of the Earth: Indian Voices on Nature Edited by Michael Oren Fitzgerald and Joseph A. Fitzgerald, Foreword by Joseph Bruchac. World Wisdom (www.worldwisdom.com), 2017. PP. 136. $14.95. Paper Reviewed by Samuel Bendeck Sotillos “[N]ot only men, but all things and all beings pray to Him (Wakan Tanka—the Great Spirit) continually in differing ways.” –Hehaka Sapa (Black Elk) As contemporary life becomes more and more fragmented and unsustainable, many individuals are left perplexed and searching for more complete and sustainable models to understand themselves and their place in the world around them. It is the spiritual crisis brought about by a desacralize... posted on Mar 12 2018 (10,730 reads)

part of our Community Anchors mobious and dynamic process we have engaged in different conversations during last months! Labour of Love Values, Holding Space, Nurturing Ripples, Laddering Journeys, Engagement Spectrum… All of it and so much more! Few weeks ago we had the joy of spiraling up together in the wisdom of circles, in an amazing conversation with our inspired elder John Malloy. This was the first time we had a guest speaker in last month’s calls and it was truly delightful, deep and natural! Here you have some of the main insights and reflections from John and others. John dives into the wisdom of circles, the role of anchors and ... posted on Jan 24 2019 (10,223 reads)

particularly my own traditions in the so-called “Celtic” countries of Ireland and Scotland, that our ancestors lived in a way that was very deeply connected with the natural world—just in the way that we think of other indigenous peoples now. Our old stories show us that that is our inheritance. So I wrote the book, really, to try to help people understand those old stories and reclaim that way of being in the world. We don’t have to look to other cultures for wisdom about how to live in balance and harmony with nature. Our own connection is right here under our feet, in our own stories, which spring directly out of this land. But we haven’t been taug... posted on Oct 17 2020 (7,559 reads)

only be found in silence and not in the raging intensity of my burning inner world. One distinguishing feature of this period of the time: I was sitting quietly, meditating on a daily basis, and making an active effort to maintain an awareness of myself during parts of the day. My wish to awaken was great. I tried to stay within my body, receive the silence—and listen within. This effort of attention felt like a “knocking on heaven’s door,” opening to a source of wisdom lying just beyond the threshold of my consciousness, that seemed to be waiting, wishing to reveal itself to me. This wisdom, this knowledge, I suspect, is always there—it is we that are a... posted on Aug 10 2021 (2,724 reads)

wisdom on how to live from James Baldwin, Ursula K. Le Guin, Leo Tolstoy, Seneca, Toni Morrison, Walt Whitman, Viktor Frankl, Rachel Carson, and Hannah Arendt. If we abide by the common definition of philosophy as the love of wisdom, and if Montaigne was right — he was — that philosophy is the art of learning to die, then living wisely is the art of learning how you will wish to have lived. A kind of resolution in reverse. This is where the wisdom of lives that have already been lived can be of immense aid — a source of forward-facing resolutions, borrowed from people who have long died, having lived, by any reasonable standard, honorable and generous live... posted on Jan 2 2022 (7,315 reads)

Talmudic turn of phrase, and she’d say, Where is it written that you’re supposed to be happy all the time? And I actually think it was the beginning of my spiritual practice that life is difficult. And then 40 years later, I learned that the Buddha said the same thing — that life is inevitably challenging, and how are we going to do it in a way that’s wise and doesn’t complicate it more than it is, just by itself? Tippett:So I want to talk tonight about that wisdom that you’ve learned and how it might apply to our lives as parents — not just the spiritual lives of our children, but how we nourish ourselves as we are present to them, and a... posted on May 8 2022 (4,281 reads)

has been lauded as a virtue in most world cultures and wisdom traditions. More recently, scientists have started to study humility, and they’re discovering its many benefits. “Psychologists have recently linked intellectual humility to a host of benefits: showing more persistence in the face of failure, holding less polarized beliefs and attitudes, and being received as warm and friendly by others,” writes Tyrone Sgambati in Greater Good. As a psychiatrist, I think humility springs from deep awareness that the world can only come through our own eyes, experiences, and insights. No matter how knowledgeable or skillful I might be, there... posted on Sep 13 2023 (5,271 reads)

