Why on earth would a Buddhist recommend reading Ayn Rand, whose philosophy expounds the Virtue Of Selfishness, for whom thought is the only tool we have to know reality and who views achievement as the sole purpose of our lives?
About Rick Bateman
Rick has been studying and practicing Buddhism since 2000. At that time he joined a local Rinzai Zen Buddhist temple and attended regular meditation practices, teachings and retreats. He is neither a Buddhist monk, academic nor spiritual teacher but has maintained a personal practice and reads widely on the subject. He currently meditates daily, studies Mindful Yoga with Misha Gitberg, teaches a Buddhism For Beginners course locally and is nurturing a fledgling Secular Buddhist group in Victoria.
Rick has been writing since childhood, producing fiction and non-fiction pieces, poetry and songs. He also has extensive business and technical writing experience.
Rick is also an experienced instructor having taught a variety of technical courses in Camosun College’s continuing education program for three years. Till 2010 he served as Vice President of Human Resources & Operations at an on-line learning company and is currently the Director of Operations for a local software company.
Longing for Certainty
Rick Bateman explores how the human propensity to live in a world of “What Should Be” instead of “What Is” is a recipe for suffering. So how do we free ourselves?
Buddhism And The Romantic Poet
Rick Bateman reflects on Buddhism and Romantic poetry and the connection to the Beloved through mindfulness and meditation.
Buddhism and the Dragons Of Eden
Not all problems, personal or global, can be resolved through thinking. As individuals and as a species, we would be wise to remember that there is another way of being. A way that existed long before the guards took over the castle.
My Buddhist Practice Meets the Specter of Death by Cancer
When Rick Bateman discovers a tumor in his leg and faces the prospect of cancer and possibly death, he explores the nature of his suffering and is reunited with the premise of Buddhism.
Learning Buddhism: Getting Beyond Paradox And Confusion
If you try to learn Buddhism with a purely Western philosophical mindset, you are using the same rigid frame approach as the physicists. As Rick Bateman explains, Buddhism is both an art and a science and can’t be approached a purely rational mindset.
The Buddhist View Of Life As A Dream
It is often heard from Buddhist teachers that this life is nothing more than a dream and awakening, no different in either case. Having studied lucid dreaming in a dedicated way for about two years Rick Bateman would have to agree. So if we can become lucid in our dreams, can we awaken to the dream of so-called real life?
Secular Buddhism and Right Association
Aren’t Buddhists all supposed to be sitting alone in caves or lined up like shrubs in some monastery? Rick Bateman explores friendship and communication as a vital aspect of the spiritual life.
A Secular Buddhist View Of Spirituality
Secular Buddhism does not embrace any form of spirituality, including a belief in God, deities or souls, but it does not deny that there are forms and forces of nature beyond our five senses or our ability to comprehend them. To quote one of my earliest heroes, Arthur C. Clarke, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”
Buddhism as Technology
Many people believe Buddhism is just another belief-based religion but our newest author Rick Bateman says there is nothing spiritual about Buddhism. Buddhism, he asserts, is concerned only with the here and now.