Texts written in English

Samsara Bus

The passenger was sitting at the bus stop. He had been waiting for a long time. Sometimes he saw a bus, which usually just passed him. Sometimes the driver would wave at him, give some signals that he knew he was there, but the passenger didn’t know what to make of it.

The Three Refuges

I take refuge in the Buddha. I take refuge in the Dharma. I take refuge in the Sangha. It is usually not enough to decide to begin a spiritual practice. The path of most people’ is not straight and there are numerous distractions along the way. Therefore, if one is seriously thinking about this practice,…

The Three Pure Precepts

I vow not to commit evil. I vow to cultivate goodness. I vow to help others. These three precepts seem obvious and straightforward. They are so simple that even a child can understand them. It is probably a good idea to have some precepts that are more general, because different practitioners may have different understandings.…

Precepts: Anger

I vow not to unleash anger, but to seek its source. Anger seems to be about control. We get angry when objects do not behave according to our expectations, that is, do not fulfill our desires. We feel that we cannot control them. Control is a matter of ego’. I believe that we think of…

Precepts: Giving

I vow not to withhold spiritual or material aid, but to give freely when needed. Here we are back to the question: what does it mean to possess something? The concept of giving presupposes that one possesses something. It also presupposes that an object that can be given exists. So there are many false assumptions…

Precepts: Praising

I vow not to praise myself by criticizing others, but to overcome my own shortcomings. Presenting someone in a less advantageous way is a strategy for being seen as better. Everything is relational, so if we compare ourselves to someone who is not good looking, we may think we are much better. People who use…

Precepts: Gossiping

I vow not to gossip about others’ faults, but to be understanding and sympathetic. In general, we make things grow when we focus our attention on them. So if we decide to focus on mistakes, we will make them grow. For example, if we see that someone is noisy and complain about it, we will…