Category: Zen Buddhism

The second factor of the Noble Eightfold Path is Right Intention, sometimes translated as Right Resolve, Right Thought, or Right Aspiration. It is the inward…

View More Renunciation for the Householder: Right Intention Without Running Away from Life

Right Intention is the second factor of the Noble Eightfold Path. If Right View is learning to see clearly, Right Intention is learning to aim…

View More Right Intention: The Direction of the Heart

Among all Mahayana Buddhist scriptures, few are as brief, beloved, mysterious, and widely recited as the Heart Sutra. In many Zen temples it is chanted…

View More The Heart Sutra: The Zen of Emptiness, Compassion, and Fearless Practice

There are certain words in Zen that should be handled carefully, almost as one would handle a candle flame in a dark room. Kensho and…

View More Kensho, Satori, and Glimpses of Enlightenment

There is something about a motorcycle that strips life down to essentials. There is no wall between the rider and the world. The air is…

View More Zen and the Motorcycle: Riding, Freedom, and the Practice of the Road

Equanimity is often misunderstood as emotional distance, passivity, or detachment from life. To some, the still mind appears cold. To others, silence looks like withdrawal.…

View More Equanimity Is Not Indifference

Non-duality is one of those spiritual ideas that can sound mysterious, abstract, or even contradictory until we realize that it is pointing to something very…

View More Understanding Non-Duality

Right View is the first factor of the Noble Eightfold Path, and this placement is not accidental. Before we can speak skillfully, act ethically, meditate…

View More Right View: Seeing Clearly at the Beginning of the Path

Buddha Nature is one of the most beautiful, misunderstood, and potentially dangerous teachings in Buddhism. Properly understood, it is a profound affirmation: awakening is not…

View More Buddha Nature: The Original Face of Awakening