Buddhist Teachings for Everyday Living
The Practice of Not Trying
We tend to picture spiritual practice as effort. Try harder. Meditate longer. Be a better person through sheer willpower. And plenty of paths do work that way, at least at first. But there's another current running through Buddhist teaching, and it points the opposite direction. Not because effort is bad, but because some things can't be reached by force.
Lion King, West Side Story, and Amida Buddha: Why Myths Get a Remake
Lion King is Hamlet. West Side Story is Romeo & Juliet. And now Amida Buddha is getting a modern American retelling. Discover more about why myths were always meant to evolve.
Meeting Amida: A Guided Meditation
Join us on a guided meditation through a peaceful forest just after dawn. In a meadow, Amida Buddha awaits, welcoming you. You're enveloped in golden light symbolizing wisdom and compassion. As you sit in the glow, Amida Buddha shares a teaching…
All Things Are Made to Be So
A seed does not choose to bloom, nor do we make it bloom by will. It blooms jinen—of itself—through a greater working beyond our control. Likewise, our spiritual awakening unfolds through Amida’s Vow, embracing us just as we are.
Imagining Awakening
When we look at the way the teachings have been shared through time, we see the Buddha used imagination constantly to open the heart, to shift perception, and to awaken compassion and wisdom. How can we use imagination in our practice today?