Tag: wisdom and compassion

• The Secret to Deeper Relationships Is an Ancient Act of ‘Summoning’

  

  We’ve all said it, or at least thought it, about someone we know: “They live in their own world.” It’s a common phrase, a shorthand to describe someone who seems distant, preoccupied, or tuned into a different frequency than our own. We usually mean it as a casual observation, a way to explain a gap…

  William Altig

  December 25, 2025

  Chapter 11, The Great Teachings of the Lotus of the True Law

  Buddha-nature, buddhist parables, Empathy, human connection, Lotus Sutra, Many-Treasures Buddha, overcoming isolation, Personal Growth, Shakyamuni Buddha, spiritual awakening, spiritual connection, summoning the Buddha, Universal Buddha-nature, unlocking potential, wisdom and compassion

• A Surprising Parable: How Compassionate Deception Can Lead to Truth

  

  Introduction: The Paradox of a Perfect Teacher What makes a truly compassionate teacher? Our first instinct might be to say it’s someone who tells us the unvarnished truth, directly and immediately. We often believe the quickest path to growth is a straight line. But what if the most loving and effective guidance doesn’t demand immediate…

  William Altig

  November 10, 2025

  Nichiren

  Bodhisattvas, Buddha’s Expedient Teachings, Buddhist analogy, changing habits and beliefs, end suffering, expedient teachings, liquor, Lotus Sūtra, Nichiren, Sutras preached according to others’ minds, The Sutra Preached in Accordance to [the Buddha’s] Own Mind, True Mind, true nature, wisdom and compassion, Zui-jii Gosho

• 4 Shocking Lessons on Devotion from a Bodhisattva Who Set Himself on Fire

  

  Introduction: The Outer Limits of Devotion What is the greatest sacrifice you could imagine making for something you truly believe in? For an idea, a truth, or a sense of gratitude so profound that no ordinary gift would suffice? The ancient Buddhist text, the Lotus Sutra, contains one of history’s most extreme and startling tales…

  William Altig

  October 29, 2025

  Chapter 23, The Great Teachings of the Lotus of the True Law

  All Beings Delight in Seeing Bodhisattva, Anātman, Auto-Cremation, Bodhisattva Ideal, Body as a Lamp, Buddha-nature, Burning of the Arms, Chapter 23, Dharma Offering, Dāna Pāramitā, Extreme Austerities, Great Compassion, Lotus Sūtra, Mahākaruṇā, Medicine-King Bodhisattva, Non-attachment, Perfection of Generosity, Pūjā, Sahā-World, Self-Sacrifice, Star-King-Flower Bodhisattva, Tathāgatagarbha, True Dharma Offering, Vigor, vīrya, wisdom and compassion, World of Endurance

• 5 Surprising Lessons from an Ancient Bodhisattva on How to Face an Overwhelming World

  

  It is a deeply familiar weight in our modern age: we are confronted daily with a seemingly endless tide of global problems, and in the face of such overwhelming need, we feel crushingly inadequate. We look at the scale of what is necessary and, as one ancient text observes, come to “believe that we are…

  William Altig

  October 16, 2025

  Chapter 25, The Great Teachings of the Lotus of the True Law

  Abhaya, Amitabha Buddha, Anatta, Avalokitesvara, Bodhicitta, Bodhisattva, Bodhisattva vow, Buddhist Compassion, Buddhist deity, Buddhist Ethics, Buddhist iconography, Buddhist meditation, Buddhist Philosophy, Buddhist practice, Buddhist psychology, Buddhist Symbolism, Buddhist teachings, Buddhist vows, Buddhist Wisdom, Chapter 25 Lotus Sutra, Chenrezig, Chinese Buddhism, comparative religion, Compassion, compassionate action, dealing with suffering, dependent origination, East Asian Buddhism, emptiness, fearlessness, gender in Buddhism, Goddess of Mercy, Guanyin, helping others, interconnectedness, kannon, karuna, Kumarajiva, Lotus Sutra, Mahayana Buddhism, mindfulness practice, Non-self, oceanic vow, overcoming despair, prajna, pratityasamutpada, Pure Land Buddhism, religious studies, Shantideva, Skillful Means, spiritual hope, Spiritual Transformation, Sunyata, thousand-armed Avalokitesvara, Upaya, wisdom and compassion

• The Bow That Sees

  

  I bow to the wanderer, ragged and worn,To the scornful eye, to the heart forlorn.For within your silence, within your pain,The seed of the Dharma sings its refrain. I will not call you lazy, nor lost,For the lotus blooms where the waters are tossed.Your path may stumble, your steps may fall,But the One Great Vehicle…

  William Altig

  October 3, 2025

  Chapter 14, poems, The Great Teachings of the Lotus of the True Law

  awakening, Bodhisattva Never Disrespectful, Buddhist Poetry, Buddhist teachings, Compassion, Dharma poem, Enlightenment, folk blues inspiration, Inner Peace, Lotus Sutra, Mappō age, mindfulness poem, Non-Contempt, peaceful practices, reverence, Spiritual Growth, spiritual humility, Third Peaceful Practice, Universal Buddha-nature, wisdom and compassion