LISTEN

DHARMA TALKS FROM MONDAY NIGHT MEDITATION GROUPS
THE BENEFITS OF MEDITATION
Happiness as a Marker of Progress
03/17/2023
We meditate to be happy. Over time, with continued practice, we become more resilient, kind and content. Our mind becomes a lovely, pleasant home.
Keywords: Samatha, SukhaThe Causes of Sedition: The Absence of Hirī and Ottāpa
09/19/2022
Morality, conscience, and integrity protect not only us, but our society as well. When ethical principles disappear, civil society, which is held in place by these invisible yet sturdy beams, collapses.
Keywords: Dosa, Moha, Sila, TaṇhāRight Speech, Silence, and Nibbāna
08/15/2022
Right Speech activates the Eightfold Path and can be a complete practice, leading to awakening. Ironically, Right Speech creates a silent, peaceful mind.
Keywords: Insight, Nibbāna, Paññā, Right Speech, Sati; Samma Samadhi, SilaThe Magic Wand of Disidentification
01/31/2022
Over time, the habit of recognizing and releasing deluded and obsessive thoughts has the power to return the mind to its natural state of clarity, contentment, peace, and inherent wellness.
Keywords: Anattā, Anicca, Avijjā, Awakening, Sati, VipassanāMeditation as a Way to Temporarily Enter Into Homelessness
07/26/2021
A daily meditation practice is a way of relinquishing the world and entering a reality of freedom and peace.
Keywords: Renunciation, SamādhiExtinguishing the Asavas, the Ending of Suffering
06/21/2021
Uprooting the āsavas, the drivers of suffering, sets us on a course to profound peace, freedom, and bliss.
Keywords: Anattā, Āsava, Clinging, Dosa, Dukkha, Moha, Taṇhā, UpādānaContemplating Our Death
02/15/2021
Contemplating our death motivates us to live every day according to our values and to focus on achieving what truly matters, a pure heart, free of clinging. When we rehearse the last hours of our life, we clarify what truly matters. With repeated practice, we also develop the skills to meet our passing with peace and love. (See the Guided Meditation on Death, dated 2/15/2021, which preceded this talk.)
Keywords: Anattā, Anicca, NibbānaResponding to Pain Skillfully
02/08/2021
Counterintuitive as it may seem, opening to physical and emotional distress reduces misery in the present as well as the future. Please see the February 8, 2021 guided meditation which accompanies this talk
(The readings came from Ajahn Brahm’s book, “Who Ordered This Truckload of Dung?”)
Keywords: Anicca, Conditioning, Dukkha, EquanimityImperturbability, a Gift to Oneself and Others
11/02/2020
We don’t have to suffer with intense, hurtful, or divisive emotions. We always have the option of choosing peace and infusing harmony into any circumstance.
Keywords: Equanimity, Nibbāna, Right Intention, TaṇhāCheerfulness Amidst the Nightmare of Daily Life
10/19/2020
Freedom and joy originate from a profound understanding that the sensual world is incapable of bringing enduring happiness and well-being. Our first task on the path to awakening is to fully understand dukkha. When we fully grasp the First Noble Truth, there is relief and hope. We give up the pointless and impossible struggle of finding happiness in the sensual world and set our sights on what will satisfy. This infuses the mind with joy.
Keywords: Dukkha, Eightfold Path, Jhāna, NibbānaBirth is Destroyed
10/12/2020
People on the path to full awakening do not fear death but rather have revulsion and dread about the prospect of birth, after birth, after birth. The practice of the Eightfold Path culminates in the end of this pointless cycle of birth and death.
Keywords: Anicca, Dependent origination, Eightfold Path, Nibbāna, Paṭicca-samuppādaProgressive, Practical Teachings on Living an Effective, Happy Life
09/21/2020
The Buddha offered practical instruction on a range of subjects, from the benefits of moderation, morality, sense restraint, non-greed, justice, and compassion, to guidance on how to be an effective, impactful leader.
Keywords: Compassion, Craving, Eightfold Path, Karma, Right ActionCovid-19 Cabin Fever
04/16/2020
Restlessness of mind can be a deeply set hindrance on our path to Nirvana. Developing strategies to dismantle this uncomfortable state helps settle the mind and supports concentration in our meditation practice.
Keywords: Āsava, Equanimity, Fetters, Hindrances, TranquilityDeveloping Safe Pleasures
03/09/2020
As we abandon more commonplace pleasures and entertainments, we discover far richer, more refined, subtle, enduring, and reliable pleasures.
Keywords: Eightfold Path, Paññā, Right Intention, Sukha, VedanāMind and Matter as Things We Outgrow
02/24/2020
As we develop more insight into the nature of reality, we find ourselves effortlessly shedding activities and interests that no longer satisfy. Over time, we come to prefer peace to raucous, fleeting sense pleasures.
Keywords: Khandha(s) (aggregates), nāma-rūpa (mind and matter), Nibbidā (disenchantment)Practicing All Day Every Day
11/11/2019
The Eightfold Path reliably leads us to happiness which comes from the abandonment of craving impermanent things. Meditating and practicing mindfulness daily, allows us time to reflect on the state of our mind and develop the habit of recognizing and dropping unwholesome states as they occur. Through strengthening wholesomeness with this daily habit, we become dissatisfied with external pleasures that lead to suffering.
Keywords: Āsava, Dukkha, Emptiness, Impermanence, Mindfulness, Taṇhā, The Eightfold Path
The Game of Crazy Eights as a Metaphor for Awakening
09/23/2019
The less we hold on to thoughts, behaviors, views, and outcomes, the freer we are. By structuring our day to support solitude, we can use it for meditation and reflection in order to shed some of the trivialities that take our time and energy. While this practice might be in contrast to what others and the larger society value, through it we can develop inner happiness that is not dependent on things out of our control.
