About: Henry Schliff
Posts by Henry Schliff:
 Is Quentin Tarantino an Inglourious Basterd?by Henry Schliff on Aug 30, 2009 Violence as Art? What is the point of this movie!? I take one step out of the theatre with the experience of being bludgeoned in the head with a Louisville Slugger. Such an affect can only be produced by a master shock artist like Quentin Tarantino, this time around the trauma results from his latest [...] 2,066 views |
 Health Care: Changing the American Mantra [Howard Dean, Dennis Kucinich, Democracy Now]by Henry Schliff on Jul 25, 2009 When one’s wellbeing is based on the suffering of others or the exploitation of another, that wellbeing is intrinsically flawed, is not in fact wellbeing, and eventually will implode upon itself. Based on this I believe our democracy must move to facilitate the wellbeing of the many rather than cherishing the independence of the economic [...] 125 views |
 Official Buddhist Declaration on Climate Change [Ecobuddhism.com, UN Climate Treaty]by Henry Schliff on Jul 25, 2009 In anticipation of the U.N. Climate Treaty Conference in Copenhagen this December 2009, a group of Buddhists have produced a formal statement of intent to mitigate further global climate change. The declaration is well informed scientifically and coupled with the abiding principles of Buddhism. Here, in this declaration, are heard the rumblings a potentially great [...] 225 views |
 Stuff, Stuff, Stuff: How can we talk about it?by Henry Schliff on Jul 15, 2009 When it comes to material consumption I tend to look to Tyler Durden’s maxim, “The stuff you own ends up owning you.” We are an over “stuffed” society, from food and drink, to technological conveniences, to mental distractions. But try and suggest this to someone who holds to the notion that one must better society [...] 537 views |
 Being a Slave or Liberation from Lattés (also; Krishna Das, Ram Dass, Bhagavan Das)by Henry Schliff on Jul 11, 2009 Every jest is a half-truth. A co-worker said to me, “we’re both slaves to the job.” I respond, by rote, that we are only slaves if we believe it. But have I questioned this truism? Hardly enough. Liberation does not exist much for me beyond a theory. And how can genuine liberation exist in the [...] 553 views |
 Sutra on the Root of Unfolding (more Buddha ramblings)by Henry Schliff on Jun 24, 2009 In the Sutra on the Root of Unfolding (Mulapariyaya), the Buddha teaches a gathering of monks how all possible things one could conceive of as an originating entity are not the original root. The sutra caught my eye because it begins with an analysis of the elements: earth, water, fire, and air. But let me [...] 203 views |
 Stanford University’s Search for Compassion (Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education)by Henry Schliff on Jun 20, 2009 Nagarjuna famously said, “emptiness is the womb of compassion.” His proclamation, intended to point the direction for fostering compassion may or may not help the team of philosophers, neuroscientists, psychologists, and theologians who are being tapped to work with Stanford’s Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE). The express goal of the center [...] 367 views |
 Tulsi: the holy herb of Indiaby Henry Schliff on Jun 15, 2009 As a lover of all things “spice” I am always on the lookout for new flavors to add to the kitchen. And a week ago I found the holy of holies (literally). Our local Indian grocer carries a live herb called, Tulsi or “Holy Basil.” Full disclosure, I have not had the opportunity to test [...] 771 views |
 Attaining Ignorance: knowledge, dependent origination, and humility in lifeby Henry Schliff on May 8, 2009 One primary aim of many religious traditions and spiritual disciplines is the acquisition of knowledge. Emphasis is often placed on gnosis of the supreme will or power of the universe, and coming to know the omnipresence of the creative force. Here the structure of Buddhism diverges and the search for knowledge becomes a search for [...] 335 views |
 Translating Ignorance or Ignorant Translationby Henry Schliff on Apr 28, 2009 Words should be simpler. Or the mind more advanced. That is why translation is like constructing a puzzle without any pieces. All the pieces of the puzzle are scattered in a vast jungle and you only know the picture they form because of some gossip you heard back in town. That was before you got [...] 261 views |
