BAUS is having an important New Year event (NEW YEAR, NEW MIND) at Chuang Yen Monastery in Carmel, Upstate New York. This is the home of our beloved venerable Theravada Buddhist scholar-monk teacher Bhikkhu Bodhi. It will be held on Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026.
CYM has completed the first semester of the course Ancient Path, Modern Mind: Chinese Buddhism in a Changing World with Ven. You Min.
The Temple is pleased to announce that the second semester will begin in 2026, with the opportunity to explore three core themes under the guidance of Ven. You Min:
Through the gloom of clouds and mist, muddy streets and threats of "rain," we made our way to big house in Shadow Hills in the Foothills of the Valley. It was warm and bright inside, pulsing with lights and DJs. In a room to the right were throw pillows, tapestries, chocolates of all kinds and the massage area. On the ceiling was a map of the night sky in colorful lights or a psychedelic representation of it anyway. We gathered in a giant circle that spanned three rooms and the dancefloor, spilling into a fourth, for introductions. Pick a word that represents the year we are leaving. Introduce yourself to the person on your left, mimic their every move, share deeply. Raw vegan foods and cheesecake by Rawsheed were cooling, and warm curries were bubbling. Hibiscus tea filled a punch bowl with stevia and lemon essence.
There was socializing all around in every room and a long primary dinner table set to serve two dozen people as others retreated to an adjoining room to eat, talk, and plan their karaoke, dancing, and singalong routines. The massage room became a healing chamber with too many signing up too late as hours rushed until the ecstatic moment of the countdown: 10, 9, 8...2026 was on its way. Is this happening simultaneously in New York, or did it happen three hours before? It's already tomorrow in Oceania and Australia. Dancing, screaming, hoots and howls to welcome in the new year, it's something Gatsby might have overseen from West Egg. Where's Daisy? She's dancing somewhere.
Others are developing mindfulness and meditating, healing and letting go, and the drizzle has stopped down below in the Basin and Valley that is Los Angeles. People settled into corners for deep talks about the environment, human potential, psychology, saving the world, lamenting the Levant, and strategizing for paths to health and greater prosperity.
This is a good crowd with Vanessa and Annie outdoing themselves. Not since this past summer's pool party in Beverly Hills and book release has a compassionate celebration been so celebratory. Everyone was full, and it was approaching 2:00 am as we cleaned up, hugged, and meandered back down to the City of Angels.
Enter the glittering world of Arcana and find your Tarot Dreams. Once you arrive, find a host of figures to illuminate your chosen path. Draw in ultraviolet colors on the walls of your inner landscape.
Purchase a vegan food ticket ($40) to receive Alchemical creations by Chef Rawsheed (Facebook) and special elixirs. Appetizer, a main course, and dessert are all included.
Or just come to party ($15).
Everyone in attendance will be provided an elixir of sparkling cider for the midnight toast.
A DJ will be playing for our dancing pleasure at this ball between open mic and karaoke sets. Bring instruments!
Tip jar massage will be available.
Come dressed like a celestial Devi in silver or gold outfit for the ball. Or dress however you feel inspired with comfort as the goal.
Strut down a glittering catwalk in vegan ball attire for everyone to admire. (Please consider ahimsa, "non-harming," and avoid wool, silk, fur, leather, and feathers stolen from tormented animals).
Payment for the food ticket due by Dec. 29th.
Address of location given upon RSVP by Dec. 30th.
Venmo: @Vanessa-Marsot
Zelle: 818-383-5998
PayPal: vmarsot@gmail.com. Questions? Contact Vanessa at (818) 383-5998 or Annie at (310) 892-9617.
This event is advertised on multiple sites, so the Meetup numbers do not reflect the total number attending?
DISCLAIMER: Event organizers assume no liability; all participants do so at their own risk. By attending, you agree that neither you nor any third party will hold any of the group's leaders liable for any injury, loss, or damage to your own person or any members of your family, friends, acquaintances, children, pets, or property, arising directly or as a consequence from a group activity.
British Theravada Buddhist monk (Thai Forest Tradition) Ajahn Jayasāro, Dec. 31, 2025: So it's another new year, and I would like to offer my best wishes and blessings to everyone for this new year.
