Aloha Sangha began publishing blog posts in 2001. Our blog post are also presented in chronological order on our blog page here. This archive page displays all posts.
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everything is a mess and it’s fine
Yes, we are all in a mess, with suffering and despair everywhere-yet one lonely channel broadcasts the remarkable message that…
a slow, simple life
Perhaps we need to chill a little, and settle into the slow simple life that’s already here. And embrace this…
curiosity, mindfulness and anxiety
Mindfulness meditation helps us develop a mental-emotional “check engine light” that flashes in our awareness when we get reactive or…
not knowing is most intimate
Relaxing into not-knowing is a key to the present moment. When you don’t know, all possibilities are open. How do…
the universe marinating itself
As we marinate in the present moment, we let go of the urgencies of the self, the agendas of the…
In Buddhism, aging is a spiritual practice
As we approach the last pages of our human story, in Buddhism aging as a spiritual practice encourages us to…
eating the blame
If we know how to experience our discomfort gracefully, we suffer much less. We’re no longer afraid of eating the…
attachment in Buddhism
The problem of attachment in Buddhism is not about having or not having an attachment, but it’s our tendency to…
why meditation is important
When I first started meditating, I thought I knew why meditation is important. It helps reduce stress, improves sleep, and…
when is the best time to meditate?
… when the mind complains it does NOT want to meditate, says the Buddhist monk U Tejaniya I’m going to…
meditate every day? yes, you can!
We have been practicing the opposite of what meditation asks of us for so many years, no wonder it is…
openness to experience
Meditation turns special moments on their head. It turns out we don’t need special moments to savor the openness to…
in praise of maladjustment
What is maladjusted? It is someone who lost the ability to be surprised, adjusting to themselves to mediocrity and mindless…
hijacked by my news feed, again
My news feed, if I let it, can incline my mind toward fear, confusion and anger at all the crises…
on having no goals
As you set out on your meditation journey, don’t set yourself up for failure and avoid aggressive self-improvement. There isn’t…
appreciate your life
We savor our life now just as it is, messy, littered with abandoned to-do lists and unfulfilled expectations. We appreciate…
let go of expectations
As we let go of expectations in our mindfulness practice, it generalizes in our life-we are more present and…
the mindfulness of outrage
Tears well up as I type these words. I ask myself, can I let myself be mindfully undone by this…
do I have to be Buddhist to benefit from mindfulness?
What is mindfulness meditation, and do I have to be a Buddhist to benefit from practicing it? I…
i read the news today, oh boy
That Putin is digging into a hole he will not get out of, is a trigger for the Buddhist contemplation…
bearing witness to the war in Ukraine
I admit I am preoccupied with the war in Ukraine. Should I not be? I am ambivalent about mixing politics…
present moment happiness
As we soak in the healing waters of the present moment, the chasms between sacred and mundane, bearable and unbearable,…
and yet, and yet … nothing but Buddhist impermanence
When we come home to who we are in our entirety, as we are here and now in the…
practicing present moment awareness
The practice of present moment awareness shows us that whatever we are dealing with does not define us. Difficult stuff…
Don’t worry about progress in meditation, just keep going
Progress happens when you don’t think about it. I was struck by a poem the other day while reading a…
do you have to meditate every day?
Do you have to meditate every day? The question really should be can I be happily present with things…
stillness in meditation
With the gradual deepening of your practice, you will feel a wonderful stillness in meditation when you simply rest…
does meditation help with patience?
I think so, but the real question is how to develop patience with the meditation process itself. The only way…
the coup in Burma: when bad things happen to good Buddhists:
Although I try to not address too many political issues on this blog, for reasons I hope to make…
tears, just tears
Tears just flowed from my face when I heard Amanda Gorman, the first national youth poet laureate at only 22…
nurture your resilience
Realize that for many our negativity bias is on steroids right now, and that’s OK. Notice the lovely things…
Am I dreaming?
Just as our mindfulness meditation builds the capacity to unemotionally witness the unfolding imagery in our waking state, it also…
it’s crooked!
There is a lot of pressure on the whole New Year’s thing this year, right? I mean, the pandemic, economic…
thank you, nonetheless
Buddhism offers us a path to decolonize our own minds, thankfully. It not only teaches inclusion, it points out the…
2020 election: it’s a great time to be a meditator!
