While sounding like a madman at first, the great Krishnamurti actually has a point to make about "efforting," muscling, struggling, and striving to gain or win enlightenment. Buddhist awakening (bodhi) is far more about letting go of delusion, confusion, and illusion and instead gently cultivating allowing, radical acceptance of what is, and dispassionate (disinterested, unbiased) viewing like some kind of Taoist, being the watcher rather than the striver or go-getter.
Of course, Krishnamurti was more a Hindu than a Buddhist, having escaped the clutches of the Western Theosophists who found him, saw his potential, raised and nurtured their new Messiah (Maitreya) in hopes that he would become a "Buddha" or "World Teacher" for our time (like the promised Buddha Boy decades later).
But he burned them and instead taught a whole kind of Zen nondoing, nothing special, there's nothing to achieve approach to spirituality and spiritual (un)accomplishments. The Theosophists were not happy, so Krishnamurti went off on his own, not aligning himself with any religion but sort of incorporating them all into a syncretism.
He's a subtle speaker and thinker, along the lines of Bhagwan Shree Rajnessh (Osho) and Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev, both alleged to be frauds immersed in sex and money scandals. We would not want to misrepresent Krishnamurti's views, if he holds any, as he can quite well speak for himself. Like the great Mahavira (Vardhamāna, the founder of Jainism, called the NiganthaNattaputta in Buddhist texts), Krishnamurti must have some good qualities that he is still remembered and listened to.
Ego (buddhism podcast) The Buddha attained [temporary mental purification and permanent] enlightenment (bodhi) from developing the meditative absorptions (jhana), not in them
What happens at a Zen meditation? Los Angeles-based groups are growing, adhering to two basic principles. One, keep it cool, laidback, liberal, lowkey, everyday, normal but, two, make it seem exotic. How is that achieved?
One way is to chant in an Asian language, following the customs and ritual procedures of a formal (zazen) group sitting practice -- including both Soto and Rinzai traditions, which rely on koans ("public cases"). They may sound like paradoxical riddles to the Western ear, but they are in Rinzai rather than Soto Zen centers in the U.S.
Groups walk intent on practicing mindful awareness of the present moment with everything going on here and now. This present moment may not always be pleasant, but it is always tolerable when viewed from a dispassionate perspective, such as noting, "Then there's this," as one Western ajahn is fond of saying.
This point-of-view allows us to be the WATCHER rather than the usual, overly-involved "DOER," "RESISTER," or person taking it all very personally in accordance with the Three Poisons of passion, aversion, and delusion (greed, hatred/fear, ignorance).
WHAT HAPPENS?
Practitioners gather in a quiet place that is not completely quiet. They take to zafus and zabutons, cushions, for seating themselves facing the wall or the center of the space.
Then there's chanting in English, Sanskrit, or a Japanese transliteration of Sanskrit, with wooden percussion and/or singing bowl accompaniment. There's bowing and more clacking sticks. Then the group settles in for a sitting (zazen) session of shikantaza, which is often translated as "just sitting."
There's now nothing to do but observe. There's no need to stop thinking or make anything happen other than what is happening now. This is how it is. A bell rings to signal that walking meditation (kinhin) is about to begin, first very slowly then at normal speed, all the while with everyone remaining very mindful. Another bell announces a second sitting session after walking. That ends with a bell, bowing, arranging cushions in a circle, and then discussion begins.
A Dharma talk might mention the paradox of the impersonal aspiring for "self" awakening. Most groups open up a Q&A discussion. This might start a storm of comments or awkward silence, laughs or uncomfortable shifting, and possibly some insight into American Buddhism. Everyone returns the next week.
Psyched Substance, The Purple Lady on DMT; Dakota of Earth, Is Mother Ayahuasca Real [for Amazonian shamans]?; A Mindful Emergence, Do this after inhaling cannabis as plant medicine; Eds., Wisdom Quarterly
What is the blissful and inviting rapture of the light of absorption (jhana)? Is it santosha?
Can a Westerner achieve rapture and insight?
Full moon Sunday is the Uposatha (the fasting day of the lunar observance) when some choose to keep the Eight Precepts for one day and night. LA's Mindfulness Meditation Center in Covina (suburban San Gabriel Valley) is conducting its monthly Poya Day celebration in honor of it. This is an excellent time to relax, listen, and practice the path of absorption with the great Ajahn Brahm -- or to read Who Ordered This Truckload of Dung?: Inspiring Stories for Welcoming Life's Difficulties.
