Reading Archive (Death and Impermanence)
When Death Comes
When death comes like the hungry bear in autumn; when death comes and takes all the bright coins from his purse to buy me, and snaps...
The River Cannot Go Back
It is said that before entering the sea a river trembles with fear. She looks back at the path she has traveled, from the peaks of the...
His Own Eulogy
Every now and then I guess we all think realistically about that day when we will be victimized with what is life's final common...
Response Vs. Reaction
When I was 19 and 20, part of what drove my urge to awaken was that we were still in the midst of the Cold War, and it looked as though...
You Play The Piano
The existence, the physical universe is basically playful. There is no necessity for it whatsoever. It isn’t going anywhere. That...
How to Live If You're Going to Die
I got a call that a dear friend of mine, who received precepts from me years ago when I lived at Green Gulch, was dying. I arranged with...
The Glass is Already Broken
Once someone asked a well-known Thai meditation master, "In this world where everything changes, where nothing remains the same,...
Zorba The Greek
From a book review of 'Zorba The Greek': The plot of Zorba is deceptively simple: a bookwormish writer (called in the novel "the...
Working With Soil, Attending To Soul
A garden tends to get inside us. If we go there to accomplish something or to get something, the garden soon becomes a burden. With...
Every Sensation Comes to an End
I wonder if you know what it means to be aware of something? Most of us are not aware because we have become so accustomed to condemning,...
Cultivating An Eagle Mind
Human qualities often come in clusters. Altruism, inner peace, strength, freedom, and genuine happiness thrive together like the parts of...
A 9-Year-Old's Hidden Self
The quality and strength of Lobsang's inner being was also brought home to me through an event that took place in my home. After...
To Be Continually Thrown Out Of The Nest
We think that if we just meditated enough or jogged enough or ate perfect food, everything would be perfect. But from the point of view...
This is the True Ride
My friends, let’s grow up. Let’s stop pretending we don’t know the deal here. Or if we truly haven’t noticed,...
Suffering Leads to Grace
For most people, when you say that suffering is Grace it seems off the wall to them. And we’ve got to deal now with our own...
Letting Meaning Flow Into Purpose
The only point where one can start to talk about anything, including death, is where one finds oneself. And for me this is as a...
The Grandest Vision For Humanity
The universe is complex and beautiful. When we listen to stories of humanity, life and death, we can’t fathom the complexity of...
The Cosmology of Peace
The issue of interhuman tension is secondary to earth-human tensions. If humans will not become functional members of the earth...
New Atoms Doing the Same Dance
I stand at the seashore, alone, and start to think. There are the rushing waves ... mountains of molecules, each stupidly minding...
Beyond Being Present
All that past and all that future weigh down this one little moment here in the present: No wonder the present buckles under the weight....