Entering the Mountain Gate: Essentials of Zen

Entering the Mountain Gate: Essentials of Zen - John Daido Loori
A completely new edition of the old favorite, Introduction to Zen Buddhism.Tracing the evolution of the ''Practice School'' of Buddhism, this video reveals the flexibility of Zen teachings based on mind-to-mind transmission rather than on doctrine or dogma. Daido Roshi raises compelling questions about the nature of being, offering a way to discover our inherent clarity. 


DharmaTV

Mindful Mixed Martial Arts - Thich Nhat Hanh

Mindful Mixed Martial Arts - Thich Nhat Hanh
Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full contact combat sport that allows a wide variety of fighting techniques and skills, from a mixture of martial arts traditions and non-traditions, to be used in competitions. The rules allow the use of striking and grappling techniques, both while standing and on the ground.
What has always been lacking from MMA is the spirit Mindfulness. While pummeling your opponents head to the ground Thich Nhat Hanh teaches us to pause and Mindfully places hands to palms in a gentle slapping technique. Only the skilled gentle hand of a true Zen master like Thich could bring such beauty and grace to such a violent sport. Thich explains various techniques and moves such as Mindfully breaking dishes on opponents head, Flower Power Strike and the dreaded Flying Monk Iron Butterfly Downward Facing Leg Kick.

Link

Vipassana Meditation 10 Day Course video

Vipassana Meditation 10 Day Course video
This is the Vipassana Meditation 10 Day Course video series given by S.N. Goenka.

This is the same series previously uploaded, reducing the 700 MB files to 230 - 270 MB each and reducing the size of the full series from 7.51 GB to 2.68 GB . The files have cleaner beginnings and endings and the distortion from the lower edge has been cropped.

The video quality is lower, but considering the file size, I think it is quite good, and hey, let's be honest, there is not much to look at in this series. You won't miss anything if you opt for the audio version, but some people like to have a visual to focus on while they listen, so this can serve in that capacity.

The final video, Day 11, has a 24 minute session of chanting, followed by the discourse, followed by another session of chanting. These parts have been split up into separate files so that those who are interested in only the discourse can locate it quickly and easily.

Also included is the PDF file of the Discourse Summaries for those who are new to Vipassana.

10 Day Course 2.68 GB version

10 Day Course 7.51 GB version

10 Day Discourse - Audio MP3

Born Again Buddhists - Discovery Channel

Born Again Buddhists - Discovery Channel

Believing that highly-evolved lamas choose to be reborn to lead the rest of us to nirvana, children born at auspicious times are carefully watched for signs of being a reincarnate and are usually identified at a young age by their past-life recall. These people are called tulkus/ reincarnated lamas - the most famous being the Dalai Lama. In the last remaining Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, reincarnation is a very much a way of life. But things have taken a curious turn in recent years. It seems more and more children are claiming to be reincarnates - a situation so worrying, the Bhutanese government has stepped in to oversee the ancient process of identifying reincarnates. Born Again Buddhists unravels the mysteries of this centuries-old Himalayan belief.

Video is in FLV format and contains the commercial breaks as when it originally aired. If you need a video player which handles flash video format, you can use VLC or GOM Player. Both are freeware.

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In Search of Myths and Heroes: The Search for Shangri-la

In Search of Myths and Heroes: The Search for Shangri-la - BBC - Michael Wood

Over the last twenty years, Michael Wood has captivated readers and viewers alike with his romantic journeys into the past from In Search of the Trojan Wars to his epic journeys in In the Footsteps of Alexander the Great and The Conquistadors.

In this compelling TV series, In Search of Myths and Heroes, Michael goes in search of four of our most powerful myths, one of which is Shangri-la.

The Search for Shangri-la

Wood's search for Shangri-La takes him on a thrilling trek through India, Nepal and Tibet. The tale of the magical hidden valley of Shangri-La was popularized in the 1930s by James Hilton in his novel, Lost Horizon. But, the story of a lost kingdom behind the Himalayas free from war and suffering is descended from a much older Indian myth. When Europeans first caught wind of the tale back in the 16th Century, they set about trying to discover it.