 Duke University interfaith dialogue on the environment (Rabbi Arthur Waskow, Stephanie Kaza, and more)by Henry Schliff on Apr 19, 2009 Earlier this month while visiting family in North Carolina I had the opportunity to attend the Duke Faith Council’s 3rd Annual Spring Dialogue entitled Saving the Earth: What can faith traditions teach us about the environment. The panel of guest speakers included Rabbi Arthur Waskow, Dr. Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Dr. Stephanie Kaza, Dr. Umesh Gulati, [...] 1,507 views |
 One piece of music you must see before you die; Giuseppe Verdi’s Messa da Requiemby Henry Schliff on Apr 5, 2009 We all want to be remembered after we depart this world. Weeping relatives, friends to tell of our greatest deeds, and music to rend the souls of those who mourn our passing. Alessandro Manzoni was perhaps, posthumously, the luckiest and the most unfortunate man to have ever lived. Lucky because Giuseppe Verdi composed his “Manzoni [...] 246 views |
 Econo-Buddha Part I: Recession = Potentialby Henry Schliff on Mar 26, 2009 The legend of the Shakyamuni Buddha tells the story of his “great going forth,” or his renunciation of worldly life. And the steps leading to the renunciation are especially pertinent to contemporary America. If you have seen Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Little Buddha, or have heard any Buddhist mythology, you probably know this story: Young Prince [...] 806 views |
 Econo-Buddha Part II: The Diamond Heart of Shakyamuniby Henry Schliff on Mar 25, 2009 A familiar scene. My wife and I are walking Pearl Street in Boulder and someone asks for change. I ignore the request or give a diffident refusal. She thinks for a second and pulls the random piece of fruit from her bag, something saved for a snack before lunch, and hands it over. This isn’t [...] 11,485 views |
 Book Review via Henry Schliff: Prisoners of Shangri-La: Tibetan Buddhism and the West (Donald S. Lopez, Jr.)by Henry Schliff on Mar 18, 2009 I am always excited to find a book that can simultaneously broaden my perspective and challenge pre-existing notions, Prisoners of Shangri-La: Tibetan Buddhism and the West by Donald Lopez is just that kind of book. Lopez writes, “even among partisans of the Tibetan cause, the focus remains largely on the unsited, on the ethereal and [...] 818 views |
 Movie Review: Watchmen: Who’s Watching Hollywood?by Henry Schliff on Mar 8, 2009 Watchmen has not surprisingly opened nationwide to a mixed critical consensus. Much is done well while some is not done at all, which is the movie’s primary flaw. Visually, Watchmen is spectacular if occasionally overwhelming and graphically violent. 1,205 views |
 Accepting Repentance; Shantideva, Abraham Joshua Heschel [video]by Henry Schliff on Mar 3, 2009 Is repentance relevant and legitimate to people living in contemporary society? I used to think of repentance or confession of sin as a means for organized religions to keep the individual in obedience to the religious authority, to control the masses by means of fear. 442 views |
 Christopher Field, latest thoughts on Climate Change; Democracy Now Videoby Henry Schliff on Feb 26, 2009 For the past two weeks I’ve had this partial paragraph hanging out on my desktop waiting to speak. CHICAGO, Feb. 14 ‐‐ The pace of global warming is likely to be much faster than recent predictions, because industrial greenhouse gas emissions have increased more quickly than expected and higher temperatures are triggering self‐reinforcing feedback mechanisms [...] 8,835 views |
 The State of Angulimala: the American hungerby Henry Schliff on Feb 24, 2009 When I think of our current economic turmoil and the knee jerk responses taken to it I am reminded of the Sutra of Angulimala, the demonic murderer bandit of the Buddhist tradition with his garland of insatiable lusts. When Angulimala comes across the Buddha alone in the forest he chases him as fast as he [...] 1,859 views |
 Practical Metaphysics: verses from Nagarjunaby Henry Schliff on Feb 18, 2009 I have been turning four lines over and over in my head for the past week or more: There are four conditions: efficient condition; Percept-object condition; immediate condition; Dominant condition, just so. There is no fifth condition. The lines are from the second verse of Nagarjuna’s Mulamadhyamakakarika, translated by Jay Garfield as Fundamental Verses on [...] 493 views |
