Category: Buddhism and Spiritual Practice

A summary of the initial scope with links to detailed explanations of the five meditations. The Initial Scope, Intermediate Scope, and Great Scope of Lamrim When people are very young, they learn to crawl; later, they learn to walk; finally, they learn to run. Each skill builds on the previous one. Similarly, the scopes of…

Samsara refers to the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, characterized by suffering, impermanence, and the perpetual cycle of existence. In nature, nearly every process we observe exists in a cycle. It begins, grows, peaks, fades, and ends, most often repeating over and over again. Celestial bodies, like stars, have a life cycle. When they…

Understanding Karma, morality, and personal responsibility For every action a person takes, there is an inevitable response, a consequence that will follow, connecting the action back to the source. Just as a spider’s web provides support while also ensnaring the spider, individuals reap the rewards of their wise choices and endure the consequences of their…

Finding support in religious figures, religious teachings, and the community of believers. Where do people look for guidance and support when circumstances are challenging? For much of the last 2,500 years, many have turned to organized religion. Generally, major religions instruct their followers to seek inspiration, guidance, and support from their Gods, holy books, and…

Is it possible that you could have been born a creature other than a human? All the major world religions use some form of a carrot-and-stick approach to motivate good behavior. The carrot is a reward for good behavior, such as going to heaven, gaining favor with God, being reborn in comfortable circumstances, reincarnation in…

A Lamrim meditation on the transient nature of existence and the importance of abandoning attachments. Intellectually, we all know we are going to die. Our instinct is to survive, so the fact of certain death makes most people uncomfortable, and they push it away. Death is considered a downer. Western culture shields us from death.…

The Lamrim teachings in Tibetan Buddhism place great importance on recognizing the value of a precious human life on the spiritual path. Most people take their lives for granted and fail to recognize its significance. Since none of us can stop being human, and each day we wake up, we are human, it’s understandable why…

Overcome anger by recognizing its many faults and practicing patient acceptance. Whenever I get angry, I recognize it immediately. Most people do. Anger leaves little doubt when it arises, and it manifests in obvious ways. Many people become angry, but then do little or nothing to manage it, believing it’s a natural reaction that should…

Buddhists say the self is an illusion. Modern neuroscience says you hallucinate your existence from one moment to the next.