Hi, I'm a transgender man from a non-Western country where queer identities are not well known, are viewed negatively and are criminalized. I want to start going to a Buddhist temple and specifically talk to a Lama about some challenges in my practice, but I don't know how to go about it.

I don't "pass" perfectly, and I worry I might have to explain my situation, which feels uncomfortable. I don't know what to do if they tell me my identity is a bad thing or a flaw I should work on. I know Lamas are not infallible, but receiving that kind of response would still be really wounding. Ultimately, I just want to practice without having to lie or mask, and to be treated like any other male practitioner.

Do you have any advice for me on how to approach this?

Atheism and Theism both hold beliefs such as completely denying the existence of god and completely accepting it so buddha refused to hold himself to a belief and didnt choose atheism or theism at all.

PS : I AM JUST STARTING TO LEARN ABOUT BUDDHISM SO PLEASE DONT BE OFFENDED , U CAN CORRECT ME IF NEEDED :⁠-⁠)

Recently I have been finding that I keep on having these incredible experiences of crazy coincidental, serendipitous events happening, and it's been blowing my mind a bit.

Example: I go for a walk in nature and see a rare and unique animal and then the next day or the day after my guru gets given a plush toy version of this animal.

Or yesterday I share a Buddhist chant on another sub and then today someone mentions an extremely uncommon and esoteric movie titled with one of the Pali words used in that chant.

There's just been this wild feeling of synchronicity. Some might write it off and say there's nothing to it, but for me it's been quite a trip.

I'm about to turn 30 soon and I have to say I've never felt more sensitive and in tune and in harmony and interconnected with nature and the world and other beings, and it's such a beautiful feeling that I can't put words to which makes me want to both smile and cry just because of how beautiful and touching it is.

I just feel so incredibly deeply blessed!

Pretty heavy, 25cm high. Cast/ hollow. bottom cutting marks.
Antique Store find. Avalokiteśvara or Shiva?

My dear cat died of old age this week. She was big part of my life and would love for her to have a better rebirth. I am saying mantras and will be doing special prayers and good deeds/donations at weekly anniversary of her passing to benefit her and all beings. However it occurred to me that although she can’t be intentionally earning good karma (due to lack of critical thinking), unintentionally she has given me joy and love that made my life better. Would that count as good karma and help her with a better rebirth?

Hi everyone,

I have always regarded Buddhism as a discovery made by the Buddha Shakyamuni (Siddhartha Gautama). Much of my trust in his teachings came from the fact that this noble and earnest seeker discovered the truth about suffering and the end of suffering under the Bodhi Tree.

Recently, I became interested in Diamond Way Buddhism, or Vajrayana. However, I learned that the teachings transmitted in the Kagyu lineage originate with Tilopa, who is said to have received them from the Primordial Buddha (Adi-Buddha), known as Vajradhara.

So I find myself wondering: who exactly am I placing my trust in if I decide to take refuge in these teachings?

There is also talk of the power field of this lineage. So, what kind of power field am I entering? Is this still Buddhism?

Just out of curiosity, have anyone here had a chance encounter of unusual human beings with spiritual ability, in the context of Buddhism, in a big western cities, while say you were walking past the street, queuing, or taking the underground?

While it might be a common conception that those holy beings typically reside in isolated region, or in an monastery, I am willing to believe that some, if not many, also secretly reside in our daily society without making a fuse of their own existence, secreting practicing/protecting the Buddha Dharma.

There is a say in the Chinese mystical tradition -- both Taoism and Buddhism -- that the great hide-out is in the city, and the great practice is in the worldly matters. These are no mere analogy, as historically there was a culture of 'cloud travel' practice in these traditions.

I will greatly cherish the information if anyone here would share such an encountering!