The Jhanas (Absorptions) – Seven Steps to Heaven (and One Beyond) by Ajahn Brahm
(The Buddhist Society) Jhāna (meditative absorption, zen) is a bliss better than sex? Mantra: "Relax to the max!" There are two kinds of Buddhist meditation (no, not samatha and vipassana, which are a single system bifurcated by people who misunderstand what's needed for insight. The two types are Second Noble Truth (craving) meditation and Third Noble Truth (letting go) meditation, as explained by accomplished Western meditator Ajahn Brahm.
British Buddhist monk Ajahn Brahmavamso Mahathera (known to the world as Ajahn Brahm) was born Peter Betts in London, England (United Kingdom) on August 7, 1951.
He came from a working-class background then won a scholarship to study theoretical physics at Cambridge University in the late 1960s. After graduating from Cambridge, he taught high school for a year before traveling to Northeast Thailand (Isan) to become a Theravada Buddhist monk.
The deepest meditation I’ve ever found (and I’ve tried 112)
(SoulArtist) May 14, 2025: After exploring over 100 different meditation techniques across the past seven years — from silent sitting to active movement, from vipassana (insight) to breathwork (pranayama) — I recently discovered a meditation so powerful, it went deeper than anything I’ve ever tried before: the OSHO Mahamudra Meditation™.
Might the Tibetan version be better than Osho's?
In this video, I share my honest experience with this practice, what makes it so different, and why I believe it may be one of the most transformative meditations available today. This is not a technique for the mind; it’s a surrender into something far greater.
🧘♂️ What is OSHO Mahamudra Meditation™? “This meditation is a meeting between you and the cosmos, between you and the whole of existence. It helps you to merge, melt, and let-go on the deepest level possible.”
– Osho, from “Tantra: The Supreme Understanding, #6”
The meditation has two stages (approx. 50 minutes) and is supported by specific music that mirrors and deepens the energetic flow of the practice. Instructions (from osho.com):
First Stage – 30 minutes: Stand with eyes closed and let the body move naturally. Allow spontaneous movements to arise — no control, just witnessing. This is Latihan. The body becomes an expression of pure energy.
Second Stage – 20 minutes: Kneel, raise both hands to the sky. Feel like a hollow bamboo. Let energy pour into you from above — then bow down and release it into the earth. Repeat at least 7 times.
“If you do this every day, soon, somewhere within three months, one day you will feel you are not there. Just the energy is pulsating with the universe – nobody is there, the ego is completely lost, the doer is not. The universe is there, and you are there, the wave pulsating with the ocean – that is Mahamudra. That is the final orgasm, the most blissful state of consciousness that is possible.”
If you’ve tried many meditations but still feel like something’s missing, this might be the one. ✨ Subscribe for more honest insights on presence, awareness, and embodied spiritual practice. #mahamudra #osho #meditation #powerfulmeditation
Saraha, Mahāsiddhas (British Museum)
Mahāmudrā (Sanskrit महामुद्रा, Tibetan ཕྱག་ཆེན་, phyag chen, chag-chen, contraction of Tibetan ཕྱག་རྒྱ་ཆེན་པོ་, phyag rgya chen po, chag-gya chen-po) literally means "great seal" or "great imprint."
It refers to the fact that "all phenomena inevitably are stamped by the fact [that] wisdom and emptiness [are] inseparable" [1]. (That is to say, the "perfection of wisdom" or prajnaparamita is that all things are ultimately impersonal).
Mahāmudrā is a multivalent term of great importance in later Indian Buddhism and Tibetan Buddhism, which "also occurs occasionally in Hindu and East Asian Buddhist esotericism" [2].
The name also refers to a body of teachings representing the culmination of all the practices of the New Translation schools of Tibetan Buddhism that believe it to be the quintessential message of all of their sacred texts.
The practice of Mahāmudrā is also known as the teaching called "Sahaja Yoga" or "Co-emergence Yoga" [3].
In Tibetan Buddhism, particularly the Kagyu school, Sahaja Mahāmudrā is sometimes seen as a different Buddhist vehicle (yana), the "Sahajayana" (Tibetan lhen chig kye pa), also known as the vehicle of self-liberation [4].
Jamgon Kongtrul, a Tibetan nonsectarian (ri-mé) scholar, characterizes mahāmudrā as the path to realizing the "mind as it is" (sems nyid), which also stands at the core of all Kagyu paths. He states, "In general, Mahāmudrā and everything below it are the ‘mind path’" (sems lam).
Mahāmudrā traditionally refers to the quintessence of mind itself and the practice of meditation in relation to a true understanding of it [5].
