a buddhist carnival – april 2008

a buddhist imagewelcome to the buddhist carnival, a selection of buddhist posts all over the blogosphere.

this month is poetry month. let’s start with a zen poem, then, by p’ang yun, who lived from approximately 740 to 808 C.E.

when the mind is at peace,
the world too is at peace.
nothing real, nothing absent.
not holding on to reality,
not getting stuck in the void,
you are neither holy nor wise, just
an ordinary fellow who has completed his work.

you can find this and other zen poems at the zen frog.

and on with creativity. janet riehl has a series of interviews with buddhist artist eden maxwell, entitled “life purpose is dharma in daily life”, “art in zen and the zen of art” and “make rejection work for your creative life”. here’s a teaser:

in zen buddhism, the fundamental concept is to intuitively grasp the truth; there are no lengthy discourses, and no reasoning for a logical answer.

those who practice zen reject the phantom world; you are capable of perceiving the world directly; this is power; this is the gift each true artist paints, writes, dances”name your form.

nothing is more profound than direct personal experience of a thing, which is the point of both zen and art.

finally, an artistic contribution from the world of film, buddha wild monk in a hut. in a related post, it says

the film gives us a glimpse into the cultural and monastic lives of missionary monks. it provides a mixture of both seriousness and humor that i see both in myself and the monks who are kind enough to teach me here in kansas. plus, a little bit of humor goes a long way in adding dramatic effect. buddha wild takes us on an exploration of the tenets of buddhism, celibacy, politics, the role of women in asian society as well as the everyday goings on of the monks.

and as a last feature, from the art of therapy, wayne contributes non-habitual living and being

i break the habit of being normal.

i discover that standing forth as a whole, centered, focused, and clear human being is ultimately, what life is really all about.

the worst habit you can have is to live your life as if you have no choice. continue to ignore yourself at your peril. see with new eyes, and the world and you are transformed, transcended, and whole.

other submissions include

let’s try this again next month! the next edition of a buddhist carnival will appear here at change therapy on may 15, 2008.

have an article you think we should see? go here to submit it.

(image by steve evans

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