Of course, needless to say, the world’s an absolute mess. But it's always been this way. When was it not like this? So yes, we do what we can do. And I would like to suggest that you have very clear goals in your life -- whether they’re career goals, worldly goals, or spiritual goals -- and having small, very modest, measurable goals throughout the year to give you that sense of confidence and uplift, not making goals too far ahead in the future. This is true both for worldly and spiritual goals.
Spiritual goals: How would that work out? My suggestion would be to take some mental defilement [of the heart], take some negative quality within you -- say, anger, jealousy, or something like that -- with the understanding that’s not who you are. It’s just a habit, just something we’ve accumulated and something that we can do something about.
Make this coming year a year when you put some consistent effort into reducing the amount of that negative quality like anger or jealousy.
And at the same time, choose a particular virtue -- whether it’s mindfulness, or kindness, generosity, patience, and so on -- and put some systematic, consistent effort into cultivating that.
This is the year of that virtue for you. And keep tabs on it. Notice if you are noticing some changes within you -- small, incremental changes, not big "wow" changes. These are realizable, practical, and will have wonderful effects on your general mental health and a sense of well-being.
And having projects for yourself and projects for others -- trying to do something good and kind for the people around you every day, something that at the end of the day you can feel proud of. And you can say, Yes, that was a good thing I did today!
We have to come to terms with the world we live in and not let our hearts/minds be carried away on a stream of anxiety and aversion and so on.
The opportunity to follow that stream is always there, but you don't have to follow it. We have a choice here. And the more that we follow the Buddha’s teachings, collectively referred to as the Dhamma, integrate them into our lives, the more capacity we have to create a better world for ourselves -- maybe not the world that you see on your screens, but your own world of you, and your family, and your friends, and community, and doing the best we can in an imperfect world.
The important thing is to come to terms with, “It's like this. Right now, it’s not any other way than this. But it’s changing.” And when we come to peace with the way things are -- right here, right now -- then we can move forward with wisdom and creativity. It’s not a passive acceptance of, “Oh, we can't do anything about this right now.”
It’s the recognition that when our minds/hearts are calm with an acceptance of how things are right now, then we can see, Yes, there is exactly something we can do something about, and here's how to do it.
So I wish you all the best, in your health, and your relationships, and your family, and your community. May you grow and prosper both in the worldly and the spiritual realms in this coming year!
Who in the world is the "Queen of the Tournament of Roses"? More commonly known as the "Rose Queen," she is a young woman selected for the annual Pasadena Tournament of Roses in California, U.S.
Six "Rose Princesses" are also selected to make up the Rose Court of seven. The Rose Court rides on a float in the Rose Parade on New Year's Day and they become ambassadors.
Riya Gupta, California Institute of Technology (Caltech);
Livia Amy de Paula, Temple City High School.
Qualifications and selection process
After the parade, there's a big football game
Each September, approximately 1,000 females between the ages of 17 and 21 interview to serve as a member of the Tournament of Roses Rose Court [1].
To be eligible, applicants must be a female resident of the Pasadena City College district, which includes the cities of Pasadena, Altadena, La Cañada Flintridge, South Pasadena, San Marino, Sierra Madre, Arcadia, Temple City, the northern portion of Rosemead, and the western portion of El Monte.
Starting with the 2025 Rose Parade, the cities of Alhambra and San Gabriel and the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Eagle Rock, Highland Park, Monterey Hills, and El Sereno will be included as part of the geographic expansion plan.
Australian Asian singer Rose
They must be currently enrolled as a 12th grade senior in high school or as a full-time college student (minimum 12 units) in any accredited high school or college in the Pasadena City College district, Alhambra Unified School District, San Gabriel Unified School District, or Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), possess at least a 2.0 grade point average in the current year's and previous year's course work, and be at least 17 years of age by Dec. 31 of the current year and not more than 21 years of age before Jan. 5 of the next year.
