Jataka Tale: The Price Maker Long ago in a faraway kingdom, there lived a king who ruled in Benares, in northern India. One of his ministers was called the Royal Price Maker, and he was a very honest man. His job was to set a fair price for anything […]
Quotes and Stories
73 posts
The Buddha as a Parent by Gil Fronsdal Most contemporary Buddhists know that Prince Siddhartha, the Buddha-to-be, left his family in search of liberation on the day his son, Rahula, was born. Many have been perplexed, sometimes outraged, at such a seemingly irresponsible act. What is less well-known, though, is […]
While the Mallas were paying their last respects to the Buddha, a wandering ascetic named Subhadra heard that the Buddha was to attain final nirvana that very night. Knowing that it is hard to meet the Buddha, Subhadra hurried to see him in order to resolve his doubts about […]
The Middle Way: Parable of the Zither The concept of the Middle Way is one of the most important teachings in Buddhism. The path of the Middle Way is the path of moderation between the extremes. It also means that balance is the key to harmony in literally everything in […]
10 Quotes about Buddhahood in the Lotus Sutra The essence of the Buddha’s teaching (Shakyamuni Buddha as well as all Buddhas in the Universe) is the Law of Anuttara Samyak Sambodhi, the Law of Supreme Perfect Enlightenment, the Law of Buddhahood. The purpose of Buddhism is to teach people to […]
The term Zen, or Chan, means meditation. Zen stories are mostly ancient words and deeds of Zen masters. In Zen Buddhism, enlightenment is not any far-fetched goal to be attained but moment-to-moment awareness and awakening while doing the most mundane tasks in daily life. Short and humorous, these stories are […]
Once there was a woman named Hariti who would eat children. Though she loved her own children dearly, she would steal other people’s children and feast upon them. All the parents who heard of her worried that they would lose their children someday.Eventually, the Buddha heard of this woman and […]
8 Expedient Ways to Attain Buddhahood as Expounded in the Lotus Sutra There is only one Buddhahood but immeasurable gateways to attain the same goal. In Chapter 2: Expedient Methods, the Buddha declares that all his teachings, be it early, middle or latter teachings, derive from the One Buddha-Vehicle. This […]
Virtue Victorious: The Past Life of King Ashoka King Ashoka was an Indian emperor of the Maurya Dynasty who reigned almost all of the Indian subcontinent – stretching from the Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan to the modern state of Bangladesh in the east – from c. 268 – 232 […]
5 Inspirational Stories that Convey Important Life Lessons “Storytelling is the most powerful way to put ideas into the world today.” –Robert McKee Story #1 – The Janitor During my second month of college, our professor gave us a pop quiz. I was a conscientious student and had breezed through […]
