Apr 19: Hindu Parable (Author Unknown), Rich Man And The Beggar (3673 reads)
Many years ago, a man was sitting in quiet contemplation by a riverbank when he was disturbed by a beggar from the local village. “Where is the stone?” the beggar demanded. “I...

Apr 12: Kittisaro, Radical Reflection (5417 reads)
We feel we can capture something by thinking about it. In reality, when we grasp at thoughts, the very process of trying to possess a piece of life ensures that it continually eludes us. We can...

Apr 05: Akiko Busch, Invisibility In A Time Of Transparency (5492 reads)
What is the difference between being invisible and just landing in a blind spot? In the woods no more than an hour, I am struck anew by invisibility, and its improvisational choreography, as a...

Mar 29: Robert Sapolsky, Ambiguity Of Violence (4570 reads)
It is the ambiguity of violence, that we can pull a trigger as an act of hideous aggression or of self-sacrificing love, that is so challenging. As a result, violence will always be a part of the...

Mar 22: James O'dea, A Higher Level Of Conscious Engagement (14409 reads)
We live in an age of spiritual smorgasbord: People are mixing concepts, aphorisms, and insights from a broad variety of mystical and faith traditions. A blend of notions culled from many spiritual...

Mar 15: Paulo Coelho, Two Drops Of Oil (5751 reads)
A merchant sent his son to learn the Secret of Happiness from the wisest of men. The young man wandered through the desert for forty days until he reached a beautiful castle at the top of a...

Mar 08: Mirabai Starr, Thirsty For Wonder (5916 reads)
Contemplative life flows in a circular pattern: awe provokes introspection, which invokes awe. Maybe you’re making dinner and you step outside to snip chives from the kitchen garden just...

Mar 01: Rob Burbea, The False Dichotomy Between Being And Doing (7594 reads)
One believes that "being" and "doing" are different. Often, "just being" is regarded as preferable or somehow more authentic. With maturing of insight, however, one...

Feb 22: Sylvia Boorstein, If There Is No Self, Whose Arthritis Is This? (6721 reads)
"If there is no self, whose arthritis is this?" is one of a list of a dozen questions that have been appearing regularly in my email. I think it’s the choice of arthritis, out...

Feb 15: Mark Manson, Not Taking Things Personally (9731 reads)
An unfortunate side effect of our consciousness residing in our brains is that everything we experience in our lives involves us somehow. The car in traffic today cut you off. The cable news...

Feb 08: Susan Kahn, Emptiness Cafe (6151 reads)
Life moves Like shadow and light, Instantaneously appearing, Though I cannot find time itself. Cities mirrored in thought, Nothing standing alone. There is no seer without the seen, No...

Feb 01: Gopal Dada, The Hole-y Bucket (7407 reads)
A student approaches the teacher with the question, “Could you help me with a question I've been struggling with -- what is the purpose of my life?”  The wise teacher...

Jan 25: Henri Nouwen, Solitude Is Where Community Begins (6686 reads)
Solitude is where community begins. That’s where we listen to God. Sometimes I think of life as a big wagon wheel with many spokes.  In the middle is the hub.  Often in ministry, it...

Jan 18: Jon Madian, We Are Weavers (6369 reads)
we are weavers woven into and from  an ancient ever renewing fabric on an invisible loom more subtle than breath at one turn  we pull to add to our own design to sing each...

Jan 11: Bryan Stevenson, The Broken Among Us Teach Us (6282 reads)
What sustains me is this knowledge I have that it’s really the broken among us that can contribute a lot to our quest for full, equal justice. When you’re broken, you actually —...

Jan 05: Bear Guerra, Dark Skies Show Us Stars (6098 reads)
One of my earliest childhood memories finds me waking from a deep sleep in the middle of the night, during a family road trip. Far from any city lights, I look out the window toward the sky above,...