Gentling the Inner Critic As you left their voice behind The stars began to burn Through. . . . —Mary Oliver, “The Journey”   Our inner critic is the part of us that has given up on us. It hurls “can’ts” and “shoulds” at us: You can’t go. You can’t make it alone. You should

3 Guided Mindfulness Meditations An Excerpt from Heart Medicine by Radhule Weininger As we encounter difficulties, mindfulness is crucial: it allows us to be present, here and now, with nonjudgmental, moment-by-moment attention. Penetrating a LRPP [Long-standing, Recurrent, Painful Pattern] with mindfulness dissolves the LRPP’s power source and creates opportunity for profound change. The energy that has

Abhidharma Teachings on Not-Self An excerpt from The Buddhist Psychology of Awakening Obsessive Fixity The Buddhist meaning of the word atman is “obsessive fixity.” Now you might ask, “What does this have to do with the famous ego?” Let’s explore how this famous self and ego as a “good guy” or a “bad guy” is

Creating Boundaries from the Inside Out A 20-Minute Guided Audio Meditation with Ralph De La Rosa, author of Don't Tell Me to Relax ENTER YOUR EMAIL TO RECEIVE A 20-MINUTE GUIDED AUDIO MEDITATION.   We all have moments when we wish we could say “Hell no!” but don’t, or situations where we choose to tolerate

Energy and Balance An excerpt from The Five Hurdles to Happiness I was once driving in semi-rural Ohio a few years back. After a state trooper’s flashing lights in my rear-view mirror snapped me out of my inner sagging, I pulled over to the side of the road. The trooper eyed me from outside my driver’s

The following is an adapted excerpt from The Great Within The Transformative Power and Psychology of the Spiritual Path By Han F. de Wit The Great Within$24.95 - PaperbackBy: Han F. de Wit Add to Cart Exploring the Meaning of The Way The Way, or the Path, is a universal metaphor encountered again and again in

Exploring the Concept of Commitment in Relationships An Excerpt from Love between Equals: Relationship as a Spiritual Path Many people nowadays do not understand whether or why they should get married or commit themselves to a monogamous or exclusive sexual relationship. In this regard, we seem to have forgotten that what is most important to

My Story of Becoming the First African-American Man to Receive Soto Zen Transmission An Excerpt from Zen beyond Mindfulness My Beginnings I was born in 1939 in Chester, Pennsylvania, an industrial town just outside of Philadelphia that was working class and extremely diverse. Based on this background, the path I ended up taking was exceedingly

The Power of Intention An Excerpt from Say What You Mean "I developed NVC as a way to train my attention—to shine the light of consciousness—on places that have the potential to yield what I am seeking. What I want in my life is compassion, a flow between myself and others based on a mutual

The Science of Sleep Allan Hobson, MD Neuroscience and Tibetan Buddhism have both devoted a great deal of attention to sleep and dream states, and there is a clear overlap of interests in this area. In fact, the topic generated so much interest on both sides that it was to become the focus of the