Infinite Smile

Please find this and other writing on Substack. Post World War II Priorities: After World War II, people prioritized materialism and security, leading to a focus on economic growth, better housing, and welfare states. Shift in Values: The younger generation (Boomers), exposed to economic prosperity and technological advancements, prioritized different values, leading to the rise […]

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Found this both fascinating and in alignment with what we’re doing at Infinite Smile Sangha. John Yang reports… In April, millions of Christians, Jews and Muslims around the world mark Easter, Passover and Ramadan — some of the holiest observances of the year. But how are followers of these religions expressing faith and community when […]

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It sometimes feels like the “Apocalypse” is nigh: For people of many faiths, and even none at all, it can feel lately like the end of the world is near. Not only is there a plague, but hundreds of billions of locusts are swarming East Africa. Wildfires have ravaged Australia, killing an untold number of […]

The post The Apocalypse as an ‘Unveiling’: What Religion Teaches Us About the End Times – The New York Times appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

I’m struck by how this quarantined living feels so similar to a retreat. There are differences, obviously. But the practice, and the mindset, is helpful. Be safe and enjoy the read. Source: What Living In A Buddhist Monastery Taught Me About Getting Through Quarantine | HuffPost

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Here are the details of how to connect… from anywhere: VIA COMPUTER Downloaded the free Zoom app. You’ll need to do this BEFORE you can access the meeting. https://zoom.us/download Once you’ve downloaded the app then join the Zoom Meeting by clicking the following link. https://zoom.us/j/826589078 Meeting ID: 826 589 078 VIA PHONE Call from the USA: 669-900-6833 […]

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Dharma Friends, Just because we can’t meet in person doesn’t mean we can’t connect. Until we are able to gather again, please join us tonight, Monday 3/23, at 7pm PST via Zoom. We will follow our usual format – Michael will give a brief intro, we will have a 20 minute sitting, followed by a shortened […]

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Michael will be presenting with our friends at the Lafayette-Orinda Presbyterian Church on this lecture series, on 3/28/19 from 6:30 to 9:30pm. Care to join? ___ Life Worth Living Thursday evenings, March 21 to May 9, 6:30-9:30 (excluding April 18) and all-day retreat on March 30 at Lafayette-Orinda Presbyterian Church What does it mean for a […]

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Great read… The best way I can describe the effect is to liken it to a software upgrade for my brain — an update designed to guard against the terrible way the online world takes over your time and your mind. Source: Opinion | You Should Meditate Every Day – The New York Times

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I enjoyed this brief Quillette interview with Robert Greene. It both contextualizes much of what comes up in Sangha discussions. Getting over “ourselves” is serious business. But I write this with a smile on my face. Question, question, question. Don’t assume that the reason that you feel something, and that it’s right just because you […]

The post “Stop Assuming that Everything You Feel or Think Is Right”—An Interview with Robert Greene – Quillette appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

I enjoyed Jack Kornfield’s approach, relating to the topic of interpreting “enlightenment.” I would also add that what is available at every level, and at the core of every interpretation, is the simple experience of awareness. If our practice leads us here, so much else follows. … it is wisest to speak of enlightenment with […]

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I wrote about this a while back. Seems relevant for us all: “Fundamentalism arises when any religious organization, or any person, attaches so intensely to some version of truth that it must be defended. In this space, the ego continually seeks security by playing out its drama of “attack and defend.” This drama offers all […]

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A beautiful articulation of how art reminds us of what is holy in our hearts. The gesture seems to command us to halt, in such a gentle, dancer-like way that it also soothes and beckons. Calm down, it says; come closer. Source: Is This the Most Powerful Sculpture at the Met? – The New York […]

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Here’s a link to a recent dissertation of practice by Michael McAlister. The attractive woman pictured on his left is his mother, a fellow USC Trojan.   Deepening Awareness: The Integration of Mindfulness Practices in United States High Schools – University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (16) ABSTRACT: Mindfulness practices build an attentive awareness of […]