Keywords: Awakening, Mettā, Sutta, UnskillfulChanging Thoughts Through Observation and Training
09/09/2019
When our minds are still, we can enjoy the ending of the friction created by thinking. During this deep meditation, we can then observe the pattern of our thoughts rather than following them. Observing our mind in this formal way gives us the opportunity to drop unwholesome thoughts and support wholesome thoughts. Because our words and actions begin with our thoughts, practicing observing and dropping unhelpful thoughts can help free us from craving, delusion, and hatred.
Keywords: Dukkha, Jhāna, Right Concentration, Right Speech, Samādhi, VipassanāKnown and Unknown Conditioning and the Practice of Dis-identification
07/22/2019
Meditation can help us track how our unknown conditioning creates our reactions to what is happening in the here and now. Meditation and mindfulness give us the opportunity to sit with these fears and cravings in an effort to intentionally lessen their hold on our mind until they disappear.
Keywords: Conditioning, Dependent origination, Equanimity, Spiritual bypass
Mindfulness of a Mug
03/03/2019
There are many ways to practice Right Mindfulness throughout our day. These simple practices purify the mind and allow us to rest in a pleasant, happy mind.
Keywords: Conditioning, Hindrances, Non-returner, Right MindfulnessWhy We Meditate
03/14/2016
The benefits of meditation range from the mundane benefits of enjoying a refreshed, energized, and calm mind to profound states of insight and the freedom that comes from understanding the nature of reality. Over time, we develop an unshakable, mature happiness.
Keywords: Anattā, Dukkha, Equanimity, VipassanāWho Are We? Can We Dare to be Ourselves
01/26/2015
Many of us suffer because we hold onto harmful ideas about ourselves and the world. When we move towards greater, non-verbal awareness, the suffering produced by thinking falls away.
Keywords: Dependent origination, Dukkha, Three PoisonsGifts of Meditation
12/19/2014
This practice helps us to be more effective and efficient.
Keywords: Equanimity, Four foundations, Majjhima Nikāya, Satipaṭṭhāna, Six bases of contactAutomatic Reactions for Harmony & Innovation
03/02/2014
Brain research shows that through meditation we can reset our automatic responses and break negative mental habits.
Keywords: Aversion, Dhamma, Loving-kindness, MettāAnger as Important Information
01/06/2014
Anger often develops when we don’t get what we want or we get what we don’t want. With resolve, insight, and repeated effort, we can come to experience unpleasant or disappointing moments with acceptance and equanimity.
Keywords: Dhammapada, Dosa, Equanimity, Spiritual bypassMindfulness to Free the Mind
11/19/2012
Mindfulness is our servant; it can free us from the habit of thinking about the moment rather than knowing and experiencing it.
Keywords: Dependent origination, Mindfulness, SaṅkhāraTraining to be Happy
06/25/2012
We can develop a happiness that is not dependent on circumstances. Through meditation, we can bring attention to our habitual thoughts, reduce their grip on us, and replace them with mental habits based on love, kindness, and wisdom.
Keywords: Concentration, Mental habitsGUIDED MEDITATIONS
Guided Meditation on the Breath, 1/31/2022
01/31/2022
This progressive, guided meditation on the breath explores the beginning tetrads in the Ānāpānasati Sutta.
Keywords: Pīti, Samādhi, Sati, SukhaGuided Meditation on Death
02/15/2021
Guided Meditation On Sensations
02/08/2021
Complete Body Sweep Meditation
11/23/2014
Guided Breath Meditation
Guided Body Sweep Meditation
Guided Mettā Meditation
CORE CONCEPTS AND PRACTICES
Idle Speech and the Role of Inner Silence in Awakening
03/18/2023
Idle speech appears at the end of Right Speech. To the uninformed observer, mentioning pointless conversations can seem like a throwaway category, an insignificant one at that and only tagged on for good measure. That would be a grave misunderstanding. What we allow to run in our mind either imprisons us or frees us. Non-stop self-talk is the internal expression of “idle speech.” Though seemingly innocuous, this running commentary is a major barrier to awakening and is the primary infrastructure propping up the imagined “self.”
(This talk was given at Santa Barbara’s Open Door Sangha on September 22, 2022.)
Keywords: Awakening, Right SpeechMaking Mettā Your Home Base
12/19/2022
Mettā is a delicious state of profound wellness and points to a mind drenched in kindness and subtle happiness. From this lofty dwelling, a lavish generosity naturally flows. Anchored in joy, we want the best for everyone.
Keywords: Brahma-vihāras, Mettā, Pīti, SukhaResponding to the World’s Delusion
07/18/2022
The belief that knowledge, education, and technology can save us is delusion. What can protect us is morality and the Eightfold Path.
Keywords: Avijjā, delusion, Dosa, Moha, Taṇhā, The Eightfold PathDharma and TV Commercials
04/25/2022
The truth about ceaseless stress of saṃsāra is everywhere, including in commercials which often aim at fixing the endless problems which assail us. Unlike the Dharma, TV commercials offer only a temporary fix. They never get at the root of the problem.
Keywords: Avijjā, Dukkha, Moha, SaṃsāraUsing Space as a Strategy in Daily Life
04/11/2022
In the Simile of the Saw, MN21, the Buddha shows us how a boundless mind makes it impossible for critical remarks to land anywhere and gain traction. We train to be able to modulate our awareness. We narrow our awareness when that serves us and expand the mind when that is needed.
