Reflections on how to live a meaningful life inspired by "The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying" by Sogyal Rinpoche and teachings from other Buddhist masters
Posted in Contemplation, Freedom, Karma, Turning Suffering and Happiness into Enlightenment, zz Sogyal Rinpoche on Jul 22nd, 2011
My brother’s Au pair had a cold when I visited a few days ago. A day later I had one, too! Sigh! A vivid reminder, how we human beings share our happiness and suffering in this life with each other. Granted, having ice cream and hot chocolate for desert surely didn’t strengthen my immune system. [...]
Posted in Contemplation, zz HH Dalai Lama on Apr 30th, 2011
I just posted a guest post on the What Meditation Really Is blog. To find out what my ten favorite quotes on happiness are click here.
Posted in Buddhism, Contemplation, zz HH Dalai Lama on Jan 7th, 2011
I have been reflecting on the meaning of life a lot recently. I read and thought about many possible answers from many different spiritual traditions. They all look at the meaning and purpose of life in different ways but there is a common theme that there is a deeper truth of existence and that the [...]
Posted in Contemplation on Jan 1st, 2011
Happy New Year! Here is a good question to start the year: What is the meaning of life? I suggest you stop reading for a moment and reflect what you would say if someone were to come up to you and ask you this question. Have you ever read the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy? [...]
Posted in Buddhism, Contemplation, zz HH Dalai Lama, zz Sogyal Rinpoche on Oct 15th, 2010
Over the last few years I have realized more and more how stressed and wound up I am. That was a really good insight. It helped me understand, why my mind is wild and agitated and that it is expected if my energy all stirred and wound up. My problem is that even though I [...]
Posted in Buddhism, Contemplation, Uncategorized, zz Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche on Sep 25th, 2010
I am presently on my way back home from a six week retreat with my teacher Sogyal Rinpoche at Lerab Ling, France. Right now I am visiting family in Munich and in a few days I will return back home to Hawaii. As you may have noticed it has been a little challenging to keep [...]
Posted in Buddha nature, Contemplation, Meditation, zz Mingyur Rinpoche, zz Sogyal Rinpoche on Jun 15th, 2010
Usually I am very groggy when I first wake up in the morning and it takes a while for my mind to show any signs of consciousness. But sometimes I wake up in the morning with a sense of wonder. I sit up on my bed, look out of the window, and life seems like [...]
Posted in Contemplation, Freedom, zz Sogyal Rinpoche, zz Thich Nhat Hanh on Feb 2nd, 2010
A good way to contemplate the natural freedom of the mind, which I wrote about in last two posts, is to reflect on what keeps us from being free. In The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, Sogyal Rinpoche recounts the Vietnamese master Thich Nhat Hanh’s beautiful description of the Buddha’s enlightenment: Thich Nhat Hanh [...]
Posted in Contemplation, Freedom on Jan 31st, 2010
The word “freedom” is often used in the modern world. In my last post, I brought up the question: “What does freedom truly mean?” When I reflected on this question myself, what came to my mind were things like free time. Having no obligations or commitments. Being free to do what I want to do. [...]
Posted in Contemplation, Freedom on Jan 29th, 2010
Freedom is not only an important theme in the Buddhist teachings but is also a very popular word these days. There are so many ways to think of it. In the modern world freedom is considered to be a fundamental right of every human being. The right of the individual to pursue happiness is mentioned [...]
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