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Thought this was worthy of humanity’s consideration… Within each of us exists the potential to contribute positively to society. Although one individual among so many on this planet may seem too insignificant to have much of an effect on the course of humanity, it is our personal efforts that will determine the direction our society […]

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It’s one thing to play in a single Olympic Games–but add a second and then a third opportunity and then you wonder how Team USA Water Polo goalkeeper Merrill Moses, 38—and on the cusp of turning 39—remains physically sharp and mentally prepared to play a game where the majority of […] Source: How Mindfulness Propelled […]

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In a city full of fitness and wellness tribes, it can be seemingly impossible to break into a new one — but not when it comes to joining the growing group of meditators. Last week, a New York Times article explored the “mainstream business practice and a kind of industry in its own right” that meditation has […]

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Thought this was interesting: “There are no nouns in the universe, only verbs. Everything is energy, nothing is real”, said Chopra in his opening remarks. Summarizing enlightenment, he said, “Be aware. This is the key to waking up.” Similarly, Tolle remarked, “Consciousness is where experience occurs. I am consciousness. Simply knowing that and slipping into […]

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I thought this was interesting. No one is immune to this kind of thing, especially teachers. It’s worth the read. What happens when the guru up and quits? The controversial American spiritual teacher Andrew Cohen did just that about two years ago, and his disappearing act became an enduring mystery in the New Age world. In […]

The post What Happens When Your Guru Disappears? – The Daily Beast appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

Sorry it’s taken so long to get back into the swing. Truth be told, we’ll be catching up for a while. The past couple of years have been interesting with growth on the part of Sangha participation and yet there’s been a steady withering away of our online presence. This is most likely because we […]

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The post Pointing Toward Enlightenment appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

Consectetuer arcu ipsum ornare pellentesque vehicula, in vehicula diam, ornare magna erat felis wisi a risus. Justo fermentum id. Malesuada eleifend, tortor molestie, a fusce a vel et. Mauris at suspendisse, neque aliquam faucibus adipiscing, vivamus in. Wisi mattis leo suscipit nec amet, nisl fermentum tempor ac a, augue in eleifend in venenatis, cras sit […]

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Days after the Boston bombing, Michael offered this talk about how all of us have the capacity to cling and become unconscious. He also points out that we all have the ability to move past clinging so that we can truly "run again" by looking outside of ourselves and by looking inside. The look inside, […]

The post The Realm Beyond Right and Wrong appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

Consectetuer arcu ipsum ornare pellentesque vehicula, in vehicula diam, ornare magna erat felis wisi a risus. Justo fermentum id. Malesuada eleifend, tortor molestie, a fusce a vel et. Mauris at suspendisse, neque aliquam faucibus adipiscing, vivamus in. Wisi mattis leo suscipit nec amet, nisl fermentum tempor ac a, augue in eleifend in venenatis, cras sit […]

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The recognition of meditations professional application, in my view, is such a welcome sign. I should also say that I’ve enjoyed my experiences at Wisdom 2.0 conferences. My only concern with the article centers around the suggestion in the piece that the “code” of “enlightenment” is something that some teachers say can be cracked. While […]

The post Meditation Is No Fad. It Could Make Your Career… appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

Cool article… There can be little doubt that traditional religious frameworks are no longer speaking to new generations as they have in the past, especially in the West. In a recent article in the LA Times, Philip Clayton, Dean of Faculty at Claremont School of Theology, writes that the fastest growing religious group in the […]

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Spring 2013 Day-long Intensive The Power of Vulnerability Saturday, May 11, 2013 GREEN GULCH FARM ZEN CENTER This one-day sitting will involve sitting and walking meditation, Dharma talks, Q & A and, by request, private interviews with Michael. Confirmation will be sent to you when your $80 payment is received. Click the link below and you will be taken […]

