Gathering Circle

January 23rd, 2017

‘Gathering Circle’ —A Buddhist Practice

The most common group activity participated in by practitioners of Vajrayana Buddhism is a gathering circle. In the Tibetan language, this is called tsok (short for tsok kyi khorlo, which literally means gathering circle). Gathering circles opportunities for practitioners to assemble in the recognition of each other’s inherent divinity, […]



Getting to the Root of Our Suffering

January 20th, 2017

Garden Variety Depression and Anxiety can be helped by Mindfulness-Awareness Practice

The Buddha, in the second of his famous Four Noble Truths taught that suffering arises from craving and clinging to temporary things. When we don’t get what we want, we experience aversion or hatred towards what happens instead. It is out of ignorance […]



Meeting my Lama and Practicing Universal Compassion.

January 13th, 2017

Could Unequal Compassion have been the Roots of my Depression and Anxiety?

For the last two blog posts I have been recounting how, in searching for enlightenment, I unexpectedly resolved chronic depression and anxiety. Blogging experts tell you never to talk about I, I, I. You want to know what can help you, right? […]



The Situation is Completely Hopeless

January 11th, 2017

How I Ended my Chronic Anxiety and Depression with Buddhist Practice Part 2

The most transformation teaching I received during my brief sojourn with Trungpa Rinpoche’s senior students in Western Mass was a quote from Trungpa Rinpoche. “The situation is completely hopeless.”

My personal style of obsessive thinking was largely future focused. […]



Prison of Thoughts

January 9th, 2017

How I Ended my Chronic Anxiety and Depression with Buddhist Practice Part I

In my early thirties, after having spent years exploring which spiritual path I wanted to pursue in life, I decided to ‘piss or get off the pot’ and went to the Karma Choling center in Vermont for a meditation retreat with […]



Tibetan Mandalas

January 6th, 2017

Tibetan Mandalas: Are they really what you think they are? Encountering Tibetan Art

In the late 1990’s my Mom and I visited the Tibetan Buddhist art collection within the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. Mom was a minister of Spiritual Science and a voracious reader of all the mystery traditions of the world. […]



Jewel in the Redwoods

January 4th, 2017

Pema Osel Ling Retreat Center

Imagine yourself in a stunning temple below towering redwoods. You are surrounded by men and women who are meditating, praying and conducting powerful ceremonies exactly as the yogis of Tibet have done for over a thousand years. In a moment, cymbals crash together, drums beat, and wind instruments resound, […]



Reasons to Practice

January 1st, 2017

Eleven Wonderful Reasons to Practice Tibetan Buddhism

The four messengers bowed deeply before the renowned meditator and Buddhist scholar. They offered two gifts: gold dust and a golden bowl. Following the bestowal came a request. Would he travel to a remote mountainous area far to the northeast and trounce the negative forces that were preventing […]