March 21, 2013 – 12:59 pm
A guest post by Lorenn Walker, public health educator and longtime meditator. “I’m scared. He’s coming. I don’t know what to do,” says Colleen, crying while wringing tissue in her hands. “Breathe,” I tell her. Melissa, Colleen’s 29-year-old daughter, is sitting at the table with us. She silently stares ahead with flush red cheeks. Minutes [...]
September 5, 2012 – 3:30 pm
The Path of Freedom is a short film that “enters the harsh environment of a Rhode Island men’s prison where a group of fifty inmates are transforming their lives through the practice of meditation. The film follows former inmate Fleet Maull as he visits prison to share his strategies for surviving on the inside. The [...]
We enjoyed this piece in The Huffington Post by Jenny Phillips about her meeting with prisoners at Alabama’s Donaldson Correctional Institute who were learning to meditate. Inspired by what she saw at the maximum security prison, Phillips helped coordinate a Vipassana meditation program at Donaldson, which she documented in her documentary film, The Dhamma Brothers. [...]
November 30, 2011 – 9:58 am
Prisoner (and Best Buddhist Writing contributor) Scott Darnell on what he’s learned about compassion, for others and himself, during his time behind bars. As a Buddhist, I realize the importance of compassion and service to my fellow man. The problem is, I have to be careful not to confuse this with a desire for emotional [...]
September 22, 2011 – 12:33 pm
Yesterday, Rod Meade Sperry posted here about the then-pending execution of Troy Davis. (See that post for an additional short update, detailing last night’s events leading to the execution.) The world was watching, and today the world is talking. Among the voices that beg to be heard is Davis’s itself. His final message to the [...]
September 21, 2011 – 4:06 pm
[UPDATE: (The below commentary was posted here at 4:06 PM EST on September 21. What follows in this paragraph is an update on the Troy Davis story as of September 21, 11:13 PM EST.) Shortly after the 7PM (EST) hour, the crowd began to cheer outside the prison where Troy Davis was awaiting his execution, [...]
September 13, 2011 – 8:47 am
Prisoner Timothy Burke on how Buddhist meditation has been helpful in finding peace — and deepening his understanding of Christianity. This prison in southwest Ohio is of old design, laid out as one long corridor with housing blocks and secondary annexes attached to its sides. The main hallway, like an artery, feeds the branches: the [...]
As we reported in January, it was looking like Damien Echols and his two fellow members of the “West Memphis Three,” Jamie Misskelley and Jason Baldwin, would be granted a new hearing. (Click here for some backstory on the case and its Buddhist connections.) It looks like that the time has come. Representatives of the [...]
February 1, 2011 – 9:47 am
[February 8th update: NPR has now run a piece on Vipassana meditation for Birmingham prisones. See/hear it here.] Fantastic to see more press coverage of the value of meditation to those in even the most dire of circumstances: See also: Prison Dharma: Meet the Buddhas who practice it — on both sides of the bars [...]
January 14, 2011 – 2:23 pm
You may recall the story of Damien Echols, who, as a young man, was branded as the mastermind of what has come to be known as the “West Memphis Three.” As teens, Echols and friends Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley were fingered as the killers behind the grisly murders of three young boys. Today, Echols [...]
November 28, 2010 – 6:01 pm
My little home video above offers just one option. There are of course many other great ways to share your Buddhist/dharma books:
December 28, 2009 – 9:24 am
With so much still unresolved and so much still at stake, it’s heartening to see that CNN is addressing doubts about the West Memphis Three case on its homepage today. But did you know there’s a Buddhist angle to the case? You’ll find “Murder, Injustice, and the West Memphis Three,” originally printed in Buddhadharma, in [...]
November 30, 2009 – 4:30 pm
These days, some of the most powerful Buddhist writing is coming out of American prisons. Maybe it’s the intense commitment they need to practice in prison, maybe it’s the difficult psychological and moral issues many prisoners have to address, maybe it’s the danger and stress of the environment. Or maybe it’s the great contrast when [...]