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Spring 2013 Day-long Intensive The Power of Vulnerability Saturday, May 11, 2013 GREEN GULCH FARM ZEN CENTER This one-day sitting will involve sitting and walking meditation, Dharma talks, Q & A and, by request, private interviews with Michael. Confirmation will be sent to you when your $80 payment is received. Click the link below and you will be taken […]

The post Come Join Us… appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

Watching this story play out should be interesting. A new study by Canadian academics says Mother Teresa was a product of hype who housed the poor and sick in shoddy conditions, despite her access to a fortune. The Times of India, reporting on the controversial essay, wrote that the authors asserted Mother Teresa saw beauty in the […]

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Lew Richmond offers up a great article on the Huffington Post: “Emptiness” is a central teaching of all Buddhism, but its true meaning is often misunderstood. If we are ever to embrace Buddhism properly into the West, we need to be clear about emptiness, since a wrong understanding of its meaning can be confusing, even […]

The post Don’t Attach to Non-Attachment appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

Spring 2013 Day-long Intensive The Power of Vulnerability Saturday, May 11, 2013 GREEN GULCH FARM ZEN CENTER This one-day sitting will involve sitting and walking meditation, Dharma talks, Q & A and, by request, private interviews with Michael. Confirmation will be sent to you when your $80 payment is received. Click the link below and you will be taken […]

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I was glad to read this short piece by Joe Perez. Actually, I’m usually glad to read whatever Joe writes, but I’ve been concerned lately with what I’ve seen expressed in spiritual circles in terms of embracing simplicity as the answer to complex issues. This applies to all areas of our day-to-day lives: politics, relationships, […]

The post Embracing Both Sides appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

The most contagious thing this flu season is not a viral infection. Rather, the most contagious thing in any season is unconsciousness. Unfortunately, vaccines for unconsciousness are hard to come by. However, consciousness itself is in infinite supply. Tapping into this helps all of us inspire helpfulness and generosity, two critical components of any authentic […]

The post ISmile340 – The Componentry of Awakening appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

Winter 2013 Day-long Intensive No Such Thing As A Mistake Saturday, February 9th, 2013 GREEN GULCH FARM ZEN CENTER We only have a few spots left! This one-day sitting will involve sitting and walking meditation, Dharma talks, Q & A and, by request, private interviews with Michael. Confirmation will be sent to you when your $80 payment is […]

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May 3, 2011 Student: Have you ever forgotten more than you thought you could forget? Michael: Interesting question, but could you get a little more specific? Student: Well, something weird has been occurring in that I thought I knew what mind was, but in turning back to itself, there is such emptiness that no description […]

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No Such Thing As A Mistake Saturday, February 9th, 2013 GREEN GULCH FARM ZEN CENTER This one-day sitting will involve sitting and walking meditation, Dharma talks, Q & A and, by request, private interviews with Michael. Confirmation will be sent to you when your $80 payment is received. Click the link below and you will be taken to our […]

The post Join Us for Our Winter 2013 Day-long Intensive appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

As a parent, a citizen and a human being, I weep for the little ones of Newtown, Connecticut. I mourn for their families, their friends and I weep for us, as a people, who keep enduring these senseless incidents. The Newtown tragedy cuts deep for any of us that are parents since we can’t help but […]

The post The Avoidance and the Fury appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

May 3, 2011 Student: What is jealousy? Michael: It’s a brutal celebration of separation. Student: Nice. Michael: Is that all you wanted to talk about? Student: No. I’m dealing with something pretty brutal and yet, at the same time, interesting… and it ties into jealousy. Michael: Want to share? Student: Sure. We got robbed yesterday. […]

The post Dialogs With My Teacher #71 appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

Your Gift Will Be Matched December 2012 Dear Friends, We have exciting news! One of our members has generously offered to match any donation up to five-thousand dollars made between now and December 31st. This means that your power as a donor has just been doubled. Please think of the impact you can make by taking […]

