My severely autistic son has taught me compassion, patience, understanding and countless other lessons I would otherwise never have learned. He truly lives in the present. He doesn't judge anyone. I just pray when I'm gone the universe will be kind to him.

i became a buddhist after i was put in a wheelchair from a bad car accident. at first i was afraid that buddhism wouldn't accept me because it is hard for me to properly meditate in the correct positions. but the more i learned the more ridiculous this fear became. thank you for your teachings

Thank you so much for this. I have MS and have been blaming myself so much because of it. It's silly, but I have made a lot of mistakes and each time my MS got worse. I literally teared up when you spoke that my thinking is against what the Buddha is saying. I am trying to be at my best and its difficult, which is why I am trying to move towards Buddhism. Thank you so much for making these videos.

I especially appreciate this video of yours. I have a disability (schizophrenia) that many people hold judgments about, due to lack of understanding and empathy. Thank you very much for being a beacon of kindness in an often cruel world.

Tibetan saying, "Don't wonder about your former lives; just look at your mind in the present! Don't wonder about your future lives; just look at your mind in the present!"...same is true to 'Lives', but also a single life or even day to day and moment to moment. Just get right in mind now and nothing else matters (and because nothing can be done about anything else anyway...so why worry). Om Mani Padme Hum.

In documentary the women says "In Tibet blind people are considered posses by demons" which make me laugh because i am a Tibetan and i have never heard of such thing. We Tibetan have always learned to look at people with disabilities with compassion and love. Don't understand if they have done proper research in making the film.

Great to see you posting again!

Good talk. Nice to see you back Mindah.

I can't stop watching your videos, they are also so great and informative! Metta

Thank you. I'm glad I found you. Learning much.

A helpful post Minda :) Thank you.

This cleared up things a a lot! Thank you!

thank you Miss Mindah. I love your video's. :)

this was very helpful thanks!!!!

Wise, radiant, and beautiful. You are like a goddess!

Hi, Mindah. I've often wondered what I've done to deserve having heart disease, disc and joint degenerative disease and Latent Autoimmune Disease in Adults at only 46 yrs old. I've led an active life style including cycling 100 miles a week. Your video gave me a fresh insight on karma and its neutrality. Thank you. :)

I believe it would be best for most to to follow the early Buddha's advice which is to let go of trying to understand Kamma and simply practice until and intuitive understanding arises.

Could you please do a video on dependent origination ? it's a topic I've seen while reading about anatta, and if you could make a video on it, that would be fantastic😊 thank you.

Very nicely explained🙏

Great Video!

hi mindah could u do a video on different types of Buddhism such as Chinese, Tibetan, and Japanese Buddhism how they are alike and difrent and maybe could u include info on statues such as qwaun yin and others thank u for your time

Thank you

Hi can you please do a video on the true meaning of enlightenment. I've been studying Buddhism for two years now and my mind goes everywhere when I think of that word. Your videos are very helpful for me to take notes and revise from I have my Buddhism exam next week!

Mindah, thank you so much for clearing this up! It's a shame how words can be so misconstrued and turned into something they don't even mean. My disability has indeed been something that has allowed me to "see" life in ways that are not readily common to many people. The abuse and guilt that was heaped on me in the Christian church for something that was completely out of my control was, to be honest, quite unbearable at times. Now that I consider myself an active Buddhist, or at least, one who is pursing the path of Buddhism, I wanted to be clear how I should think of my condition. Thank you for shedding so much light on the matter. My wife and I appreciate you so much, and wish you all the best. I hope you get feeling better soon after being sick. Much metta.

I'm very interested in this path. which tradition or school of Buddhism do you personally belong to?

I wish the Q&A had been more than just one question. Nevertheless, the analysis was fantastic, so thumbs up anyway 👍also is the website finished? you said we could check out your website but I don't know if this is the website that has been under construction or is it a different one ?

Thanks Mindah. Maybe ultimately one could say it is all determined and choices are determined - no one started the big bang. However maybe if there is a dysfunctional pattern of change one could look at it neutrally (impersonally) like an engineer and change stuff within the relevant pertinent field of the interconnected leading changes. A lot of Yogis don't like analysis though as if it is overdone it can become paralysis and disturb clear immeasurable infinite attention with arbitrary measure.

I like when you presented karma as cause and effect. It is much easier to understand and less vengeful. I never believed in karma because Jesus was sinless and still He suffered crucifixion. However, looking at cause and effect, Jesus died because He chose to suffer for our sins. He resurrected again because of His goodness. That makes it easier for me to understand. Thank you for the video!

I'm disabled with chronic pain. I don't think karma necessarily plays into it at all! For one thing Buddhism acknowledges external laws such as the law of nature and hereditary. For another the Buddha broke down the causes of suffering as being either physical or mental. So from his perspective, suffering caused by physical is just as workable as mental. To me this makes sense, partly because it is wrong to assume that those with disabilities necessarily are "suffering." Some people with pain and/or disability suffer, some don't. Obviously the more pain you are in physically the bigger the challenge, but the Buddha would argue, the greater the reward. I definitely do suffer due to my physical limitations and pain, but it is part of life that comes to us all in the end. So for me, karma does not have any place in a discussion of disabilities. Just my opinion!

I want to get a tattoo of some kind of Buddha but I don't want to get one if it is disrespecting Buddhist. Plz let me know :)

well we should view them as strong souls choose to born as disablity to burn most of bad karma inorder to reach enlightment

I agree with most of things you said. However, their are differences between the concept of Karma and what was meant when the bible said "you reap what you sow"

for the next q and a could u cover animal rights and how/if animals feel pain in Buddhism and the consumption if meat

Hi! I have a question, so in Buddhism. Do you pray to Buddha or no? :)

hi, I'm very new to buddhism and after reading about right speech and how one should not tell lies, speck ill of others, speck dishonestly, or use foolish babble or gossip, i began to question whether sarcasm would not be allowed. Personally, i know i am a fairly sarcastic person, however my sarcastic comments are just comments and are never intended to make fun of other individuals or gossip, its more just making fun of a bad situation that i or a friend is in, in an attempt to make them laugh. are these kinds of comments against the concepts of right speech?

Frater Xavier teaches a similar concept

How can we suffer from the effects of negative karma from causes in a previous life and not have a permanent self? Doesn't the fact that we are suffering the effects from another being's deeds signify a permanent self that is part of us now and also previous beings? Nice to see you back Mindah

Somehow this reminds me of The Linkin Park song Runaway

Can animals become enlightened? Or must they have to reincarnate to a human to do so?

No self no judgment is logical if we have oneness and unity at the deepest level of creation. We have cause and effect, but there is also uncertainty without uncertainty we would not have the freedom with things going right and wrong. A disability will have a cause but that cause is not formed by the disabled person.

Because of man had sinned against God's all was born imperfect including having a suffering life and born with disabilities. God is love - kind- justice - merciful. God will give a new life to live in a new paradise earth again free from all suffering, sicknesses, pain, poverty and disasters. God is the maker of heaven and earth. We all came from him. Without God nothing can exist. Have faith in God and endure to the end and you will be safe. All is accountable to God. The end of the will come.

Mindah you know I got your back girl, but you need to get some *sun*. 😎haha -For real! Love your melanin! N E way, I hope this website business ain't stressin' you out. Maybe lean back from that for a minute and make some more content for your adoring fans. -These people are chomping at the bit. lol ~Tpog

CHRISTIANITY IS QUITE BETTER THAN BUDDHISIM I AM A ROMAN CATHOLIC

This is a very flaky and shallow attempt to avoid the harsh reality of true Buddhist belief on WHY people are born poor, disabled or diseased. She tries to say karma is neutral. It is anything but neutral! There is no avoiding the fact that the cause and effect law of Karma revolves greatly around the MORAL choices people make in their previous lives. It that sense it is very much personal and not impersonal as she tries to say. She admits that present suffering of disability is due to our previous lives--as in the SIN of our previous lives. She can't manage to bring herself to say that though. The Buddhist "no-self" doctrine does not at all avoid the main point that in Buddhism the law of karma is the law of JUSTICE. Why? Because the RESULTING EFFECT OF PREVIOUS SINS IS UNAVOIDABLE. In that sense, there is no grace, mercy or forgiveness that can cause a person to avoid being a carrier of the judicial effects of previous evil committed. Sins can only be deferred and past down to the next life, but NEVER FORGIVEN in Buddhist thought. Ultimately, the suffering people experience through a disability (or poverty) is their deserved affliction due to previous sins committed in previous lives. Here is a quote from the Buddhist page of Mahidol university in Thailand. Please note the true reality of Karma law: "There are in fact several other sources such as the Culakammavibhanga Sutta wherein the Buddha said to the effect, "Peoples are born Different is because of their own Karma. Thus some have long life, whereas others have short one; some are healthy, whereas others are afflicted by many diseases; some have good complexion, whereas others have poor one; some hold high positions, whereas others have low ones; some are wealthy, whereas others are poor; some are born to high families, whereas others to low ones; Some have a high degree of wisdom, whereas others are foolish. Those peoples used to do different kinds of Karma. For instance, those who are afflicted by many diseases used to do harm to others considerably, whereas those who have only a few diseases used to harm other not so much That some live a short life is the result of their killings in the former lives, and that others can live a long life is because in their former lives they hardly ever killed any living being."