History
The usage and meaning of the term mahāmudrā evolved over the course of hundreds of years of Indian and Tibetan history and, as a result, the term may refer variously to "a ritual hand-gesture, one of a sequence of 'seals' in Tantric practice, the nature of [ultimate] reality as emptiness [impersonal], a meditation procedure focusing on the nature of Mind, an innate blissful gnosis [knowing] cognizing emptiness nondually, or the supreme attainment of buddhahood at the culmination of the Tantric path" [2].
According to Jamgon Kongtrul, the Indian theoretical sources of the mahāmudrā tradition are Yogacara and tathagatagarbha ("buddha-nature") texts such as the Saṃdhinirmocana Sūtra and the Mahāyānottaratantraśāstra [6].
The actual practice and lineage of mahāmudrā can be traced back to wandering maha-siddhas ("great adepts") during the Indian Pala Dynasty (760-1142), beginning with the 8th century siddha Saraha [7].
Saraha's dohas ("songs" or "poems in rhyming couplets") are the earliest extant mahāmudrā literature and promote some of the unique features of mahāmudrā such as the importance of:
pointing-out instruction by a guru,
the non-dual nature of mind, and
the negation of the conventional means of achieving enlightenment such as calm-and-insight (samatha-vipasyana) meditation, monasticism, rituals, tantric practices, and doctrinal study in favor of more the direct methods of mahāmudrā "non-meditation" and "non-action" [8].
These teachings also became the wellspring for the body of instructions eventually known as the mind teachings of Tibet associated with mahāmudrā of the Kagyu lineages [9].
Later Indian and Tibetan masters such as Padmavajra, Tilopa, and Gampopa incorporated mahāmudrā into tantric, monastic, and traditional meditative frameworks [10]. More: Mahamudra
Osho's Mahamudra Meditation. How to practice. A Tibetan Vajrayana meditation
(The Rebirthing Journey) Feb. 20, 2022: Osho says of this meditation: “If you do this every day, soon, somewhere within three months, one day you will feel you are not there. Just the energy is pulsating with the universe – nobody is there, the ego is completely lost, the doer is not. The universe is there, and you are there, the wave pulsating with the ocean – that is Mahamudra. That is the final orgasm, the most blissful state of consciousness that is possible.” #osho #mahamudra #meditation
Full Moon manifestation: November's "Beaver Moon" Manifestation
(Meditation and Healing) Streamed live on Nov. 14, 2024: This month's full moon peaks on Friday, November 15 — the last supermoon of 2024. We can manifest anything we desire.
🙏 Namaste.
Meditation and Healing is a YouTube channel that serves up the best meditation, healing, relaxing, and sleep music. It is composed with different kinds of instruments, blending 432 Hz and 528 Hz Solfeggio frequencies.
This channel was created on Dec. 8th, 2014, with the aim of providing digital space for those who are going through stress, anxiety, insomnia, and depression.
The music is composed with beautiful piano, melodious flute, soothing pads, relaxing bells, and many other instruments. This relaxing music helps relieve stress. Relieve negative feelings like anxiety to enhance positive energy.
It can also give meditation techniques a boost if used to soothe while meditating. It also has a healing capacity to find inner peace and heal within.
This music combines to help people overcome stress and anxiety. It used precise professional music production and recording software to provide the best audio quality and experience.
Most of the music on this channel is composed with a combination of instruments and nature sounds.
To enhance the music experience, we also add video with moving graphics and animation, editing them with a sense of flair. We hope to create and present more relaxing and meditative music videos in the future. Thanks and have a great time.
Balance: Taoist-Buddhist yin-yang symbol showing the seeds of the opposite on each side
Let's go to Jen Affleck's house to help her.
(Homes & Garden) Thoughts of a Los Angeles "farmhouse" may not immediately lead to a Zen Garden (or, more specifically, a pool area), but Hollywood actor Jennifer Garner has just challenged our conventions.
The actress's pared-back exterior space (architecturally designed by Steve Giannetti) makes a case for minimalist garden design – most notably thanks to its lack of planting, poolside furniture, and accessories.
The Zen of Jen (and Ben) | Marie Claire She's the nicest girl in town, but as a newish mom in 2007 and as Ben Affleck's wife, Jennifer Garner is finally learning to show some steel. Now in 2024 he's miserable because Latin dreamboat Jennifer Lopez has dumped him again, so Jen and Matt Damon have to keep him off the ledge.
However, despite the absence of decoration, Garner's pool area is anything but boring. Instead, it's soothing, grounding, and designed so that the wood (from both the house and the decking) can take center stage.