greater good, inspiring us by their example. Gandhi. Mother Teresa. Ruby Bridges (the first black child to attend an all-white elementary school in 1960). It's amazing that our interpretation of experiences can generate such a visceral response. The fact that we get goosebumps when we are inspired or afraid is one of many everyday indicators of just how deeply and intricately connected our minds and bodies are. In fact, the mind and body are an intertwined whole -- and there is great wisdom in the totality of our mind-body experience. There are sparks of this recognition even in the world of technology. An increasing number of tools leverage something called "feedback loo... posted on Jul 12 2012 (16,621 reads)

child doesn’t mean love. It means something that comes from a machine. RW: Going back to your experience with the Gregorian chant and how after a few days, the words really came in. Can you say anything more about that? People might think, what’s the difference? Everything comes in. But there’s something different in what you’re saying, right? GN: Yes. And you see it in children where they’re just singing little children’s songs. There’s a lot of wisdom in these traditional children’s songs and games that have been passed on. I was thinking the other day about a children’s game called “Lemonade.” One child stands in ... posted on Jan 18 2015 (28,264 reads)

for Collective Wisdom - A network of people seeking to embody and radiate outward principles of collaboration, non violence, and wisdom necessary to address existential issues of life and be equipped with the tools, skills, and practices necessary to respond effectively in the world. FIVE CONDITIONS FOR THE EMERGENCE OF COLLECTIVE WISDOM 1. Deep Listening Listening with an intention that the other person feels heard and seen; creating the conditions and presence for the other to more fully come into their own highest being. Listening to what is said and unsaid. Listening with one's full self, with heart, mind, body, and soul. 2. Suspend Certainty Capacit... posted on Apr 29 2015 (23,401 reads)

sense of how we do our jobs, but also to this overextension of what we can achieve in everything we do. Um, I'm just going to read it. "There is a pervasive form of modern violence to which the idealist most easily succumbs, activism and overwork. The rush and pressure of modern life are a form, perhaps the most common form of its innate violence. The frenzy of the activist neutralizes his or her work. It destroys the fruitfulness of his or her work, because it kills the root of inner wisdom, which makes work fruitful." And then you talk about how this came to you the hard way, as an activist who burned out. And you said, “There's a critical question that you aske... posted on May 8 2015 (16,076 reads)

with all the complexity that entails. She founded the Webby Awards — the “Oscars of the Internet” — which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. And for over six years she and her young family have held to a technology sabbath or “shabbat” — 24 unplugged hours each week. Her perspective on our technology-enhanced lives is ultimately a purposeful and enriching one — the internet is our global brain, towards which we can apply all the wisdom we are gaining about the brains in our heads and the character in our lives. MS. TIFFANY SHLAIN: There’s a point in the development of a child’s brain where all the different par... posted on Apr 11 2016 (10,116 reads)

Occupy Oakland. Images of a peaceful, smiling Pancho being taken away in handcuffs were all over the Internet. A more recent video of Pancho’s life at Casa de Paz is on KarmaTube, inspiring me to interview him for this issue of The MOON.  Pancho lives without salary; Casa de Paz is supported entirely by donations, which are never requested. People are inspired to give, or they don’t give, and Pancho is content with that. If anyone is peaceably defying the conventional wisdom of what it means to live the good life, it is Pancho Ramos-Stierle. He spoke with me by computer phone from Casa de Paz.  – Leslee Goodman The MOON: You seem to be ... posted on Aug 23 2016 (17,303 reads)

