Category Archives: Uncategorized

The concept of karma in Buddhism maintains that all actions are conditioned by previous actions and give rise to the actions or consequences that follow. In “Is Delusion Hardwired?” Wendy Hasenkamp says, “ancient ideas about karma…are mirrored with surprising detail … Continue reading →

Wendy Hansenkemp’s article “Brain Karma: Is Delusion Hardwired?” was very interesting to me because much of what she talks about relates to another class I am taking: Feldenkrais for dancers. The Feldenkrais method involves doing gentle, slow, repeated movements by … Continue reading →

Buddhism within the United States occupies a precarious position in our society because of its troubling past surrounding authenticity. Buddhism came to the United States during the 1960s and the 1970s. During this time it became better known through the … Continue reading →

Throughout our discussion of mindfulness and its evolution in the Western world and as a secular practice, I was reminded of an article that came out last year called “Abusing the Buddha: How the U.S. Army and Google co-opt mindfulness,” … Continue reading →

Our discussions on Virupa have focused largely on his life: noting its colorful elements; making sense of its moral ambiguity; evaluating whether, based on his actions, we can take any of his teachings seriously as truly Buddhist in the first … Continue reading →

Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) is a group program created by Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn with the purpose of assisting patients with pain and a range of conditions and life issues that are difficult to treat in the traditional hospital setting. … Continue reading →

In her article “Brain Karma: Is Delusion Hardwired?,” Wendy Hasenkamp writes about several revelations regarding the functioning of the brain (as revealed by modern neuroscience) that relate interestingly to Buddhist teachings regarding the nature of human existence. I found this … Continue reading →

Chogyam Trungpa’s teachings offer a perspective into Buddhism unlike any other that we have learned of in class. Trungpa stripped away the mysticism and unattainability that has dictated so much of the Western understanding of Buddhism. His appeal to the … Continue reading →

I want to talk about queer theory this week. It’s on my mind all the time since I go to Smith, but also because I’m taking a SWG class this semester. Much of queer theory derives from the idea that … Continue reading →

I found our discussion about whether Virupa was good or bad to be incredibly interesting. At first, I thought that it would be impossible for anyone to put him in a positive light because I could not see past all … Continue reading →