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Is it or ain’t it?
Posted in: Buddhism | Comments (0)
Is it or ain’t it?
The mighty Rev. Danny Fisher writes to ask us all:
“I keep seeing this commercial and wondering, ‘Is that supposed to be a Buddhist monk at 0:01 - 0:06?’”
I think it is. I think. Weird. (I can’t tell you how much I hate this ad campaign. Not because of the Possible Monk Cameo, but just ’cause, god, the “Claus” character is just annoying.)
What do you guys think? Are we seeing things?
http://theworsthorse.com/2009/01/is-it-or-aint-it/
B @ January 5, 2009
Buddhism: Religion, Philosophy or … both?
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Buddhism: Religion, Philosophy or … both?
Barbara O’Brien is one of my favorite Buddhist writers. She has a remarkable ability to cut through the mystic fog that so many practitioner-writers seem to weave about the Dharma, which is very much the way I try to look at it. When we get right down to it, the Buddha didn’t really say all [...]
http://digital-dharma.net/2009/01/05/buddhism-religion-philosophy-or-both/
B @ January 5, 2009
san juan island
Posted in: General Politics, General discussion, Travel, Trips | Comments (0)
san juan island
http://www.suzqueue.com/suzqueue/52-weekends/Entries/2009/1/2_san_juan_island.html
The dog is sick, Friday Harbor is shuttered for winter, I’m worried there will be more snow for my return to Seattle, and I slipped and fell in the bathtub at my guest house. I’m really hoping this trip improves.
Okay, the town of Friday Harbor is not actually shuttered, just the two restaurants I really wanted to try (and a few shops). But still, all these worries and complications do not make for an auspicious start to a brand new year of weekends.
George, who’s been on and off his food for about two weeks, took a turn for the worse after I dropped him at the Mad Scientist’s yesterday. At that point, it became clear that uncertainty about George’s health had gone on too long and that he needed to be seen by a vet today. I didn’t know whether to cancel this trip or go, but the Mad Scientist encouraged me to go, saying he had it all under control. And I felt sure he did, and that he would take good care of George, so I packed my bags and headed to the ferry.
I realized as I left the house that I was cutting it fairly close time-wise, and that if I ran into any traffic or needed to make any stops along the way, or simply dawdled, I was going to miss the 9:35 am and have to hang around Anacortes for 3 hours until the next ferry out. This, added to my anxiety about leaving a sick dog, made for an alert, slightly white-knuckle trip.
I made it to the ferry with about 15 minutes to spare. The ferry trip over was cold and clear, and the view beautiful. On the way, I read my guide books (invaluable — don’t try your own 52 Weekends Project without them) and decided that my first stop was going to be Roche Harbor, on the northern tip of the island, and then I would make my way down the western edge of the island, along the water’s edge, and back to town for dinner. More on page 748
B @ January 4, 2009
Buddha avoided the tragi-comic debate about God’s existence
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Buddha avoided the tragi-comic debate about God’s existence
“The tussle over God is marginally more entertaining than getting shot [with the Buddha's poisoned arrow], but the protracted diversion created by its war of words could nevertheless be more of a hindrance than a help. Not only has the stream of agitated comment brought us no closer to finding an answer, it hasn’t even [...]
http://digital-dharma.net/2009/01/03/buddha-avoided-the-tragi-comic-debate-about-gods-existence/
B @ January 4, 2009
Helen Suzman, Anti-Apartheid Leader, Dies at 91
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Helen Suzman, Anti-Apartheid Leader, Dies at 91
Helen Suzman, the internationally known anti-apartheid campaigner who befriended the imprisoned Nelson Mandela and offered an often lonely voice for change among South Africa’s white minority, died on Thursday, a family member said.. She was 91.
Helen Suzman, Anti-Apartheid Leader, Dies at 91 - Obituary (Obit) - NYTimes.com
Posted in history, Human Rights, Metta, Race, Right Action, [...]
http://digital-dharma.net/2009/01/01/helen-suzman-anti-apartheid-leader-dies-at-91/
B @ January 2, 2009
getting back on track
Posted in: General Politics, General discussion, Travel, Trips | Comments (0)
getting back on track
http://www.suzqueue.com/suzqueue/52-weekends/Entries/2008/12/28_getting_back_on_track.html
The original idea for the 52 Weekends Project was that each weekend I would go somewhere I would be likely to go if I were on vacation in the area. While that might include someplace distant or very close, like downtown Seattle or a focused exploration of one of the many neighborhoods within Seattle, or an event — a festival, concert, class, theater production or the like — rather then a specific place, my intention was always to get out and do something outside of my little plot of land. That ideal has been slipping, most notably on this weekend, this weekend, and this weekend. More on page 739
B @ January 1, 2009
Re-booting the 52 Weekends Project
Posted in: General Politics, General discussion, Travel, Trips | Comments (0)
Re-booting the 52 Weekends Project
http://www.suzqueue.com/suzqueue/52-weekends/Entries/2009/1/1_Re-booting_the_52_Weekends_Project.html
I’ve decided to re-boot the 52 Weekends Project. I’m starting over today, on the 1st of the year, in order to get in sync with the calendar year, and improve the project based on these lessons learned in the last six months:
The 52 Weekends Project takes priority. I’ve spent far too many weekends fitting the project into the nooks and crannies of my life, trying to attend Sunday brunches and Saturday BBQs, run errands, complete chores, get appointments completed, and still find a few hours to have a 52 Weekends adventure. This just doesn’t work.
