Straight Talk About Buddhism

I recognize gold. I see it everyday as my gold wedding ring. I know that it doesn't have inherent "ringness" beacuase it hasn't always been a ring and it will someday decay or be melted down in to some other non-ring shape. But, I somehow still see it as being inherently gold. But is gold really gold? But looking deeper now I’m not so sure. At our house we have a poster of the Periodic Table of the Elements. Turns out they might not be as elemental as I thought. One atom of g

From Jizang: The Two Truths are the root of Buddhism. By virtue of the two truths, Buddhas train themselves and transform others. From Nagarjuna: The Buddha’s teaching of the Dharma is based on two truths: a truth of worldly convention and an ultimate truth. Those who do not understand the distinction between these two truths do not understand the Buddha’s profound teaching. Without depending on the conventional truth the meaning of the ultimate cannot be taught. Without unde

Not even the Buddha can tap you on the head and enlighten you. There’s a lot of Buddhist teachers out there with all sorts of titles and ranks given to them by other teachers. Despite these teachers laudable efforts to guide and advise, none of them can do it for you either. If they could the whole world would be enlightened by now. You have to do it yourself. Most other religions are much easier. Like Peter Pan, you just have to believe and have faith. If you believe you can

This profound statement comes from the Buddhist Madhyamaka tradition, particularly Nāgārjuna's Mūlamadhyamakakārikā (Fundamental Verses on the Middle Way), Chapter 24, Verse 18: "Whatever is dependently arisen, that is explained to be emptiness. That, being a dependent designation, is itself the middle way." It encapsulates the inseparability of two core Mahayana concepts: śūnyatā  (emptiness) and pratītyasamutpāda  (dependent arising or dependent origination). The phrasing "

Who am I? For thousands of years people have wrestled with this question. Many religions and philosophers both new and ancient have put...

What are the implications for a person like myself? Nagarjuna argues that nothing can exist permanently because all phenomena are...

This is a basic overview of Buddhist Ethics. Living a virtous life has it's own benefits but the point of these is clean up your life and...

Why are you the Unauthorized Monk? You've been properly ordained, right? Yes, I am properly ordained and registered with the Soto Zen...

The Concept of No Self in Buddhism In Buddhism, it is said that under ultimate reasoning analysis, there is no inherently existing self...

The Promise of Buddhism The great promise of the Buddha and Buddhism lies in the Buddha’s profound realization of why sentient beings...

The Buddhist Teaching Upon Which All Else Rests The Buddhist concept of Dependent Arising is a foundational principle. It explains how...

The Concept of Dependent Arising The Zen phrase “No Place to Stand” conveys the wisdom of Dependent Arising. This principle, when studied...

Where Shakespeare Writes the Noble Eightfold Path O gentle souls, attend this divine tale. It speaks of Buddha’s path, where wisdom’s...

What if Shakespeare wrote out the Buddha's Four Noble Truths in his own style? (Disclaimer: I did not write this, I asked Grok AI to do...

Part 2 of 2 in trying to figure out why most people in the West don't become Buddhist. While Buddhism’s core principles—like...

Part 1 of 2 in trying to figure out why most people in the West don't become Buddhist. Buddhism's principles often resonate due to their...

The Unauthorized Monk: Tell me about Bernardo Kastrup’s philosophy called Idealism. Grok AI: Bernardo Kastrup is a philosopher and...

No. This is a grave misunderstanding that came out of California Spirituality. Buddhism earns its mystical reputation through several...

For Christians, the concept of enlightenment might resonate with various interpretations. It's essential to explore how this idea can...

When the Buddha wasn’t meditating, eating, sleeping, etc., he was teaching, one on one, or to groups. People memorized these teachings,...