Welcome! This is definitely a great place to start as you can learn so much from this knowledgeable community. If you're a beginner, I may suggest doing some reading at the Dhamma Encyclopedia , BuddhaNet's Buddhism Studies and at Buddism eLibrary to get acquainted with things. Googling for websites...

I know this thread is old, though it's just been bumped courtesy of Pacific ( ). That's quite the beautiful place to meditate! But I have to ask... Why is there a Swastika on the Buddha's chest? Is there some other sort of symbolism that I don't know of?

Mettā pāramī,
Leah.

:goodpost: My thoughts on the situation are to not so much worry about will happen in the future, but to focus on the now. When you are meditating, perhaps instead of focusing on the areas that are negative about yourself ("pettiness"), focus on the areas that are good in yourself. Perhaps...

Peeking through the book, Brahmi script really looks alien! Being a language nut that may be something fun for me to look into one of these days... I'm already trying to learn Pāḷi If I had the money, I'd definitely be crazy enough to buy it ^^

Thanks for sharing!

Mettā pāramī,
Leah

Pulga,

Sadhu to that! I whole-heartedly agree.

Mettā pāramī,
Leah

Wat Marp Jan and Wat Boonyawad look incredibly beautiful. I'm envious that you get to go! Maybe one day I'll get to visit as well.

Mettā pāramī,
- Leah

Hello Geoff,

I did get a reply which linked me to this PDF, which does a good job at explaining them. I also stumbled upon this page, so I think I have a decent understanding of the Dhyani Buddhas.

Thank you all for the help.

Mettā pāramī,
Leah

Rowyourboat, I probably should have somebody supervising me but given my circumstances it can't be helped ^_^; I've yet to try walking meditation, is that considered standard before sitting meditation? Acinteyyo, Both the excerpt and the sutta were an interesting read and have given me some insight ...

Hello Ben,

I have registered just now there and done just that. I hope I get a helpful response ^_^

Mettā pāramī,
Leah

Welcome Casey! Please enjoy your stay at the Dhamma Wheel. I'm new as well and I am quite happy here! If you have any questions do not hesitate to ask, we don't bite

Mettā pāramī,
- Leah

I was doing a bit of studying, particularly adding some Pali vocabulary into my flashcards and I ran across the term Akshobhya. It is my understanding that this is one of the Five Dhyani Buddhas, of Tibetan Buddhism. I do not understand what these are, and I have read around on several pages and sti...

I think that what parth meant is that Nibbana is simply indescribable even when one has attained it. You can describe in words how to get there, but describing in words the actual phenomena is futile. Therefore, "The elimination of passion, the elimination of aggression, the elimination of delu...

That's pretty much the definition as I had learned it to be, although that leads me to conclude that nama-rupa is the same thing as phassa (contact). I'm not quite sure what nama-rupa is really supposed to be.

I drew this picture out on paper about a week ago, then I scanned it and colored it in Photoshop. It sits on my little shrine in my room (since I can't get a statue) and I thought you might like to see it, use it as a wallpaper for your computer, or even print it out for yourself if you want it. I w...

Hello Selam! Welcome to the Dhamma Wheel

- Leah