‘It isn’t question of thinking in terms of becoming a stream-enterer or becoming an arahant, or wondering, ‘‘Have I attained stream-entry yet’’.’ Ajahn Sumedho

Soto Zen monastics around the world learn a ritualized eating practice known as oryoki. This word combines the Chinese characters for “receive,” “amount,” and “bowl,” so it’s basically the practice of receiving the right amount. The ceremony is an elaborate sequence...

Lion’s Roar is delighted to announce that we have released our 2023 Report to Our Community. Our annual community report highlights the Lion’s Roar Foundation’s activities and accomplishments in 2023, introduces our board and staff, and gives an overview of financial...

‘Somebody who is always saying, 'I'm no good,' won't try at anything because, 'Things always go wrong for me. The teacher said that people today, and always, sell themselves cheap.’ Trevor Leggett

Wesak or Vesak celebrates Visakha Puja on first full moon of May.

In his “Instructions to the Cook,” Dogen, the Japanese founder of the Soto Zen school, wrote that someone working to benefit others should maintain three minds: magnanimous mind (daishin), parental mind (roshin), and joyful mind (kishin). Magnanimous mind (or “big...

In August 2011, a doctor at a hospital in mid-central Wisconsin called to tell me my mother was in the intensive care unit. She explained that Mom was suffering from dehydration and kidney failure and had been brought by ambulance to the emergency room. Sitting on my...

Mindfulness is a basic capability of mind, and it is practiced for many different reasons, both spiritual and secular. Buddhism uses mindfulness in a unique and powerful way—to develop wisdom. This combination of mindfulness and insight is the basic definition of...

Thich Nhat Hanh, our teacher, described love as an extremely powerful energy that has the capacity to transform ourselves and others. But many of us find it difficult to direct love toward ourselves. We quickly become aware of negative feelings like shame, guilt, and...

We empathize with people with obvious physical health conditions; we sign their casts and send get-well cards and flowers. But people with mental health issues are all too often stigmatized, misunderstood, and ignored. Even those hospitalized with mental health crises...