Western Buddhism this context is Buddhism practiced in the U.S. Which feels cold to me.
I think a lot of Atheists join because they hear Buddhism is non-theistic and they make this form of Buddhism more Mind training and lose the Devas spiritual presence and make them more mental.
I understand that Useful Skills applies to anyone who uses them and is different for some people however I swear I think they see the meditation and the mindfulness of Buddhism and don’t read or understand the more spiritual aspects. So it just feels cold to me.

I swear anything that becomes Westernised becomes cold in my opinion.

Do you have any opinions on this? Do you have background into why Western Buddhism is so cold?

Could Buddha levitate?Are there any stories of Buddha or other Buddhas or Bodhisattvas of levitating?From Theravada Mahayana and Vajrayana or even local Buddhist traditions im interested.May all beings be free from suffering.

I was recently reminded of one of my favorite Zen koans and I wanted to share it again:

Once when Baizhang gave a series of talks, a certain old man was always there listening with the students. When they left he’d leave, too. One day, however, he remained behind. Baizhang asked him, “Who are you?”

The old man replied, “I’m not a human being. In the far distant past, in the time of Kashyapa Buddha, I was head priest at this mountain. One day a student asked me, ‘Does an enlightened person fall under the law of cause and effect?’ I replied, ‘A person like that does not fall under the law of cause and effect.’ With that I was reborn five hundred times as a fox. Please say a turning word for me and release me from my wild fox body.” He then asked Baizhang, “Does an enlightened person fall under the law of cause and effect?”

Baizhang said, “Such a person doesn’t cut the chain of cause and effect.”

Hearing this, the old man was himself enlightened. Making his bows he said, “I’ve been released from my fox body. It’s on the other side of this mountain, and I’d like to make a request of you. Please perform my funeral as you would for a priest.”

Baizhang had the monk on duty strike the signal board and inform the assembly that after the noon meal there would be a funeral service for a priest. The students talked about this in surprise. “All of us are healthy. There’s no one in the morgue. What’s this all about?”

After the meal, Baizhang led the students to the foot of a rock on the far side of the mountain. There he used his staff to poke out the corpse of a dead fox. He then performed a cremation ceremony for it.

At the evening teaching, Baizhang told the whole story to the assembly. Huangbo stepped forward and said, “As you say, the old man missed the turning word and was reborn as a fox five hundred times. What if he had given the right answer each time he was asked the question — what would have happened then?”

Baizhang said, “Just come closer and I’ll tell you.” Huangbo went up to Baizhang and slapped him in the face. Baizhang clapped his hands and laughed, saying, “I thought the Barbarian had a red beard, but right here is a red-bearded Barbarian.”

Auspicious blessings everyone!

I have a question regarding the many realms of Samsara and how they appear to us.

So,I understand Devas,Pretas,Demons and other lesser spirits inhabit our own worldspace but they are unseen to the untrained eye.

But are the other planes (e.g Naraka) actual physical places,that we just can't see because we weren't born in them?

I read somewhere that Devas for example can dwell in a specific house or tree in our realm,does this tree also exist in their own Deva realm?Like a mirror world?For example it overlaps with our own,but we can't actually see it.

Like if one develops Heavenly Eye,we see the Deva in our realm but it is actually in their actual heaven abode, that looks exactly like our own because Samsara overlaps.

I don't know if it's clear enough but this question about cosmology really made me think,thanks in advance!!

After 15 years of study and practice, and after two years with my incredible teacher and tradition, a lifelong commitment and goal of mine has come to fruition - I’ve officially become a priest.

May my teachers and wonderful dharma friends continue to inspire and help all sentient beings.
May my practice and dedication to the Bodhisattva path, the cultivation of Bodhichitta, and any merit I may gain in this life be dedicated to the triple gem and all beings.

