The High Price of Materialism

More at http://www.newdream.org
Produced by the Center for a New American Dream

Psychologist Tim Kasser discusses how America's culture of consumerism undermines our well-being. When people buy into the ever-present marketing messages that "the good life" is "the goods life," they not only use up Earth's limited resources, but they are less happy and less inclined toward helping others. The animation both lays out the problems of excess materialism and points toward solutions that promise a healthier, more just, and more sustainable life.

Animation by Squid and Beard: http://www.squidandbeard.com

Learn more at http://www.newdream.org

View the sources for the research athttp://www.newdream.org/resources/high-price-of-materialism-further-reading

Why Violence in Tibet Is Getting Worse

From The Atlantic:

Activists are burning themselves alive, but the Chinese government seems unable to change policies.



Earlier this week a Tibetan monk became at least the 22nd person in the past year to commit self-immolation in protest at the Chinese government's rule in Tibet. Robert Barnett, Director of the Modern Tibet Studies Program at Columbia University, says this is a new type of political protest for Tibetans, one that looks like it may become an ongoing form of dissent if the Chinese government does not change some of its policies in the region.

Asia Blog spoke to Barnett by telephone.

Why are monks and nuns deciding to use this particular form of protest against the Chinese government?

The reasons why they have chosen this method of protest are not exactly clear.

Read the full transcript from the interview here.  

Korea to correct Buddha’s birthplace in textbook

Korea will correct the erroneous information regarding the birthplace of Buddha in a textbook beginning in 2013 in response to Nepal’s request.

“Authors of the book admitted to having described Buddha’s birthplace wrongly and have decided to correct it,” said Kang Hyun-tae, a senior researcher at the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. Kang said the corrected version of the book will be released next year as the books for this year have already been printed.

Nepal’s then Ambassador to Seoul Kamal Prasad Koirala called for the correction in a written petition sent to President Lee Myung-bak in December, claiming Buddha’s birthplace Lumbini is a part of Nepal, not India.....

Read the full story from the Korea Times

Cambodian monk helps HIV-affected community

In the heart of Cambodia, many gather in a Buddhist Pagoda to give spiritual support to families affected with HIV and AIDS. Meditation is taught to them to help them cope with dealing with HIV.

“Before these sessions, we felt stressed and ashamed, we did not want to meet any one and felt discriminated against. Now we are a lot more positive” says Ken Chanthy one of the regulars.

The community is also taught about the type of medication they need to be taking in order to live a healthy life, its all part of the “Buddhist Leadership Initiative” and UNICEF.

Ulrike Gilbert a UNICEF HIV Specialist has to say that, the support monks provide is important because they support the spiritual needs of the people and help to mobilize material support for the people. The majority of the people are living below the poverty line.

Source: Buddhist Trends

Everything is Connected to Everything Else

In this fascinating short excerpt from BBC’s A Night With The Stars, Cox turns to the Pauli exclusion principle — a quantum mechanics theorem holding that no two identical particles may occupy the same quantum state simultaneously — to explain why everything is connected to everything else, an idea at once utterly mind-bending and utterly intuitive, found everywhere from the most ancient Buddhist scripts to the most cutting-edge research in biology and social science.





View more at The Quantum Universe

Dharma Talk - An Old Trumpet

Talk Given By: Rev. Hae Kyong Bup Sanim
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Duration - 14:00


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Dharma Talk - The F Word

 Talk Given By: Bup Mee Sunim
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Duration - 19:45

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Ask a Buddhist: My Boss is Stressing Me Out!

Your shoulders bunch. Your jaw clenches. “No!No!No!No!” screams a voice inside your head. "Hello!!" you hear yourself saying – just a little too brightly – "How are you?" 

This sort of reaction to the sight of your boss (or spouse, or anybody at all) might have some real history behind it. Perhaps you've decided that she's a vicious tyrant or a wearying pontificator. Maybe she's the embodiment of everything that drives you nuts about your mom. Maybe she feels exactly the same way about you. 

But however numerous and well-documented your grievances may be, your boss isn't manufacturing your stress – you are. "You have created the stress-inducing boss," says Kadam Morten, a Buddhist teacher in the New Kadampa tradition, founded by Buddhist leader Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, the author of Modern Buddhism. Stress, Kadam Morten suggests, is the result of "uncontrolled mind states" like anger, or a sense of professional inadequacy. Buddhists practice meditation to understand and transcend these states. The point is that whether or not your boss is verifiably horrible, it's up to you how badly she stresses you out. ...

Read more from BigThink

Protests, Self-Immolation Signs Of A Desperate Tibet

In a monastery on the Tibetan plateau, monks swathed in crimson robes chant under silk hangings, in a murky hall heavy with the smell of yak butter. Photos of the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama — seen by China as a splittist — are openly displayed, as if in defiance. But Chinese security forces have tightened their grasp on this region, and monasteries appear to be emptying out, gripped by an atmosphere of fear and loss.

In one town, monks boycotted the usual Chinese New Year celebrations at the end of January as a mourning gesture, refusing to set off fireworks.

"Too many of our people died this year," one monk told me, referring to nearly two-dozen Tibetans who have set themselves on fire as a protest against Chinese repression. Identifying details have been removed to protect those who talked to NPR....

Listen to the story and read more from NPR

Now offered: Buddhist Track in Masters of Arts in Pastoral Care and Counseling

In a recent press release, the New York Theological Seminary announced a partnership with the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care to offer a Buddhist track within their existing Master of Arts in Pastoral Care and Counseling graduate program.

The 48-credit degree can be completed within two years and is fully accredited. Click here for more information. You can learn more about the work of the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care in Clinical Pastoral Education in this video:

From Buddhadharma