How Meditation Affects the Brain

How Meditation Affects the Brain

The world of neuroscience is revealing exactly how meditation affects the brain. I had the great honor to be invited to be subject on one of a series of studies being conducted on meditation. I was invited to the University of Wisconsin in Madison where the most...
The Value of Three-Year Retreat

The Value of Three-Year Retreat

The three-year retreat at Söpa Chöling is a living experiment, resonant with the fearless spirit of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche who conceived it. The three year retreat was founded and overseen after Trungpa’s death by Thrangu Rinpoche in 1990. Söpa Chöling lies...
Renunciation on the Spiritual Path

Renunciation on the Spiritual Path

What is the role of renunciation on the spiritual path or in Buddhist practice? To most of us, what drove us to spiritual seeking in the first place is some level of realization that our obsession with self fulfillment and worldly pleasures can only give us so much...
Is There a Dark Side to Meditation?

Is There a Dark Side to Meditation?

The recent article in The Atlantic by Tomas Rocha, “The Dark Knight of the Soul,” brings up a much neglected but very important topic around a dark side to meditation. With hundreds of studies (over 500 a year) coming out showing the benefits of meditation, there are...
Just When You Think You’re Enlightened

Just When You Think You’re Enlightened

Andrew is a featured guest contributor in Buddhadharma Magazine. In this article, “Just When You Think You’re Enlightened” Andrew writes that temporary experiences such as flashes of bliss or clarity can be encouraging moments in your practice, but...
The Power of Mindfulness

The Power of Mindfulness

Everyday it seems there is another article about how mindfulness meditation is being embraced by people and institutions everywhere. From Silicon Valley to pro football to the Marine Corps , the power of mindfulness seems to be gaining some very real traction these...