(-William/Flickr.com)
New Buddhist Nuns Ordained in Los Angeles
During the past four decades many Buddhist monks from all Theravadan countries in Asia have come to the West to propagate Buddhism, while serving their ethnic communities. It has been a very rare occasion for a male Westerner to ordain as a Theravada monk. And it has been rarer still for a female to ordain as a Theravada nun. The Bhikkhuni Order was established by the Buddha in the five years after his enlightenment. But for a variety of reasons, the order went extinct over 1,000 years ago (1017 C.E.).
The Mindful Living Alliance
"Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared" - the Buddha. The MLA is a non-profit for those seeking true happiness through the practice of meditation. It is open to everyone without discrimination.
How to infuse happiness into relationships
Talk to those who need to feel happier in ways that help them stay calm and think straight. How many truly happy, upbeat people do you know? How many disgruntled, unhappy people? What's important to recognize is that you can personally influence a lot of people to be happier. What you say and do can affect how other people act and think. In fact, our actions and words can cause people to shake off depression, work with more passion, and stop self-destructive behaviors.
Love, Lust & Faking It: The Naked Truth 
About what? About sex, lies, and true romance. That's the longwinded title of Jenny McCarthy's new book. For the first time she's revealing what went wrong with her and Jim Carrey. McCarthy says she faked a lot of likes and emotions with Jim, and she's entered her new relationship with "all of my chips laid out."
Bangkok’s blogging British monk
Phra Pandit has let go of material desires while remaining connected to the modern world [at littlebang.org], inspiring many other Westerners to follow suit. The image of saffron-clad monks wandering Bangkok’s streets on their early-morning alms rounds is a familiar one. But one aspect of this long tradition that still causes a double-take is when one of those monks is obviously not Thai, and not even Asian. Slowly, they are becoming a more common sight here. Phra Pandit, a Brit who was ordained as a Theravada monk in 1996, is one of the most visible Westerners in Thai Buddhist circles.
Americans Flunk Religion 101
Would you pass this quiz? America is full of religious people. But Americans know surprisingly little about religion. In fact, many atheists and agnostics know more about world faiths than do believers. So concluded a recent Pew Research Center survey on religious knowledge in America. For instance, Pew’s quiz revealed that only about half of Americans know that Martin Luther inspired the Reformation, that the Koran is the Islamic holy book, or that the Jewish...
American religion survey results inconclusive
Two weeks ago, many American media outlets gleefully reported the results of a recent Pew Research Forum Poll purporting to show that despite being “deeply religious,” Americans are “deeply ignorant of religion” (NY Times) and that atheists and agnostics are more religiously knowledgeable than their more faithful countrymen. Such results do not give a true picture of American spirituality.
Monks undertake 500-mile China journey on knees
A pair of Buddhist monks are to are to make a 500 mile journey on their knees to the religion's holiest shrines in China. Masters Zhiyuan and Hanliang will spend two months crawling to 99 temples on their way to the Putuo Mountains in eastern China until they reach a statue of Guanyin, the Buddhist goddess of mercy. Each night the pious pair will sleep under the stars in sleeping bags without even a tent to cover them, say helpers from their home temple in Ganlu, southern China. "They will crawl and then every third step they will stop and bow as a sign of respect to the goddess," explained one.
CIA sues former employee for publishing book
The CIA has sued a former officer who published a book highly critical of the agency without completing the CIA's lengthy review process. The lawsuit accuses the officer of breaking his secrecy agreement with the U.S. The former CIA staffer worked under deep cover before publishing the book in July 2008 under the pseudonym "Ishmael Jones." The CIA says his book, The Human Factor: Inside the CIA's Dysfunctional Intelligence Culture...
UCLA students reconnect with religion and spirituality
Bahar Moheban, a [Persian-Jewish] fourth-year psychobiology student, said she felt an increase in her spirituality since coming to UCLA. Raised in a religious family, the fourth-year psychobiology student attended Jewish faith school in preschool and kindergarten and went to after-school Hebrew classes until she was 13 years old.
US yoga enthusiasts rebut ministers' "demonic" label
(IANS) Yoga enthusiasts across faiths have debunked two ministers' call to Christians to shun the popular exercise form, with one going to the extent of suggesting it is "absolute paganism" and "demonic." The row over yoga started when in a recent essay, R. Albert Mohler Jr, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, warned Christians that yoga is contradictory to Christianity.
