Buddhism and homosexuality

You cant stop the rainbow.

Buddhism and homosexuality
by Kerry Trembath

Introduction
In browsing through the Net, I have come across a number of articles relating to religion and homosexuality. Almost all of these assume a Judaeo-Christian viewpoint, perhaps with passing references to Islam and an occasional glance over the shoulder at the ancient Greeks and Romans. As I am a practicing Buddhist, I would like to share with you my perspective on how homosexuality is treated in Buddhism. We should start with a very brief outline of Buddhism, particularly in relation to how the Buddha advised us to regulate our behaviour.

Another Way of Seeing Things by Daisaku Ikeda

Another Way of Seeing Things

by Daisaku Ikeda

I have long felt that Turkey, as a country pivotally linking East and West, North and South, has a unique role to play in fostering the harmony of humankind.

In 1992, on my first visit to Turkey in 30 years, I found myself in Istanbul gazing at the Bosporus Strait. The land on the west side of the narrow strait was Europe; that on the east, Asia. Travelers from the West encounter the cultural richness of the East, and those from the East can encounter the West, champion of modernization. To both, the world begins to show a new and different face.

THEN WE WERE JUMPING by Eve Ensler

Find out more at http://www.onebillionrising.org/

Project 562: Changing The Way We See Native America

About Project 562

Last December, I sold everything in my Seattle apartment, packed a few essentials into my war pony, and hit the open road. Since then, I’ve been embarking on an epic adventure: Project 562.

For the past year I have been fulfilling the project’s goal of photographing citizens of each federally recognized tribe in the United States (there are now 566). Most of the time, I’ve been invited to geographically remote reservations to take portraits and hear stories from a myriad of tribes, while at other times I've photographed members of the 70 percent of Native Americans living in urban settings. My hope, is that when the project is complete, it will serve to educate the nation and shift the collective consciousness toward recognizing our own indigenous communities.

Imagine walking through an exhibit and realizing the complex variety of contemporary Native America. Imagine experiencing a website or book, that offered insight into every Tribal Nation in the United States. What if you could download previously untold histories and stories from Apaches, Swinomish, Hualapai, Northern Cheyenne, Tlingit, Pomo, Lumbee, and other first peoples? What if you had heard those stories in grade school?

Project 562 is making all this happen.

With Your Support 

This is Project 562's second Kickstarter campaign for critical funding for our second year on the road. Your help covering the ongoing expenses for transportation, film, administration, lodging, and meals will keep Project 562 strong and on target.

Rewards

We are delighted to offer wonderful "reward" items for this year's Kickstarter. We've partnered with noted Native American fashion designer and artist Bethany Yellowtail for limited edition couture pieces along with original sweatshirts, spirit tees, sweater dresses, and Project 562 posters.We hope you’ll be as pleased as we are with these unique, attractive acknowledgements of your support.

The Buddhist Bootcamp - Timber Hawkeye -

I just came across Timber Hawkeye he is the author of a book Buddhist Boot camp. It is refreshing to find a Buddhist teacher who has taken the simpler less dogmatic road. 

I have been listening to Timbers talks, and thoroughly enjoy his approach, especially his words about "should". It reminds me of the phrase, We practice Buddhism not Shouldisim. haha

Please do check out Timber's stuff below

Timber speaks below at TEDx Honolulu. 

Interview with Timber and Susan Burrell.

Grab yourself a copy of Timbers Book below:

Timber Hawkeye, author of Buddhist Boot Camp, offers a non-sectarian approach to being at peace with the world, both within and around us. His intention is to awaken, enlighten, enrich and inspire.

I watch people in the world . . .by Ryokan

(Shared by Joan Halifax)

I watch people in the world
Throw away their lives lusting after things,
Never able to satisfy their desires,
Falling into deeper despair
And torturing themselves.
Even if they get what they want
How long will they be able to enjoy it?
For one heavenly pleasure
They suffer ten torments of hell,
Binding themselves more firmly to the grindstone.
Such people are like monkeys
Frantically grasping for the moon in the water
And then falling into a whirlpool.
How endlessly those caught up in the floating world suffer.
Despite myself, I fret over them all night
And cannot staunch my flow of tears.
- Ryokan
(18th Century Zen Monk)

Emergence by Lee Harris

Much has been made of the time that we are living in; the concept and idea that 2012 was a turning point. Many ask, “When will the Golden Age begin?”

But wherever you look right now on the planet, things seem far from golden. Destruction is taking place at gross levels. This is happening.

We are told stories that are not true, in order to get us to agree to policies and actions that will just bring further destruction. So why do we agree? When did this begin?

In 2011, I recorded a message called “Year of Illumination”. In that message I spoke about how when things become illuminated, we see everything. We see the shadows as strongly as we see the light.