To find the truth behind the legend, Michael follows their track on foot through the Maoist controlled lands of Western Nepal and then on into Tibet. On the way he visits Mount Kailash — the sacred center of the world for all Hindus and Buddhists. Eventually, after hundreds of miles on dirt roads, he reaches the fantastic ruins of the lost city of Tsaparang, which he suggests is the real inspiration behind the myth. "One of the oldest myths of humanity, the paradise myth continues to haunt us today, especially in our time of rapid globalization," Wood concludes. "Whether such a paradise actually existed or not, it represents one of our most basic human desires."

The present Dalai Lama says this about Shambhala:

Nowadays, no one knows where Shambala is. Although it is said to exist, people cannot see it, or communicate with it in an ordinary way. Some people say it is located in another world, others that it is an ideal land, a place of the imagination. Some say it was a real place, which cannot now be found. Some believe there are openings into that world which may be accessed from this. Whatever the truth of that, the search for Shambala traditionally begins as an outer journey that becomes a journey of inner exploration and discovery.

Thanks to mytvblog for the links.

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Password: calek

Sorry about the password. It came from the uploader.

Masterpieces of the East - BBC

Masterpieces of the East - BBC

A new series revealing the stories behind iconic artefacts from the Indian Subcontinent. Only episodes 2 (The Great Stupa Sculptures) and 6 (The Tara Statue) which relate to Buddhism are posted. Thanks to Dan for the links.

The Great Stupa Sculptures

The 2000-year-old sculptures from Amaravati are among the greatest treasures at the British Museum. Depicting Buddhist themes and events in the life of the Buddha, they once embellished the Great Stupa at Amaravati, one of the most important religious sites of ancient India. From golden age, to ruin, to the rediscovery of its relics, this film tells the history of this once breathtaking monument. It explains, too, the iconography and symbolism of some of its finest surviving sculptures and explores and celebrates the artistic traditions and extraordinary craftsmanship that lie behind them.

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The Tara Statue

Almost life size and made of solid gilded bronze, the statue of the goddess Tara in the British Museum collection is one of the finest examples of South Asian art. She is a figure of exceptional beauty and undeniably sensuous, but her form is also sacred and her aura spiritual. Created as an object of worship, to inspire devotees of Buddhism, she was made some 1200 years ago in Sri Lanka. Her eyes and elaborately arranged hair were doubtless once inlaid with previous stones. This film drawstogether her story, examining her origins and how such a masterpiece was crafted, her original divine function, her discovery and her identity today as a cultural icon in a world museum.

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Awaken to the Eternal: Nisargadatta Maharaj: a Journey of Self Discovery

Awaken to the Eternal: Nisargadatta Maharaj: a Journey of Self Discovery

This video is a reverential tribute to the Advaita Sage Nisargadatta Maharaj. It includes film of his daily activities, including answering seeker’s questions. A number of black-and-white photographs are shown and the narration attempts to summarize the teaching, drawing mostly on the book I AM THAT. Several well-known American disciples are interviewed about their experiences at his feet.

“Ultimately, one must go beyond knowledge, but the knowledge must come, and knowledge can come by constant meditation. By meditating, the knowledge I AM gradually settles down and merges with universal knowledge, and thereby becomes totally free like the sky or space. Those who come here with the idea of getting knowledge, even spiritual knowledge, come here as individuals aspiring to get something. That is the real difficulty - the seeker must disappear.”

This is a unique opportunity to catch Maharaj in his Mumbai loft in the middle of a spirited conversation. Although he had a Hindu background and upbringing, Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj's teachings have a universal appeal. His genius is in making abstract ideas clear to everyone. He explained that the purpose of advanced spirituality is to simply know who you are. Through his many talks given in his humble flat in the slums of Bombay, he showed a direct way in which one could become aware of one's original nature. Many of these talks were recorded, and these recordings form the basis of I Am That and his other books. His words are free from cultural and religious trappings, and the knowledge he expounds is stripped bare of all that is unnecessary.

