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Category Archives: monastic life
Trinity & Saccidananda
The Benedictine ashram in South India, where I spent many long retreats over a period of twenty years, is usually called Shantivanam, “forest of peace,” but it is also the Ashram of the Trinity, and the first founder, Father Jules … Continue reading
Answering a question about Ananda Ashram
A reader of “Ashram Diary”, Danielle Darbro, sent a question about the sisters at Ananda Ashram “on the other side of the road” from Saccidananda Ashram. Here’s my reply: Hello, Danielle. Yes, the sisters at Ananda Ashram follow the same … Continue reading
Posted in feminine, India, monastic life
Tagged Ananda Ashram, Camaldolese Benedictines, monastic life, Nuns, Shantivanam, Sister Marie-Louise, Solitude
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Tantra Symposium in Rome
On October 17, the Jesuits in Rome will be hosting a scholarly symposium on Tantrism (Hindu and Buddhist) and Christian meditation/contemplation. This will be my first time back in Italy since I returned permanently to our monasteries in California (Incarnation … Continue reading
Bach and Indian music
“The Hindu musician does not read set notes; he clothes anew at each playing the bare skeleton of the raga, often confining himself to a single melodic sequence, stressing by repetition all its subtle microtonal and rhythmic variations. Bach, among … Continue reading
Posted in Big Sur, Hinduism, India, monastic life, music
Tagged Art of the Fugue, Big Sur, Indian music, J. S. Bach, New Camaldoli Hermitage, raga
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Spending more time at New Camaldoli Hermitage
I have been feeling more strongly drawn back to the Hermitage in Big Sur, where I originally made monastic vows. I have continued with the Order, by God’s grace, and on June 19, 2014, I celebrated there, together with fellow … Continue reading
Posted in Berkeley, Bible, Big Sur, faith as hope, India, Jesus, monastic life
Tagged apostle, beloved disciple, Big Sur, hermitage, India, Jesus, Paul, Peter, philosophy, the three and the fourth, virtue
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Yogananda’s Autobiography, 1946, and Thomas Merton’s, two years later
3. Autobiography of a Yogi, 1946: Yogananda’s song of himself in India and America; compare with Thomas Merton’s autobiography, The Seven-Storey Mountain, 1948, and with Merton’s subsequent, wide-ranging dialogue with the East. The opening lines of AY: “The characteristic features … Continue reading
America’s Parliaments of Religions, 1893 and 1993
2. The Parliaments of Religions in Chicago, 1893 and 1993; Vivekananda’s resounding voice at the first, the subtle Catholic presence at the second (Joseph cardinal Bernardin and the Benedictines). Gurus on the lecture circuit. When we realize how important newly-translated … Continue reading
The Ethics of Yoga and the Rule of Benedict
The following is a talk I gave in Rome, to a gathering of monastics, on June 10, 2011. Comparing the incomparable The title of this lecture is not properly academic. One might see it on a poster at a street … Continue reading
Posted in dialogue, India, inter-spirituality, monastic life, yoga
Tagged chastity, ethics, love, monastic, non-violence, Patanjali, sutras, yoga
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Talk given at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas
The following was my contribution to a Buddhist-Catholic dialogue hosted by the Ch’an Buddhist community at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas, near Ukiah, CA. A VOW OF CONVERSATION Thomas Merton always kept diaries. The reason was, I think, that … Continue reading
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