Rocky Mountain Buddhist Hermit.

Growing up at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, (Colorado) spending decades climbing their heights and summer's backpacking into remote, mountain lakes for a week's stay, has been monumental in helping my Dharma practice. It is also why I am so attracted to the way of the Buddhist hermit who's monastery is the mountain-tops (or forests) and his sangha the wildlife. Nature teaches you patience, paying attention, doing more with less, appreciating what you have and expecting the unexpected. In short...

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Letting Go of Expectations.

The chaos of life streams through this mind, yet ownership isn't imposed upon it. It's free to pass through like a stranger in the night; registering its frenetic, holographic delusions but streaming out the other side due to keeping the mind open and relaxed. Tonight is a night where balance has returned. Tonight there is simply stark but relieving acceptance.Like Buddha before us, letting go is gaining freedom. Once we let go of trying to control everything, life seems to flow with greater ease....

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The Treatise of a Burnt-out Buddhist.

The Crazy Buddhist, himself. In the flesh. See? I'm no Buddha--Just James.This is a long treatise, so to speak of me thinking out loud on where I find myself on the Dharmic path; in a manner of speaking. Or, whatever mumbo-gumbo is the lastest Buddhist slang going 'round. It's a bit of a rant I guess but take it for what it's worth and nothing more, or less. It's simply me in the process of sorting through a lot of spiritual baggage. Some of it I keep, but a lot of it I frankly no longer have use...

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Dalai Lama via WikiLeaks: Save Environment BeforeTibet.

Per, Jason Burke at The Guardian. A tip o' the hat to Rod at Shambhala Sun for turning me on to this story:The Dalai Lama told US diplomats last year that the international community should focus on climate change rather than politics in Tibet because environmental problems were more urgent, secret American cables reveal.I think the Dalai Lama is on point because we may not have an Earth capable of supporting either a communist Tibet or a free, independent and democratic Tibet. As usual the DL understands...

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Buddha Kitty.

Countless cultures throughout the dusty pages of history have depicted cats as very mystical, spiritual beings. So, it shouldn't come as a surprise that I find cats to be good examples of Buddhist concepts. Cats do everything with complete concentration and deliberation. They are totally absorbed with living in the now--living in the present moment. I find this most evident when they stare out the window for long periods of time; just watching the world go about its business. Observing all the movement...

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The Buddha is Still Teaching: Contemporary Buddhist Wisdom: A Book Review.

Buddhism appeals to many of us because we are simply exhausted from the pace, chaos and suffering that too often is the price of living in a modern world. Unfortunately we aren't always able to slow down enough to meditate daily and/or savor a in-depth tome on the Dharma. Fret, not!!The contemporary, Buddhist greats have thrown us a life-line yet again. Once again, this time, we are in-depted to Jack Kornfield. He has compiled short, easy to digest, essays and snippets of wisdom from today's great,...

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Blogisattva Award Results are In.

The Blogisattva Awards have been announced and as usual they represent some of the most thought-provoking, English-speaking, Buddhist blogs on the internet today. I am honored to know these valuable writers, and highly recommend ALL of the blogs honored. Online Buddhists have really carved out a vibrant and supportive sangha over the past decade. I am quite excited about the future and know that Buddhism is in good hands on the internet.~Peace to all bein...

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Komentar Memberikan Informasi Jawaban

Banyak sekali pertanyaan yang masuk ke admin blog Belajar Ilmu Komputer selama liburan Hari Raya Galungan dan Kuningan untuk daerah Bali. Selama hari raya Admin blog BIK Pemula memang tidak pernah online sehingga semua pertanyaan yang datang dari blog Belajar Ilmu Komputer dan Blog TobiPuken serta blog saya lainnya belum sempat dijawab dan ada juga sempat dijawab hari ini. Untuk yang...

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A Great Bodhi Day (Rohatsu) Message.

One of the reasons that I refer to the month of December as, "the holidays" in America is because it's so much more than Christmas. The Jews celebrate Chanukkah, the Muslims Ashura and many African-Americans celebrate Kwanzaa. And, for Buddhists we celebrate the enlightenment of Buddha on this day, December 8th. In honor of his endeavor, many Buddhists spend the day or month in meditation and honor his memory through acts of kindness. Often meat eating Buddhists will buy and release an animal that...

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The Buddhist Blog Honored with Award Nominations.