five minutes talking with Ron Nakasone and you will sense two things: a wisdom that makes you curious and a casualness that makes you comfortable. One example of this kind of relaxed intelligence was when I was having lunch with him and we were discussing some of the ins and outs of doctoral research. In an off-handed way he said, “Don’t worry about finding the answers; find the questions. When you find the right questions the answers will follow.”       Dr. Nakasone’s inquisitive nature is evident in the variety of activities he has pursued and keeps pursuing. He is an accomplished scholar in Buddhist studies (he is a member of the Core Doc... posted on Feb 22 2017 (7,821 reads)

the ability to persist, to keep trying, to try new ideas, new ways of solving problems, is one of the strongest forces that drives whether people are able to move the world around them. And so I guess I’ve come to think of resilience as a critical skill for living a meaningful life and for living it according to your own values. And I think I’m now much more aware of that than I was before. Ms. Tippett: Yeah, I actually wanted to kind of come to a close with the notion of wisdom, which is connected to a meaningful life. And which, it seems to me, throughout your writing, it’s that resilience is also a building block of wisdom as much as it is healing and kind of ... posted on Jun 17 2017 (17,397 reads)

and humans (or humans and other animals) when we treat them with respect, and interact collaboratively with them rather than domineering over them. That is really the stage our research is conducted at now. Rather than conduct research on dolphins, I have been working collaboratively with them. They are active participants in the study who exert free will on their own terms, not primarily on ours.  Only in this way can we learn from them – and not only about them. There is much wisdom to be gleaned from them and many other animals. The MOON: Can you give me some examples of ways in which the facts exceed the fables? Frohoff: The neurobiology of dolphins demonstrate... posted on Jun 30 2017 (13,053 reads)

I want you to continue to be like a person that has a mission.” My father-in-law is pushing ninety now, and he is an acupuncturist that has seen so many of his patients retire and die. They don't have a drive or a purpose. I think you are living testament to that. Ed:  Well that was very good advice, and I couldn't agree more. Kozo: Yeah, I didn't. When I first heard it, I said, “You're crazy old man,” but now, after listening to you I see the wisdom behind that and I see a path that can lead to a fulfilling and healthy longevity. So thank you. We’ve got some callers on the line, so I'm going to bow down and let others share in yo... posted on Nov 1 2017 (8,029 reads)

following is the audio and transcript of an onbeing.org interview between Krista Tippett and Jean Vanier. May 28, 2015 KRISTA TIPPETT, HOST: It took me a while to put a name to the rare quality that is palpable in Jean Vanier’s life and presence. It’s a wisdom of tenderness. He’s a philosopher and a Catholic social innovator and simply one of the great elders in our world today. The L’Arche movement, which he founded, centered around people with mental disabilities, is celebrating its fiftieth anniversary this month. And, Jean Vanier has just won the Templeton Prize. He has devoted his life to the practical application of Christianity’s most... posted on Feb 23 2018 (12,246 reads)

it is this gift that makes Maria’s blog, Brain Pickings, such a success. Her thirst for knowledge means that she looks past the trends and fads that flash brightly in cyberspace, but are then forgotten hours later. Instead, she blogs about small bits of genius and curiosity that have been forgotten; antique ideas, perhaps. She finds the pearls of human interest amid an ocean of information. For Maria, the most important thing is that every blog post have some element of human wisdom, something both timely and timeless: an illustrated biography of Charles Darwin, John Steinbeck’s hand-written letters to his eldest son about falling in love, Susan Sontag’s musing... posted on Feb 17 2019 (8,533 reads)

corrections system as a whole in order to mitigate its extremely destructive impact on families, communities and the overall social capital of our society. The below text is available for download as a PDF on their website. Composed by the Buddhist Master Langri Tangpa (1054-1123), Eight Verses for Training the Mind is a highly revered text from the Mahayana Lojong (mind training) tradition. These instructions offer essential practices for cultivating the awakening mind of compassion, wisdom, and love. This eight-verse lojong enshrines the very heart of Dharma, revealing the true essence of the Mahayana path to liberation. Even a single line of this practice can be seen as encapsul... posted on May 31 2020 (18,902 reads)