A personal blog by a graying (mostly Anglo with light African-American roots) gay left leaning liberal progressive married college-educated Buddhist Baha'i BBC/NPR-listening Professor Emeritus now following the Dharma in Minas Gerais, Brasil.
The profound reality of suffering is an invitation to step out of the fiction of separateness, grasping at what is called the “small sense of self” or the “body of fear,” where we are frightened or selfish or self-centered or cut off.
December’s Film Club pick is an investigative portrayal of the largest Buddhist temple in Thailand, exploring themes of politics and religion, power and corruption, belief and blind faith.
Whatever a person frequently thinks about and ponders, that will become the inclination of their mind. If one frequently thinks about and ponders healthy states, one has abandoned unhealthy states to cultivate healthy states, and then one’s mind inclines to healthy states. (MN 19)
Here a person rouses the will, makes an effort, stirs up energy, exerts the mind, and strives to develop the arising of unarisen healthy mental states. One develops the unarisen awakening factor of mindfulness. (MN 141)
Reflection
Effort is the tool we have to shape what we think, say, and do. Using it in healthy ways, we will become healthier. Just as we learn to guard against the arising of unhealthy states, we are also encouraged to develop healthy mental and emotional states. The text will take us through the seven healthy factors of awakening, beginning here with mindfulness. It is always beneficial to be aware, and we should practice doing so.
Daily Practice
Here you are invited to develop healthy mental states, which starts with creating the conditions that encourage them to arise. The first basic condition for healthy states to arise is mindfulness, for by being consciously aware of your experience you are not just reacting unconsciously to whatever comes up. Simply be attentive in every moment you can and notice what is happening. By doing so you participate in your life.
Tomorrow: Establishing Mindfulness of Mind and Abiding in the Third Jhāna One week from today: Maintaining Arisen Healthy States
Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media #DhammaWheel
As the year draws to a close, we’d like to express our gratitude to everyone who helps sustain Tricycle. This shared space of Buddhist learning and community would not be what it is without you—our generous readers who make our work possible.
Thanks to you, 2025 has been a year of incredible growth and connection. Here are some of the ways your contributions have fueled our mission:
Brand-new Tricycle Substack: We’ve just launched a Substack to offer a space for Buddhist community and conversation.
Daily Dharma app: We continue to develop our app, including free audio meditations, event listings, and more.
Tricycle online course scholarships: Over 150 issued in 2025
Meditation Group: Over 2,000 participants have signed up for our weekly virtual sangha.
If you’ve felt supported by the Tricycle community this year, please consider making a donation. Anyone who donates $30 or more will receive a free video teaching on the practice of equanimity.
Your support helps nourish a community dedicated to waking up together. Thank you.
Dharma teacher Ralph Steele discusses how he integrates meditation and somatic practice into his work with veterans with PTSD in this podcast episode.
Meditation Month is back! Sign up today to recommit to a daily practice starting January 1. This year, we’ll learn about Zen koan meditation with Haemin Sunim.
Enjoy this collection of some of our favorite articles from the past year.
The Man, the Myth, the Buddha James Shaheen in conversation with Donald S. Lopez Jr. and Stephen Batchelor
Scholars Donald S. Lopez Jr. and Stephen Batchelor discuss what we lose when we drop the Buddha’s mythological dimension and, simultaneously, what we gain by leaning into his humanity.
Writing in Exile Bhuchung D. Sonam in conversation with James Shaheen
Tricycle’s editor-in-chief sits down with Bhuchung D. Sonam to discuss how writing has helped him navigate life in exile, why he views art as a form of resistance, and how literature can serve as a bridge across cultures.
