The state government of Maharashtra in India has initiated a new project, “Mitra Upakram” (Mitra stands for Mind in Training for Right Awareness, and mitra also means “friend” in Marathi and Hindi), which offers Anapana meditation courses to 25 million primary- and secondary-schoolchildren. It is hoped that this new scheme will reduce stress and help students to develop calmness and practice non-violence.

Phnom Penh, Cambodia -- Hundreds of Buddhist monks marched through Phnom Penh on Friday, demanding an end to construction in and around the Buddhist Institute, which is quickly being surrounded by structures and construction sites belonging to the NagaCorp.

From 7–9 October, the Ligmincha Institute will hold its fourth annual conference on the intersection of Buddhist practice and modern science at its Serenity Ridge Retreat Center in Virginia. Led by the New Bon teacher Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, the conference will host an impressive selection of noted scientists, doctors, psychiatrists, and therapists. Discussions will center on cutting-edge research investigating how Western science is confirming what Buddhist practitioners have known for centuries—that meditative techniques involving the body, mind, and visualization have profoundly beneficial effects on human experience and health.

Buddhist literature indicates that during the final stage of Buddhism in this era, all that will remain of the historical Buddha Shakyamuni’s teachings will be in the form of symbols (Patrul Rinpoche [1998], 27). Precisely where we are in the present cycle of teachings is a subject of debate among scholars who study the course of time and how it is measured. Certainly, though, it has been found that a Buddha image can have a transformative effect on the environment. A recent article in the San Francisco Gate has brought to light just such a marvelous indication of the power of the Buddha’s form.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche is currently in Australia until 23 October presenting a series of Dharma talks and leading a month-long retreat. The retreat is hosted by the joint organizing committee of Lama Zopa Australia from three centers—the Atisha Centre, the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion, and the Thubten Shedrup Ling Monastery—and the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (FPMT). The last two weeks are a continuation of Lama Zopa’s long-term plan over a number of years to gradually give the 305 Rinjung Gyatsa transmissions, which he first began in 2011.

New Delhi, India, 22 September 2014 - This morning, His Holiness the Dalai Lama was invited to speak at the Indian Habitat Centre by Rajeev Chandrasekhar MP and the Ashoka University. Mr Chandrasekhar is an independent member of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian Parliament, representing Karnataka and Bangalore. The Ashoka University is a fully residential university whose founders believe that education should be holistic and liberal. In his introduction Mr Chandrasekhar praised His Holiness as someone who espouses peace and co-existence.

New Delhi, India, 21 September 2014 - The second day of the Meeting of Diverse Spiritual Traditions in India opened with the second plenary session on the theme ‘Environment, Education and Society’. Moderator Arun Kapur opened discussions with the suggestion that we seem to live in competition with nature. People and nature are not distinct from each other, he said, therefore it is a mistake to try to compete with or conquer nature.

Earlier this year, a new lay organization called Buddhacare was formed in Australia, to fulfill two main objectives: firstly, to act as an umbrella for Australian lay Buddhists, and secondly, to promote Engaged Buddhism as an integral part of Australian daily life. Buddhacare draws inspiration from the belief that Buddhist practice cannot be divorced from social engagement, as exemplified by the Buddha's life.

Buddhist spiritual and educational foundation Dharma Drum Mountain (DDM) has announced the winners of the fifth Caring for Life Awards. The Caring for Life Awards were established by DDM’s founder, Master Sheng Yen, in 2007, and are given in recognition of the struggle against disease and disability. The ceremony was held on 14 September in Taipei, Taiwan, which is also the birthplace of DDM.

The two ancient Buddhist universities of Nalanda and Vikramashila in India are presently undergoing a renaissance. The new Nalanda University, in Rajgir in Bihar State, began offering courses on 1 September, while the government of India is currently in the process of reviving Vikramashila, in Bihar’s Bhagalpur district. According to a report on the Indian website Outlook, Bihar’s chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi disclosed the initiative for Vikramashila to reporters in Bhagalpur while reviewing development schemes in the region. “We will reinstate the Vikramashila University to its lost glory. It will be on the  lines of Nalanda University,” he stated.