Rational Nation USA

  “Better it is to live one day seeing the rise and fall of things than to live a hundred years without ever seeing the rise and fall of things.” – The Buddha (Dhammapada)

  Here is the foot of a tree. Here is an empty, quiet place. Here is a cushion. Brother, why don’t you sit down? Sit upright. Sit with solidity. Sit in peace. Don’t let your thoughts lift you up into the air. Sit so that you can really touch the Earth and be one with her. You may like to smile, brother. Earth will transmit to you her solidity, her peace, and her joy. With your mindful breathing, with your peaceful smile, you sustain the mudra of Earth Touching. There were times when you didn’t do well. Sitting on Earth, but it was as if you were floating in the air, you who used to go in circles in the triple world and be drawn into the ocean of illusion. But Earth is always patient and one-hearted. Earth is still waiting for you because Earth has been waiting for you during the last trillion lives. That is why she can wait for you for any other length of time. She knows that finally you will come back to her one day. She will welcome you always fresh and green, exactly like the...

 

  The following is an excellent introduction to Buddhism. The author frames it as Buddhist 101: Philosophy and Teachings .  A great introduction for the newbies. Teachings of the Buddha To understand the basic principles of Buddhism, it is not necessary to believe in heaven or hell or to chant mantras. The aim of the Buddha was simply to show mankind how to live without turmoil and in harmony with all living creatures by following The Middle Way between the extremes of over-indulgence and self-denial. Buddhism affords believers an oasis where they can regain equilibrium by following the Middle Way. Buddhism enables people to look at life anew and stop blaming God, the universe, and others for their plight. They are the creators of their own worlds. Once they can grasp this great truth, life becomes a joyful journey. To this end, he introduced the Eight-Fold Path and the Ten Precepts, as well as the Four Noble Truths. While monks must practice all ...

  Center for Global Education -  Buddhism, founded in the late 6th century B.C.E. by Siddhartha Gautama (the "Buddha"), is an important religion in most of the countries of Asia. Buddhism has assumed many different forms, but in each case there has been an attempt to draw from the life experiences of the Buddha, his teachings, and the "spirit" or "essence" of histeachings (called dhamma or dharma) as models for the religious life. However, not until the  writing  of the Buddha Charita (life of the Buddha) by Ashvaghosa in the 1st or 2nd century C.E. do we have acomprehensive account of his life. The Buddha was born (ca. 563 B.C.E.) in a place called Lumbini near the Himalayan foothills, and he began teaching around Benares (at Sarnath). His erain general was one of spiritual, intellectual, and social ferment. This was the age when the Hindu ideal of renunciation of family and socia llife by holy persons seeking Truth first became widespread, and when the U...

The Buddha: Our Spiritual ‘Contemporary’ By Dr Peter Nels on In the modern West, with its dominant capitalist and scientific worldviews, the spiritual dimension has receded drastically from our everyday lives. Indeed, for many people, religious belief either appears to be an irrational anachronism, or simply irrelevant to the more important task of making money or ‘getting ahead.’ Equally disturbingly, genuine religious concepts, if they survive in the popular consciousness, are often misappropriated to the ‘new age’ agenda of ‘self-improvement’ – i.e. the ‘I deserve this BMW because I am at one with the universe’ schools! In this short article, however, I would like to suggest that three defining and closely related philosophical positions of our time – namely empiricism, scepticism and self-reliance – need not lead to materialist or nihilist conclusions. Indeed, Siddhattha Gotama, historical founder of the Buddhist tradition in India, shared these three positions 2500 years ago. In...

 

  Truth and Wisdom from Thich Nhat Hahn . A traditional Vietnamese Zen garden is very different from a Japanese Zen garden. Our Zen gardens, called  hon non bo , are wild and exuberant, more playful than the formal Japanese gardens with their restrained patterns. Vietnamese Zen gardens are seriously unserious. For us, the whole world is contained in this peaceful place. All activities of life unfold in true peace in the garden: in one part, children will be playing, and in another part, some elderly men will be having a chess game; couples are walking; families are having picnics; animals are free to wander around. Beautiful trees are growing next to abundant grasses and flowers. There is water, and there are rock formations. All ecologies are represented in this one microecology without discrimination. It is a miniature, peaceful world. It is a beautiful living metaphor for what a new global ethic could bring. War is not a necessary condition of life. The root of war, as with...

For eons across spiritual, cultural, and religious traditions, people have made offerings in honor of ancestors. It is a critical step before partaking in any ritual or ceremony. In essence, the people, teachings, and the land that have sustained the wisdom tradition are to be honored prior to the activities in which the spiritual community will participate, heal, and transform. Making offerings to ancestors is a wordless expression of devotion to awakening and an acknowledgment of the earth that supports us. When making offerings, the persons making them also receive what is given. For example, offering water may bring a calm mind, flowers a sense of beauty. Incense helps connect you to the earth, while firelit candles create illumination and symbolize destroying the darkness of ignorance. Inherent in each offering is a simultaneous giving and receiving of these gifts. Central to the ceremonial life of most, if not all, Buddhist traditions are ritual offerings to ancestors. Food, flow...