Beginner’s Mind
Beginner’s Mind is an ongoing special project from Buddhistdoor Global collecting insightful essays written by college students in the US who have attended experiential-learning-based courses related to Buddhism. Some of the authors identify as Buddhists, for others it is their first encounter with the Buddhadharma. All are sharing reflections and impressions on what they’ve learned, how it has impacted their lives, and how they might continue to engage with the teaching.
Beginner’s Mind offers a platform for these students to share their views on the Buddhadharma from the perspective of the “beginner’s mind.” Through commentaries, insights, and observations, these essays address some of the imminent challenges facing young people and the world today, from social and economic inequality to environmental sustainability and beyond, filtered through the lens of Buddhist philosophy.
Beginner’s Mind is updated monthly.
With special thanks to Susanne Kerekes, Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Religion at Williams College, and Jessica Xiaomin Zu, Assistant Professor of Religion at USC Dornsife.
Buddhist Economics
Beginner’s Mind: Three Dogs
A college student in the United States ponders the implications of karma, duhkha, and samsara in the lives of three furry bodhisattvas-to-be
Beginner’s Mind: Heterodoxy, Pluralism, or Buddhist Economics?
A college student in the United States shares their perspective on the path toward more sustainable frameworks for economic development
Beginner’s Mind: Brutally Frugal to Reluctantly Indulgent: How the US Is Changing My Spending Habits
A college student in the United States offers some reflections on frugality and self-indulgence in the consumerist culture of US society.
Beginner’s Mind: Redefining Success? Insights from a Course in Buddhist Economics
A US college student studying Buddhist Economics explores religious implications and parallels in late-stage capitalism
Beginner’s Mind: Stillness in Motion
A US college student ponders maintaining harmony and holding Buddhist precepts on the ski slopes
Beginner’s Mind: Māgha Pūjā – A Day Alongside Dukkha
Reflections of a US college student on undertaking to observe the eight precepts
Beginner’s Mind: Take Action, but Do It Kindly
A reflection on Buddhist economics
Beginner’s Mind: End, Beginning, Midpoint – Buddhist Economics in my Life
Planting seeds of insight, effort, and virtue
Beginner’s Mind: Three Watches: A Short Story
A meditation on time, impermanence, and possibility
Beginner’s Mind: Movement as a Framework for Reconciliation
Articulating a Buddhist response to structural…
Beginner’s Mind: Duhkha Runs the World – Buddhist Economics, Labor, and Wage Economies
Our unsustainable reality of structural violence and…
Beginner’s Mind: A Whole New World
Thoughts on Buddhist economics and structural…
Beginner’s Mind: Relearning
Reflections on Buddhist economics and our learned…
Beginner’s Mind: Reflections on Buddhist Economics and My Buddha-nature
First steps on the path
Beginner’s Mind: Practice
Intention and volition on the path to meaning
Beginner’s Mind: Anicca
Thoughts on impermanence and meaning in a precarious.
Beginner’s Mind: Three Dogs
A college student in the United States ponders the implications of karma, duhkha, and samsara in the lives of three furry bodhisattvas-to-be
Beginner’s Mind: Heterodoxy, Pluralism, or Buddhist Economics?
A college student in the United States shares their perspective on the path toward more sustainable frameworks for economic development
Beginner’s Mind: Brutally Frugal to Reluctantly Indulgent: How the US Is Changing My Spending Habits
A college student in the United States offers some reflections on frugality and self-indulgence in the consumerist culture of US society.