Zen is a Japanese word from Chinese (Chán). The Korean (Sŏn), Vietnamese (Thiền), Pali (Jhana), and Sanskrit (Dhyana) are all words for "meditation," more specifically a kind of serene state of absorption. "Zen" in everyday use refers to the practices in the popular imagination rather than a Mahayana Buddhist school that originated in China (禪宗, chánzōng, the Chan School, "meditation school") or the Buddha-mind school (佛心宗, fóxīnzōng) [1] that later developed into various sub-schools and branches. Zen was strongly influenced by Taoism ☯️, especially Neo-Daoist thought, and developed into a distinct school of Chinese Buddhism [2]. China got Zen from India, Chán deriving from Buddhist dhyana. It then spread south to Vietnam and became Vietnamese Thiền, northeast to Korea to become Seon Buddhism, and east to Japan, becoming Japanese Zen Buddhism [3]. Zen emphasizes serenity meditation practice and direct insight into one's own innate "Buddha nature" (見性, Chinese jiànxìng, Japanese kenshō), and the personal expression of this insight in daily life for the benefit of others [4, 5]. Wiki edited by WQ
Native American practice? Jen's rain dance for LA
This natural material works in harmony with the surrounding greenery and pool water to bring a sense of calmness to the area, and it's one of the finest (and one of the most beautifully simple) examples of a Zen Garden we've observed over the reign of this ever-growing outdoor trend.
A pool makes me feel cool in the garden
(Marie Claire) A rolled-up yoga mat and a baby stroller is pretty much all you need to blend in at the farmhouse-red Brentwood Country Mart in West Los Angeles [outside of Tinsel Town, closer to UCLA], where Jennifer Garner has asked me to meet her. The cozy-looking place is an apt choice for Hollywood's most down-to-earth star, except for the novelty item being sold at the bakery today: $5 cupcakes commemorating Paris Hilton's imminent trip to jail. There's a camera crew set up by the cash register. In a pair of blue jeans, a short-sleeve polka-dot blouse, and sneakers, Garner is walking along...when I stroll over to say hi. At which point she shoots me a curt "hello" and turns her back. Cuts me dead, [b*tch]. But it's half of the Bennifer! More
Alongside Garner's (unintentional) approval, experts say we owe the rise of Zen-style gardens to their therapeutic qualities – many of which translate to spaces of all sizes (whether we have a pool or not). The key is in the simplicity, they explain.
"Compared to cottage and country garden-style gardens, this style of outdoor space is uncomplicated and paired back. It doesn’t feature a lot of different flowers, creating a sense of peace and tranquility," comments Marcus Eyles, the horticultural director at Dobbies.
"The aim is to create a space with a modern feel – light and clean lines are important when it comes to establishing a sense of Zen." More
VIDEO: Inside Jennifer Garner’s Farm-Style L.A. Home | Open Door | Architectural Digest
(Architectural Digest) Sept. 3, 2024: Today, AD is welcomed by Jennifer Garner to tour her farm-style home in Los Angeles. When designing Garner’s home, there was no Pinterest board or pictures from a magazine; it was simply an in-depth discussion with designers Steve and Brooke Giannetti and a watercolor painting of their vision. Together, they designed a farmhouse-style oasis full of warmth and character. From her wooden kitchen with a dedicated baking station to an orchard in the backyard, it’s easy to forget Garner lives among the hustle and bustle of LA. “I wanted it to feel old and cool and historic, but I also wanted to make it work for a big family with a lot of things going on.”
Home & Garden via MSN.com; Architectural Digest, 9/3/24; Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly Wiki edit Zen
Asian garden pavilion sits on a lily pond with lotus flowers as tall pines, bamboos, and plum blossoms surround it: The lovely Lotus Pavilion (Martha Benedict/The Huntington/LAist.com)
.
Huntington Botanical Gardens in a new light
The Tao or "way" of Zen is [easy].
The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens is opening evening access to its Twilight Garden Strolls hours during the summer months so more people can enjoy the gardens in cooler temperatures. Previously, only members could get tickets to the special program.
Why the Huntington is extending hours: “Opening in the evening allows us to welcome more visitors who can enjoy green spaces and see our gardens in quite literally a different light,” said Director of Membership and Visitor Services at the Huntington Kristin Voss.
The program has been such a success for members that the Huntington is now expanding ticket access to the general public.
The cultivation of stillness, silence, absorption
[EDITOR SEVEN: What is "Zen"? In English it means "flow state," "effortless creativity," "artless artfulness," "unpremeditated spontaneity," "calm," "ease," but in Japanese it comes from the Chinese Chan (channa), which is an attempt to pronounce the Pali jhana (from the Sanskrit dhyana), all of which mean "meditative absorption." If meditation in English means flapping our wings to get in the air, efforting to alight off a branch in a tree on a cliff, in Buddhist terms it is the bhavana or "cultivation" of the subsequent effortless soaring. Just let go of the branch.
