An Open Letter from Buddhist and Yoga Teachers and Leaders in Support of the Occupy Movement. Reposted with permision from Ethan Nichtern.  http://occupysamsara.org/   As teachers and leaders of communities that promote the development of compassion and mindfulness, we are writing to express our solidarity with the Occupy movement now active in over 1,900 cities [...]

September 2 is the anniversary of being a nun for 20 years. I take this time to pay homage to some of the extraordinary women who have directly and indirectly guided me to the path where I am now.  I write as a prelude to International Bhikkhuni Day on Sept 17. My first memory thinking about [...]

1st Annual International Bhikkhuni Day on  September 17 I am just emerging from retreat and have stories to share. Before I do that, I want to let you know about this upcoming day and invite you join us here in our desert hermitage to honor and celebrate our women and monastic teachers! What is International [...]

The vassa began June 16. This is a time when Theravada Monastics spend three months together chanting, meditating, discussing Dhamma, studying the monastic discipline, and reciting the monastic rules every fortnight. In California there currently are two Theravada monasteries for women where a group of  Bhikkhunis, Samaneris, Anagarikas and monastic aspirants  have gathered for three [...]

  In April I went to Aranya Bodhi Forest Hermitage on the Sonoma coast of Northern California. The sisters there were kind and welcoming. Anagarika Gwyn has settled and seems to be enjoying the routine, the chanting, studying Pali and the presence of other robed Sisters. She has been working very hard, along with the [...]

I returned to Colorado Springs about two weeks ago after important retreat time and teaching to much change. It was clear during my winter retreat that changes were needed; I needed to reorganize priorities for myself as well as find better ways to support the community while I was away teaching or on retreat. Not [...]

December 11, Gwyn Waterfield formally took the traditional 3 refuges and 8-precepts and made a commitment to being an anagarikaa (postulant) in the Theravada Forest Buddhist Tradition for one year. About 50 people came, many from far away, to support Gwyn and participate in this ceremony. You can see photos in the gallery called Precept [...]

Awakening Truth update November 2010 I just returned from three weeks of teaching and being on retreat and come back to a different landscape. Now in Colorado the leaves have mostly fallen and the grass is brown. The cool emerges and bites when I spend time on the rocks after the sun has dipped behind [...]

What follows describes the context and events that led to my unexpected participation in the recent Bhikkhuni ordination at Aranya Bodhi Forest Monastery on August 27, 2010. In March this year I met with Ayya Tathaaloka en route to my mom’s 80 birthday party. I had met her over the years on many occasions. On this [...]

Working with doubt and grief As a young nun I remember vividly Ajahn Sumedho exhorting us to questions what motivated us.  He would say that as a young monk himself he had thought, “If Ajahn Chah disrobes, if His Holiness the Dalai Lama runs away with a 16 year old American girl, would I still [...]