Whatever method you use, meditation is simply getting to know your mind. It’s not about meditating “on” something or getting into a zone where you’re blissfully removed from your mind’s contents. Instead, the actual meaning of meditation is more like… Continue Reading
Birth is suffering, aging is suffering, illness is suffering, death is suffering; sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief and despair are suffering; union with what is displeasing is suffering; separation from what is pleasing is suffering; not to get what one wants… Continue Reading
Only by stripping away irrelevant cultural and social values will we see the full spectrum of what this wisdom is in its naked form and what it has to offer our modern cultures. -Dzogchen Ponlop, Rebel Buddha: A Guide to a… Continue Reading
The fake card that the robber switched my real card with. I keep it as a souvenir. After six amazing months in South America, I had my first experience of being robbed (of my credit card) in Arequipa, Peru. I… Continue Reading
The beautiful downtown Plaza in Salta, Argentina It was my first time in South America. Upon arrival in Argentina, I didn’t speak any Spanish. Starting in Buenos Aires, I made my way northwest to Cordoba, then Mendoza. I traveled alone… Continue Reading
A Street Parade in Potosi, Bolivia My travel friend had been living with a Bolivian family for a month, eating homecooked food. She started feeling ill and went to the hospital, where she tested positive for three different intestinal parasites.… Continue Reading
The Cerro Rico Mountain in Potosi, Bolivia Bolivia is the poorest country in South America, yet the richest in natural resources. At the heart of these resources lies the city of Potosi. Founded in 1545, it is the highest city… Continue Reading