Keywords: Brahma-vihāras, Jhāna, Mettā, Right SpeechWhy Do We Meditate?
01/31/2022
Why do we meditate? To see reality accurately so the mind can be freed from the absurd expectation that some manipulation of mental states and matter can bring enduring happiness. This work centers on how we interact with unfolding reality.
Keywords: Avijjā, Dukkha, Samādhi, VimuttiThe Enjoyable
01/17/2022
In Samyutta Nikkaya 22:27 the Buddha speaks candidly about his meticulous and exhaustive investigation into the many enjoyable things about body and mind. He then sets out with equal determination and scrupulousness to uncover the drawbacks and perils of delicious experiences. And finally and most importantly, he discovers how to escape the allure of these dangerous pleasures. This talk focuses on saṅkhāras, on mental and emotional amusements and joys, that drive continued becoming.
Keywords: Awakening, Becoming/bhava, Khandhas, Nāma-rūpa, SaṅkhāraRestlessness
12/20/2021
Restlessness is the second to the last fetter before full awakening and is an essential driver of becoming. When restlessness dominates our mind, we reject what is and search for pleasant contacts and enticing activities. Unsettled, discontented, we want something else, almost anything will do, other than what is presently unfolding. We might prefer existence as a reader of an absorbing novel or a gardener planting roma tomatoes. When we resist restlessness, we engage in hand-to-hand combat with the mind’s tendency toward proliferation and the urge to be. Not doing something is doing something exceptionally challenging. Until we utterly extinguish the longing to do, to be, we remain mired in the inescapable suffering endemic to samsara.
Keywords: Becoming/bhava, Hindrances, Nīvaraṇa, PapañcaMindfulness of Desire
07/19/2021
Recognizing defeating desires and resisting their pull is a singular practice that can completely liberate the mind.
Keywords: Dependent origination, Sati, Taṇhā, Upādāna, VimuttiUsing Right Information to Work with Awareness Intelligently
06/28/2021
When we have the “right information” operating at all times in the background, we recognize whether resistance or craving are present or absent. Freeing the mind hinges on overcoming these obstacles to freedom and peace.
Keywords: Eightfold Path, Four Noble Truths, Right Mindfulness, Right View, SatiThe Hindrances and Delusion
05/10/2021
The hindrances prevent us from being alert, informed, and free to act in our best interest regardless if we are formally meditating or engaged in daily life.
Keywords: Hindrances, Moha, NīvaraṇaBreaking the Habit of Creating a Self
04/26/2021
Producing a “me” in the flux of the aggregates is a way of trying to freeze reality, a maladaptive reaction to the stress of continual change.
Keywords: Anattā, Khandha(s) (aggregates), Mettā, Renunciation, Right Intention, UpādānaChoices
02/22/2021
The opportunity to choose is the very thing that makes awakening possible. The thousands of intentional acts we make in a year determine whether we become more entangled with mind and matter or become free and completely unfettered.
Keywords: Karma/ Kamma, Saṅkhāra, VipākaStrategies for Dealing with Resistance to Meditation
02/01/2021
Becoming an adept meditator is a skill we master like any other life skill. It simply requires good instructions, commitment, patience, and persistence.
Keywords: Hindrances, Insight, Jhāna, Paññā, Right Concentration, SamādhiWhat To Do When You’re Feeling Tired
01/18/2021
Meditative dexterity expands when we meditate even when we are tired or suffering in some other way. Anticipating occasional physical challenges and devising strategies for them will strengthen our ability to maintain a daily contemplative practice.
Keywords: Anattā, Dukkha, Hindrances, Right Effort, SamādhiReflecting on the Rioting of January 6, 2021 at the U.S. Capitol
01/11/2021
The rioting and insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, driven by delusion (moha) and hate (dosa), exploded in a torrent of violence, destruction, cruelty, racism, and anti-Semitism. We witnessed what happens when lies, enmity, and grievance are sanctioned. Hate only creates more hate.
Keywords: Dosa, Karma, MohaMettā: A Meditation Practice Leading to Non-returning
01/04/2021
This simple sutta is a straightforward instruction manual on how to attain the ultimate state of bliss, Nibbāna.
Keywords: Anāgāmī, Mettā, Nibbāna, Non-returnerWild
12/14/2020
Taming, guarding, protecting, and restraining our mind generate enormous rewards and advantages.
Keywords: Clear comprehension, Right Effort, SatiDark to Dark, Dark to Light, Light to Dark, Light to Light
12/07/2020
Complacency, delusion, and overestimation of our attainments spell trouble for anyone wishing to put an end to endless becoming, rebirth, and suffering.
Keywords: Becoming/bhava, Four Noble Truths, Ignorance, Karma, Saññā, Vipāka, VipallāsaPraise and Criticism
11/30/2020
The Buddha provides guidance on how and when to confront a person about problematic or self-destructive behavior. He also recommends praising those who are deserving of praise.
Keywords: Right Intention, Right SpeechBliss Resulting From Transcending the Self, Part 2 of 2
11/16/2020
This talk focuses on correcting the misperception that an enduring “me” can be found in the maelstrom of mental and material states. The process begins with recognizing when the feeling of a “self” arises. Deconstructing the misperception of a “self” can be understood as the definition of striving for full awakening.
Keywords: Anattā, Clinging, Moha, Nibbāna, Not-selfBliss Resulting From Transcending the Self, Part 1 of 2
11/09/2020
When the habit of generating a self ceases, bliss spontaneously floods the mind, a reality which has always been there but has been covered over by thoughts, emotions, moods, narratives, biological hard-wiring and assorted drives.