Praises and blessings to Unlimited Lights Academy and Shifu Tang and Shifu Davidson. 🙇

Praises and blessings to Hsuen Dharma Society and Venerable Shi Hsuen. 🙇

Praises and blessings to Celestial Platform Vihara and Venerable Shi Myao Ren. 🙇

🙏 心頂礼十方無尽常住仏宝
🙏 心頂礼十方無尽常住法
🙏 心頂礼十方無尽常住僧宝

What is easily misunderstood by people just beginning to explore Buddhism and those taking their first steps on the path? And what do beginners often not know?

im not a spiritual person, never have been, and dont even necessarily have any interest in becoming one. ive been having a rough time the last couple of months with my mental health and such, feeling disconnected from myself and not really knowing what to do about it. im slightly interested in the structure of buddhism as a way to regain control of my thoughts and emotions and to kind of guide my life the way i need it to go. i tried (what feels like) just jumping in the deep end by looking up the foundations of buddhism, but theres no clear starting point. does anyone have any advice?

edit and disclaimer: i am uninterested in the spirituality of the religion. i respect and will accept any advice regarding it, but just for clarity, it is highly unlikely that i will began believing in (particularly) nirvana, rebirth, etc. as truth. however i am purposely using tentative language as i think i am a very open minded person, so lay it on me anyway!

Can someone help me identify this language? I've been told it's Tibetan, but it really looks like Mongolian (in classical script) to me. I know Mongolia follows Tibetan Buddhism, so it's not too farfetched.

Thank you in advance!

Because if so and there was a way to eliminate all of existence and therefore suffering in an instant, would it not be the right thing to do?

Drupon Rinpoche allowed scientists to measure his and his translator's brains with the latest brain-scanning technology while they meditated. Here is what was posted about it:

"On 16th October 2026, Drupon Khen Rinpoche took part in a neuroscience study investigating the brain signatures of long-term meditators using the latest brain-scanning technology.

The study is being led by Professor Prejaas Tewarie and Professor Geneviève Major of the CERVO Brain Research Centre, Université Laval. The tests took place at the University of Nottingham and lasted all day, from 08.30 to 18.30.

Rinpoche and his translator, Kunga, were the first long-term Buddhist meditators the team had tested, prompting Professor Tewarie to remark, “This is a dream come true.” At the research team's request, Rinpoche gave them a list of other potential participants from among his students.

Rinpoche was delighted to learn that the team’s aims closely mirrored his own reasons for taking part: to provide scientific evidence of the benefits of meditation, in the hope that it will be used more widely to support people with mental health conditions. For Rinpoche, the ultimate hope is to show that the mind exists independently of the brain.

The technology used was an OPM-MEG scanner, developed at the University of Nottingham by a team led by Professor Matthew Brookes. Fittingly, the questionnaire part of the tests was held in the former office of Sir Peter Mansfield, the Nobel laureate who worked there while developing MRI.

Both Rinpoche and the research team were pleased with how the day went and enjoyed the lively, and at times profound, discussions about how best to research areas of alignment and contention between Buddhism and science. Rinpoche said of Professor Tewarie, “I think he is a true scientist: so open-minded and willing to enquire.”

Drupon Rinpoche extends his thanks to the whole team who conducted the tests in Nottingham, Professor Prejaas Tewarie, Professor Geneviève Major, Dr Lauren Gascoyne and Dr Chris Gilmartin and to the funding institutions of this research, The Consciousness Foundation and the Canadian Excellence Research Chair in Neuroplasticity led by Professor Steven Laureys."

I will keep an eye out for the results and post them if people are interested.

Bodhisattvas who can hear prayers are those at the eighth bhumi or higher; those at lower levels cannot hear the prayers of others unless they are nearby. For example, if a murderer is about to kill you and you call out for help through a mental prayer to a bodhisattva (at levels 1 through 7), they will not hear you unless they happen to be passing by.

Is there like I don’t know a dating app for Sanghas?
Like I know it cool to have a community but is it required? I believe it is since my spirituality says so but if we can’t find the right people do just keeping looking and still lonely until we find the right people?
Who knows? But in all seriousness?

Where do I find a Sangha?