As I write this, the outcome of the 2020 US presidential election is still up in the air. The major…
diving into the maelstrom
The next tine you dive into another maelstrom… strap yourself with the rope of mindfulness onto the buoyant barrel of…
a moment of well being
Despite all that is wrong, I can still take delight in a moment of well-being. News stories are not…
a peaceful, uneasy feeling
I feel that I should be above it all, but mostly I’m not. I struggle with my emotions. Meditation helps…
check the lining of your own mind
Just when I thought things couldn’t get more dreadful, they did. Yes, I know pandemics happen. Evolution hurts sometimes, I…
now more than ever
The suffering in the world is overwhelming. But the whole mess looks differently when we have a rested, settled mind….
the pure delight of samadhi
With samadhi, our simple path of awareness reveals the wonderful secrets hidden in the depth of our being. Meditation…
it’s just nature, my dear
In April of last year Doug McGill interviewed the Burmese meditation teacher Sayadaw U Tejaniya concerning how a meditator…
mindful dishwashing
When I do catch the mind moment, in mindful dish-washing, the most ordinary things take on inexpressible beauty. A few…
not knowing
Anything can happen. Yes, on the surface, that can feel ominous, especially in these times. But it is precisely…
lotus blooms in fire
OK, that post title is a bit of click-bait. But you’re here now. So let me explain how the 13th…
let’s live like nomads
I love Buddhist humor. I especially love the way many Buddhist meditation masters find humorous ways to show us how…
simple, clear and delicious
Our simple practice of sustaining mindful attention on the most ordinary happenings in our everyday life, can bring this feeling…
have your self a foolish little Christmas
Ram Dass encouraged us to embrace our foolish selves rather than try to fix them I heard the…
I wish I could have given him the moon
Good poems, for me, are often potent teachings on how to live this precious life we are given. Over the…
just as you are
You can’t push the river, the Zen masters of old would say. And wow, how I have tried—reading, studying…
suffering is natural
One of my teachers, Michele McDonald-Smith, once recounted that a 92 year old relative of hers, on being informed by…
just try your best
Meditation is not easy, I get it. There are aches and pains in the body, the mind gets restless, and…
savor the resistance
Do we feel we are missing out on some better, or more spiritual, experience by being stuck with a mountain…
faith in small things
When I remember this saying, my heart releases what it’s fixated on, and it’s almost always fixated or worrying…
no self help
Mindfulness meditation leaves the self-help mindset in the dust by challenging the existence of the very thing we are setting…
an ordinary new year wish
While everyone is wishing their co-workers, friends and family a fantastic new year full of creativity, self-improvement, and relationship-hacking bravado,…
everyday mysticism
There is a way to live your ordinary life in pristine peace and joy just as it is right…
coming home
No matter how nice our home is, it is still “of the of world,” as my Buddhist teachers in Asia would…
respect
We bring a gentle, loving awareness to this body. We treat it softly, and with respect. It knows; our…
a moveable monastery
The contemplative life benefits from periodic self-reflection We meditate for many different reasons. Often, our original motivations morph as…
is that a moon i see up there?
I am often asked why I meditate. Sometimes it’s phrased – What are you trying to accomplish by just…
wise speech
We each find our own way in these challenging times. Take good care of yourself. Breathe. Meditate. Exercise. Connect with…
safety
Hurricane Lane may be an opportunity to mindfully experience the discomforts many face as facts of life: no dependable electric…
reading Suzuki Roshi 43 years later
I remember the first Dharma book I ever bought. It was Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, by Suzuki Roshi. I still…
guns n’lotuses
The prominent Buddhist teacher, author, and activist, Joan Halifax, on the day of this shooting tweeted “I want to live…
listening
It’s been raining a lot here in Honolulu. There is something unspeakably beautiful about listening to the rain. Not…
enoughness
Our meditation practice shows us radical enoughness. We have all we need to lead a fulfilling life now. If you…
be happy
Mindfulness meditation is not just another way to fix what we feel might be broken in our lives. …
the little things
There is a Tibetan saying popular in mindfulness circles: “If you take care of the minutes, the years will take…
why I stopped making new year’s resolutions
This year, I decided to not make any resolutions. Well, except maybe one. I resolve to just be myself. …
the most important thing
Someone once asked Suzuki Roshi, the pioneering Zen teacher from Japan who founded the Zen Center of San Francisco in…
non-contention
As I think about recent events here in the USA, a line keeps coming up, from a poem by Pablo…
facts of life