Beginner’s Mind: Redefining Success? Insights from a Course in Buddhist Economics
A US college student studying Buddhist Economics explores religious implications and parallels in late-stage capitalism
Beginner’s Mind: Stillness in Motion
A US college student ponders maintaining harmony and holding Buddhist precepts on the ski slopes
Beginner’s Mind: Māgha Pūjā – A Day Alongside Dukkha
Reflections of a US college student on undertaking to observe the eight precepts
Beginner’s Mind: Take Action, but Do It Kindly
A reflection on Buddhist economics
Beginner’s Mind: End, Beginning, Midpoint – Buddhist Economics in my Life
Planting seeds of insight, effort, and virtue
Beginner’s Mind: Three Watches: A Short Story
A meditation on time, impermanence, and possibility
Beginner’s Mind: Movement as a Framework for Reconciliation
Articulating a Buddhist response to structural…
Beginner’s Mind: Duhkha Runs the World – Buddhist Economics, Labor, and Wage Economies
Our unsustainable reality of structural violence and…
Beginner’s Mind: A Whole New World
Thoughts on Buddhist economics and structural…
Beginner’s Mind: Relearning
Reflections on Buddhist economics and our learned…
Beginner’s Mind: Reflections on Buddhist Economics and My Buddha-nature
First steps on the path
Beginner’s Mind: Practice
Intention and volition on the path to meaning
Beginner’s Mind: Anicca
Thoughts on impermanence and meaning in a precarious.
Buddhist Materiality
Beginner’s Mind: Transformation of an Everyday Object to an Amulet
A US college student studying Buddhist Materiality considers the meanings and implications of amulets and Buddhist imagery
Beginner’s Mind: Looking for the East in the West and Finding Myself Instead
An exploration of Buddhist thought and practice
Beginner’s Mind: Lump on a Log
Reflections on environment, interconnection, and equanimity
Beginner’s Mind: A Reflection on Personal Goals Past, Present, and Future
Finding the right questions to the answers
Beginner’s Mind: A Renewed Sense of Life – Revelations through Buddhist Material Culture
Insights into life, interconnection, and non-self
Beginner’s Mind: Transformation of an Everyday Object to an Amulet
A US college student studying Buddhist Materiality considers the meanings and implications of amulets and Buddhist imagery
Beginner’s Mind: Looking for the East in the West and Finding Myself Instead
An exploration of Buddhist thought and practice
Beginner’s Mind: Lump on a Log
Reflections on environment, interconnection, and equanimity
Beginner’s Mind: A Reflection on Personal Goals Past, Present, and Future
Finding the right questions to the answers
Beginner’s Mind: A Renewed Sense of Life – Revelations through Buddhist Material Culture
Insights into life, interconnection, and non-self
Brutal Buddhism
Beginner’s Mind: Part of the Ocean: On Buddhism and Islam
A US college student examines some of the confluences of Buddhism and Islam, and how this has shaped her personal practice
Beginner’s Mind: Beyond the Stereotype: Challenging the Perception of a Peaceful Religion
A US college student challenges stereotypes and preconceptions about Buddhism, religion, and spirituality
Beginner’s Mind: A Tree Grows in Hartford
A US college student reflects on new growth versus old growth in their relationship with the Buddhist teaching
Beginner’s Mind: Brutal Buddhism – Looking for Meaning and Connection in a Fragmented World
A US college student contemplates his place in the world through a Buddhist lens of interconnection and compassion
Beginner’s Mind: Part of the Ocean: On Buddhism and Islam
A US college student examines some of the confluences of Buddhism and Islam, and how this has shaped her personal practice
Beginner’s Mind: Beyond the Stereotype: Challenging the Perception of a Peaceful Religion
A US college student challenges stereotypes and preconceptions about Buddhism, religion, and spirituality
Beginner’s Mind: A Tree Grows in Hartford
A US college student reflects on new growth versus old growth in their relationship with the Buddhist teaching
Beginner’s Mind: Brutal Buddhism – Looking for Meaning and Connection in a Fragmented World
A US college student contemplates his place in the world through a Buddhist lens of interconnection and compassion
Buddhist Meditation and Philosophy
Beginner’s Mind: Self-Compassion: Learning to Hear Myself
A US college student confronts impermanence, and explores compassionate responses to attachment and aversion
Beginner’s Mind: Self-Compassion: Learning to Hear Myself
A US college student confronts impermanence, and explores compassionate responses to attachment and aversion
Socially Engaged Buddhism
Beginner’s Mind: Finding My Path to Liberation
