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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · 13d

The Berenike Buddha—a 2nd-c CE marble statue in Egypt—is the earliest Buddha image found west of Afghanistan.

M. D. Usher suggests that early Buddhist communities may have been in Roman Egypt long before modern notions of “Western Buddhism.”

Accessible Link

Western Buddhism: The First Wave

Stunning new discoveries reveal Buddhism’s first arrival in the West.

tricycle.org

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Sep 8

Legal scholar Benjamin Schonthal explains the recent ruling in Sri Lanka on Bhikkhuni ordination and its implications. I must admit, I underestimated the importance of the ruling, since it didn't require the Nikayas to accept anything.

We will have to wait and see how this unfolds.

Free Link

Judging Bhikkhunis

A landmark case for Buddhism and law in Sri Lanka

tricycle.org

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Reposted by Frederick Ranallo-Higgins

Dr. Kaitlyn Ugoretz @kaitlynugoretz.bsky.social · Aug 25

A new book on #Shinto and famous #Kokugaku scholar Hirata Atsutane 平田篤胤 (1776-1843) has just been published open access and free for download by the preeminent historian Dr. Ann Walthall! You can check it out here: www.fulcrum.org/concern/mono...

In the Presence of Gods and Spirits: Hirata Atsutane and His Collaborators

<I>In the Presence of Gods and Spirits </I>brings to life the early nineteenth-century Japanese religious leader and scholar Hirata Atsutane, whose fear of Russian incursion onto Japan's soil led him ...

www.fulcrum.org

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Reposted by Frederick Ranallo-Higgins

The Atlantic @theatlantic.com · Aug 25

America’s democratic system depends on the public’s understanding that law is bigger than politics, @davidfrum.bsky.social argues. But now, Trump is sending a clear message that he is willing to go after his enemies and undermine that system.

Trump Is Sending a Terrifyingly Clear Message

America’s democratic system depends on the public’s understanding that law is bigger than politics, David Frum argues. But now, Trump is sending a clear message that he is willing to go after his enemies and undermine that system.

bit.ly

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Aug 21

Randy Rosenthal reviews a new book of unpublished writings by Jack Kerouac, a powerful force in popularizing Buddhism in the West. Rosenthal says, "We see him as an earnest fellow seeker, trying to incorporate his newfound wisdom into his art."

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Fragments of a Dharma Bum

Collected works from Jack Kerouac’s Buddhist years show a writer seeking clarity in chaos.

tricycle.org

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Aug 20

Feeling this

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Aug 17

Stanford PhD Candidate Nancy Chu reviews a new book by Hong Kong Polytechnic University's Chengpang Lee. The book tells the story of Tzu Chi and the Buddhist nun behind one of the world’s most significant humanitarian movements.

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Buddhist Compassion on a Global Scale

A new book tells the story of Tzu Chi and the Buddhist nun behind one of the world’s largest humanitarian movements.

tricycle.org

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Aug 15

I saw these relics at the Met and thought, "How the hell is this traveling around in a private collection?" Cheong's research paper, linked in this article, helps a lot. It was very disturbing to see these holy relics at the Met. It felt highly inappropriate, sacrilegious, and just bad juju.

Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Aug 15

A timely article by SOAS PhD candidate Conan Cheong on the recent sale of the Piprahwa relics to an Indian conglomerate. The Sotheby's debacle, when they tried and failed to auction them to the highest bidder, raises important questions on custodianship of sacred objects.

Accessible Link

Selling the Buddha

Restituting the Piprahwa relics to Buddhist custodianship

tricycle.org

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Aug 11

Unfortunately Journal of Global Buddhism has been having website issues, and this article is not working for me

Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Aug 11

This one has been around a while. I'd group them in with the Alt-Right dharma bros. An unfortunate outshoot of dharma disconnected from compassion, morality, and monasticism. Ann Gleig and Brenna Artinger have a great article on the topic

"#BuddhistCultureWars" share.google/L7buZE2FTatY...

#BuddhistCultureWars: Buddhabros, Alt-Right Dharma, and Snowflake Sanghas

This article appeared in the Journal of Global Buddhism Vol 22, No 1 (2021) and was co-authored by Ann Gleig and Brenna Artinger. Abstract While often associated with a liberal demographic, the …

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Aug 11

Franz Metcalf @franzmetcalf.bsky.social reviews Natasha Heller's @nlheller.bsky.social new book on Buddhist picture books for children.

