In the Fall of 2013, I started what I thought was going to be a simple project that would take me a few months: I was going to organize my father’s photographs. I had no idea at the time how this would lead me into a deeper relationship with the man who was my hero, and role model in many ways…
On 29th St., in San Francisco. Photo by Jason Espada
The following was written in 2014, in preparation for visits from curators, who were coming to view the entire range of my father’s work, within the space of a few short days. I took this as an opportunity to touch upon the most significant events in his life, and to celebrate the man I had come to know more fully through organizing his archive.
Documenting the Puerto Rican Experience in the 20th and 21st centuries
Imagine if you will conceiving of a project that would document the Puerto Rican experience across the United States… Imagine further that this project would be undertaken by someone who is widely respected as an advocate for these people, and that this person, in addition, is a first-rate photographer… Continue reading
{Photo credits: Eugene Smith, by Don Getsug; Frank Espada, Big Sur, 1984, by Jason Espada}
As soon as I heard the photographer W. Eugene Smith’s voice, in a documentary produced for Japanese television, I recognized him immediately as a spiritual ancestor. It was not just what he said that was so moving, and familiar to me, but his fierce love and commitment to the people he photographed.
I will date myself now by telling you that once I used to write letters, and receive them. These were always special occasions, and something to be cherished. Since the advent of the computer though, hardly anyone writes letters by hand anymore, and so of course, almost no one receives them. Now that this is so, I’m thinking, people really don’t know what they’re missing.
Terma, The Word Made Flesh, and Divine Manifestation
I had an unusual occurrence last night, that followed my thinking about the magical side of Dharma, and writing about terma, or the tradition they speak of in Tibetan Buddhism of teachings coming into this world as a precise result of the needs of the time.
From Mundane View to Pure Perception
As soon as we begin to practice a spiritual path, we become aware that we are seeing things differently than the average person. To the ordinary mind, there is not much to celebrate here, and certainly not anything worthy of reverence; the common view is jaded, corrupt, and impoverished, and it offers very little to depend on in difficult times.
The value of reading out loud, and recording, and listening to useful teachings comes from their being expressions of the truth. It does not depend on their being read with a mellifluous voice, or on the translation. Something deeper is at work, which I call the esoteric power of the word.
One way of thinking of the Buddha is that he was a reformer of Indian spirituality. He saw the limitations of how people of his time were practicing, and he introduced new language and insights to guide them to freedom. His gifts continue to be received, and new ways of talking about practicing his teachings have evolved, and they will continue to do so…
A story goes that once there was a Zen master and his apprentice. It was their custom every morning, after meditation and before breakfast, to go for a long walk through the woods, along mountain trails, and back through fields on the way back to their simple monastery…
We usually listen to music in an active way, reaching out, linear. Certain types of music, however, require a different kind of listening for their appreciation. On Saturday night I went to see Ustad Habib Khan, playing the sitar, and Swapan Chaudhuri on the tablas, at the Vedic Cultural Center in Berkeley, in a performance of ragas, traditional music of India…
Before talking about any one composer, or piece of classical music, I thought I’d write out a few brief notes about this kind of music in general. Hopefully, this will provide context for the recommended performances…
When we talk about the major figures in Western Classical music, Mozart is seen as representing the unique genius of Classicism. His music is the easiest to approach. J.S. Bach is on another level, such that it is almost difficult to think of him only as a composer. His art is filled with mystery, passion, profundity, and exaltation. He is thought of as the apex of the Baroque.
The influence of Beethoven, in comparison to other composers, in my thinking, eclipses the boundaries of music. When his music is known in context, we can begin to understand just how much it changed, not only music, but all of Western consciousness and Western Culture…
My Spanish teacher in Colombia asked me this week how we can keep going, with right view, with all that is going on in the world…
… the existence of suffering is great in us and in our world, and it doesn’t resolve without embracing what we call the dark mysteries…
Recently, a friend of mine asked what I thought a Dharma center could offer to engage people who are new to Buddhism. The first few items came to mind right away, and within the week the list had grown to six things that I think are especially needed at this time, in this culture.
To all the Lions Among Humans who appear
in the ten directions and three times,
I pay homage with reverent body, speech, and mind…
By this merit,
gathered together with all the virtue,
of all the ten-directions and the three times
Buddhas and Bodhisattvas…
Here is the complete text, in pdf format.
For ease of reference, I’ve made these two hyperlinked posts – one for the Introduction, and one for the Table of Contents
Contents
Part I – Sadhanas and Commentaries
Preface – General Comments on Front Generation and Self Generation, and the Refuge Tree
Articles, books, audio and video
I thought it might be useful to gather these resources together in one place, for those who are interested.
Here is our ongoing collection of material by and about Frank Espada…
Here are my best suggestions for learning another language…
First, I tell my friends they should write freely in their native language, and then translate it…
Out of night’s troubled dream,
I wake and hear cries,
shouting,
and people running down the hallway
I gather myself and listen –
Our house is on fire.
