The 8th Century Indian Buddhist philosopher and monk Shantideva once wrote, “All the joy the world contains has come through wishing happiness for others. All the suffering this world contains has come through wanting pleasure for oneself.” ...

I often marvel at how far the practice of mindfulness has reached. From helping patients with chronic pain to supporting mental health and trauma healing, the power of mindfulness has found its way into modern society.At the same time, there are vali...

Dear friends,My heart's been on a bit of a roller coaster this week — from the gut wrenching news of shootings and violence to the hope of spring and vaccines.Meditation can bring healing and wholeness to our hearts and help us respond to the world w...

A wound takes time to heal.All around the world—from Myanmar to Minneapolis—we see the deep need for healing in our families, communities and society. We need to heal from the wounds of colonialism, slavery, racism, sexual violence, hate and poverty....

It’s been a long year since the pandemic started, one that revealed so much that was already wrong with our world: injustice, violence, and gross inequities.Yesterday was the Vernal Equinox here in the Northern Hemisphere. Amidst so much hardship mix...

I was shocked to hear the words come out of my mouth: “Is it really okay to wish myself well? To want to be happy?”We were less than 48 hours into a week-long, silent lovingkindness retreat, where one strengthens kindness through the focused repetiti...

Here where I live in California, spring is in the air. The plum trees are blooming and the days are getting longer, which lifts my heart naturally.There are countless ways to uplift the heart—from gratitude to friendship, from creativity to service....

How do we not lose heart when hard times drag on?Here in the US we’re approaching the one year mark of the COVID-19 pandemic, and many of the people I’m in touch with are hitting a wall. The monotony, the stress of schools being closed, the isolation...

One of the most common misconceptions about meditation is that you have to stop thinking.Anyone who’s tried knows how futile this is. The mind can get still and quiet, but this comes through relaxation and patient, gentle effort, not an act of will.W...

During these long pandemic months, one thing that's come to mind repeatedly is how small acts can have a lasting impact in life, for better or worse. This is one of the reasons the Buddha stressed the importance of kaliyana–mitta, ‘wise companio...