The Zen Wheel of Life Mantra: A Song of Luminous Wisdom and Love

Zen Priest and Poet Tai Sheridan's Wheel of Life Mantra is a poetic expression of the Bhavacakra, an ancient mandala that presents the most significant wisdom teachings of Buddhism. It is used to contemplate the causes and conditions of suffering, and as a guide to non-dual wisdom, loving kindness, compassion, and equanimity. The Wheel is constructed of four concentric circles around a hub, each circle representing different areas of human experience and awareness. Beginning with the innermost circle and moving outward they represent dimensions of anguish, consequences, psychological experience, and the workings of consciousness. The wheel itself is an expression of the essential Buddhist teachings of no-self (nothing exists as a separate entity), impermanence (everything changes), and co-dependent origination (all phenomena arise simultaneously in reality in the present moment). The Wheel, like all Buddhist teachings, is an encouragement for finding the way to peace, love, and light.