Wow. The 2010 Blogisattva Award nominations have been announced and The Buddhist Blog has been honored. The blog was nominated in three categories: Best Engage-the-World Blog, Best Achievement in Kind and Compassionate Blogging and Best "Life" Blog. The blog also received honorable mentions in other, categories: Best Achievement Blogging Opinion Pieces or Political Issues, Best Blogging on Matters Philosophical, Psychological or Scientific and Best Blog of the Year!!I know that some of you nominated...

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Samsara: In a Bag!!

As a guy who breaks out in hives at the very thought of shopping, I don't have a problem equating samsara with handbags/purses and/or shopping!! However, I think the makers of Samsara handbags weren't thinking of torment and suffering when they set out to market their product. Sadly, their research department left them, "holding the bag" so to speak (Sorry, about the pun; I couldn't resist. If you're wondering what "holding the bag" means, just click here for an explanation). That's because according...

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Irony.

James: I know karma doesn't necessarily work this way, but this sure is ironic:Bernard Matthews, known in Britain as the 'turkey tycoon,' died on Thursday [Thanksgiving, when many Americans eat turkey and give thanks for things in their life] at the age of 80, his company said. "He is the man who effectively put turkey on the plates of everyday working familie...

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The Altar 2.0

I've finally got the altar up at our new house. I've been wanting a Chinese style altar table for some time as I really like the designs. Plus, at the old place the altar was sitting on our entertainment center. So, it was a bit cramped. I also like that this altar has a little storage space inside; behind a set of small doors in the front of it. You can kind of see them with the knobs in this picture. They slide back and forth, and there is surprisingly more room in it then you might think form...

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Surviving Imprisonment as a Buddhist.

As the echoes of the "Saffron Revolution" in Burma continue to reverberate, I have often contemplated the humble monks living in a very real "Hell Realm" of unjust imprisonment. Along with other Buddhists living in prison. One doesn't have to look very far in this world to find the "Hell Realm."Nor does one necessarily need to believe in a metaphysical "Hell Realm" to experience the concept rattling your fragile sense of identity. For these Buddhist in prison, however, their "Hell Realm" is an all...

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"Rebel Buddha" Drawing Results.

This is a second clip from the interview with Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche (see another clip here) about his book, "Rebel Buddha." Special thanks to Shambhala for the clip. Being a rebel isn't in contrast with Buddhism, so long as it doesn't bring suffering. The Buddha himself was something of a rebel. I enjoyed how the rinpoche explained too that we must channel that rebellious energy, so that it brings about helpful change rather than painful change.Now, onto other business; the results are in from the drawing for the "Rebel Buddha" and the hat has spoken. I was over-whelmed by the response to this...

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Dzogchen Ponlop on an American Buddhism.

Interesting view point from the author of "Rebel Buddha" (see my review of the book by clicking on this sentence) on the possibility and viability of an "American Buddhism." Special thanks to the "Rebel Buddha" blog for the video. This isn't coming from a pop-star, celebrity or a person who tries on the latest, "Buddhist flavor of the month." This is Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche. A very respected, world-renowned, Tibetan Buddhist scholar, and one of the highest teachers in the Nyingma lineage. He is...

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Yuk Belajar Menghitung Jumlah Jenis Kelamin Pada Microsoft Office Exel

Sebagai seorang guru atau seorang administrasi atau karyawan di sebuah lembaga pendidikan atau sekolah merupakan salah satu hal yang diwajibkan untuk mengetahui jumlah siswa yang terdaftar pada sekolah tersebut. Baik dari besar keseluruhan jumlah siswa, kemudian berapa banyaknya siswa yang berjenis kelamin laki-laki dan perempuan.Meski bisa dilakukan dengan cara menghitung secara manual...

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Stand up to Mistreatment of Gays, Lesbians, Bisexuals and the Transgendered.

James: I am so proud of of this young man for having the courage to face so many powerful adults at this meeting and standing up for his convictions. It's takes a lot of bravery, and I applaud him for it but it is a sad day when kids have to make this argument because enough adults still don't get it. I refuse to stand-by and watch our young people and fellow adults be discriminated against and bullied until those victims take their own life. No more violence, no more hate. We must stand up to these bullies and tell them that we will no longer tolerate our kids being harassed until they think...

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The Shifting Sands of Change.

(PHOTO CREDIT: Shifting Sands in the Maowusu Desert in China, by Michael Reynolds/EPA).I was contemplating today about the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in Burma and how quickly change can occur. Day after day, month after month and year after year it seemed that Suu Kyi would be frozen in her house arrest for the rest of her life. Then, over-night the seemingly impossible occurred--she was released into the arms of her joyful supporters. It still remains to be seen what effect this will have...

