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  India: Doubts emerge over spiritual Yogi's environmental mission Vasudev's ride is part of his Save Soil movement Jaggi Vasudev, the Indian spiritual Yogi also known as "Sadhguru," is riding a motorbike thousands of kilometers to raise awareness about soil degradation. But questions are being asked over the campaign's effectiveness. Riding 30,000 kilometers (18,640 miles) on a Ducati Multistrada 1260 across 26 countries in Europe, Asia and the Middle East, Indian spiritual leader  Jaggi Vasudev is on a mission . Known as "Sadhguru" to his followers , Vasudev's ride on this special edition bike is part of his Save Soil movement, spreading awareness about soil degradation. New age ecological influencer In the past two decades, Vasudev's activities have received global attention and given him the status of a new age ecological influencer.     Vasudev's flagship platform Isha Foundation receives support from the Dalai Lama, Leonardo Di Caprio, ...

 

  While looking for introductory information on Tibetan Buddhism I came across the following in Basic Concepts of Tibetan Buddhism  that should be helpful to those recently becoming acquainted with Tibetan Buddhism. The first page is printed in full here with a link at the bottom which will take you to the full text of the introduction. Enjoy the introduction and may your journey into Tibetan Buddhism be as fruitful for you a it has been for me. The triumph of Buddhism was its ability to adapt the ancient, ingrained beliefs and customs without compromising its own fundamental insight and precepts, while teaching the new theology to the people of Tibet and firmly establishing their acceptance and understanding of its ethical code. BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO BASIC CONCEPTS OF "TIBETAN" BUDDHISM There are books, too numerous to mention, that relate the story of the historic Buddha, Prince Gautama Shakyamuni, and explain his teachings and the basic concepts of the spiri...

 

 

 

  mano buddhi ahankara chittani naaham na cha shrotravjihve na cha ghraana netre na cha vyoma bhumir na tejo na vaayuhu chidananda rupah shivo'ham shivo'ham I am not the mind, the intellect, the ego or the memory, I am not the ears, the skin, the nose or the eyes, I am not space, not earth, not fire, water or wind, I am the form of consciousness and bliss, I am the eternal Shiva... na cha prana sangyo na vai pancha vayuhu na va sapta dhatur na va pancha koshah na vak pani-padam na chopastha payu chidananda rupah shivo'ham shivo'ham I am not the breath, nor the five elements, I am not matter, nor the 5 sheaths of consciousness Nor am I the speech, the hands, or the feet, I am the form of consciousness and bliss, I am the eternal Shiva... na me dvesha ragau na me lobha mohau na me vai mado naiva matsarya bhavaha na dharmo na chartho na kamo na mokshaha chidananda rupah shivo'ham shivo'ham There is no like or dislike in me, no greed or delusion, I know not pride or...

  When people have an existential crisis or when they do deep reflection, they begin to ask questions that normal people don’t ask, such as, “Why am I here? Why is there a universe in the first place? Why does everything exist?” Most of the time, we don’t understand why we are here or why we came into being in the first place or why all of the events that have occurred in our lives since we were born have happened. There is always this unknown and great mystery that seems to be the foundation of our existence. Of course, sometimes we can use our thinking mind to analyze and try to figure out why something happened, why we are here, and what is going to happen tomorrow. We can understand the causes and conditions to a certain extent, yet there is always the great mystery. We can call this unknown, this great mystery, karma. So far there isn’t any exit strategy. So we might as well enjoy this world to the best of our ability. We can say everything is our own karma. Yet we can ne...