Keywords: Anattā, Clinging, Conditioning, Craving, Ignorance, Nibbāna, Not-self, TaṇhāContact as a Contemplation
09/28/2020
When contemplating dependent co-arising, we are instructed to notice the feeling tone of any contact. Is it pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral? We can choose to respond with craving or aversion, creating more dukkha in the process, or respond with insight and equanimity, and not grasp at the source of sensation, nor push it away. The Buddha reveals that “For those who have fully understood contact, who, having known it, delight in peace (Nibbana).”
Keywords: Dependent origination, Dukkha, Nibbāna, PhassaA Cave As a Metaphor For the Body
08/31/2020
Over time, with continued training, we see the 5-aggregates of clinging as not-self, ephemeral, and sources of suffering. With these insights, we naturally wish to cast off the aggregates and turn the mind to the Unconditioned.
Keywords: Khandha(s) (aggregates), NibbānaViews
08/24/2020
Views play a crucial role in the fabrication and clinging to a “self.” When our cherished views are invalidated or dismissed, we feel diminished and often react in anger. Undoing attachment to views dismantles the “me” that is endlessly seeking affirmation and security.
Keywords: Anattā, Clinging, Hindrances, UpādānaThe Ultimate
08/17/2020
The Buddha explained that views and craving stitch together a “me” from the maelstrom of life. Even though the “self” is a source of great suffering and is the final barrier to ultimate freedom and bliss, nevertheless, we find it hard to let go of it. Out of compassion, the Buddha left us with detailed instructions on how to dismantle the habit of “I-making.”
Keywords: Anattā, Clinging, NibbānaThe Solution for the Awfulness of the World
08/10/2020
The defilements of others pose an existential threat to everyone. This insight motivates us to end clinging to any constellation of mind and matter.
Keywords: Clinging, Craving, Eightfold Path, Four Noble Truths, Taṇhā, UpādānaGiving
07/20/2020
It is useful to examine our motivation for giving. When we give without an agenda or thoughts of gaining recognition or prestige, our generosity produces joy. Ultimately, the best gift we have to offer is a purified mind. (Drawn from AN 7.52)
Keywords: Dāna, Pāramī, TaṇhāGrievance
06/08/2020
The Eightfold Path instructs us on ways to dissolve obsessions about old wounds and grievances as well as giving us a blueprint for making choices that lead to more freedom and happiness.
Keywords: Dosa, Eightfold Path, Right Intention, TaṇhāAnger: An Opportunity for Transformation
06/08/2020
Injustice provokes a desire for change. Our challenge is to transform that spark of outrage into compassionate action while maintaining a kind heart.
Keywords: Dosa, Karuṇā, Mettā, Right Intention, Right SpeechCovid-19 Cabin Fever
05/11/2020
Restlessness of mind can be a deeply set hindrance on our path to Nirvana. Developing strategies to dismantle this uncomfortable state helps settle the mind and supports concentration in our meditation practice.
Keywords: Āsava, Equanimity, Fetters, Hindrances, TranquilityCovid 19: An Opportunity to Cultivate Patience
05/04/2020
Patience is one of the ten perfections or virtues needed to cross to the Far Shore, to become fully awake and free. Let’s welcome the opportunity to develop this essential strength.
Keywords: PāramīDukkha and Covid-19, Training in Being a Realist
04/13/2020
In times of great upheaval, training our minds to see reality can ease our suffering. When we look into the nature of dukkha, we understand the emotional stress that comes from expecting things to be different than they truly are..
Keywords: Anattā, Anicca, Dukkha, SaṅkhāraCovid-19, More Reasons to Not Cling to the Aggregates
03/30/2020
If we reflect on the causes and conditions we are experiencing through the current pandemic, we can see how they drive our decisions and behaviors. This gives us the opportunity to see directly into impermanence. When we understand that all phenomena arise and vanish, we can lessen our suffering by letting go of clinging to the Five Aggregates.
Keywords: Aggregates, Anicca (impermanence), Conditioning, Formations, VedanāConsciousness
03/08/2020
The “self” is actually rapidly stitched together mental phenomena. When alertness is able to identify distinct “frames” of consciousness, we discover there is no enduring “me” to be found.
Keywords: Consciousness, ViññāṇaEmissaries of the Buddha
02/10/2020
We are all emissaries of the Buddha, tasked with bringing peace, wisdom, harmony, and compassion wherever we go.
Keywords: Dukkha, Nibbāna, SamvegaThe Four Noble Truths and Their Tasks
01/20/2020
The Four Noble truths and their tasks:
1. This is the noble truth of suffering.
This noble truth of suffering is to be fully understood.
This noble truth of suffering has been fully understood.
2. This is the noble truth of the origin of suffering.
This noble truth of the origin of suffering is to be abandoned.
This noble truth of the origin of suffering has been abandoned.
3. This is the noble truth of the cessation of suffering.
This noble truth of the cessation of suffering is to be realized.
This noble truth of the cessation of suffering has been realized.
4. This is the noble truth of the way leading to the cessation of suffering.
This noble truth of the way leading to the cessation of suffering is to be developed.
This noble truth of the way leading to the cessation of suffering has been developed.
The Three Turnings and Twelve Aspects from the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta, Setting in Motion the Wheel of the Dhamma, Saṁyutta Nikāya 56, no. 11, translated by Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi
This talk by Deborah Ventura and Susan Pembroke is based on notes and observations from a 4-day training with Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi on the Four Noble Truths and their tasks.