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Ben Hutchison’s piece for The Under 35 Project is a great reminder of how our path unfolds when we are no longer caught by the path itself. In practicing Buddhism, in whatever form or lineage you choose, there is going to be loss and disappointment. As Dogen writes in Genjokoan, “flowers fall amid our longing and weeds […]

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Here’s another installment in a series of emails that took place between Michael and one of his senior students beginning the Summer of 2009. May you find the exchange interesting and enriching. ___ April 27, 2011 Student: Since our last talk, it’s like everything, on the one hand, is easier and makes more sense. It’s like I’m […]

The post Dialogs With My Teacher #70 appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

How might a Buddhist most effectively respond to the many pressing (often scary) issues facing humanity today? It’s not very bodhisattva-like, for example, to merely cloak oneself in “non-attachment” when an “appropriate response” is to be helpful to all beings. So how might one best walk this tightrope? How might a practitioner of today most […]

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Barbara O’Brien offers us an interesting take on how contemporary Buddhism runs the risk of getting watered-down. In Zen monasteries, a flat board is hung near the meditation hall, next to a mallet. This is the “han.” Striking the han with the mallet calls everyone to meditation. Traditionally, these words are inscribed on the han: Great is […]

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Here’s another installment in a series of emails that took place between Michael and one of his senior students beginning the Summer of 2009. May you find the exchange interesting and enriching. ___ Apr. 19, 2011 Student: So the last few days have been amazing and I’ve held off talking about it because I wanted things to […]

The post Dialogs With My Teacher #69 appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

Susan Stabile offers us an interesting read over at the HuffingtonPost: … Buddhism has helped me understand in a richer way some of the truths of Christianity. Although expressed in different terms, many of the truths of Buddhism have resonance in Christianity (another subject I explore in some detail in “Growing in Love and Wisdom”). The […]

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  Here’s another installment in a series of emails that took place between Michael and one of his senior students beginning the Summer of 2009. May you find the exchange interesting and enriching.   ___ Apr. 1, 2011 Student: Where is freedom in commitment? Michael: Mine or yours? Student: Is there a difference? Michael: Ah, very good. […]

The post Dialogs With My Teacher #68 appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

Two Simple Words…   November 2012 Dear Friends, It was important to us that this email not to get lost in the shuffle since we, as a community, wanted for you to hear two simple words: Thank you. For over a decade, the Infinite Smile Sangha has been able to offer podcasts and videos of […]

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  Here’s another installment in a series of emails that took place between Michael and one of his senior students beginning the Summer of 2009. May you find the exchange interesting and enriching.   ___ March 31, 2011 Student: If someone said to you, “You must have more patience with the Universe than I do,” what would […]

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Here’s another installment in a series of emails that took place between Michael and one of his senior students beginning the Summer of 2009. May you find the exchange interesting and enriching. ___ Mar. 29, 2011 Student: How are any of us to know for sure what we are supposed to do in life? Michael: I don’t […]

The post Dialogs With My Teacher #66 appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

This is from the “Do Not Become The Unconsciousness You Seek To Avoid” file. Regardless of our tradition (and yes, this includes Buddhism), clinging to scripture or practice can distort sacred teachings. Ali Khan Mahmudabad’sexplores the blasphemy laws of both Pakistan and Indonesia in this morning’s Guardian. Believers are urged in the sixth chapter of […]

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Former chair and CEO of Medtronic, and now a Harvard management professor, Bill George has this to say about mindfulness: The practice of mindful leadership gives you tools to measure and manage your life as you’re living it. It teaches you to pay attention to the present moment, recognizing your feelings and emotions and keeping […]

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Winter 2013 Day-long Intensive No Such Thing As A Mistake Saturday, February 9th, 2013 GREEN GULCH FARM ZEN CENTER This one-day sitting will involve sitting and walking meditation, Dharma talks, Q & A and, by request, private interviews with Michael. Confirmation will be sent to you when your $80 payment is received. Click the link below and you will […]

