Essays

Abba, tell me a word

Abba, tell me a word

Roger LipseyJan 31, 202317 min read

Abba Anthony was living his customary day of prayer and labor in the desert hermitage he called home when a band of seekers paid a visit. We are sometime in the fourth century of our era and in Scetis, the…

Looking for Gold: The alchemy of Cinderella

Looking for Gold: The alchemy of Cinderella

Mary A. OsborneJan 31, 202310 min read

Once upon a time, “The wife of a rich man fell ill, and when she felt that she was nearing her end she called her only daughter to her bedside and said, ‘Dear child, continue devout and good. Then God…

The Art of Budo

The Art of Budo

John StevensJan 31, 20236 min read

In my lifelong spiritual quest, I have read hundreds of sutras; plowed through pages and pages of philosophical texts; grappled with koan collections; analyzed thousands of poems; searched through biographies; meditated for hours; and interacted with many teachers, good and…

Testimony

Testimony

Brenton MacKinnonJan 31, 202316 min read

The day finally arrived when my faculty advisor asked me to choose a topic for the Master’s thesis in sociolinguistics. What to do? Maybe some coffee and a piece of pie down at the Koffe Klatch would lubricate my imagination.…

In the Hands of the Sea

In the Hands of the Sea

Surnaí MolloyJan 31, 20237 min read

I went out into the garden, to the crag, and I sat on the bench and watched the light change in the sea; looking over the fields, the holy well, the standing stone. The mountains beyond the bay were blue with…

Longing for the Beloved, by Mirabai Starr

Longing for the Beloved, by Mirabai Starr

Mirabai StarrJul 18, 201711 min read

Grieving Mary, by Fra Angelico, c.1437–1446, Museo San Marco, Florence THE ILLUSION OF SEPARATION At night on my bed I longed for my only love. I…

You Would Run for Your Life, by Tracy Cochran

You Would Run for Your Life, by Tracy Cochran

Tracy CochranNov 1, 201714 min read

Viking ship. Photograph by Adrian Wallett A mother and daughter trace their roots to the Vikings—and to those they conquered “You would run for your life,”…

The Deepest Silence, by John Roger Barrie

The Deepest Silence, by John Roger Barrie

John Roger BarrieSep 26, 20187 min read

Alphonse Osbert (1857-1939) Au coucher du soleil, 1894 The eloquence of the deepest silence echoes from the eternal. Originating there and reverberating through the ripples of…

The One Who Flies All Around the World, by Thomas Buckley

The One Who Flies All Around the World, by Thomas Buckley

Thomas BuckleyMay 28, 201813 min read

A Yurok woman. The Native Peoples of northwestern California (I will be writing mostly about the Yurok Indians) had “money” long before non-native invaders, lusting for…

Painting Enlightenment, Paula Arai / Artwork by Iwasaki Tsuneo

Painting Enlightenment, Paula Arai / Artwork by Iwasaki Tsuneo

Paula AraiJul 25, 20196 min read

Healing visions of the Heart Sutra Mandala of Evolution. Iwasaki Tsuneo The extraordinary paintings on the next several pages were begun at age seventy by Iwasaki Tsuneo (1917-2002), a retired…

Going Home, by Ram Dass & Mirabai Bush

Going Home, by Ram Dass & Mirabai Bush

Mirabai BushJul 28, 201811 min read

Frances Sinclair, from Indigenous Flowers of the Hawaiian Islands, 1885 Two spiritual pioneers on the end of life’s journey The following passages, narrated by Mirabai Bush,…

Spinning Straw, by Tracy Cochran

Spinning Straw, by Tracy Cochran

Tracy CochranJul 30, 201713 min read

The Miller’s Daughter. Anne Anderson. Late nineteenth or early twentieth century A miller, a beautiful daughter, and a creature named…. Once a poor miller was summoned…

On Unknowing, by Pamela Travers

On Unknowing, by Pamela Travers

Pamela TraversSep 22, 20156 min read

Travers in the role of Titania in a production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, c. 1924 (Wikipedia) It is not ignorance. Rather, one could say, a particular…

Everything is Burning

Everything is Burning

Tracy CochranOct 30, 202212 min read

Months after he attained enlightenment, the Buddha delivered what came to be called his Fire Sermon on a hilltop in India. He spoke to a thousand ascetics who, he knew,…

Looking for Gold: The alchemy of Cinderella

Looking for Gold: The alchemy of Cinderella

Mary A. OsborneJan 31, 202310 min read

Once upon a time, “The wife of a rich man fell ill, and when she felt that she was nearing her end she called her only daughter to her bedside…

The Challenge of Artificial Intelligence, by Jeff Zaleski

The Challenge of Artificial Intelligence, by Jeff Zaleski

Jeff ZaleskiJul 21, 201518 min read

Mike Licht, Cydippe with Acontius’s Apple iPhone, after Paulus Bor The toy company Mattel has announced the release in Fall 2015 of “Hello Barbie,” the first…

Altar Girl

Altar Girl

Sonja LivingstonOct 28, 201916 min read

Altar Service Mass, St John’s Cathedral, Norwich, 2019. Photograph by Roman Catholic Diocese of East Anglia Jacinia breezes along the aisles, gathering kisses from the ladies seated in pews. Bendición,…

Who Decides History’s Future?, by Alexandra Zaleski

Who Decides History’s Future?, by Alexandra Zaleski

Alexandra ZaleskiJul 25, 201912 min read

Knights and martyrs. Painting (detail) on canvas from church of Abbas Antonios, Ethiopia. Late seventeenth century. Musée du quai Branly-Jacques Chirac, Paris In the Era of Princes, Abyssinia had no…

Paths are Made by Walking, by Nipun Mehta

Paths are Made by Walking, by Nipun Mehta

Nipun MehtaMay 7, 201713 min read

Nipun Mehta Walking, in our high-speed world, has fallen out of favor. The word “pedestrian” itself is used to describe something ordinary and commonplace. Yet, walking…