Understanding Karma and Rebirth

Posted on 19 January 2011 by Buddhism Now

Understanding Karma and Rebirth, by Diana St RuthUnderstanding Karma and Rebirth

A Buddhist Perspective

by Diana St Ruth

ISBN 13: 978-0946672301
ISBN 10: 094667230X

Buddhist Publishing Group
Published: 2008
Paperback, 216 pages.

£10.95 / $17.95

A look into the effects of karma, with meditations and exercises to help us go beyond the concepts of birth and death and to live from the unborn moment.

You can buy Understanding Karma and Rebirth from the Book Depository for around £10 with free worldwide delivery. See below for other online sites.

In Understanding Karma and Rebirth, Diana St Ruth goes beyond the concepts of birth and death. With compelling narrative, exercises, and meditations, she explores this Buddhist natural law of karma, offering us an understanding of how our karma is key to our behaviour and the way we operate in the world. The law of karma is the law of our selves, the law of our inner lives. This book is a key to understanding ourselves at the deepest level. (more…)

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It’s hard to let go of wishing and wanting, yearning and craving, by Diana St Ruth

Posted on 17 January 2011 by Buddhism Now

Amida Buddha Japan. Courtesy GBCIn Zen they say that ordinary mind is the way, ordinary mind is Buddha. In the early days of practice we might take this to mean that our minds as they are is the Buddha, is the way of Zen, is the immediate and straightforward life of liberation. This may sound plausible, logical, because we’re also told that the Buddha is within. It isn’t long however before we begin to feel that while ordinary mind might be Buddha, our mind doesn’t seem to know it. Our mind doesn’t feel liberated and in fact feels most unliberated and sometimes still very unhappy. At this point we could feel that ordinary mind is not the way, ordinary mind is not the Buddha. We could then easily drift away from Buddhism thinking it doesn’t work, or it doesn’t work for me. (more…)

Filed under: Beginners, Buddhism, Buddhist meditation, Ch'an / Seon / Zen, Diana St Ruth | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 6 Comments »

Transcending Techniques, by Diana St Ruth

Posted on 26 November 2010 by Buddhism Now

Maitreya Buddha C7-JapanDifferent ways of looking at things catch us at different times and that is why the Buddhist teachings are so diverse. It is not that we have to learn all the methods, study all the texts of all the schools, become engrossed in the history of Buddhism throughout the ages and learn all the languages the texts are written in, before we can get to the truth of it. Truth is not locked in a word or a description or even in a long stream of them. The truth is the same from first to last; it is about us; it is about what we are and what is beyond concepts and the thinking mind.

Descriptions are merely devices or skilful means for awakening, but they are not the reality itself; they are just hints: Let’s look at it this way; let’s look at it that way. . . They are all aids to help us open our own eyes. That is really as far as words and anybody’s teachings can ever take us. (more…)

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Ajahn Sumedho Retires

Posted on 22 November 2010 by Buddhism Now

Ajahn Sumedho © AmaravatiAjahn Sumedho has retired from his abbotship and duties at Amaravati Buddhist Monastery. The Kathina ceremony on Sunday 14th November was an appropriate occasion which marked his official ‘goodbye’, and the temple was packed to overflowing. He will leave the country towards the end of this month (November) when, as was announced by the incoming Abbot (Ajahn Amaro) he will depart on a one-way ticket to Thailand.

Many of us were truly sad to be saying goodbye to him ― not only because of his powerful and engaging teachings which we have valued so very much over the past forty years — but also because he was a genuine friend in the dhamma, a genuine Buddhist friend. His commitment to living the Buddhist life which he has given himself to fully allows him ― even when his back is against the wall, as he would say, ― to ‘trust in awareness’ and let life unfold as it will. (more…)

Filed under: Ajahn Sumedho, Diana St Ruth, Encyclopedia, Theravada | Tagged: , , , | 18 Comments »

Does War Lead to Peace? by Diana St Ruth

Posted on 19 June 2010 by Buddhism Now

This article was from the May 2004 Buddhism Now.

Korean ShrineThe Spanish people are angry, the British people are also angry, and so are the Americans. Some are angry because terrorists are killing innocent people, and some are angry because their governments are killing innocent people. Either way, the innocent ones get it. In the twin towers an estimated 2,749 people lost their lives and many were injured. People boarded planes that day and others made their way to the twin towers quite oblivious to what was awaiting them. (more…)

Filed under: Buddhism, Diana St Ruth, Metta | Tagged: , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Walking Meditation

Posted on 28 May 2010 by Buddhism Now

Monk walking: © Marcelle HanselaarWalking is a wonderful way of meditating. It brings one to the point of realising that meditation does not depend upon the position of the body. Sitting, standing, lying down, walking — what is the difference when one is aware? The state of being aware is an experience which goes beyond the body.

