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About this Page

Welcome to the Buddha's Grove. Inspired by the Jeta's Grove where Sakyamuni Buddha (the original Buddha) held many of his most important talks 2500 years ago, this site offers a handful of leaves that is the Buddha's teachings, the Buddhadharma, plucked from the spirit of the ancient Grove, as written by old famous masters and students as well as contemporary ones. The teachings of the Buddhadharma are vaster than any website can publish, but this humble presentation of leaves will hopefully be able to aid the new and experienced practitioners alike on their way.

In creating this website, I've strived for simplicity and clarity, in layout as well as visually, to ease the eyes and mind of the reader. The aim of this site is of course to help Buddhist practitioners as much as possible with a selection of the best Buddhist writings available on the internet, and if you feel that something is missing or you might have something to contribute, any submissions would be appreciated.

The Poetry & Stories section should set you in the right spirit of the Grove and this is the place to enjoy a selection of famous and not-so-famous Dharma paintings with words, or relax with a good short story. A poem or story can capture the essence of the Dharma in ways that are not possible otherwise, so don't let this opportunity pass by.

In the Theravada Writings section you'll find the teachings of the Buddha in its most ancient and preserved incarnation, Theravada traditionally being the school that upholds the original teachings of the Buddha, although much of the material is written by contemporary authors of that tradition, especially of the Forest Tradition.

In the Zen / Ch'an Writings section you'll find the teachings of the Zen (Chinese: Ch'an) school, but only the teachings of the old masters which have been acknowledged as canon, in order to ensure authenticity, in a time where the wisdom of many contemporary masters have been brought into question. As Zen is often said to be a symbiosis of Buddhism and Taoism, and also draws from Taoist scriptures for wisdom, a selection of classics from the Taoist Canon has also been included.

The Other Mahayana Writings contains all generic Mahayana teachings, such as sutras, shastras and so forth, as well as the teachings of the Non-Zen Mahayana schools on this website. I have put a special emphasis on the Dzogchen and Mahamudra traditions of Vajrayana to meet the popularity of just these schools, and surely these will prove of special interest to Zen students as well, who will note the striking similarity with the Zen Path, especially that of the Cao Dong (Silent Illumination) and Soto sects. As with the Zen section, I have tried to stick with the 'canon' teachers of the past, to ensure the authenticity of the Dharma presented on this website.

Don't take all these divisions so seriously though. Some Theravada leaves are just as much Zen as they are Theravada and vice versa. Basically, they are all Dharma leaves, so please visit all sections no matter what tradition you uphold. As it is written in the famous Zen poem the Song of Enlightenment:

"If someone asks, what is your sect,
And how do you understand it?
I reply, the power of tremendous prajna."

And that is something that cannot be defined or confined by any sect.

Before you leave the Grove, stop by the Buddhist Links & Webrings pages, which will take you further into the Buddhist internet community. Be sure to check the Updates & News section when you return to see what's been added since your last visit.

So come on, listen to the chatter of birds, feel the sun shining through the cluster of trees warming your travel-worn body, sit down and relax in the Buddha's Grove. Hopefully, you'll leave a little bit wiser than when you came....

Anders Honoré, webmaster.

For copyright details etc., feel free to use whatever you like that I've written, as much as you like. If you want to publish it somewhere (the internet or otherwise) I'd appreciate if you dropped me a note. For works protected by copyright, contact the appropriate copyright holders or mail me and I will pass it on, unless otherwise stated in the specific document.

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