Each applicant also must never have been married or have had a marriage annulled, have no children, and must agree not to marry prior to Jan. 5 of the next year [1]. More
April 2025 Full Pink Moon: When to see the micromoon this weekend
(KHOU 11)
April 10, 2025: The Full Pink Moon rises on Saturday, April 12th, 2025, as a rare "micromoon" and Paschal Moon, which matters a great deal to the world's Christians and Astrotheological "Pagans" who celebrate the great rebirth/resurrection now called "Easter." Was it once the worship Esther (Eostre, which gives us the sexual word estrus)? Here’s when to watch it and why it matters for Easter celebrators.
Full moon observance
Moon over Buddhist Burma, Shwedagon Pagoda
Buddhists the world over celebrate the "sabbath" or "lunar observance" (uposatha) according to the four phases of the moon, the planet's cyclical timekeeper. Of these four phases, the full moon phase is of particular importance. Many who may only observe the Eight Precepts and intensive Buddhist practice once a month will choose this phase for their observance. It is a great way to make regular skillful (wholesome, good, profitable) karma. This will be great merit for the future because "karma is everywhere we're going to be." What is the uposatha observance and how does one fulfill it? That is a good question to ask Theravada monastics in the area. They are all over the United States now. May we suggest Western scholar-monk and Pali-to-English translator Bhikkhu Bodhi at the Buddhist Association of the United States (baus.org/en) in Carmel, Upstate New York? It is also New Year's Day on Monday (Moon-day) in Theravada Buddhist Sri Lanka and Buddhist Bangladesh (which still has two thriving albeit tiny Theravada Buddhist communities surviving in Chittagong and the Hill Tracks).
ABC News (Australia) Jan. 28, 2025: For the next two weeks, we say goodbye to the Year of the Dragon and welcome the Year of the Snake. What does the Year of the Snake mean astrologically in accordance with the ancient Chinese zodiac? What is the significance of the "snake" (smart little dragon) in Chinese culture and history, and how do people in Asian countries celebrate this giant festival? #ABCNewsAustralia
Lunar New Year fireworks LIVE: Vietnam welcomes the Year of the Snake
We are all in this together. Happy 2025!
(Associated Press) Streamed live on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2025: Watch fireworks celebrations live in various parts of Vietnam. Asian communities across America and the world will begin ringing in the Lunar New Year on Jan. 29th, with 2025 designated as the "Year of the Snake" in the Chinese zodiac. The magical Year of the [fire breathing] Dragon comes to an end, and we take up with another clever reptile. #lunarnewyear #live #vietnam
(Island News) Lunar New Year 2025 in Oahu in Hawaii's big Chinatown
Year of the Dragon ends in smoke
2025 is the Year of the Golden Snake
We spent New Year's Eve on the fringes of burnt-out Pasadena at Doctor O's house, chanting and meditating in the Tibetan (Vajrayana) and Indian (aarti) traditions, banging gongs, ringing bells, singing kirtan to the harmonium then snacking on exotic Chinese snacks and gluten free French baguettes as good as the original wheat product. Fruit and friendship before the changing of the zodiac and the year to come is a wise way to spend the day, getting zapped by a Lifestream Generator, talking with our guest, the Japanese abbot of a Nichirin temple in Boyle Heights with Old O'Connor on the bongos. What one does, my former Chinese-Vietnamese girlfriend warned me, on New Years, one will be doing the rest of the year. So it's a good day to visit the temple. Hsi Lai ("Going West" monastery) in Hacienda Heights, the largest Chinese monastic complex in the Western hemisphere, is always a good destination to see the nuns and a few monks wandering about. Chinese Americans come to celebrate the Sinosphere and burn incense, donate, cultivate luck, and have their fortune read.
CC Liu, Crystal Quintero, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly
Chinese dance tidbits: The dragon serpent dances of China (Fordney Foundation)
Gong xi fa cai and Xin nian kuai le are both good say. - Really? Now I can speak Chinese!
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If the dragon is happy, we're all happy.
Chinese New Year, perhaps the most widely celebrated holiday in the world, typically takes place in January or February, after the Gregorian New Year on January 1st.
