On the road again…

…once again this blog is on the move – last time, though!  In an effort to both renew my practice and avoid limitations on embeds and the like (no CNN? really? ^_-) I’ve moved to a whole domain.  There’s still construction dust everywhere, but it’s basically all there, and that’s where I’ll be, starting today.  I’d love it if you’d come join me!  Please update bookmarks/blogrolls as appropriate. 🙂

http://buddingbuddhist.com

A Monk Amok: Buddhist Military Chaplaincy

Venerable Gyatso over at A Monk Amok has a very interesting short commentary on Buddhist Military Chaplaincy.  In part, he says:

What I don’t see is equal questioning of Buddhist chaplains in prisons. If we accept that thieves, rapists, murderers and child molesters need spiritual care, how can we question the provision of spiritual care for soldiers, sailors, airmen and women, and marines?

Via Danny Fisher: Other Buddhist Organziations Join Tzu Chi Foundation in Contributing to Typhoon Morakot Relief Efforts

Rev. Danny Fisher has a new summary on the aftermath of Typhoon Morakot, with links to more information.  Check it out.

Buddhist aid organizations mentioned:

— Master Cheng Yen’s Tzu Chi Foundation

— The late Master Sheng-yen’s Dharma Drum Mountain

— Master Hsing Yun’s Fo Guang Shan

and

— Master Wei Chueh’s Chung Tai Shan.

The Metta Sutta – Upaya Zen Center

Wow.

Thanks to the digitalZENDO for pointing this out, and to the Upaya Zen Center for sharing this.

The Metta Sutta Campaign

If you are not familiar with it, Rev. Danny is trying to get a viral campaign going of folks reading the Metta Sutta in virtual solidarity for the monastics of Burma.  As reported in the The Irrawaddy:

Buddhist monks at the Myat Saw Nyi Naung Pagoda in Yenangyaung, Magway Divison, were warned on Wednesday not to hold a ceremony to chant the Metta Sutta—the Buddha’s discourse on loving-kindness.

The monks originally planned a 12-hour-long recitation, scheduled to start at 6 p.m. Wednesday, to mark the full moon day of the fifth month of the Burmese calendar, traditionally celebrated as “Metta Sutta Day” by Burmese Buddhists.

“We only intended to recite Buddhist sutras, including the Metta Sutta, to wish for all sentient beings to be peaceful and free from anxiety. But the authorities told us to call off our plans,” a monk from Yenangyaung told The Irrawaddy on Thursday.

Similar ceremonies are normally held throughout the country on this day. However, since a brutal crackdown on the monk-led protests of 2007, which featured marching monks reciting the Metta Sutta, most monasteries have been wary of publicly chanting the sutra.

Please check out Danny’s original article, as well as his latest update.  In the former you’ll find Danny’s original video, in the latter embeds of other folks’ readings.

Eating an Orange

Via a fantastic post on impermanence at the blog Somewhere in Dhamma, is a really juicy clip from Zen Noir. I hope you savour it as much as I did.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

(I’m totally going to go ahead and get the movie now…..)

Greetings!!

Woot – a nice fresh start.   Thanks for visiting me in my new home!  ^_^  I look forward to new posts soon.

Be well, y’all, and please – if you notice a “bug” – let me know!

An Overdue Update

Well, I hate to say, it, ’cause I love da layout, but I’ve made the decision to port this blog to my wordpress account soon. I love the functionality over there, and that’s where all my other creative projects are so…expect a move soon.

In more serious news – I’ve been missing for so long because my Dad’s liver began failing. A couple of weeks ago I called in some favors and managed to fly up to see him in Mt. Sinai. To be honest, my Mom and I figured he’d be dead within a week – he was really sick, y’all. And it was hard to watch the progression of his illness. He was diagnosed with hepatic encephalopathy – basically as his liver failed, it would spew ammonia it couldn’t process into surrounding tissues. This both ruined his muscle tone and messed with his cognition. When I flew up I hadn’t really talked to my *Dad* per se in six or eight months.

So, for months and months I’ve done the only thing I could think to do for my Mom, as far away as we live. I was an ear to her concerns and fears and frustrations. That’s been heavy, but I was SO glad to be able to do it. Figured it was the least I could do.

Anyway, he’d been on the transplant list for quite a bit, but we’d had 6 fall through – I flew up on a non-refundable ticket because we had thought one was really it. I got on the plane thinking this was my opportunity to spend some last precious time with my parents together – that this was my goodbye to my Dad, more or less. I got off the plane and let my Mom know I was at JFK and I’m happy to report that during my flight they took my Dad into surgery for his transplant.

Long story short, and I’m sure I’ll blog more about this and all the other things I’ve been thinking about – I’m so deeply grateful for transplants – I have my Dad back. Not the befuddled, very sick guy I’d talk to briefly on the phone for a big chunk of the last year – they really cool guy I adore and grew up with. ^_^ Transplants are gobsmackingly amazing. People go into surgery near-death and a week later are able to leave the hospital under their own power. I just hope donor families know how amazing and precious a thing transplants are. I am forever grateful to the donor family that gave my Dad a second lease on life.

Well, this post is meandering. I guess I should just say life has been keeping me busy. And don’t get me started on the local economy and our little home based business…. 😛

Next post, back to “normal” – whatever that is…. ^_-

Many

Molly Brown, over at Destination the Journey, today broached something that is a strong component of my practice.

While you sit reading this, someone is giving birth, another is dying, another grieves the loss of a love one. Everything in the breadth and depth of daily human experience is happening right now.

As I move through my day, I do my best to bear this in mind, and honor all these beings and their experiences with my behavior. It doesn’t always work, and I am constantly having to pull myself back to this thought, but I try to do my best.

When I begin to pity myself or my situation, I find remembering that many of my brothers and sisters are in far worse places returns me to center. I pray for peace and strength of heart for them, and then also for myself.

Grateful Postscript

I want to make a point to say that I am grateful for the good life that I have. I guess blogging can lead to some self-absorbed introspection, which is quite honestly why I hesitate to post a lot of times lately. XD