 Book review: Spiritual Evolution: a scientific defense of faith (Dr. George E. Vaillant)by Henry Schliff on Feb 9, 2009 I recently finished the latest book of psychoanalyst, research psychiatrist, and pioneer in the field of adult development, Dr. George E. Vaillant. The book, Spiritual Evolution: A Scientific Defense of Faith, is in part a secular form of apologetics for faith, spirituality, and religion as well as an examination of the emotional qualities that define [...] 759 views |
 Gear Review: GoLite brings Style, Sustainability and a new Spring line. [Men's] ~ via Henry Schliff.by Henry Schliff on Jan 28, 2009 It’s time to get your gear groove on in style and efficiency with GoLite. The Boulder, Colorado based high-performance clothing company that is making major strides in inventiveness and sustainability. Recently, I tested out several items for elephantjournal.com from GoLite’s 2009 Spring Line of men’s apparel. First off, the name doesn’t even begin to describe [...] 1,937 views |
 Time Magazine’s Michael Grunwald: the answer to America’s Energy Needsby Henry Schliff on Jan 25, 2009 December 31, 2008. As the old year was setting and the year of Obama was about to begin, Michael Grunwald wrote about a revolutionary idea to change energy usage as we know it. But this is not straight off the press, this is not as revolutionary as one might think. It’s energy efficiency and its [...] 1,892 views |
 Teleportation? Quantum Scientists say, “Yes we Can!”by Henry Schliff on Jan 24, 2009 Recently the journal Science, in their Jan. 23rd issue, reported they had achieved the “teleportation of quantum information between atomic quantum memories separated by about 1 meter.” What does all that mean- Information was transmitted between two separate, entangled atoms at the speed of light. It doesn’t mean we’ll have a “beam me up Scotty” [...] 765 views |
MLK: the betrayal of silence; videos of speeches.by Henry Schliff on Jan 18, 2009 The action and speech of Dr. Martin Luther King demonstrates the power of one man to influence a nation. What would have happened if he had remained silent. And who now among us is the next MLK, the next Gandhi, the next Mother Teresa. We will never know when our voices remain silent. “Now, I’ve [...] 7,993 views |
 Climate Scientist Dr. James E. Hansen says “Tell Barack Obama the Truth – The Whole Truth”by Henry Schliff on Jan 17, 2009 Barack Obama is almost our new President, just three more days! Back in November, not long after the votes were tallied and many of us had breathed a sigh of relief Dr. James Hansen, a well respected climate scientist, wrote a letter to the soon to be forty-forth president of the United States entitled “Tell [...] 1,447 views |
 The Poetry of Robert Duncanby Henry Schliff on Jan 12, 2009 Last week was the birthday of the remarkable, yet remarkably little known poet Robert Duncan (1919-1988). A defining member of the San Francisco Renaissance, along with Jack Spicer and Robin Blaser, among other greats. I encountered Duncan’s work during my Jr. year at Naropa University and have been a fan ever since. Just this week [...] 483 views |
 Enter the Buddhist Monkey! [Video]by Henry Schliff on Jan 10, 2009 Everybody was Kung-Fu fighting…Those cats were fast as lightening…And it was a little bit frightening… The fists slam in a furious fashion in the YouTube animated gore fest that is the Buddhist Monkey. A small flower loving creature who slices and dices his enemies to pieces if they dare destroy the tranquility of his majestically [...] 1,155 views |
 The First Precept on War; a Buddhist’s dilemmaby Henry Schliff on Jan 1, 2009 New Year’s resolution number one: avoiding of course the inevitable New Year’s backlash of “did I resolve that?!” If you read my last blog you know I vigorously proclaimed, “we should all stop global climate change! Now!” Or something to that effect. Inescapably associated with a resolve to change personal behavior, is an assessment of [...] 464 views |
 realclimate.org cuts through the Green Hype!by Henry Schliff on Dec 27, 2008 Waylon’s recent post on the Global Warming Rug caught my attention…and got me seething (the rug, not Waylon). There is so much BS out there about going green, that I finally want to say, I’M MAD AS HELL AND I’M NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANYMORE! I know, I know, it’s about movement, progression, awareness, [...] 2,447 views |