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Daw Aung San Suu Kyi Released from House Arrest!!

(PHOTO CREDIT: REUTERS)YANGON, Myanmar — Myanmar's military government freed its archrival, democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, on Saturday after her latest term of detention expired. Several thousand jubilant supporters streamed to her residence. Suu Kyi has been jailed or under house arrest for more than 15 of the last 21 years.James: You would think that after all the abuse Aung San Suu Kyi has endured at the hands of the military dictatorship in Burma, that she'd be a broken spirit. Yet, she...

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Plagiarism.

***I am deleting this post because it is causing suffering for some. And, I'm closing the comments section. Goodizen? I understanding that you meant well and weren't trying to plagerize my work. Thank-you for getting back to me. I am working on being less attached to words. It's a fine balance to live in the world but without attachments. Anyway, don't worry anymore. Let's just both breath...and let the confusion and stress fly-off with the wind.***~Peace to all bein...

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"Rebel Buddha" by Dzogchen Ponlop. Unleash the Rebel Within!!

When many of us think of a rebel we think of someone who challenges the status quo because of a feeling of confinement or discomfort with how society is unfolding. Buddhist master Dzogchen Penlop shows us in his book, Rebel Buddha that we all have a rebel within. It is the seed of awakening in our brain that was planted by our karma, which begins to grow and stretch against the confines of the ego-mind. It is our inherent Buddha nature or awakened essence that is reclaiming our mind bit by bit,...

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Terbaru dari Blogger

Blogger sangat paham dengan kebutuhan para blogger yang selalu melakukan modifikasi blog agar semakin hari blognya akan berpenampilan semakin menarik dan semakin betah pengunjung berlama-lama di blog buatannya.Dengan selalu melakukan update kebutuhan-kebutuhan akan semua blogger, kini blogger melengkapi gadget-gadget pada blogspot dan ada beberapa gadget baru diantaranya Popular Posts dan...

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Depression: A Reality of Samsara.

The last few days have been hard ones. I have chronic depression as some of you know from the bipolar end of my Schizoaffective disorder. When we are depressed and feeling defeated; it's all we can think about. In a sense, it's a denial that things are impermanent, and thus a denial that things will get better at some point. Thus, the depression becomes a downward spiral of self-fulling prophecy.We aren't bad or to blame for this denial because we wouldn't do it if we honestly didn't believe the...

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Dalits Bravely Embrace Buddhism.

Hundreds of Dalits belonging to Chettipulam, a village near Vedaranyam in Nagapattinam district are planning to embrace Buddhism on December 6, the death anniversary of B R Ambedkar. During September 2009, the CPI(M) had alleged that the Dalits were not being allowed entry into the temple by the villagers. The party organised temple entry agitations twice - on Sep 30,and Oct 14 of that year.James: I have been watching with interest the continued phenomena of Dalits converting to Buddhism since...

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The Best Buddhist Writing 2010. A Book Review.

How would you like to have a collection of excellent Buddhist writings all in one book for your library? Well, that's exactly what Melvin McLeod and the Shambhala editors have offered up in the "The Best Buddhist Writing" series. Each year they select the cream of the crop in Buddhist essays and other writings to inspire and edify the Buddhist community. This year they have complied one of their best, and it's not simply Buddhist masters who are featured.You'll read heartfelt writings from people...

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The Winds of Change.

changing winds swirlclinging golden leaf shiverssmoke escapes cabinBy James R. UreRecently my wife and I did some cabin-sitting for our friends. Their A-frame structure is perched on a small hill deep in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado near where I live. It is miles from any sign of civilization, which is divine. They are nearly entirely, "off-the-grid" or self-sufficient thanks to solar panels and wind turbines that our friend manufactures with a buddy at his cabin a few miles away. It's a lovely...

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I'm Linkedin!!

I finally signed up for Linkedin, so you can find me at the link below:http://www.linkedin.com/pub/ure-james/26/73a/608~Peace to all bein...

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Tips Membersihkan Virus Shortcut Pada Komputer

Lagi-lagi virus membuat semua pekerjaan jadi terhambat, meskipun tidak semua virus menghilangkan data namun yang namanya virus memang sangat menjengkelkan.Meskipun tidak merusak dokumen meski begitu tetap saja virus tetap menggannggu dengan menghambat pekerjaan (proses) yang dilakukan komputer.Salah satu virus yang akhir-akhir ini cukup merepotkan yaitu yang sering disebut dengan virus...

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