Planning is required. If I don’t have any idea what I’m doing by Wednesday morning, I generally still have absolutely no idea what I’m doing on Sunday morning.
Traveling with another person is dramatically different than traveling alone. If I travel with a companion, it won’t be the same trip I would have had if I had gone alone, but it will frequently be better, sometimes much better. More on page 740
B @ January 1, 2009
Fire at the Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa
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- Image via Wikipedia
Fire at the Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa
As some of you Horses may know, I’ve been providing much of the content on Shambhala SunSpace during the holiday break. I’ve been posting plenty of fun stuff, but unfortunately have also been following a sad but important story, that of a fire that all but destroyed the temple of a major FPMT Center in Italy. Just posted now: a detailed report of the story, including links to videos, details about how you can help in the fire’s aftermath, and a note from FPMT Spiritual Director Lama Zopa Rinpoche.
Please check it out and pitch in if you can — or at least leave a message of support in the comments there. Thanks, everyone.
http://theworsthorse.com/2008/12/fire-at-the-istituto-lama-tzong-khapa/
B @ December 30, 2008
The Buddha’s latest journey to China
Posted in: Buddhism, General Politics, General discussion | Comments (0)
The Buddha’s latest journey to China
By Ashis Chakrabarti, China Daily, Dec 26, 2008
Luoyang, China — During his visit to China in June, 2003, the then Indian prime minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, promised a “gift” to China from the Indian government. I was part of the Indian media delegation accompanying him. But, to be honest, I was more interested in weightier matters of India-China relations and didn’t think much of the “gift”. Actually, I didn’t even know exactly what it was going to be.
Last week, I knew it - because I saw it. And, what a historic gift it is! There it stands on a plot of land adjoining the Baima Si (White Horse Temple) at Luoyang. It is a replica of the Sanchi stupa, the most famous Buddhist shrine in India.
It’s nearly complete - the circular dome - and the entire structure - made of the pink stone transported all the way from India, with the friezes on its walls depicting scenes and scriptures of familiar Buddhist tales. Inside the prayer hall a seated Buddha seems to be awaiting visits by yet another generation of devotees. Interestingly, the statue too is a replica of the famous one at Sarnath, another major Buddhist temple in India. The shrine would be open to worshippers and visitors early next year.
Several things about this “Sanchi of China”, as I’d call it, are of great historical significance. First, the choice of the site. Baima Si, as is known, is the first Buddhist monastery on Chinese soil. The legend of its construction, well-known too in Buddhist circles, is worth recalling in the new context. It says the Chinese officials, sent out by the Emperor, met two Indian Buddhist monks in present-day Afghanistan and returned with them - and with many Buddhist texts - to Luoyang.
B @ December 26, 2008
A Brother’s Plea: Remember Burma
Posted in: Buddhism, General Politics, General discussion | Comments (0)
http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=82,7566,0,0,1,0
A Brother’s Plea: Remember Burma
by By MIN ZIN, Wall Street Journal, Dec 26, 2008
The Saffron Revolution must not be forgotten.
Berkeley, CA (USA) — On Nov. 28 my brother, Thet Zin, a Burmese journalist brave enough to remain in his country, was sentenced to seven years in prison by the military junta there. His crime? Possession of a U.N. report about the military’s crackdown on demonstrations by monks and democracy activists in September 2007 — known around the world as the “Saffron Revolution.”
He’s not alone. In the past two months the junta has sentenced more than 230 political detainees to lengthy prison sentences, some as long as 68 years. The total number of political prisoners in Burma is now more than 2,100, up sharply from nearly 1,200 in June 2007, before last year’s protests, according to Amnesty International and other human-rights groups.
The terrible irony is that when I tell my Burmese friends and colleagues about my brother’s sentence the typical response is, “Only seven years?” How far we’ve fallen that we consider anything less than decades in prison to be somehow a blessing.
My brother is the editor in chief of a weekly journal you’ve likely never heard of called the Myanmar Nation. On Feb. 15, the military raided his office and dragged him and his office manager, Sein Win Maung, away. They were eventually charged with crimes against the state under the regime’s Printing and Publishing Law. All this for being in possession of a U.N. report widely available on the Internet.
Torture and interrogations followed. He was sent to Burma’s notorious Insein prison. He nearly died there when Cyclone Nargis hit Burma in May, claiming more than 80,000 lives. Now he’s facing a term in a filthy, disease-ridden prison that could result in his death.
B @ December 26, 2008
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