Developing: “Myanmar seizing aid flights”

Via CNN. Here’s the link.

Links of the Moment: the pop-/sub-/Dharma news keeps on coming.

Some of the latest from the news:

* Musician and meditator Spermwhales.

* Professor encourages reflection through meditation, writing

* “Enter the Dragon” - a cool look at Shaolin Temple

* “Dharma in the Dirt” - a NY Times piece about Zen gardener Wendy Johnson

and the dreadful latest from US Campaign for Burma:

Dear Friends,

The news is staggering and in many ways unfathomable. Yesterday, Shari Villarosa, the leading US diplomat in Burma said that 100,000 may have died and 95% of the buildings in the affected areas could be wiped out. The death tolls could increase as water born diseases such as cholera are beginning to spread, and in these worst hit areas aid has not to arrive.

The Burmese regime’s blocking of aid is beyond horrendous. Minimal aid is being allowed in. There are still many people and supplies waiting to go, but the Burmese regime continues to deny access. Yesterday, the French government launched a push in the UN to try and enforce aid delivery, but China blocked the effort. If you haven’t already, email UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and urge him to step in. Yesterday, within hours after thousands of our members writing in, Ban Ki-moon did start speaking out about Burma. However, more must happen.

In situations as grave as this, many people cannot sit by and watch.

Here’s what you can do

Hold a fundraiser. Many of you are already working on this, and  we greatly appreciate it. While the Burmese regime isn’t allowing international aid in, you can fundraise. We will then send the money directly to trusted Burmese organizations inside who are working to help the people. You can send checks to us or make online donations.

Get your community involved. Here are some events that are going on around the country. Check out the page on our website about the cyclone, for updated news, other info about the situation, and word about upcoming events. On that page at the bottom you can easily add a comment about what you are doing.

Please let us know what you are planning so we can post it on our site.  This is a very difficult time, but we can work together to try and save lives.

“The death toll in Myanmar may reach 100,000 according to a U.S. diplomat.”

Breaking right now on CNN.com. Keep an eye on this.

BURMA. IS. IMPORTANT.

Dharma-Burger: “Deer Park” water

Thanks to reader and contributor Miriam who sends the below. We’ve covered oddly-Buddhist-seeming bottled water before, but here’s another common example:

As Miriam writes, “Who knew you could drink from the source of enlightenment?”

Burma: cyclone death toll now “exceeds 22,000″

Breaking, heart-breaking news via CNN. Here’s the link.

Sam DeWitt Specials: “Karma Kids” and “Mara’s Homemade”

These are just the latest two NYC-based Dharma-Burgers from the mighty Sam DeWitt.

As for this one, the Dharma-Burgery goodness is surely unintended, but as Sam says, “I was too chicken to go inside, you never know what might have happened!”

Banksy’s Buddha?

Reader Liam K wrote to send us this a link to this shot, “of what is apparently banksy’s work”:

It sure looks like it. And it’s quite a statement, too.

Thanks, Liam.

(Oh, and while we’re at it, the page that Liam found this on also contains a link to another interesting street piece by someone else.)

Body Vows: Amy L.’s Dharma tattoo(s)

Big thanks to reader Amy Leveque, who sends this shot of her Dharma tattoo(s):

As she writes:

“I have 5 tattoos in all. They’ve become more ornate as my practice grew.

“It started with “karma” on my right shoulder, and then it was the peace symbol on my left. Next I got the endless knot. After that I designed my own take on the golden fish. I wanted them to be intertwined in a type of eternity symbol instead of swimming head to head as usually depicted. My latest is Tibetan mantra Om Mani Padme Hum.

“I would eventually like to get all of the eight auspicious symbols. The next will be the lotus. Blue, I think.”

Cool, Amy keep going. And thanks for sending.

…by the way, it should be noted that sometimes the Horse gets emails that, um, take exception with Buddhists getting Buddhist tattoos. Here’s one such example (with name withheld and typos uncorrected):

“just seen your buddha tattoo’s and found that its a big shame to think that you all need tattoos on order for you all to remember your so called faith, Buddhas are pure and im supprised you dont think it is so disrespectful to put buddhas pure images on bodies that at some point get dirty, smelly and sweaty, you should all have more respect and faith.”

OK. So that’s one such opinion. But what do YOU think?

Get yourself a little “Green Dharma.”

“Green Dharma: A Book to Challenge Your Practice” is a new book by Georg and Brenda Feuerstein.

It’s available for FREE download HERE.

“Love Guru” madness!

If you, like the Horse, can’t wait, here’s the MySpace page for Mike Myers’s “The Love Guru,” featuring “His Holiness Guru Pitka.”

And here’s the poster: