Only Two Things Matter in Life (Dharma Talk)

I explore the age-old question, "How Should I Spend My Time?" and discuss the two most important items on everyone's to-do list.

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Magic Mushrooms and the Buddha Dharma

You meet all kinds of people on the road. Some of them are clearly running from something; a past trauma or an action they regret. Others are clearly looking for something; a tribe of like-minded people or a safe place to call home. This results in a strange mix of people ending up in strange places and sharing their lives for any where from a few weeks to a few months. You part ways knowing that you'll never see each other again despite your endless promises to keep in touch. But you always remember the people you meet on the road, and your life is usually better for having met them. Case in point, I met a guy named "Fred" when I was farming in Indiana who'd lived an insanely cool life. He did corporate America for a while, and decided it wasn't for him. So, he high-tailed it to Vietnam and taught English for several years before deciding that he wanted to become a shaman. After that, he made his way to Brazil where he wandered fo

Sacred Robes

In less than a month, I'll be inducted as a Lay Minister in the Bright Dawn Center of Oneness Buddhism . After the ceremony, I'll have a new Dharma name, and be authorized to use the title Sensei . I'll give Dharma talks, teach meditation, and assist in training the next group of Buddhist Lay Ministers who are working their way through the ranks. Depending on the day, my feelings about the ceremony alternate between awe and terror. This is a very serious responsibility, and I don't know if I'm ready. I stay up at night pondering questions like, "How should we teach Dharma in the West?" and "Should Buddhist teachers be involved in politics?" In addition, there are many mundane tasks that need to be addressed. For example, this past week I booked a pet hotel for my cat. I bought a train ticket. And I purchased a set of Buddhist robes. The robes are much heavier (both literally and figuratively) than I thought they'd b

Living a Holy Life

In the meditation hall, I have an altar dedicated to Amida Buddha and the bodhisattvas Kannon and Jizo. It contains three statues, which bear their respective images along with candles and an incense burner. The statues are of good quality, but they aren't that different from other figurines. They're white, standing approximately six inches tall. I bought them on Amazon, and for most of the day, there's nothing special about them. That changes, however, when I perform my Buddhist liturgy. Twice a day, I light the candles on my altar, I burn incense as an offering, and I bow to those ordinary, everyday statues. In that moment, they are transformed into celestial beings. They become a source of comfort. They become spiritual guides. They become holy and sacred in a way that other statues are not. This transformation occurs because each time I bow in front of my altar I shift my relationship to the statues. I treat them as holy objects, so they become holy. More than

The Same Old Zen

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