In the words of Advaita scholar Dr. Robert Powell, "Like the Zen masters of old, Nisargadatta's style is abrupt, provocative, and immensely profound -- cutting to the core and wasting little effort on inessentials. His terse but potent sayings are known for their ability to trigger shifts in consciousness, just by hearing, or even reading them."

Thanks to Mark for sharing the links.

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OR
View online at Google Video

I purchased a used copy of one of Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj's books once and read it. I can confirm from experience his words hit you in a certain way that can produce shifts in consciousness and he does have a certain Zen style of presentation. That I got just from reading one of his books.

Nirvana Means Extinction - Stephen Wolinsky

Nirvana Means Extinction - Stephen Wolinsky

Following his mentor, Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj's basic premise, "All you can teach is understanding, the rest comes on its own", Dr. Stephen Wolinsky takes us on a three hour excursion traversing the roots of Advaita-Vedanta, neuroscience, philosophy, linguistics and tantric yoga, to provide a long neglected understanding which lies at the core of all of these teachings; "All spirituality and psychology are dependent on the existence of a separate independent individual self." BUT what if this self is an illusion, a product of the nervous system, a miss-perception, then not only does the "I" disappear, but so does the foundation and basic premise of all spirituality, spiritual paths and psychology. Thanks to Mark for sharing these links.

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The Mystery Of The Tibetan Mummy - The History Channel

The Mystery Of The Tibetan Mummy - The History Channel

High in the Himalayan Mountains a mysterious part of Tibet’s lost history is about to be unearthed. Revealing ancient secrets about the human mind that could have an impact on the way we live today. At 12,000 feet, the body of a Tibetan man has been found seated as if in a state of meditation. He’s perfectly preserved, even a right eye remains, locked in an eternal stare. Authorities know nothing of him, but locals worship him like a God. So who was he and how has his corpse survived today?

His existence is a mystery that Victor Mair, one of the world’s top mummy experts and his team of scientists, are determined to solve. Is it possible that this man could have actually mummified his own body? The Scientific team journey to the site of the mummy armed with the latest medical equipment and perform further tests at the world’s top laboratories.

The investigation reveals secret meditation rituals that can slow the body’s metabolism by forty percent. The wisdom hidden within this ancient culture could forever change our health by initiating a radical new approach to 21st century medicine.

Victor Henry Mair is Full Professor and a Consulting Scholar at the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania. After graduating from Dartmouth College, Mair entered the United States Peace Corps in 1965 and served as a volunteer in Nepal for two years. In the fall of 1967, Mair entered a program of Buddhist Studies at the University of Washington in Seattle, where he studied Indian Buddhism, Chinese and Japanese Buddhism, Tibetan, and Sanskrit.

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Can Humanity Change? - Jiddu Krishnamurti

Can Humanity Change? - Jiddu Krishnamurti

Many have considered Buddhism to be the religion closest in spirit to J. Krishnamurti's spiritual teaching—even though the great teacher was famous for urging students to seek truth outside organized religion. This record of a historic encounter between Krishnamurti and a group of Buddhist scholars provides a unique opportunity to see what the great teacher had to say himself about Buddhist teachings. The conversations, which took place in London in the late 1970s, focused on human consciousness and its potential for transformation. Participants include Walpola Rahula, the renowned Sri Lankan Buddhist monk and scholar, author of the classic introductory text What the Buddha Taught.

Here is the complete 6 video set of conversations between Krishnamurti and Buddhist scholars. Compressed in ACE format but can be uncompressed with WinRAR. MP4 Video format. You can use VLC (freeware) to view videos. Thanks to my friend Alexander for passing along the links to share. MU links only.

