Stand Against Suffering: A Call to Action by Buddhist Teachers “‘As long as a society protects the vulnerable among them, they can be expected to prosper and not decline.’ The Buddha, in the Mahaparinirvana Sutta Buddhism does not align itself with any party or ideology. But when great suffering is at stake, Buddhists must take aContinueContinue reading “September 2017 full moon – Taking A Stand”
Author Archives: Jill Shepherd
July 2017 full moon – Gratitude
Just last week, I finished a one-month retreat at the Insight Meditation Society’s Forest Refuge in Barre, Massachusetts, led by Sayadaw U Vivekananda. What a relief it was, to temporarily put down some of the burdens I didn’t even know I was carrying, and to have such a powerful opportunity to “disentangle the tangle” (asContinueContinue reading “July 2017 full moon – Gratitude”
Let’s Stand Up Together – Bhikkhu Bodhi
In response to the intense turbulence of the last few months, and the immense outpouring of messages of resistance and support, adding my own not-so-articulate-or-informed opinions to all of that seemed redundant. I’ve been staying quiet in terms of not posting, but active in terms of looking for ways to resist harmful energies, whichever countryContinueContinue reading “Let’s Stand Up Together – Bhikkhu Bodhi”
December 2016 full moon – Wise Action, Wise Non-Action
The Noble Eightfold Path The Noble Eightfold Path is the Buddha’s prescription for completely curing ourselves of unhappiness. And like any good medicine, it doesn’t only work in one way. It’s a very holistic treatment that works on several different aspects of our lives at once – in fact, every aspect of our lives isContinueContinue reading “December 2016 full moon – Wise Action, Wise Non-Action”
November 2016 full moon – Turmoil
almost super-moon, Newcastle Beach NSW Australia 13 November 2016 Turning towards and turning away Whether it’s global political upheaval, worsening social injustice, natural disasters, personal stress, emotional pain, relational crises, or health challenges, we seem to be in a phase of intense turmoil right now. Many of the communities around the world that I careContinueContinue reading “November 2016 full moon – Turmoil”
October 2016 full moon – Reinstating the Buddha’s Vision of Gender Equity
Friends of mine from IMS recently sent me information about this presentation on a little-known aspect of Buddhist history, the recent revival of full monastic ordination for women. “This presentation was developed by Friends of Aloka Vihara co-founder Mindy Zlotnick. It outlines the history of bhikkhunis (fully ordained Buddhist nuns) from the time of theContinueContinue reading “October 2016 full moon – Reinstating the Buddha’s Vision of Gender Equity”
September 2016 full moon – wisdom and (self) compassion
Emaciated Buddha figure, Spirit Rock The ascetic Buddha Back at the end of July, I was an assistant teacher on a nine-day retreat at Spirit Rock, together with a friend and fellow teacher-trainee, DaRa Williams. One day, as we walked from the teacher housing to the meditation hall, I happened to notice a solitary BuddhaContinueContinue reading “September 2016 full moon – wisdom and (self) compassion”
August 2016 full moon – Seven Factors of Awakening and Equanimity (again)
Seven Factors of Awakening I’ve recently enjoyed leading a couple of longer residential retreats in New Zealand and Australia, exploring the teachings from the Satipatthana Sutta on the Seven Factors of Awakening: mindfulness, investigation, energy, joy or rapture, tranquillity, concentration or stability of mind, and equanimity. When cultivated together and brought into balance with eachContinueContinue reading “August 2016 full moon – Seven Factors of Awakening and Equanimity (again)”
July 2016 full moon – Hatred STILL never ceases by hatred …
Rainstorm near Te Moata Retreat Centre, Coromandel, New Zealand Exactly two years ago in July 2014, I wrote a post based on some well-known lines from the Dhammapada: Hatred never ceases by hatred, but by love alone is healed. This is an ancient and eternal law. 1 Lately, that same post has been getting someContinueContinue reading “July 2016 full moon – Hatred STILL never ceases by hatred …”
June 2016 full moon – Inspiration and taking refuge in sangha/community
Graduates of the Insight Meditation Society and Spirit Rock four-year teacher training programme, 10 June 2016 – photo by Ben Marshall In my last international newsletter back in April, I wrote about inspiration, an aspect of spiritual practice that surprisingly, doesn’t seem to be talked about very often. As I discovered back then, “… theContinueContinue reading “June 2016 full moon – Inspiration and taking refuge in sangha/community”
Jill Shepherd: insight meditation 