The Buddha encouraged his community to meditate in the forest at the foot of a tree, beginning a long tradition of reverence for nature in Buddhism. Spending time in nature, we can sense the intimate connection between the natural world and our own ... Read more

Just home from traveling halfway around the world for a couple weeks of meditation retreat. Since there are wonderful retreat centers right here in California - Spirit Rock, Big Bear, others - why go spend weeks in the heat of Southern India, in an ... Read more

“Noble friends and noble conversations” are mentioned often in the suttas of the Buddha’s teachings, as supports for practice, and as the antidote to every obstacle on the path to freedom. Where are these “noble friends to be found? A sitting gro... Read more

I will never forget the first time I experienced the presence of the Ven Ayya Tathaaloka. She walked into a Advanced Practitioner Program retreat at Spirit Rock that I attended, and she literally lit up the meditation hall. Before she uttered a word... Read more

How many times do we start a new year with big resolutions, only to quickly fall short and give up? We assume that change is an either/or proposition — we either “deliver” or we’re out of the game.  Mindfulness practice suggests a much more... Read more

Do you have new years resolutions? Maybe you want to stop eating convenience food so often or you want to meditate every day. Those are wonderful aspirations and could make a big difference in your life for sure. Alas, from experience we know tha... Read more

I wake up to a clear winter sunrise in LA. It’s already the fifth day of the new year. Like a dream, the holidays are past, whether sparkling or somber. It’s 2019 now. Here we are, rowing our boats gently down the swift stream of time. Is life reall... Read more

  A spiritual tradition is not a shallow stream in which one dips one foot and retreats to the shore, it’s a mighty tumultuous river that rushes through one’s life. – Bhikkhu. Bodhi As one year morphs into the next, it’s a good time t... Read more

  Today is the solstice, the first day of winter, when Earth’s axis tilts the Northern Hemisphere farthest from the sun’s warmth. It’s the shortest day and the longest night of the year. This year a full moon (called the Cold Moon, or the Lo... Read more

It was love at first sight, when I first met Coco, a curly apricot poodle mix that melted my heart to a puddle. I was 23 years old and had no idea the walls around my heart were soon to come crumbling down. Up to that point, my relationships with pe... Read more