As practitioners, we are charged with penetrating each noble truth as well as completing their associated task, namely, fully understanding the pervasiveness of suffering, dukkha; secondly, abandoning all craving, tanha, that is the origin of suffering; and thirdly, realizing the cessation of all suffering.
From these instructions, it is apparent that these truths are not articulated as philosophical or dogmatic abstractions but are to be fully understood experientially and are to be known on a visceral level. The Buddha’s remarkable discovery is the promise of a complete end of suffering.
Keywords: Craving, Dukkha, Eightfold Path, Four Noble Truths, Nibbāna, TaṇhāThe Four Foundations
12/09/2019
In this talk, The Four Foundations of Wisdom, Truth, Relinquishment, and Peace are explained, as well as the ways they serve to stabilize and free our mind.
Keywords: Aggregates, Clinging, Dukkha, Impermanence, Non-self, Six bases of contact, Sutta, Vipassanā, WisdomThe Brahma-vihāras: Generate Harmony, Morality, Insight, Contentment, and Lead to Freedom.
11/25/2019
As we develop skill in the Brahma-vihāras, we strengthen our goodness and naturally turn away from hurtful thoughts, words, and actions. Recognizing and practicing the Brahma-vihāras purifies, transforms, and frees the mind.
Keywords: Brahma-vihāras, Eightfold Path, Karuṇā, Mettā, Muditā, UpekkhāMindfulness of the Body
10/14/2019
Being mindful of the Four Positions of our body throughout the day can improve our concentration. These are opportunities throughout the day to remove the clutter of our mind by merely turning our attention to the body. These informal meditations of the body support our practice of formal meditation and can lead to insight.
Keywords: Conditioning, Emptiness, Impermanence, Mindful, Non-self, Sati
Our Mind as a Creation of Karma
08/26/2019
Karma means to do. Good acts through our mind, speech, and body have real results for us and others. We create our future by inheriting the results of our actions and thought patterns we return to again and again. Because karma is driven by intentions which could be out of our awareness, we can use meditation to examine them.
Keywords: Buddha, Dukkha, Equanimity, Karma, Wisdom
What Mindfulness Is and Is Not
08/12/2019
Mindfulness is the topic of many articles and research which point to the benefits of meditation and mindfulness. However, mindfulness taken out of the context of Buddhism and the Eightfold Path leads to misunderstanding, sometimes dangerous practices, and unrealistic goals. Right Mindfulness benefits us by aiding in the purification of the mind through meditation and following the Eightfold Path.
Keywords: Eightfold Path, Jhāna, Mettā, Right Mindfulness, Spiritual bypass
Underlying Tendencies in the Mind
06/03/2019
Tendencies in our minds can get in the way of becoming fully free because they make us vulnerable to the hindrances. These proclivities support a sense of self and, therefore, distort our perception of reality. Through meditation we can see past these distortions into the unchanging reality of Nibbāna.
Keywords: Anusaya, Āsava, Consciousness, Hindrances, Nibbāna, Non-self, VipallāsaThe Vital Role of Tranquility in Awakening
04/29/2019
If allowed to settle into stillness, even the most turbulent body of water becomes clear. Developing this kind of tranquility in our mind provides clarity and supports the work of deepening our meditation practice. Lovingly examining the state of our mind during the course of the day can strengthen our ability to settle our mind.
Keywords: Enlightenment, Equanimity, Jhāna, Nimitta, Saṅkhāra, Upekkhā, ViññāṇaCompassion Without Clinging to Outcomes
04/15/2019
Living with kindness and compassion for others is an essential part of following the Eightfold Path. True kindness is not tied to any expectation of positive outcomes that might come from a kind act.
Keywords: Compassion, Eightfold Path, Loving-kindness, Mettā, Muditā
How to Work With Sensations
04/08/2019
Though often beyond our awareness, sensations are always occurring in our bodies. Whether they are pleasant or unpleasant, when we do focus on our sensations, we can add mental suffering because of the thoughts we attach to them. Merely observing these sensations can free us from this cycle.
Keywords: Āsava, Craving, Dukkha, Fetters, Mental habits, Three Poisons
How to Work with Thoughts Skillfully
03/25/2019
Clinging, craving and aversion drive our thoughts and create suffering. By developing strategies for dealing with thoughts and looking at the mind, we can develop skills which will help us live in the moment, slow our minds, and understand better the mind and body relationship.
Keywords: Clinging, Mental habits, Mindfulness, Non-self, Sense doors, Skillful, Unskillful
Labeling as a Strategy to Dismantle Unwholesome States
03/11/2019
Labeling is a powerful strategy to dissolve negative and stress-creating mental habits as well as a critical tool in developing happiness-inducing, positive mental habits.
Keywords: Anicca (impermanence), Clear comprehension, Non-self, Vipassanā
Generosity
12/12/2016
The Buddha’s generosity to one person leads to the man’s freedom from suffering. He teaches if we see clearly, we develop wisdom and become disenchanted with the senses and their objects. In this way, our craving and aversion cool and pass away.
Keywords: Dosa, Four Determinations, Jhānas, Majjhima Nikāya, Taṇhā, Vimutti, WisdomThe Agenda Behind Thoughts
02/22/2016
With mindfulness and attention, we see how desire and aversion shape thoughts as well as witness how mind and matter condition each other in an impersonal, ceaseless way. The rapid rising and falling of mind and matter prevents us from seeing how the “self” is constructed millisecond by millisecond.
Keywords: Idappaccayatā, Nāma-rūpa, SaṅkhāraUnderstanding Not-Self in Ourselves & Others
03/17/2014
People are like us- flawed. Understanding this can be a source of compassion for ourselves and others.