I am often asked why I meditate. Sometimes it’s phrased – What are you trying to accomplish by just sitting…
gratitude in Buddhism
Even though it’s not the end of the year yet, Thanksgiving has always been a time of reflection…
your luminous mind
According to later Buddhist thought, human beings are fundamentally good. This is not just a theory; it’s an unmistakable meditation…
all is well
It’s been a year now since Trump was elected president. No matter what your party affiliation, or non-affiliation, this year-old…
the secret beauty of the heart
Understanding the central message of the Buddhist traditions can be a complex undertaking. I have met several people who have…
intimacy
When asked about the fruit of the spiritual life, the 13th century Japanese monk Dogen Zenji replied: “Enlightenment is intimacy…
recognition
Fairy tales often convey deep meaning. Take Hans Christian Andersen’s story of the ugly duckling. A baby swan is orphaned…
emotions
I would like to address a couple of misconceptions I often hear regarding meditation and one’s emotional life. The first…
metta
The meditation practice of metta, or loving-kindness, has had a profound effect on me over the years. I would like…
focus
Mindfulness helps us recognize the chronic frazzle, which is like discovering the horse you are riding has reigns. Actually sitting…
grateful mind yoga
A complaint I sometimes hear from folks who are trying to be happy by practicing meditation is that meditation is…
boredom
The creator of a popular Mindfulness app was on Jimmy Fallon Live last Friday night talking about how boredom happens…
refuge
We suffer because we forget what we truly are. We take refuge and remember. We forget we are…
Trump is not the problem
Donald Trump Jr recently released an email thread in which he describes meeting a potential Russian agent to get…
lychees
The lychees didn’t fruit much this year. In fact, barely at all. I thought maybe it was something I…
trust
why we meditate We meditate for lots of reasons: stress relief, maybe lower our blood pressure, feel less anxious,…
innocence
When we sit and settle our body and begin to explore that unique space that opens up when we close…
expectation
Mindfulness meditation also goes by the moniker Vipassana, or insight meditation. When I mentioned this in our weekly classes…
patience
We’ve all been in absolutely the wrong check-out line at the worst time, merged left when we should’ve merged right,…
drink deep
In one of Tara Brach’s online talks on self-compassion, she tells a story about the work of Dian Fossey with…
now what?
As a leader and host of a mindfulness meditation group meeting weekly now for 19 years, I can tell you…
take down your own flag
I was driving home from work in 7 AM Honolulu traffic, and felt myself becoming depressed while listening to…
maybe she’s right
The prominent mindfulness meditation teacher Jack Kornfield tells this story illustrating the freshness of what has been called beginner’s…
mindfulness and contentment
In a Time Magazine article from 2009, Justin Fox writes that after the 9/11 terrorist attacks President Bush didn’t call…
occupy home
I read online somewhere that before they enter kindergarten kids are exposed to thousands of commercials. I remember when our…
these are the good old days
The other night my wife and kids threw me a 60th birthday party where, after the usual social stuff, folks…
Spiritually incorrect?
In this much written about contentious election season, filled with so many angry accusations and counter accusations, where civility and…
mindfulness: undoing our own knots
For folks who are just starting this journey of mindfulness meditation, it can be rough going. I think the hardest…
mindfulness: unfolding into wholeness
I was recently reading a very inspiring book by Mary O’Malley, the title of which I love: What is…
joy as a moral obligation
I recently read a passage from a book by the Franciscan priest and author Richard Rohr which resonated deeply. He…
mindfulness and the tiny purple flowers by the side of the road
We already have what we need – your brain and your heart are your temples, and your philosophy, kindness. …
meditation changes your brain–for the better
Meditation changes your brain. The you meditate, the more you respond to life from the place of calm, compassion, and…
mindfulness: the monkey pod tree in the beach park
Have you ever had the experience of being irritated with someone or about something, like a parking ticket, while…
ch-ch-ch-ch changes
It was my freshman year in college, in Southern California. It was also 1974. I had never paid much attention…
mindfulness: motivation
Over the past 19 years we have been hosting weekly meditation at our home, Katina and I often reflect that…
Gazing Upon Mercy
On this New Year’s Day, I struggle with what to do about New Year’s resolutions. Should I bother? If…
Aloha Ke Akua: God is Love
We don’t need any more divisiveness, we have had enough to satisfy any curiosity for what this contacted state feels…
mindfulness particles
The recent killings in Paris and San Bernardino have left many folks scared for themselves and their families,…
San Bernardino shooting: maybe these are my people?