Whether spending it in Chinatown or in China, knowing how to wish people a happy new year in the local tongue is a nice touch. Feliz ano nuevo is the way it is said in Los Angeles, where Latin Americans surround Chinatown in all directions.
Come the big day, families and friends will be feasting, partaking in centuries-old superstitions, and spending time together to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year (the Spring Festival).
With vibrant celebrations taking place from Sydney to San Francisco, there are plenty of opportunities to pay respects and well wishes to the Chinese, especially with customary greetings.
Chinese New Year is a massive, international celebration. With people scattered around the planet observing the Lunar New Year, there are sure to be fireworks, parades, and street fairs in nearly every major city.
Although the first few days are the most observed, Chinese New Year actually runs for 15 consecutive days and ends with the Lantern Festival. Preparations take place for weeks in advance to ensure that this period is filled with luck and prosperity (two things the Chinese value immensely).
Karma, not chance, causes luck?
Hello, venerable sir, I'm a lucky dragon.
What is the cause of "luck," Buddha? - It is karma as the great arbitrator and distributor of what is wished for, welcome, and experienced as pleasant. - But which karma (deeds, intentional actions)? - Keeping the Five Precepts and engaging in the Ten Courses of Wholesome Conduct. - And what is the cause of doing these skillful actions? - It is confidence (faith, saddha)or right view or direct knowledge of things. (We may not have right view, but we can go for guidance (not refuge like everyone mistranslates it) to Three Resources that do: the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the (Noble) Sangha. - Is there more to being lucky? - Giving (dana), sharing, letting go, benefitting others, these things do a person great good. - How much good, Buddha? - If beings knew, as I know, the power of giving, they would not eat a meal without first sharing if there were anyone with whom to share it. Such is the power of giving and benefitting others.
Start with just these three things.
I said to the monks at the Sri Lankan Buddhist temple, "I need good karma. What is the best way of making skillful karma?" They acted like they had never heard this question before but finally answered with two slogans, dana, sila, bhavana ("generosity, virtue, meditation") for laypeople and sila, samadhi, panna ("virtue, stillness, and wisdom") for more serious and intensive practitioners willing to do it. Notice that both share sila or virtue in common as a vital ingredient.
This is a time for family and lots of food. Firecrackers are thrown in abundance to frighten away unlucky spirits, and red is worn, even red underwear, because of its symbolic meaning.
Children receive small gifts and money in red envelopes called lai see, and various historical figures are honored.
"Chinese" is not really a language because there is official Mandarin and the older Cantonese, which is closer to Japanese than it is to Chinese, our Chinese professor astounded us by revealing. Could it be true? If someone is speaking Cantonese or Japanese, they will soon get a sense of what the other is saying, but the Mandarin speaker remains in the dark.
"Happy New Year" in Mandarin
Prosperity breeds prosperity, so get lucky.
Unlike Western New Year's Eve celebrations, which tend to be about short-lived resolutions [ending tend days in on QUITTERS DAY] to improve ourselves, the primary goal of Chinese New Year traditions is to usher in good luck and prosperity in the new year.
With such vast variations in Chinese culture and ethnic groups around the world, there are many ways to say "happy new year" in Chinese. Most of them are rooted in luck and financial success.
Gong xi fa cai is pronounced "gong zee fah tsai," where gong xi means "congratulations" and is also a way to wish one joy. Fa cai is "to become rich or make money." In essence, one is wishing one joy and prosperity to another for the new year. Business owners and workmates use gong xi fa cai as the usual way to say "happy new year" in Chinese.
Xin nian kuai leis pronounced "sheen neean kwai luh," kuai le means "happy" or "joyous," and xin nian means "new year." Xin nian kuai le is a great way to say happy new year in Chinese to friends without referencing money.
"Happy New Year" in Cantonese
Are good and bad luck mere superstitions?
Cantonese is the language primarily spoken by the people of [business-minded, former imperial British colony] Hong Kong.
The Cantonese "happy new year" greeting differs slightly from the Mandarin version, even though both are actually written the same way.
Gong hey fat choy is the Cantonese pronunciation of Mandarin's gong xi fa cai, simply meaning "congratulations and prosperity."
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