Keywords: Anicca (impermanence), MettāIntention, Speech and Not-Self
03/03/2014
When we observe thoughts in meditation, we see firsthand how thoughts are constructed and how the delusion of self drives their ongoing fabrication.
Keywords: Anattā, Not-self, Right Action, Right Intention, Right SpeechLimited Self vs. Vast Self and the role of Jhāna
01/27/2014
One reason we suffer is that we cling to an idea of a self. In Buddhism, the self is understood to be something we construct. Through meditation, we can go into a silence that helps us recognize the small mind as well as train in developing a vast mind. With training, even an infinite mind can be surpassed.
Keywords: Dharma, Jhāna, Right EffortBāhiya Sutta
06/17/2013
This oral reading of the Sutta, as well as the dharma talk, provides insight into freeing the mind of comments that assert the self. “When for you there will be only the seen in reference to the seen, only the heard in reference to the heard, only the sensed in reference to the sensed, only the cognized in reference to the cognized, then, Bāhiya, there is no you in connection with that. When there is no you in connection with that, there is no you there. When there is no you there, you are neither here nor yonder nor between the two. This, just this, is the end of stress.”
Keywords: Anattā, Arahant, Samvega, Sutta, UnbindingEvil and Free Will
06/18/2012
Buddhism is without the concepts of evil or free will. Instead we follow the Eightfold Path to understand how delusion generates suffering.
Keywords: Conditioning, Eightfold Path, Not-self, Right Effort, skillful/unskillfulĀnāpānasati Sutta, 9/30-10/5/2022
Although jhanas are not mentioned in this sutta, these tetrads can create a foundation for entering the jhanas which intensify the capacity to tackle the fourth tetrad as well as providing a lovely home for the mind.
Talk 1: Introduction to the sutta:
Talk 2: A Pleasant Journey to Awakening.
Talk 3: First Tetrad, Calming the Body.
Talk 4: Second Tetrad, Feelings
Talk 5: Third Tetrad, the Mind, and the Fourth Tetrad, the Dhammas.
Talk 6: Awakening: Direct Knowledge
Meditation instruction 1:
Meditation instruction 2:
Meditation instruction 3:
Meditation instruction 4:
Tranquility 11/2/2019
Talk 1: An Overview of Tranquility
Talk 2: Tranquility: Essential for Insight
Talk 3: Deepening Tranquility
Talk 4: Integrating the Practice of Tranquility
Guided Meditation on Tranquility
Clinging to Nothing in the World, 10/1-6/2019
Talk 1: Introduction
Talk 2: The Eight Conditions
Talk 3: The Hindrances
Talk 4: The Anusayas
Talk 5: The Mālunkyāputta Sutta
Talk 6: Taking the Retreat Home
Meditation instruction 1:
Meditation instruction 2:
Equanimity: Creating an Oasis of Peace 8/24/2019
Equanimity appears in all of the essential categories pointing us in the direction of full awakening. It is the fourth Brahma-vihāra, the last of the seven factors of awakening, and the last of the Ten Perfections. Without the stability and maturity of a still, non-reactive, and stable mind, we cannot make progress in dissolving unskillful mental habits and freeing the mind.
Equanimity is both a dynamic and highly-skilled practice as well as an outcome. When we practice equanimity, we remember that incessant change is inherent in all phenomena. We recall the insight that reacting with resistance or craving only makes things more problematic. We simultaneously commit to remaining calm and accepting in the midst of any conflict, loss, physical pain, or emotional distress. We know shouldering the stress of the present moment will diminish future suffering. In essence, equanimity is the long game approach to happiness.
Talk 1: The Critical Role of Equanimity in Awakening
08/24/2019
The sublime quality of equanimity can become our default mental state through practice. With equanimity, we can be free of fleeting pleasures and achieve peace that supports us.
Keywords: Brahma-vihāra, Concentration, Jhāna, Mindfulness, Upekkhā, ViriyaTalk 2: Equanimity/Upekkhā
08/24/2019
Achieving equanimity/equipoise requires practice and right effort. We can use mindfulness as a tool.
Keywords: Ānāpānasati, MindfulnessTalk 3: Highest and Most Sublime Emotion
08/24/2019
Our happiness does not have to be dependent on changing phenomena. Through the work of observing and training our mind, we can achieve the freedom of equanimity, considered one of the Ten Perfections in Buddhism.
Keywords: Āsava, Brahma-vihāra, Conditioning, Equanimity, Samādhi, UpekkhāThe Path of Peace, 3/30/2019
One way of defining the Eightfold Path is to see it as a path of peace. Right Understanding recognizes the suffering that emerges when we act in anger. The second limb, Right Intention, enjoins us to abandon ill will and cruelty. Stated positively, we see the wisdom of simplicity, peacefulness, kindness, helpfulness, and compassion.
On this retreat, we will examine what we cling to, what threatens us and why. In addition, we will explore how to hold views lightly, remembering we have been mistaken about things in the past and could be wrong again. And, even if our understandings prove accurate, we train in not allowing them to become sources of division and hurt.
Talk 1:
Talk 2:
Talk 3:
Guided Meditation 1:
Meditation Instruction and Q&A:
Insight and Concentration, October 2-7, 2018
there is no wisdom without jhana.
One who has jhana and wisdom,
he is in the vicinity of Nibbana.