What if? - Don't do that to yourself. Be here now
We make an effort (dharana) to let go, allow, let it be, accept what is, breathe being aware only of that breathing, which keeps us in the present moment, not reacting to whatever arises but merely observing, not falling into the habit of escaping to the past and dragging it into the present, not leaping into the habit of escaping into the future and dragging it into the present, staying only here and now mindful (present with) of the present, watching, and remaining watchful.
Thinking is not the way. Let go. See. Allow.
It is the nonabandoning of the moment, the nondistraction from the object, the following this very moment into calm presence, unification of mind, stillness, coherence, which are ways of saying samadhi. First there was the subject (me) and the object (what was observed). Then, for a moment, they were one; that is, there was no distinction. They merged, one absorbing into the other. It was so Zen.]
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What’s different about the gardens in the evening hours: With the shift in temperatures and lighting, the gardens take on different sights, smells, and sounds.
One can see the campus during the “golden” or “magic” hour -- a favorite time for photographers when the sun is just about to set and casts an ethereal quality on plants and flowers.
Rose Garden Tempietto, Huntington Botanical Gardens (The Huntington)
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“The Desert Garden is one of my favorites,” said Voss. “There's something really lovely about the unusual shapes and colors matched with the warm tones of sunset during summer.”
How to take a tour after hours: This year, the Huntington has added Twilight Garden Estate Tours, a docent-led walk through many of the gardens and looks at some of the historic architectural features, on campus.
Docent leads Twilight Garden Estate Tour at Huntington Botanical Gardens (The Huntington)
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When and how to attend: There are three Twilight Garden Strolls left scheduled for the summer, but they will return. Hours are 4:30-8:00 pm. Reserve tickets ONLINE for $20.00. Tickets to the Estate Tours cost an additional $25.00. More: LAist.com
Wise quote and Zen comic art by Roshi Brad Warner, Angel City Zen, Los Angeles (WQ)
Julia Paskin/LAist.com, July 21, 2024; CC Liu, Ashley Wells (eds.), Dhr. Seven (explanation of Zen), Wisdom Quarterly
Alcohol is bad, insidiously bad. It doesn't seem that bad. "What's the big deal?" we say. One drink is numbing, two dumbing, three a downward spiral. In time drinking gets worse. Hangovers, dysfunctional coping skills, dependence, mistakes of all sorts, consequences one goes into denial about.
"But everyone drinks." Everyone does not. "Europeans do it worse, well, maybe not worse, but the US isn't the only abuser of alcohol." Look at Australia. It's liquid ignorance, rotten bread extract, you know, fermented and putrefied in a barrel. God drank.
Mother Nature prefers natural things.
Though that was really just grape juice that was starting to turn and, in those filthy times in that filthy place, fermented sauce was safer than water. Clean water is now available, and fresh grape juice is much healthier. No amount of alcohol is healthy. Oh, you didn't hear? This has been proven. The red wine myth has been debunked.
Resveratrol is in grapes, not alcohol. Higher concentrations are found in supplements and fresh juice than "wine." (Vine is vino, which is where we get wine and winos).
If only Mother Nature made things pop right out of the soil or in green fields! Wait, She does? Shrooms and cannabis grow freely with beneficial medicinals? Sign me up! If only someone could gather items from the Plant Pharmacy and can them, put Mother Nature in a jar. Here's the BREZ (breezy) pitch:
Drinking has evolved
BREZ's adaptogenic formula harmonizes to elevate every moment. Brighter colors, louder laughs, and tastier snacks are often reported.
The perfect effect
This is the experience you’ve been waiting for. Each sip is a ticket to bliss – wherever and whenever. [And it comes in a can.]
What people are saying
BREZ: "Breezy" in a can? What's the catch?
"Just the right combination to create a relaxing experience while not losing any control. I love BRĒZ as a replacement to alcohol." – Cody
"I was surprised. The microdosed formula was perfect. It provided a light, energetic buzz with no anxiety, and it tastes great."
– Jennifer
"Awesome alcohol alternative. Citrusy and sweet with just a subtle bite – I will def be ordering more!" – Cassie
Rating (4.9/5.0 stars)
It's got, according to try.drinkbrez.com, 4.9 out of 5.0 stars, based on 1,016 total reviews.
"Tasty and breezy!
I’m definitely a fan. The flavor is really nice and refreshing, and it made me feel so mellow and peaceful without being tired or anxious. Highly recommend!" - Kristen E. More
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