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For those into Buddhist bad-assery, no one compares to the lay practitioner, Vimalakirti. It’s one of my favorite, old-school reads. The Vimalakirti Nirdesa Sutra, also called the Vimalakirti Sutra, probably was written nearly 2,000 years ago. Yet it retains its freshness and humor as well as its wisdom. Modern readers especially appreciate its lesson on […]

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Thought this series of talks was particularly timely as the presidential election approaches. Enjoy. “The Buddha,” Vishvapani says, “emphasized the importance of practicing Right Speech on the Eightfold Path. But then again, the Buddha wasn’t on Twitter. In this day and age, we’re constantly communicating, not only through face-to-face interactions but also through texting, emailing, […]

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Here’s another installment in a series of emails that took place between Michael and one of his senior students beginning the Summer of 2009. May you find the exchange interesting and enriching. ___ March 10, 2011 Student: If we are always already love, why does a felt sense of it follow on the heels of understanding? Michael: […]

The post Dialogs With My Teacher #65 appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

Interesting piece from Darren Littlejohn: Many people still see Buddhists only as robe-wearing monastics who have given up worldly things like sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll. But there are different kinds of Buddhists. Some are celibate renunciates like the Dalai Lama. When asked on a recent TV interview if he ever thought about women, […]

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Here’s another installment in a series of emails that took place between Michael and one of his senior students beginning the Summer of 2009. May you find the exchange interesting and enriching. ___ February 15, 2011 Student: Is there ever any leaning from one person on another in a deeply conscious relationship? Michael: Relationships that are truly […]

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Here’s another installment in a series of emails that took place between Michael and one of his senior students beginning the Summer of 2009. May you find the exchange interesting and enriching. ___ February 25, 2011 Student: How can the realization of stillness inform, say, a long-standing argument one person has with another? Michael: It depends. For […]

The post Dialogs With My Teacher #63 appeared first on Infinite Smile Sangha .

May all beings be compassionate and wise in the face of clinging… COX’S BAZAR, Bangladesh — Thousands of Bangladeshi Muslims angry over an alleged derogatory photo of the Islamic holy book Quran on Facebook set fires in at least 10 Buddhist temples and 40 homes near the southern border with Myanmar, authorities said Sunday. The […]

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Here’s another installment in a series of emails that took place between Michael and one of his senior students beginning the Summer of 2009. May you find the exchange interesting and enriching. ___ February 23, 2011 Student: Can it be said that as long as something is changing, a story is involved? Michael: Yes. As long as […]

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By Joe Perez I am not In love. Love is Of Me. Love is Upon Me. Love is Above Me. Love is Below Me. Love brings Me Alive. Love begins With Light. Love descends To Delight. Love begins With a Lie: That Light Precedes The “I.” Of: A preposition Expressing the Relationship of Part and […]

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Here’s another installment in a series of emails that took place between Michael and one of his senior students beginning the Summer of 2009. May you find the exchange interesting and enriching. ___ February 22, 2011 (#61) Student: Why does “other” show up out of oneness? Michael: It’s a great question. Why is there anything at all? […]

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CULTIVATING FEARLESSNESS OCTOBER 12-14, 2012 MOUNT MADONNA CENTER This weekend retreat will offer an approach to living fearlessly. Each day will involve sitting meditation, walking meditation and dharma talks followed by Q&A, as well as practice interviews with Michael. Cost & Registration: Depending on your lodging choice, the total cost per person including meals ranges […]

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February 14, 2011 Student: Under what conditions could death be characterized as a distraction? Michael: Death is merely a return to truth. But our interpretation of death is almost always a distraction to this offering. So I’d say that both avoidance and celebration of death serve as distractions if either works to soften the full […]

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Thought this was interesting. Perhaps obvious, but interesting. Jock Gilchrist, The Review: Meditation has been a central component of religious traditions for millennia. Various methods exist, but it generally consists of quieting the mind to achieve a state of relaxation and clarity. Buddhists use it to cultivate virtuous qualities like compassion and equanimity because in […]

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