A philosophy of contemplative science can easily become a dense entanglement of language and concepts whereas a poetry of contemplative science can invite fresh ways of seeing. In this prose/verse I try to illumine some of my thinking about cognition and knowing. May the timbre of these thoughts quicken the edges and membranes we share. … Continue reading Edges, Membranes and Mystery
Science developed from the human compulsion to explain things, either to another or to oneself. Perhaps this could be seen as the early stirrings of wisdom, prājña – an inherent inquisitiveness and curiosity of one's own mind (one's own field of knowing) that is both precise and playful at the same time. The compulsion to … Continue reading Dancing Stillness and The Poetry of Science
Samantabhadra appears as a mysterious presence in many Mahayana scriptures. Often referred to, but rarely appearing, he/she has an ephemeral quality – ubiquitous yet will-o-the-wisp – powerfully present yet difficult to define or meet with face to face. In the Tibetan Nyingma tradition, Samantabhadra is the name of the primordial Buddha. The same primordial buddha … Continue reading A Sadhana of Samantabhadra:the heart of Mahayana
Click here to download a fully formatted PDF We are constantly 'explaining' things to ourselves and sometimes, we try to share these explanations with others. Through this process, we make sense of the world. An Embracive View Essentially, all explanations are attempts to understand the same thing; this ineffable, continuously cresting wave of spontaneous presence … Continue reading Explanation, Assumption and Guru Yoga
In the immeasurable expanse of nature in process, In faith and trust and wonderment we give ourselves to this suchness, This seamless mystery of birthing and dying. A few months back, I received an e-mail from people in Brazil who are translating some of my writings into Portuguese. They were having difficulty with the word … Continue reading Translating Suchness
Click here to view the fully formatted article in PDF An object can always have a name. This designated thing sits in its space; sometimes a geographic space of physical linkage and relationship, sometimes an emotional or conceptual space; and we, from the perspective of our own place, can then name it. But what if … Continue reading Naming the Unnameable
Essential practice => a way of living that can be fruitfully applied in whatever situation or circumstance we find ourselves in. An 'essential practice' for the maturing of our humanness – what I have come to think of as a path of 'natural awakening' or 'contemplative science', or 'buddhadharma'– involves much more than practicing or … Continue reading Essential Practice
Dear Trustees of Oxfam NZ My partner, Mary Jenkins and I have been regular contributors to Oxfam for many years. We, like many others, have been disturbed by the revelations in the Guardian concerning misconduct and poor management in Haiti, Chad and now other places. These examples of exploitation, by representatives of an organisation dedicated … Continue reading An Open Letter to Oxfam
Immense Gratitude and Thanks For A Wonderful Response to the Orgyen Care Project Dear Friends About three weeks ago, e-mails were sent out announcing the Orgyen Care Project and asking for support. For those of you who may not have heard about it, the O.C.P. was conceived by Andy MacIntosh, and Grant and Natasha Rix, … Continue reading Orgyen Care Project Thanks
Changing the way we speak can encourage new dimensions of understanding. In the light of this, I'd like to invite some fresh thinking about what we mean when we use the words 'body' and 'mind'. Instead of treating them as nouns that describe seemingly familiar pre-existing objects, one being physical and the other non-physical, we … Continue reading Body/Brain/Mind/Community
