Rev. Danny Fisher

“Mount Wutai.” Photo by Baptiste Marcel, via Shambhala Sun Space.
Over at Shambhala Sun Space, Jesse P. Hiltz contemplates the possibilities and especially the problematics of naming China’s Mount Wutai as a U.N. World Heritage Site. He writes:

Nestled in Northeastern China, Mount Wutai has witnessed the building of Buddhist temples since the first century C.E. and it is home to some of China’s old existing wooden buildings. Some of which have stood since 900 C.E.

Consisting of five continuous mountains with flattened peaks, the Sacred Mountain’s altitudes rise between 2,500 and 3,000 meters above the sea. It is here, many believe, that the bodhisattva manifests himself; as a monk, a pilgrim, a wisp of cloud.

In Spain, on Friday, June 26th, nearly two millennia of Buddhist history has convinced the UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee to name Wutai as a World Heritage Site, given that it is home to 68 temples, 150 towers, 146,000 sculptures.

But alas, it was not qualified to be a world natural landscape.

Read the rest here.

Our friend Lt. Jeanette Shin, CHC, USN, the first commissioned Buddhist chaplain in the U.S. Armed Forces, offers a lovely reflection at Buddhist Military Sangha about the “a growing chaplaincy”:

Buddhist chaplains come from all three major Buddhist traditions: Mahayana, Theravada, and Vajrayana. There does not seem to be any one specific tradition or school which is more conducive to or works better within chaplaincy than others. Also, as chaplaincy is a new dimension for many of these traditions; this offers an opportunity for Buddhists of very different practices to come together and share ideas and theories on chaplaincy (which is already occurring via the Buddhist Chaplains Network and other venues). This is unique in the history of Buddhism itself!

The importance of Buddhist Chaplaincy therefore lies in the interfaith and intra-Sangha dialogue it provides. One of the misconceptions of chaplaincy is that chaplains will simply care for their own. Chaplains are called upon often to provide spiritual care, counseling, or simply just to listen, for all persons. It is not the case that a chaplain will just sit in an office waiting for the buzzer to ring for a specific faith group. Chaplains very often are out and about, making visitations, counsel persons not of their own faith, and often those not belonging to any faith group. Proselytizing is not in the chaplain’s job description. Negative media reports involving chaplains nearly always involve someone’s blatant attempts at conversion, or ethical violations. Chaplains must navigate a thin line on when and where to share faith, and what behaviors are and aren’t acceptable. Buddhists are not immune from this, and we can even learn something about this from our Christian and Jewish colleagues. Even as chaplaincy is “new,” we must also have to explain it to other Buddhists who may not understand what it is, why it is important, or why a Buddhist teacher or monk or nun must associate with non-Buddhists: it has also been my experience that we must justify our presence not only to some non-Buddhists, but also to our fellow Buddhists who misunderstand chaplain work.

Read her full post here.

Over at the Tricycle Editors’ Blog, our friend in the Buddhoblogosphere James Shaheen, publisher and editor of Tricycle: The Buddhist Review, offers a thoughtful reflection on a piece in yesterday’s Washington Post about a New York clinical psychologist who specializes in cancer treatment and what she learned from a patient who practiced mindfulness. Specifically, James is inspired by the piece to ask questions about mindfulness practice in clinical settings and whether or not it is Buddhism. Take a look.