We Are All Caught in the Idea of Progress
1st Conversation with Buddhist Scholars, Brockwood Park, 22nd June, 1978. Duration 99 min. B & W.

Knowledge means accumulation of information experience, various facts, theories and principles the past and the present. All that bundle we call knowledge. Can a mind that is burdened with knowledge see truth? Will we get more knowledge by reading this or that what the Buddha said, what Christ said? We are full of this accumulative instinct that we think will help us to jump into heaven. Can I look at the fact without the word with all its intimations, all its content, its tradition? Can I look at something without the word, without the association of words without past remembrances? Then only I see the fact.

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Can We Live Without Identifying?
2nd Conversation with Buddhist Scholars, Brockwood Park, England, 23rd June, 1978. Duration 94 min. B & W.

What is death? Is there life after death, is there a continuity? If not, what is the point of living at all? Why is there the whole process of identification my possessions, what I will be, success, power, prestige? The identification process is the essence of the self. Is it possible to live in daily life without this identification process which brings about the structure and the nature of the self which is the result of thought? Is it possible to be free of the "me" which produces all this chaos, this constant effort? Can thought end? Is it possible to live a daily life with death which is the ending of the self?

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Does Free Will Exist?
3rd Conversation with Buddhist Scholars, Brockwood Park, England, 23rd June, 1978. Duration 115 min. B & W.

We say free will exists because we can choose between this and that. Apart from material things, why is there choice? Is there an action in which there is no effort of will at all and therefore no choice? Why does thought identify with sensations? is there duality in identification? How did thought begin in me? Was it handed down by my parents by education, by environment, by the past? Does the word create the thought or thought creates words? Why does thought enter into action? Is there an action which is complete, total, whole, not partial? Can you see someone as a whole being? Then there is love.

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Can Truth Be Perceived Through Time?
1st Conversation with Buddhist Scholars, Brockwood Park, England, 28th June, 1979. Duration 93 min. B & W.

All the things that thought has put together literature, poetry, painting, illusions, gods, symbols, all that is reality for us. But nature is not created by thought. Can the mind, the network of all the senses apprehend, see, observe truth? Psychological time is the invention of thought which we use as a means of achieving enlightenment. Is such time an illusion? Is truth measurable by words? Truth is timeless, thought is of time, the two cannot run together. Without love, without compassion truth cannot be. I cannot go to truth, I cannot see truth. Truth can only exist, only be when the self is not.

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What Is It That Dies?
2nd Conversation with Buddhist Scholars, Brockwood Park, 28th June 1979. Duration: 104 min. B & W.

Is there life after death? The consciousness of human beings, the loneliness, despair, sorrow, fear, is its contents. Each person goes through the same tragedies, misfortunes - humanity is one. Then what is death, what is it that dies? To find out what death is I have to be with death, to end beliefs, attachment, everything I have collected.

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What is Meditation?
Conversation with Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, San Diego, California, 15th Feb. 1972. Duration 40 min. Color.

Krishnamurti in conversation with Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, a Tibetan Buddhist meditation master and founder of the Naropa Institute in Colorado. Krishnamurti opens up the question of meditation, contrasting the system of practice with living observation. A vital meditation is seen to be essential for the orderly quietness of the mind, which is then dynamic in action.

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Power of Now Mumbai Talks - Eckhart Tolle

Power of Now Mumbai Talks - Eckhart Tolle
A spiritual teacher who has grasped the most profound eternal truth, Eckhart Tolle author of 'The Power of Now' - a guide to spiritual enlightenment - embarked on a journey to India which, even in this age, is regarded as one of the most powerful mystical centers in the world.

Coming here to share his life-transforming spiritual insights with seekers of the 'Truth' - Eckhart reached the shores of Mumbai after a spiritual retreat at Rishikesh. Over two evenings at the Y. B. Chavan Center on February 28 and March 1, 2002 – he guided over five hundred earnest enquirers into the deeper meaning and purpose of life.

http://www.demonoid.com/files/details/926349/36945279/