What Does Buddhism Have to do with Black People?

by | Jun 6, 2015 | dharma-notes

  She walks through the gate, Heavy footed, Gazing out from the darkness of skin, Seeing no church pews, She sits chanting, Why have I come without knowing whose house I have entered? —zenju   I removed my sandals just outside near an open space where the...

Ring The Bell of Mourning

by | May 3, 2015 | dharma-notes

There is peace. Yet, I cannot even calm my heart without reminding myself of it. I cannot face another murder without knowing it. I hear the reasons, see the protest, feel the rage. I live among the popping of guns, black children afraid of imminent death, rage...

Embodiment as Nature and Notions of No Self

by | Feb 11, 2015 | dharma-notes

When we recognize that we are all a part of the collective injury of hatred, we begin to face our unexamined fears. We do not have to go far to find ourselves in the midst of human struggles based on unacceptable differences. This struggle is an intimate tension...

Be Home, Be Still

by | Jan 1, 2015 | Dharma Talks

Recently folks have asked, “What lesson are you to learn around home? You have moved a lot.” Yes, my partner and I have fallen into the abyss called homelessness several times in the last year. When I am asked about the lesson or the karma of such, I have...

Our Tendencies

by | Dec 14, 2014 | Dharma Talks

…Because they interfere with how we see one another, our ancestral and karmic tendencies help to create what we learn about each other. So, we must explore the tendencies that blind us to true interrelationship. If we continue on unaware of the learned...