Michael McAlister

Supply, Demand and Bow: Buddhist Economics

One of Thailand’s newspapers, The Nation , printed an article by Thanong Khanthong in which he shows his prescience:... Here is what I wrote in 1998:... “The impending collapse of the global capital system could heighten the interest of economists and thinkers on Buddhist... Read More

Choosing Your Reincarnated Successor?

As someone who spent a little time chasing Buddha around Asia, in my own backyard, and within my heart and mind, I found Michael Powell’s piece in today’s New York Times to be a powerful reminder about how traditions can get lost on the paths they create.... The search for the... Read More

Redux: In Mind

I wrote about this in Chapter 4 of AiTL . Here’s another look .... Past and future veil God from our sight.... Burn both of them with fire.... —Rumi... What is troubling us is the tendency to believe that the mind is like a little man within.... —Ludwig Von... Read More

The Emotional Aspect of the Sacred

Miriam Greenspan’s article, The Dark Side of the Sacred , comes to us from integral praxis .... Emotions live in the body. It is not enough simply to talk about them, to be a talking head. We need to focus our attention on emotions where they live. This willingness to be present... Read More

The Interdependance of Terrorism

Deepak Chopra offers some geopolitical advice.... In a broad sense I agree with his points.... Money quote:... …if terrorism is like cancer, let’s treat it that way. Cancer is universal, endemic, and never entirely eradicable. For this generation, terrorism is the same. Our... Read More

Sing It, Girl!

Jonathan Bartley over at the guardian.co.uk points out how the Virgin Mary might have looked better in red.... There is a tendency to think of Mary as a victim – a slightly passive but worthy virgin, chosen to bear the god-child because she has wouldn’t hurt a first-century... Read More

A Bigger Story

There is a great post by Noah Millman over at The American Scene where he takes on several issues relating to religion, all of which are entertaining. I’m most partial to his description of how religion works:... …most of us who are in any meaningful sense religious are... Read More

Beer for Buddhists

Gerald, over at The Level 8 Buddhist takes on the use of alcohol:... As the Buddha taught, alcohol and intoxicants cause heedlessness. The more you drink, the more heedless you become. It’s not that you become heedless after X number of drinks only, any amount will impair... Read More