Thich Nhat Hanh, the Vietnamese Buddhist monk, teacher and writer, often speaks about the power of deep listening and the effect this can have on another person…
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RETHINKING CHILD LABOUR: Abolishing child labour leads to slavery
Every time I see the words “CNN is Against Child Labour” or watch some celebrity on TV waving the physical or vocal “Abolish Child Labour” flag, I want to get up…
MIND-STUFF: Patiently controlling the mind through meditation
If you want to really get in touch with your neuroses, try meditating. As Buddhists and yogis, mystics, spiritual seekers and human beings we spend so much of…
CHARITY ECONOMY: Learning to give and receive
Charity… since childhood, this was a word I only whispered in my inner cloister. Charity… The original radiance of this word has been dulled by the patina of time…
“SUPER” PANDEMIC: The virus that spreads fear and harvests control
A newspaper headline screams “DOCTORS MISS NEW SUPER VIRUS”, and I am not sure whether to laugh, snort, choke or scream myself. Even viruses …
INNER INERTIA: Overcoming internal obstacles to stop climate change
Humankind is stuck. We haven’t acted with conviction on climate change. We haven’t devoted the less than one per cent of income needed to eradicate…
SAMSKARAS: Be aware of judgments for deep-rooted transformation
Dazzling hues of pink and orange light up the slowly drifting clouds. The setting sun illuminates the mountain in front of me, casting an orange glow on the…
MINDFULNESS AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS: Using a thorn to remove a thorn
Psychologist Abraham Maslow once said that, “Sickness might consist of not having symptoms when you should.” To expand upon Maslow’s…
A STEP AWAY FROM PEACE: Witnessing and mastering our thoughts
Imagine that you are standing under a waterfall. The water pounds down on your head and shoulders and pins your feet to the ground. The steady rush of water…
COMPROMISING FREEDOM: Thoughtless action holds the world captive
Today I looked around my small world at the things I work with, the things I wear and travel with and how they are either extremely inconvenient; or…
BIRD WALK IN THE PARK: A mindfulness practice in nature
Armed with binoculars and cameras, more than 40 bird watching enthusiasts gather at Colonel Sam Smith Park for a free monthly bird walk hosted by …
EQUANIMITY: A higher state of happiness
What is happiness? To one person it means owning eight cars. To another it means being in a great relationship. To a third it’s about getting blissed out in kirtan. Happiness means different things to different people. But, despite the discrepancy, one thing is certain — nice things and experiences only offer temporary pleasure.
DESIGNED STARVATION: We cause much suffering
Date-stamps on food accumulate thousands of dollars in the bank accounts of marketers and distributors. With additives and preservatives to increase the shelf-life of products, food is capable of lasting far longer than it ever did during grandma’s days
MOVING INTO STILLNESS: Stillness – The Peace Within
Imagine a spinning top. Stillness is like a perfectly centered top, spinning so fast it appears motionless. It appears this way not because it isn’t moving, but because it’s spinning at full speed. Stillness is not the absence or negation of energy, life, or movement. Stillness is dynamic. It is unconflicted movement, life in harmony with itself, skill in action. It can be experienced whenever there is total, uninhibited, unconflicted participation in the moment you are in – when you are wholeheartedly present with whatever you are doing
FEEL THE BEGGARS: moving caring into action
There is this beggar — I suppose not a true beggar, as he sells woven bracelets that are the little prayers and wishes in Asia. I call him My Bangle Beggar after one day being told he was not a beggar as he sells bracelets, and retorting, “He begs bangles.”
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- RETHINKING CHILD LABOUR: Abolishing child labour leads to slavery
- THIKSEY MONASTERY: Ladakh offers respite from India’s busyness
- THE FACTS ON FOOD ADDITIVES: Reading nutrition facts food labels
- THE CAT’S MEOW: Cruelty to animals and animal revenge