 Good Book review: how to bring Andy Warhol, Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Green Revolution, and Moses all together [Green Bible, The Book]by Henry Schliff on Dec 26, 2008 You could say I am somewhat of a Biblical bibliophile so I was overjoyed this fall to see two intriguing new additions to the world of Tanakhs, Testaments, and Qur’ans. The first comes from the green revolution. A slim unassuming, cotton-lined book called The Green Bible (NRSV). The text is printed on recycled paper and [...] 3,545 views |
 Buildering a New Tomorrow [urban climbing; videos]by Henry Schliff on Dec 25, 2008 Awesome. Of course there are Rock Monkeys…but then there is the Builderer movement. Not that a mountain rock playground like Boulder, Colorado—my hometown—necessitates scrambling up concrete walls, but for those without such easy access to quality bouldering, what a way to be inventive. I’ve gathered this has been going on for awhile, but just now [...] 633 views |
 Light in the Darkness; Hanukkah’s optimistic/mystic spirit [Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz on Hanukkah, video]by Henry Schliff on Dec 21, 2008 At sundown today, the 21st of December 2008 and the 25th of Kislev on the Jewish calendar begins the celebration of Hanukkah. So pull out your menorah and light the lights, it’s the Jewish Christmas right? Not exactly. It does share a common ancestor, the Roman celebration of the birth of Sol, the unconquerable sun. [...] 988 views |
 Joker Dharma: chaos philosophy [Dark Knight video, Neem Karoli Baba, Trungpa, Tyler Durden, & Milarepa]by Henry Schliff on Dec 14, 2008 What better way to spend a snowy day in the Rockies than to analyze the components of media pop-culture? The Dark Knight was finally released on video this week. And I now feel obliged to put in my commentary on one of the best villains ever. Let’s face it; villains are fascinating. Villains are not [...] 15,354 views |
 So…what have you done today? [Right Livelihood Award to Amy Goodman and friends]by Henry Schliff on Dec 8, 2008 In 1980 Jakob von Uexkull founded the Right Livelihood Award in response to the Nobel Prize which he believed was not as open and inclusive as it had the potential to be. Normally four persons are chosen to receive the Right Livelihood Award and this year the recipients include 381 views |
 Can you Handel the Messiah? [Buddha & Christ; Shantideva Guide to the Bodhisatta's Way of Life; Life of Brian video]by Henry Schliff on Dec 7, 2008 The line begins, “Surely he hath born our griefs, and carried our sorrows…” Guess what, it’s the Christmas season once again and for some that means more than shopping. Christmas can be one of those sacred times for many millions to remember and celebrate the birth of Jesus. 438 views |
 To God or not to God? That is the billboard.by Henry Schliff on Nov 29, 2008 Coming soon to Colorado and other states of the nation: Full sized billboards that are not sporting messages from God but messages about the absence of God. This reminded me of what seems to be a more common trend lately. Bill Maher in his latest film Religulous mentioned that 16% of the American population identify [...] 552 views |
 Saudi UN talks on Religious Tolerance [George Carlin; video]by Henry Schliff on Nov 29, 2008 On Wednesday, Nov. 12th, 248 views |
 Hey the Brits are doing it! Act on CO2 [government sponsored carbon cutting initiative; UK videos]by Henry Schliff on Nov 29, 2008 This may be a bit old news but back in March of 2007 the British government began a massive campaign to encourage its citizens to reduce their carbon footprint. The initiative is called Act on CO2 and it is mayor. 530 views |
 The World of Daniel Richter [Denver Art Museum exhibit; art review]by Henry Schliff on Nov 23, 2008 I have always thought it is important to alter, on a regular basis, the way we perceive reality. For that reason I meditate, climb, read, listen to music, and occasionally look at art. The latter brings me to Daniel Richter 2,633 views |
 Music Review: Arjuna’s Dilemna, Hari Hari Opera! [Madame Butterfly, Douglas Cuomo; video]by Henry Schliff on Nov 15, 2008 I have just opened up my itunes library to one of the most inspiring pieces of music I have heard in months. 408 views |
 was Gandhi right?by Henry Schliff on Nov 11, 2008 Right or wrong in his non-violent approach Gandhi helped to win independence for the people of India without guns or bombs and with remarkably few casualties, bringing active non-violent resistance into the full view of the world. Now a recent study 8,511 views |
 Palin House & 10 Moore Solutionsby Henry Schliff on Nov 1, 2008 Look to your office Americans! Here’s a link that’s been floating round 377 views |
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