Vesak is May 5 in many traditions, especially in most of southeast Asia. Here is a Buddha from Thailand, in honor of the birth, enlightenment and Parinirvana of the Buddha.

Photo: © Preuk13 | Dreamstime.com

Last week a man was found dead in a cave in Arizona. The local newspaper reported that the man was Ian Thorson, 38, who was the husband of Christie McNally.

If the names are not familiar -- Christie McNally was once the spiritual partner of Michael Roach, an American man who was ordained in the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. I believe Roach still considers himself to be a monk, although Gelugpa would disagree. His Holiness the Dalai Lama considered Roach's relationship with McNally to be a breach of his monastic vows and barred Roach from further involvement with the order.

Not quite a year ago McNally's retreat center was threatened by wildfires, which is when I learned that McNally had left the much older Roach for Thorson, someone closer to her own age. Yes, this news possibly triggered my mother instincts -- I felt this was probably for the best and hoped the two young people would have a long and happy life together.

So I was sad to hear that Thorson had died. But what happened in the cave?

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I've said before that it's perilous to try to understand Buddhism just by reading about it on your own. It's like finding your way in the woods without a guide. Here's a great example, from Dosho Port.

Dosho quotes something Dogen said about mindfulness: "The root of mindfulness is the red flesh ball of a decayed tree."

That's the sort of thing that gives people the impression that Zen is some weird Japanese version of Dada. Some days I think the same thing. But Dosho goes on to explain that the "red flesh ball" is a reference to Mater Lin-chi's (who is called Rinzai in Japan) "true person of no rank."

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For the past several days there have been news stories from Sri Lanka about Buddhist monks attempting to tear down a 50-year-old mosque. This morning I read that the government of Sri Lanka plans to relocate the mosque. Muslims are saying they will not relocate.

I've been trying to sort out exactly what is happening, and why it is happening. I'm still not sure I've got the story straight, but here's my best guess:

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