Dhammapada, 372, translation by Ajahn Brahm
On this retreat we activate the entire Eightfold Path, with a special emphasis on Right Concentration, jhana, and its essential role in penetrating reality and freeing the mind from its compulsive grasping at ever-changing physical sensations and mental states. To enter jhana, we happily abandon the mundane world, with its ceaseless demands and stress, and turn all of our attention to generating a still, peaceful, silent and blissful mind. With trial and error, with diligence and patience, sights, sounds, tastes, smells, and body sensations cease as do the barrage of thoughts and emotions. Through direct knowing, we experience how lovely it is to drop the body and mind, to drop the self. Through prolonged exposure to jhana and repeated and varied insights, we develop the incentive and skill to transcend duality and find an enduring, higher happiness.
(We recommend reading Ajahn Brahm’s "Mindfulness, Bliss, and Beyond, A Meditator’s Handbook" as a useful companion to the talks, especially to the morning meditation instructions.)
Talk 1: On the Verge of Nibbana
Talk 2: Nibbida: Insight Brought Us Here
Talk 3: Benefits and Insights Resulting from Jhana
Talk 4: Realizing Nibbana
Talk 5: Working Towards Nibbana
Guided Meditation: Developing Concentration
Guided Meditation: Brahmaviharas
Meditation Instruction 1
Meditation Instruction 2
Meditation Instruction 3
What Kind of Mind Is This? 3/3-4/2018
Talk 1: Purifying the Mind Through Mindfulness
Talk 2: The Brahma-viharas, the Great Mind
Talk 3: The Surpassable and the Unsurpassable Mind
Talk 4: The Concentrated Mind, the Liberated Mind
1st Q&A Seeing Thoughts as a Desire to Be
2nd Q&A Tips on Breathing and Balancing Energy
3rd Q&A More on Breathing and Additional Comments
Being the Architect of Your Mind 9/21-24/2017
Talk 1: Architects of our Mind, Architects of our Destiny
Talk 2: State Versus Trait: How We Reconfigure our Mind
Talk 3: An Unfettered Mind
The Simile of the Quail, a Discourse on Fetters and Their Release, 3/25/2017
A link to the sutta:
https://www.dhammatalks.org/suttas/MN/MN66.html
Talk 1:
Talk 2:
Talk 3:
Q&A:
Becoming and Non-Becoming , August 20, 2016
The Four Types of Clinging, Kamma, and Dependent Co-Arising, Talk 2
08/20/2016
The Ultimate Decluttering: Emptying our Mind 7/15-17, 2016
Talk 1:
Talk 2:
Talk 3:
The Art of Disappearing, 2/20/2016
“When you practice this path, you’re slowly disappearing. If you understand the idea of vanishing and disappearing—that is, stillness and calm—you’re beginning to understand anatta, non-self. This is because the calmer you are, the less you exist. This might seem scary, but it’s actually beautiful. In fact, it’s the only real happiness there is, because the more you let go of the sense of self, the more you’re free from suffering in all its forms. The more you disappear, the happier you are; the more you vanish, the more joy you experience; the less you exist, the more bliss you feel.” Excerpts from Ajahn Brahm’s book “The Art of Disappearing.”
Talk 1: Why Disappear?
02/20/2016
When the hindrances are gone, when negative emotions are absent, the underlying tendency to “identify” and generate a “self” from transient mental phenomena lessens. Realizing the unconditioned is only possible when the optical illusion of a self vanishes.
Keywords: Anattā, Fetters, Hindrances, Nibbāna, Not-self, SaṃyojanaTalk 2: Developing Stillness
02/20/2016
How to identify and overcome the obstacles to generating a still, strong, and powerful mind.
Keywords: SamādhiTalk 3: More About What is Disappearing.
02/20/2016
When a desire emerges, we automatically assume an “I” exists behind that desire. “I want this” or “I don’t want that.” With training, though, we recognize the corelessness and transiency of desire, of the “self.” This recognition, repeated many times, leads to profound insight and freedom.
Keywords: Anattā, Āsava, Dukkha, TaṇhāTalk 1:
Talk 2:
Talk 3:
AN INSIGHT RETREAT ON NO SELF OR THE LESS THERE IS OF ME, THE GREATER THE FREEDOM AND PEACE 10/30/2015
Becoming fully free of a “me” in the course of three days is not realistic. What we can do, though, is train ourselves to recognize more quickly how the conditioned “self” arises. As a lovely outcome of this training, when we do find ourselves reacting to something in our lives, we’ll be more likely to recall, oh, it’s just a thought. I can put that down. Or, here’s a frisson of apprehension about how the meeting will turn out. It’s not me. I didn’t request this. I can put this down, too. What a relief!
Meditation Instruction
10/30/2015
You cannot read your way to enlightenment.
Keywords: Anattā, AniccaIntroduction to Not Self – Part 1
10/30/2015
All compounded things break down, go away.
Keywords: Anattā, AniccaIntroduction to Not Self – Part 2
10/30/2015
Because our minds are dull, there seems to be more stability…
Keywords: Anattā, Anicca (impermanence)Aggregates. The Futility of Trying to Fix Suffering
10/30/2015
The Five Aggregates of Clinging
10/30/2015
Khemaka Sutta – The Lingering Sense of I Am
10/30/2015
Vipallāsa Sutta -Distortions of the Mind
10/30/2015
REDISCOVERING THE PRESENT MOMENT 4/18/2015
Rediscovering the Present Moment Part 1
04/18/2015
Rediscovering the Present Moment Part 2
04/18/2015
EXPLORING THE LIMITLESS 7/25/2014
Thoughts and Moods
07/25/2014
Use this awareness to create a space between what’s coming up and how you are responding.