A US college student reflects on their evolving relationship with the Buddhist path
Beginner’s Mind: The Path to Peace
A college student in the US reflects on the Buddhist way as a path to social change and to peace
Beginner’s Mind: Finding My Path to Liberation
A US college student reflects on their evolving relationship with the Buddhist path
Beginner’s Mind: The Path to Peace
A college student in the US reflects on the Buddhist way as a path to social change and to peace
Gender and Sexuality in Buddhism
Beginner’s Mind: Where I Am Now
A college student shares her reflections on gender, sexuality, and equality from a Buddhist perspective
Beginner’s Mind: Where I Am Now
A college student shares her reflections on gender, sexuality, and equality from a Buddhist perspective
Buddhist Modernism
Beginner’s Mind: Meditating on the Path of Life
A US college student examines her experiences with Buddhist thought through the lens of her background as a Muslim and a student of comparative religion
Beginner’s Mind: Embracing the Unknown – A New Perspective on Buddhism
A college student in the US reflects on her first encounter with the Buddhdharma
Beginner’s Mind: Shifting Perspectives: My Relationship with Religion and with Buddhism
A US college student considers the role of religious literacy in the 21st century
Activism and Action on the Path of Engaged Buddhism
A college student in the US examines her relationship with activism and Buddhism, and understanding engaged Buddhism as a form of practice
Beginner’s Mind: Connecting with Interconnection
A US college student shares about her early encounters with Buddhism and how she is engaging with what she has learned
Beginner’s Mind: Reflections on My Evolution in Buddhism
A US college student reflects on her changing perspective on the Buddhist teaching and its manifestations around the world
Beginner’s Mind: Where Did Buddhism Take You?
A college student in the US shares how a course in Buddhist Modernism changed their relationship with impermanence
Beginner’s Mind: Learning to Engage with Buddhism
An American college student examines how their new perspective on Buddhism has encouraged them to change their relationship with the world
Beginner’s Mind: My Personal Journey
Reflections from an architecture student at the University of Southern California on her path toward Buddhism
Beginner’s Mind: Buddhist Modernism: A Transformative and Empowering Think Tank for Social Change
On the transformative power of engaged Buddhism
Beginner’s Mind: Meditating on the Path of Life
A US college student examines her experiences with Buddhist thought through the lens of her background as a Muslim and a student of comparative religion
Beginner’s Mind: Embracing the Unknown – A New Perspective on Buddhism
A college student in the US reflects on her first encounter with the Buddhdharma
Beginner’s Mind: Shifting Perspectives: My Relationship with Religion and with Buddhism
A US college student considers the role of religious literacy in the 21st century
Activism and Action on the Path of Engaged Buddhism
A college student in the US examines her relationship with activism and Buddhism, and understanding engaged Buddhism as a form of practice
Beginner’s Mind: Connecting with Interconnection
A US college student shares about her early encounters with Buddhism and how she is engaging with what she has learned
Beginner’s Mind: Reflections on My Evolution in Buddhism
A US college student reflects on her changing perspective on the Buddhist teaching and its manifestations around the world
Beginner’s Mind: Where Did Buddhism Take You?
A college student in the US shares how a course in Buddhist Modernism changed their relationship with impermanence
Beginner’s Mind: Learning to Engage with Buddhism
An American college student examines how their new perspective on Buddhism has encouraged them to change their relationship with the world
Beginner’s Mind: My Personal Journey
Reflections from an architecture student at the University of Southern California on her path toward Buddhism
Beginner’s Mind: Buddhist Modernism: A Transformative and Empowering Think Tank for Social Change
On the transformative power of engaged Buddhism
Buddhist Literature
Beginner’s Mind: Growth
One college student’s reflections on growth on the Buddhist path
Beginner’s Mind: A Toolbox for Life
Re-engaging with life with mindful focus
Beginner’s Mind: That’s a Good Question . . .
Lessons in engaging mindfully with life
Beginner’s Mind: Growth
One college student’s reflections on growth on the Buddhist path
Beginner’s Mind: A Toolbox for Life
Re-engaging with life with mindful focus
Beginner’s Mind: That’s a Good Question . . .
Lessons in engaging mindfully with life