If you’re wondering what in the world we can do to stop this mass shooting madness, with the San…
A Tale of Two Hashtags
The night of the Paris attacks a cartoonist affiliated with the…
Rumi’s car: metta, inclusivity and the heart
I was driving somewhere the other day with my son Kupai in the car. It was late afternoon and…
meditation as love
A couple of years ago the Dalai Lama attended a large scientific meeting in Washington DC. He met with doctors,…
We all really need each other
We all need each other It’s been an eventful past couple of weeks. Two weeks ago we experienced yet another…
mindfulness: journey of a lifetime
We practice to be free from suffering. We have moments of sweet surrender, glimpses of the sublime, and intuitions of…
Loving Kindness Every Day
I think we all have an aspiration to be kind. I do. And I am keenly aware that I don’t…
fast Buddha for speedy times
You are most likely one of the majority of people who may agree with a finding in a recent major…
Relaxing belief-driven agendas
Often times I think we find ourselves trapped in a cage of our own making. I have forgotten who it…
wholeness and redemptive suffering
In his book, The Mystic Heart, Wayne Teasdale mentions four aspects of interspirituality: surrender, humility, spiritual practice, and compassionate action. As we…
Why a spiritual recession is good for you
The other day I was re-reading parts of Karen Armstrong’s illuminating autobiography The Spiral Staircase: My Climb Out of Darkness….
Wash your bowls–meditation in daily life
There’s an old Zen story that I like very much. A monk comes to the monastery of Zhaozhou and asks…
Inner Shelter
Here in Honolulu we are preparing for the first hurricane set to make landfall on our islands in 22 years….
True Refuge
I was reading an article the other day published about a year ago about the uncertainty in the economy and…
Meditation – coming home to the place we never left
Meditation allows us to discover our true home, a place where fear has no place to stand, and where we…
ymd18: Emptiness as unsurpassable protection
This week let’s wrap our head around Lojong slogan 14: Seeing confusion as the Buddha kayas is unsurpassable shunyata…
ymd17 Tonglen: natural mercy, brave heart
Now that we have practiced the four immeasurables of love, compassion, joy and equanimity we can now truly go to…
Guided Meditation on Equanimity
We have come to the fourth of the four immeasurables: meditation on equanimity. It might be the most important of…
Buddhist meditation on joy
In these past few posts we have been looking at the practice of the Four Immeasurables – Love, Joy, Compassion…
Buddhist Contemplation: Four Thoughts Cheat Sheet
The text we will be studying and contemplating for the next six months or so is perhaps the most highly…
YMD3: What is karma? Appreciating karma as a contemplation rather than a doctrine
What is Karma and why should we care? Karma is the subject of the third of the four thoughts that…
Imagining what is possible with Buddhist contemplation
Welcome to the first week of our new YMD program: the Year of Meditating Dangerously (a year long series on…
Meditation Techniques: Truly Helpful, or Just Gilding the Lily?
Once you set up shop as a meditation teacher you get asked a whole lot of questions. Of course, there…
Which is the best spiritual practice?
What’s the best spiritual practice or path? What’s the best spiritual practice, technique or lineage? Well, after much thought, and…
From hokey to eternity
“Love is not restricted by limitations. For love does not have any bounds, being as aspect of the Infinite Love….
Why meditate
I think that from time to time we need to remind ourselves why we meditate.It’s so easy to forget. It…
Do you pay regular visits to yourself?
“We meet at this appointed time. You’ve read where it says that Lovers pray constantly. Once a day, once…
Twenty minutes more or less
“My fiftieth year had come and gone, I sat, a solitary man, In a crowded London shop, An open book…
become a wizard of ahs
What happens when we sit down to meditate? We begin to see the movements of mind. Many of the movements…
dropping into the depths
As we get into our yoga and meditation practice, we naturally start dropping into deeper and deeper places within. We…
the church of what's happening now
Our son Kupai started Kindergarten last week. When I woke him up for school the other day I asked him…
it’s not easy letting go
So many times we are advised to just let go. The whole meditation and spiritual endeavor seems to boil down…
Mindfulness of thoughts
Mindfulness gives us the skill of seeing our natural thought-mushrooming tendencies, and to gently wake up to the present moment of simply being with what is unfolding freshly, free of proliferation, fear, dread or unbalanced excitement and agitation.
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