Dharma Wheel

I know that cannabis use in Buddhism can be a controversial topic (not necessarily here, but definitely in other places), but if bhangodaka does mean cannabis, then I can understand why the Buddha would recommend it specifically for medicinal use. There's a vast difference between using steamed leav...

Hey! I just got an email from Parallax Press about the anniversary! Today they are offering the eBook version of At Home in The World for free with the coupon code Legacy in commemoration. I've gotten my copy but I thought I'd share the good news. It will come in an EPUB file format, so you just nee...

That sounds lovely, that dream. I wish I could have met him before his passing, but I only really got serious about Buddhism in the past year. Sure, I'd heard of Thay in the past, but I hadn't read him closely. Nonetheless, it is his teachings that are important, and I do have access to those, for w...

This store on Etsy, run by a Zen priest who makes various devotional objects and images, also offers handmade Gohonzon.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/ShrineSpace?r ... y=gohonzon

I see your message, Lingpupa!

May his memory be forever blessed. His writings have truly elucidated the Dharma for me and remind me daily to cultivate compassion and nonattachment, and I am far from the only person whose life he has impacted. https://plumvillage.org/articles/three-precious-memories-of-thich-nhat-hanh/ In gassho,...

It is, yes. But my point with the pressboard was more to do with the sturdiness of the wood than the quality. In any case, something I've noticed about a lot of the altars is that they're very symmetrical, which looks very satisfying. When it comes to other styles they often aren't as evenly arrange...

You could do DIY nenju or you could maybe look at the SGI-Italia store. I know the Nichiren juzu look different than the Shin nenju, but if the style doesn't matter much to you, you could get that instead.

In my area they throw up a lot of hotels and apartments because collegiate sports are very popular here--- hotels for the tourists and apartments for the university students. And I promise you I've seen them making the walls of these quick builds out of pressboard and chalk. (The patterns of pressbo...

I probably could get a small cabinet at some point, just a matter of looking for one that will fit in my corner (and that I can put hanging hooks on because I have a wall hanging of a tree behind my Shakyamuni statue). I see them at Walmart sometimes and I think, "If I could reach up there with...

Thank you for the tip about translations. I'll do that now.

And, while I have considered DIY cabinets, my hand tremors make it unfeasible most of the time.

I've tried googling "Vietnamese Buddhist altars" but all that comes up for me are results for Ban Tho, ancestral altars, and one page that really only mentions having statues of Quan Am. I thought it would be nice to give my altar more of an...established layout (or at least use them for i...

I've never heard of Thich Nhat Hanh "watering down" his teachings. He describes them in terms that Westerners might more easily understand--- he wrote various introductory books to general mindfulness and Buddhist fundamentals ---but cultural adaptation is not necessarily corruption, it de...

There's a Plum Village monastery in Mississippi as well, Magnolia Grove. They also allow short stays, weekend/2wk/etc. so you can see if the lifestyle is right for you before starting an extended/monastic stay. They also seem very open and accepting, like any other order of Thay's I suppose. I hope ...

I see... This is all very helpful, thank you all. What PadmaVonSamba referred to as "shared karma" is akin to what I was thinking of, I think. In any case, there's some things shared here today, for me to think about. I'm grateful for this space, which works with my current circumstances, ...

Norwegian, I did indeed read through the thread you posted. I've just woken up so I do hope this isn't incoherent or nonsensical. Would it be closer to right view, to say that what I perceived as a "special karma" ("special" as in "of species" rather than "unusual ...

I'm not entirely sure what term to use, but this has more to do with evolution than anything, so let me see if I can find the right words... So, the ancestors of humans were "animals" rather than "human-tier" in terms of the realms of rebirth. They exhibited less intelligence, le...

Generally speaking, if you go by the sutras, cultivating faith and chanting the Name are enough. But then certain other sutras also mention mystical, meditative practices focused on Amitabha. In any case, any school will do; most Buddhist schools aren't super sectarian, and accept that there are man...

I am trans AFAB with much the same issue. View this not as a detriment to your practice, but as an opportunity--- an opportunity for stronger mindfulness of your emotions and actions, an opportunity for strengthening your self-control, and an opportunity to cultivate metta against difficult adversar...

There's a certain story which I find helpful, about Shakyamuni's death. His last meal came from a layperson, and he got sick after eating and died. Now, whether this was due to food poisoning or general old age--- Shakyamuni was 80 when he died, after all ---isn't clear, but everyone was worried it ...