Keywords: DukkhaEXPLORING AWARENESS 5/18/2013
Awareness as an Opening
05/18/2013
Restlessness, 4/2/2023
Talk 1: Introduction and Meditation Instruction
Talk 2:
Not Taking a Stand, 3/12/2023
We also carry around more abstract ideas about who we are, such as thinking we are intelligent, generous, resourceful, hard-working, well-read, attractive, funny, and on and on. We also assume our conditioned preferences aren’t preferences at all but truisms, such as having the opinion it’s better to live in the city or in the country, or drive this type of vehicle rather than another.
Not all conceptions are harmful. Common sense ideas are useful, such as recognizing it’s a good idea to live within our means or protect our health, but even these we hold lightly. On the path to awakening, certain supportive views are essential, though. With intentionality, we develop Right View or Right Understanding about the Four Noble Truths and the nature of reality, namely, that all things are impermanent, empty of an enduring core or self, and are thereby unsatisfactory, and inherently incapable of providing a basis for safety and peace.
Talk 1:
Talk 2:
Integrating Not-Self Into Our Lives, 2/12/2023
When consciousness is not captured and held hostage by sensory phenomena -- by sights, sounds, tastes, smells, sensations, thoughts and emotions -- the mind remains open, spacious, buoyant, complete and well, just as it is. There is no sense of lack. Here, in this limitless awareness, peace and freedom are found.
We come to short or long retreats to train in dissolving the habit of collapsing around minutiae and recycling constricting thoughts and emotions. This reflexive contracting is what obstructs empty, vital awareness. The small, collapsing mind is samsara. The vast immense consciousness is nirvana. What drives samsaric fabrication, again and again, are the usual suspects -- desires, clinging to view and a self. Bit by bit, we practice stopping these limiting, autopilot responses to what arises in the mind.
Talk 1:
Guided Meditation:
Talk 2:
Resting in Emptiness, 1/8/2023
Emptiness meditation instruction:
Guided meditation on emptiness:
Emptiness talk:
[resting-in-emptiness]
Samādhi: Discovering the Treasurer Within, 11/13/2022
Talk 1: Overview and meditation instruction:
Talk 2: Discovering the Treasure Within
The Precariousness of Life, 10/9/2022
This first talk is a brief introduction to the Jumping Mouse story and lays out the heartaches involved in seeking food to remain alive.
This second talk recounts the Native American story, Jumping Mouse, but adds the revision of an entirely new ending which reflects the harshness of life and the struggle to survive.
Unburdening the Mind, 9/11/2022
He described the process of dropping these mental burdens in this way:
“In the past we went around foolishly picking up heavy objects such as boulders. We lugged them along whenever we went. For this we constantly suffered dukkha. How many years has this gone on? Now, however, we realize how unwise we were in creating such problems for ourselves. We realize how burdensome these boulders are, and we just toss them away. Without these burdens we are light, all our problems disappear.”
Causes of Happiness, 8/14/2022
Taming Our Wild Mind, 7/10/2022
The Path to Freedom 6/12/2022
This talk centers on the natural, effortless delight that arises from an unfettered mind, one freed from the tension caused by craving and clinging.
Delusion 12/12/2021
On this half-day retreat, we investigate what delusion is, how it manifests, and how to free ourselves from perceptual distortions about reality and discover moments of sanity and freedom.
Discovering the Pleasure of Releasing the Self 8/8/2021
Talk 1: How the Self Arises
Talk 2: Seeing Dukkha When Clinging to a Self
Talk 3: Training in Freeing the Mind
Consciousness 3/8/2020
Consciousness
03/08/2020
The “self” is actually rapidly stitched together mental phenomena. When alertness is able to identify distinct “frames” of consciousness, we discover there is no enduring “me” to be found.
Keywords: Consciousness, ViññāṇaAnattā: Not Self. So What? Why Does That Matter? 2/9/2020
Anattā: Not Self. So What? Why Does That Matter?
02/09/2020
Anattā, not self, is a distinguishing characteristic of Buddhism. As practitioners, we train to see that we are driven by coreless fragments. Once that insight is anchored and is an integral part of our cognitive landscape, we find it easier and easier to disidentify with changing mental and material states. What are the end results of this work? Freedom. Full awakening.
Keywords: Anattā, FettersJungle Thickets 1/5/2020
Jungle Thickets
01/05/2020
In this sutta, the Buddha invites us to assess whether we are making progress in our practice or not. If we are, then keep doing what we are doing. If not, we need to investigate how to change our lives to support our meditation practice.
Keywords: Āsava, Nibbāna, Right Mindfulness, Samādhi, SatiDesire, the Driver of Unhappiness 8/11/2019
Desire, the Driver of Unhappiness
08/11/2019
Getting what we want but watching it slip away is painful. Not getting what we want as well as getting what we don’t want are equally distressing. Buddhist practice redirects us away from the dead end of desire and points us in the direction of equanimity, peace, and transcendent bliss.
Keywords: Four Noble Truths, Insight, TaṇhāMomentary Desire 7/14/2019
Samādhi 6/9/2019
Samādhi
06/09/2019
The Noble Eight Fold Path is made up of the components of Sila, Paññā, and Samādhi. The elements of Samādhi (Right Effort, Right Concentration, Mindfulness ) work together during meditation which, in turn, helps in following the Noble Eight Fold Path. Through Samādhi, we can collect our mind and gain access to deeper states of concentration in meditation. With a unified mind we can have access to Jhāna states and insight into reality.
Keywords: Eightfold Path, Jhāna, Mindfulness, Paññā, Pīti, Right Concentration, Right Effort, Samādhi, Sila, Vicāra, Vitakka“Whatever a person frequently thinks and ponders upon, that will become the inclination of her mind.”
– Majjhima Nikāya 19