 

  Few people believe their Inherent mind is Buddha. Most will not take this seriously, And therefore are cramped. They are wrapped up in illusions, cravings, Resentments, and other afflictions, All because they love the cave of ignorance. Fenyang However deep your Knowledge of the scriptures, It is no more than a strand of hair In the vastness of space; However important appears Your worldly experience, It is but a drop of water in a deep ravine. Tokusan

  Humanity is currently facing some of the greatest challenges in its history, including  climate change  and a global pandemic. Many of us face difficult challenges and uncertainty in our own lives, from illness to job loss to traumatic relationships. People are desperate for methods to ease their suffering in uncertain times. While many Buddhist meditation practices are helpful, none surpasses recognizing and resting in awareness itself. The reason for this is that the true nature of awareness is a source of lasting strength and resilience. Awareness is beyond conditions like pain and pleasure, suffering and ease. It is that which allows any and all experiences to arise, and yet is unchanged by them. The important part of this practice is the recognition of awareness itself. I spent a number of years in a wandering retreat—moving from place to place, following in the footsteps of the great masters of our Buddhist tradition. This experience brought into focus many core a...

  The Mindfulness Sutra delineates four foundations, or four practices, to develop mindfulness: mindfulness of the body, mindfulness of sensations/feelings, mindfulness of mind/consciousness, and mindfulness of what are called “mind objects.” If we assume these four practices are cumulative, each one leading to the next, then mindfulness of mind objects brings us close to the goal—awakening. The sutra provides several lists of mind objects—traditional lists like the five hindrances (five typical disadvantageous states of mind, like doubt or obsession), and various other common lists of problematic mental and emotional states. It also provides lists of positive objects, including the mental and emotional states that lead to awakening (called the seven factors of awakening ), and the four noble truths, the basic Buddhist map of existence. All this tells us that to be mindful of mind objects is to know how to distinguish between states of mind that tend toward suffering and trouble, ...

 

  If human beings are released from the disease of wanting to be better than someone else, life will come to ease.

  "Do not be idolatrous about or bound to any doctrine, theory, or ideology, even Buddhist ones. All systems of thought are guiding means; they are not absolute truth. Do not think that the knowledge you presently possess is changeless, absolute truth. Avoid being narrow-minded and bound to present views. Learn and practice non-attachment from views in order to be open to receive others' viewpoints. Truth is found in life and not merely in conceptual knowledge. Be ready to learn throughout our entire life and to observe reality in yourself and in the world at all times. Do not force others, including children, by any means whatsoever, to adopt your views, whether by authority, threat, money, propaganda, or even education. However, through compassionate dialogue, help others renounce fanaticism and narrowness. Do not avoid contact with suffering or close your eyes before suffering. Do not lose awareness of the existence of suffering in the life of the world. find ways to be wit...

  Buddhism and war Non-violence is at the heart of Buddhist thinking and behaviour. The first of the five precepts that all Buddhists should follow is "Avoid killing, or harming any living thing." Buddhism is essentially a peaceful tradition. Nothing in Buddhist scripture gives any support to the use of violence as a way to resolve conflict. In times of war Give rise in yourself to the mind of compassion, Helping living beings Abandon the will to fight. One of Buddha's sermons puts this very clearly with a powerful example that stresses the need to love your enemy no matter how cruelly he treats you: Even if thieves carve you limb from limb with a double-handed saw, if you make your mind hostile you are not following my teaching. Kamcupamasutta, Majjhima-Nikkaya I ~ 28-29 Figures like the Dalai Lama (who won the Nobel Peace Prize) demonstrate in word and deed Buddhism's commitment to peace. "Hatred will not cease by hatred, but by love alone. This is the ancient ...

 

  The Buddha taught that to realize enlightenment, a person must develop two qualities: wisdom and compassion. Wisdom and compassion are sometimes compared to two wings that work together to enable flying or two eyes that work together to see deeply. In the West, we're taught to think of "wisdom" as something that is primarily intellectual and "compassion" as something that is primarily emotional, and that these two things are separate and even incompatible. We're led to believe that fuzzy, sappy emotion gets in the way of clear, logical wisdom. But this is not the  Buddhist understanding . The Sanskrit word usually translated as "wisdom" is  prajna  (in Pali,  panna ), which can also be translated as "consciousness," "discernment," or "insight." Each of the many schools of Buddhism understands prajna somewhat differently, but generally, we can say that prajna is understanding or discernment of the Buddha's teachin...