"These books become the material form of modern family Buddhism, giving rise to new practices rooted not in the temple but in the home."

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How to Raise a Little Bodhisattva

In Taiwan, a new generation of children’s books quietly transforms Buddhist family life.

tricycle.org

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Jul 27

Scholar C Pierce Salguero provides a brief introduction to Mahayana medicine.

One of my first experiences with medicine in Korea was being bloodlet by a nun to take out bad qi making me sick. That finger poke sure rid me of nausea. Still not sure about the qi.

Accessible Link

A Brief Introduction to Mahayana Medicine

Exploring Buddhist healing through the lenses of wisdom, compassion, and ritual practice

tricycle.org

Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Jul 20

Joanna Macy has died.

For more than half a century, scholar, Buddhist, ecologist, and “awake activist” Joanna Macy, PhD, worked tirelessly for personal, social, and planetary transformation.

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Ecodharma Leader Joanna Macy Has Died

For more than half a century, scholar, Buddhist, ecologist, and "awake activist" Joanna Macy, PhD, worked tirelessly for personal, social, and planetary transformation.

tricycle.org

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Jul 8

Tricycle appreciates Amy Langenberg's @amyparis.bsky.social report from the 2025 Sakyadhita Conference in Malaysia. This conference brings together monastics, academics, and laypeople to address issues facing Buddhist women. Without Buddhist women, there would be no Buddhism.

Accessible link

Buddhist Women Gather to Discuss Ordination, Social Justice, and Solidarity

The 19th Sakyadhita Conference brought together 400 participants in Kuching, Malaysia, to address issues facing Buddhist women.

tricycle.org

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Jun 20

My favorite Buddhist hungry ghost image. Insatiable in their desires, hungry ghosts wander the world for aeons bothering humans and must be placated through ritual offerings. Being reborn as a hungry ghost is not a desirable rebirth, to say the least.

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Jun 15

That would be interesting
I'd imagine at the museum there they'd have a model or drawing of the site. But a VR reconstruction would be so interesting

Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Jun 13

This site looks amazing. It makes me want to visit it myself. The reliefs are incredible! This was no second-rate sacred stupa.

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Jun 13

Jas Elsner's book on Amaravati hints at the early dawn of Mahayana, pushing it back to the very foundations of Buddhism. Curator Tushara Bindu Gude reviews this dense read and gets to the heart of Elsner's important findings.

Accessible Link

Amaravati: Origin of Origins

A review of scholar Jas Elsner's book on Amaravati, an important Buddhist monument that hints at the dawn of the Mahayana

tricycle.org

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · Jun 4

Anderson Cooper @andersoncooper4.bsky.social talks with Ann Tashi Slater @anntashislater.bsky.social about the precariousness of life and the questions he still wrestles with today.

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Turning Toward Grief and Learning to Feel Again

Ann Tashi Slater talks with veteran CNN journalist Anderson Cooper about the precariousness of life and the questions he still wrestles with today.

tricycle.org

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · May 28

❤️❤️❤️ contentment is the greatest joy

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Reposted by Frederick Ranallo-Higgins

Justin Whitaker @justinwhitaker.bsky.social · May 28

Ever wanted to talk about #Buddhism and #Money (or personal #finance), but didn't know where to start?

Here's your chance, the first of a series by @maiaduerr.bsky.social , author of "Work That Matters: Create a Livelihood that Reflects Your Core Intention."

www.buddhistdoor.net/features/the...

The Dharma of Money - Buddhistdoor Global

Understanding wealth as a gateway to greed or generosity helps us reflect on how the Buddha’s teachings guide us through our relationship with money.

www.buddhistdoor.net

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · May 28

Ben Van Overmeire @zenmirrors.bsky.social explores how reading and writing have long guided seekers toward the Chan threshold to awakening.

"If we let go of our attachment to words and letters, and instead let them point, amazing things can happen when we read and write."

Accessible Link

Words as Windows

Reading, writing, and the Zen paradox

tricycle.org

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Frederick Ranallo-Higgins @fmr-h.bsky.social · May 28

"Enlightenment is knowing that there is no absolute self that exists apart from the self that has defilements, delusions, and worries right now."

Daehaeng was one of the most respected masters in modern Korean history. I love seeing her smile gracing Tricycle.

Accessible Link

The Path to Awakening

Korean Zen master Daehaeng offers a concise teaching on reaching enlightenment in the midst of defilements

tricycle.org

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