tibetan Buddhism
• Mahayana
• Tibetan
• Devotion

April 30, 2015

Thailand’s military government takes a special interest in Thai Buddhism and the moral authority its institutions command. Hilary Cadigan

Thailand’s military government, which seized control of the country in a coup last May, has taken a special interest in Thai Buddhism and the moral authority its institutions command. After settling into power and naming itself the National Council for Peace and Order, the junta immediately set off on a paternalistic mission to rid Thailand of corruption, immorality, and anything deemed “un-Thai” (like underboobs, for example). Since Buddhism makes up such an integral part of the agreed upon definition of “Thai-ness,” junta leaders quickly set their sights on religious reform, installing a special panel to focus on the “protection of Buddhism” within their National Reform Council (NRC). More »

• Buddhism
• Dhammakaya
• junta
• News
• Politics
• Sangha Supreme Council
• SSC
• Thai junta
• Thailand
• Theravada
• Politics
• Social Justice

April 28, 2015

Is smoking cigarettes un-Buddhist? Alex Tzelnic

Bernie Flynn, a longtime student of Chögyam Trungpa, recently told me about the time he and the Rinpoche tried to quit smoking cigarettes. A few days in, he was driving the Rinpoche to a meeting. Antsy and in withdrawal, Bernie couldn’t help but notice his teacher sitting calmly in the passenger seat. Finally, his nerves on edge, Bernie turned to Trungpa and asked how the whole quitting thing was going. “It’s easy,” said Trungpa. “Either you smoke, or you don’t smoke.” Ah, so simple. Later that evening, Bernie entered a room to find the Rinpoche gleefully chain smoking. Oh, not so simple. More »

• addiction
• Chogyam Trungpa
• cigarettes
• precepts
• quitting
• smoking
• Zen
• Health
• Sickness

April 27, 2015

Want to donate to the rescue effort in Nepal? Here is a list of qualified aid organizations. The Editors

Saturday’s 7.9 magnitude earthquake in Nepal has caused widespread death and damage in the country that houses some of the world’s most precious Buddhist sites. News sites are reporting that the death toll has now risen above 3,000 and is expected to continue rising sharply.  Tricycle has heard directly from people living in Kathmandu that they are spending a third night outdoors in makeshift tents while powerful aftershocks continue to roil the country. There are reports of shortages of tents, food, water, and medical supplies.  More »

• disaster relief
• earthquake
• Kathmandu
• nepal
• News
• Tibetan

April 24, 2015

Roshi Pat Enkyo O'Hara gets real about Zen

Roshi Pat Enkyo O’Hara is founder and abbot of the Village Zendo in New York City, and the author of Most Intimate: A Zen Approach to Life’s Challenges. We talked in her office on April 13, 2010. —Richard P. Boyle  More »

• AIDS
• Interview
• Meditation
• satori
• shikantaza
• Village Zendo
• zazen
• Zen
• Community
• Zen (Chan)
• Social Justice

April 22, 2015

Three poems on Zen and its passage Joanne Kyger

Myokyo Dream "Stop fidgeting" she saysI'm picking candle wax off my robesWe're all sitting in the ZendoPeople of all ages introducing themselves. "I'm here because I read too much" I say. August 4, 2007 There Are Those Buddhists                   like myselfwho do not scorn the ideaof mere “things” possessinga sanctityof their own More »

• Beats
• Black Mountain
• Buddhism
• Poetry
• Zen
• Zen (Chan)
• Books & Media

April 20, 2015

The wrapper-crinkler, the squirmer, the know-it-all—they all show up in Small Mouth Sounds, a new play that brings the ins and outs of retreat to the stage. Joan Duncan Oliver

There’s one on every meditation retreat: the roommate who crinkles potato chip wrappers all night, keeping you awake; the meditator on the next cushion who squirms nonstop; the know-it-all who flaunts his “enlightenment.” If this sounds familiar, be prepared to laugh uproariously in recognition. If it doesn’t—well, watch and learn. More »

• Art
• Events
• Humor
• Meditation
• News
• retreat
• Review
• spiritual retreat
• Theater
• Arts & Culture

April 20, 2015

An exclusive clip from the film Planetary

Planetary is a cross-continental cinematic journey that explores our future as a species with interviews from astronauts, environmentalists, anthropologists, and leading Buddhist thinkers. Get the full film (10% discount for Tricycle subscribers with promo code TRICYCLE10) here. More »

• Anam Thubten
• earth day
• Environment
• Ethan Nichtern
• Film
• Karmapa
• Meditation
• Mindfulness
• Movies
• News
• Planetary
• Planetary Collective
• Tricycle
• Wes Nisker
• Environment

April 14, 2015

Sri Lanka's new president, Maithripala Sirisena, can put an end to extremist Buddhist violence in his country. But will he?  Max Zahn

Sri Lanka's newly elected president, Maithripala Sirisena More »

• Bodu Bala Sena
• Buddhist Violence
• Maithripala Sirisena
• News
• sri lanka
• Theravada
• Politics
• Social Justice

April 10, 2015

An interview with poet and Soto Zen practitioner Jane Hirshfield

More »

• Interview
• Jane Hirshfield
• Meditation
• Poetry
• Science
• Zen (Chan)
• Arts & Culture
• Books & Media

April 08, 2015

International aid leaders explain how Buddhism's boundless states—lovingkindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity—manifest in their work.  Sharon Salzberg, Pierre Ferrari, David G. Addiss, Ellen Agler, and Jeffrey C. Walker

Over the past few years, as despair across the globe seems to deepen, many have told me that these troubling times have, ironically enough, inspired them to discover newfound reservoirs of goodwill. Moving forward in times of great difficulty, after all, calls for drawing on one’s buried resources. Perhaps adversity reminds us to pay attention to the immediacy of love or the necessity of living a meaningful life. When we meditate or reflect on what in Pali are called the four brahmaviharas (boundless states) of lovingkindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity, we can get back in touch with the depths of wisdom and love within each of us. We can choose to pursue these not only for our own sake, but also for the benefit of those in more desperate circumstances than our own. More »

• boundless states
• brahmaviharas
• charity
• Four Immeasurables
• Health
• Humanitarian Aid
• philanthropy
• sharon salzberg
• sympathetic joy
• Work
• Social Justice
• Health