Buddhist Women on a Path of Spiritual Awakening
Love Everyone the Same
Spiritual abuse is a hidden danger even among the most well-intentioned. If we allow the ego to undermine our nobler instincts, we fall prey to power and authority. Vigilant awareness will alert us and open our eyes to truly see and wisely protect the…
Seeing With Eyes of Kindness and Compassion
As an alms mendicant nun, dependent on the kindness of others for nearly four decades, I reflect on the generosity as well as the violence in this world. And yet, this path yields immense blessings. For the Buddha’s teaching is founded on the Noble…
The Astonishing Love Within You
There is much fear in this world and yet there is a wondrous way beyond fear. Just as humans create weapons of mass destruction, we are capable of the exact opposite – nurturing the enlightened mind. We need only wake up from the toxic…
The Big Old Skin of Ego
Do we really want to wake up? We may have to face painful truths about ourselves. So we examine the depth of our dedication to this spiritual work and we watch out for the ego. The Buddha had zero tolerance for young monastics who…
First Aid for the Heart
How do we extinguish the fires of greed, hatred and delusion that burn within the mind? The Buddha has thrown us a lifeline. We grab hold of it right here and now – one moment at a time. Free yourself from relentless conceptualizing and…
In the School of Truth
How true can we be so we don’t have to lie? Not just in what we say or think but also in how we live this precious life both in our doings on the outside, and also what goes on inside the mind –…
Stand Strong Like the Trees
Living in the forest, we are always aware of the trees. Patient, deep-rooted, even in fierce storms, they stand. So stand like the trees, committed and enduring. See the world with pure awareness, just the way it is. Living in a state of gratitude,…
Trust in Pure Awareness
The Buddha encourages us to abandon the unwholesome and develop wholesomeness in our daily acts, words and thoughts. As we learn to trust in pure awareness and present moment mindfulness, the weight of the world is lifted from the heart. Here and now, we…
What Is True Joy?
What is true joy? All too soon, joy declines because of its nature to change, like all conditions of life. True joy is not an idea or belief in a perfect moment but it is knowing the truth of change and how to free…
Not Afraid to Love
Do we know the truth of what we are? If not, how can we love unconditionally? When the heart abides in loving-kindness, the misery of fear, anger and despair is vanquished. If we look for unconditional love outside of us, we will never find…
~ Dhammapada Verse 54