The formal practice of walking is very useful in retreat situations where a lot of sitting is taking place and the body gets stiff. To walk for ten minutes or so between periods of sitting, stretches the joints and can bring relief to aching knees, ankles and so on. But more than that, in a sense, walking meditation is like putting sitting meditation into motion. This can break down any misconceptions about meditation being something only to take place in perfect stillness.

Freedom from form, feeling, mental activity, perception and consciousness — this little bundle called ‘me’ — can be experienced at any time just by engaging in the business at hand in a meditative way, whether it be the rise and fall of the abdomen, or the placing of one foot in front of the other in walking meditation.

Click here to download an easy to print guide on walking meditation
by Diana St Ruth.
It is compact — just eight PDF pages
making it easy for you to print out or read on your computer.

Filed under: Beginners, Buddhism, Buddhist meditation, Diana St Ruth, eBooks | Tagged: , , , | 5 Comments »

Knowing for ourselves, by Diana St Ruth

Posted on 15 February 2010 by Buddhism Now

Buddha. Burma, photo John AskeIf we are constantly following what others say and think, we never live our own lives; we live other people’s lives; our centre of gravity is somewhere else. The Kalama sutta is classic in pointing this out (see below). The Buddha goes along to this town, Kesaputta, and the people there, the Kalamas, seize the opportunity to ask him about something they’ve been grappling with for a long time: ‘Someone comes and tells us how marvellous his teaching is and how second-rate everyone else’s is. And then someone else comes and says the same—“My teaching is great, the best; everyone else just talks rubbish!”’ So the Kalamas are asking the Buddha how to judge who to believe, and he says, ‘Well, you shouldn’t believe anyone. It’s not a question of believing or not believing what anyone says. If you want to know reality, you have to recognise it. You’re ignoring your own experience of what is happening to you. That’s the difficulty.’ (more…)

Filed under: Beginners, Buddhism, Buddhist meditation, Diana St Ruth, Encyclopedia | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 4 Comments »

Buddha found his own way to freedom, by Diana St Ruth

Posted on 12 December 2009 by Buddhism Now
Reclining Buddha, Burma. Photo: © John Aske

Reclining Buddha, Burma.

Buddhism has a very guru-and-teacher-oriented side to it, but I don’t think it was ever meant to. The Buddha found his own way to freedom from suffering. He followed various teachers beforehand, but after thoroughly understanding what they were talking about, he realised they had not reached final liberation. Finally, he sat beneath the bodhi tree and penetrated the depths of his own mind and consciousness. Then he found the way. And basically that is what he advised others to do. (more…)

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Breaking free of mental activity, by Diana St Ruth

Posted on 6 November 2009 by Buddhism Now

Buddha behind Dragon curtain, Chinese Photo: © David BlancoBuddhist meditation is the process of breaking free of mental activity in order to hear what we hear, smell what we smell, taste what we taste and see what we see, without making judgements. Life then becomes sharp, clear, straight experience instead of every scene being accompanied by a silent running commentary or a series of judgements and reactions.

To be free of mental activity is not to lose one’s mind or suddenly become foolish or irre­sponsible; it is to simply deal directly with existence as it arises rather than through any kind of intermediary or filter; it is to face reality directly. We might then start to recognise that much of what we thought we knew was, in fact, just thought, just belief.

Diana St Ruth

Filed under: Buddhism, Buddhist, Buddhist meditation, Diana St Ruth | Tagged: | 2 Comments »

Diana St Ruth

Posted on 26 October 2009 by Buddhism Now

Diana St Ruth has been a practising Buddhist since the early 1960s. A director of the Buddhist Publishing Group since 1983, she lived in a Buddhist Community in Devon from 1989-1993 and is the editor of Buddhism Now. She is also the author of several books on Buddhism.

Her latest book is Understanding Karma and Rebirth A Buddhist Perspective

Diana’s other books, including Zen Buddhism – Simple Guide To, Little Book of Buddhist Wisdom, Theravada Buddhism – Simple Guide To and Sitting (USA edition), Experience Beyond Thinking (UK edition).

Other posts by  Diana St Ruth

Filed under: Biography, Buddhist, Diana St Ruth | 1 Comment »

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