I consider Lama Surya Das as a guru of the first order and have been able to hear him speak in person. His experience as a meditator and monk expressed via his American experience as a leader of Buddhist thought in the U.S., is important to me as I seek teachers.
I wish I lived closer to where he teaches at Garrison Institute or places he travels. Atlanta is not a big draw for those in this particular line of work.
He has a web site with a cartoon I really like, so click here to see it. He also has a new book out called "Buddha Standard Time, Awakening to the Infinite Possibilities of Now" which I just got but haven't read yet.
An AP reporter whose story is posted on ABC News says it may be hard for regular Americans to follow the wisdom provided by Surya Das. This reporter has some good insights, but without Surya Das giving Westerners a look at a way to begin to embrace meditation and all the goods that come with a practice, a lot of folks will miss out.
No doubt it is hard for someone like me to explain how to move into a practice that respects Buddhism and its concepts, but I just say start reading, visit a Buddhist center, a meditation class, or other opportunity to learn. In her new book "Prime Time," Jane Fonda begins to understand this doorway after attending a week-long retreat at a Zen center. Check Fonda out on ABC News. You can read excerpts here from her book about aging meaningfully.