The Supreme Siddhi of Mahamudra Retreat, by Ani Tenzin Palmo, Vajrapani Institute, Boulder Creek, California, June 8th through 10th, 2018.
Commentary on Advice for Mountain Retreat, by the Eighth Kamtrul Rinpoche
Complete audio recordings:
Friday evening, June 8th, 2018
Saturday, June 9th, 2018, morning session – I
Transcript of an excerpt, A Healthy Sense of Self
Saturday, June 9th, 2018, morning session – II
Saturday, June 9th, 2018, evening session – audio,
On the meditation section of the text:
Saturday, June 9th, 2018, evening session, questions and answers
Sunday, June 10th, 2018, closing session
Friends, a couple of months ago I came across a wonderful podcast called ‘This Esoteric Life’. In it, Christopher ‘Free’ covers a broad range of subjects from The Western Esoteric Tradition, and he does so in an inspired way. So I sent him a message and suggested we do a program on Buddhism and A Belief in the Miraculous as a starting point, and here it is. The program we did together is titled, ‘Esoteric Buddhism‘.
Beauty is healing
and love is healing
and peace is healing
and laughter,
and kindness is healing
Clicking on any of these will take you to their individual pages, with samples, and ordering information.
More below.
Then there is this.
Buddhist Poetry
From four collections, 1985 to 2018.
2009-2015.
And this, 1985 to 2005.
2006 to 2007.
If resources are an issue, get in touch with me and I’ll make it not an issue.
Free ebooks, in .pdf format, updated 11/1/2022
A Resource for the Practice of Meditation – Third Edition (2021)
A Key to Buddhist Wisdom Teachings
A Concise Set of Buddhist Healing Prayers and Practices
The Wisdom of Impermanence – Twenty One Essays
As Editor:
An Anthology of Buddhist Prayer (2008)
Metta and Readings on the Mahayana (updated 11/1/2022)
Cultivating the Field of Joy – Buddhist Readings to Uplift the Heart
The Stages of the Path Teachings – A Selection of Texts
The Beautiful Path – Readings on Ethics, to Soothe and Brighten the Mind
Essays on Purification, by Various Authors
Vajrasattva Commentaries, by Various Authors
Mahayana Prayers and Poetry.pdf; Audio (2012)
Teachings on Bodhicitta, in two volumes: One, and Two
Paritta Recitation – Protective Readings from the Pali Canon, Audio, (2022)
with an introduction, The Blessings of Paritta.pdf; Audio (2021)
Reflections on Impermanence and Transcendent Renunciation
Aiming for Freedom – Readings on Transcendent Renunciation
Teachings on Meditation by Thich Nhat Hanh
On the Vajrayana
A Collection of Prayers to Tara (updated 2/14/2021)
Chenrezig Sadhanas and Commentaries – in four volumes: One, Two, Three, and Four
A Collection of Buddhist Methods for Healing (279 pgs., 2020)
Dedication Prayers
Dedication Prayers from Various Teachers
Dedication Prayers – 6/16/2021
Prayers for the time of transition – 4/26/2020
Teachings on Humility from the Buddhist and Christian Traditions
The Discourses of the Buddha – from the Pali Canon
Audio – on youtube; and, on Bandcamp
…
If you would like to support my work here, or at abuddhistlibrary.com,
contributions in any amount are appreciated.
To view my father’s photography, please visit thefrankespadagalleries.com
The notes and essays in this collection were written over the last couple of years, as I’ve prepared for events, and communicated with scholars, curators, and representatives from universities. In a few cases, I’ve included something just because it has a family story or two in it. Perhaps all together these will help someone who is interested to get a fuller idea of who my father was, along with his own writing, and his art, of course.
First Corinthians, chapter 13
Though I may speak in the tongues of men and of angels, if I have not love, I am but a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal…
by William Shakespeare
Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove….
When it comes to the legacy of Barack Obama, the Left is divided. Some see him as a heroic figure that did his best for the country, despite Republican opposition, while others see him as a traitor to progressive values. With Trump’s election, it’s essential that we understand what took place during Obama’s presidency because it’s only in knowing our recent history that a unified progressive movement can make it’s way forward. We owe ourselves and the coming generation of activists at least this much.
As American soldiers returned from Vietnam in the late 1960’s and early 70’s, they were often met with scorn, and mistreated. The anger directed towards them came from an enraged and educated opposition that had gradually become aware of the injustice and sheer criminality of the wars being waged.
Last year I wrote an article, The New Extreme of the American Left, that describes the way many people who identify themselves as progressives today view the modern soldier. I began my article with what I thought was a given: In the late 1960’s and early 70’s, as American soldiers returned from Vietnam, they were met with scorn, spat on in airports, and called “baby killers”. To my surprise, I learned that there is another narrative, being held up by the left in particular (commondreams, truthout, alternet, seattletimes) that says vets were never spit upon. I found this hard to believe, and so I did a bit of research.
Preface
In my ideal world, we introduce ourselves with poetry, either our own, or that of other people, that we keep with us at all times…