While preparing the post on Anapanasati I came across several discussions on the topic of “nirodho”. Currently re- reading the SN on the Khandhas myself I stumbled over one sutta which kept me pondering. In that particular sutta, the Buddha was…
In the “Group-Section” (Khandhasamyutta) of the Samyutta Nikaya numerous short suttas can be found which – if we squeeze them in the right manner – provide valuable information how a puthujjana (or unenlightened being) turns into an ariyapuggalo (an enlightened…
And I show you how 🙂 Okay, caught your attention (did you see what happened when you read this headline)? Now, let me rephrase a bit: This post is about how a Vipassana-opponent turned into a Vipassana-proponent. Interested? This is the…
Most of you are probably familiar with the Christian/Jewish bible’s Genesis, the little story about how Mahabrahma (aka ‘God’) created the world…. From a Buddhist cosmological [what a contradiction in terms, :-)] standpoint, this particular event was not really unique – depending…
Many people (especially those who intensively try to put the Buddhas eightfold path into practice) have thought about the meaning of samma sati or “right mindfulness”. In fact, the meaning of this important aspect of Buddhist practice had troubled me…
In the Middle Length sayings, one of the few parts of the Pali Canon most Western Buddhists actually do get exposed to, there is a very interesting and beautiful triage of suttas which circle around the following stanza uttered by…
The question whether to practise samatha or vipassana comes up again and again. In the early days of the Burmese Vipassana movement long debates were waged on which approach would be the correct one (samatha || vipassana, that is). This question…
While the number of drafted articles grows 🙂 . Thought i might share with you some of the topics people were looking for and I hope that at least some answers got solved. May all beings be free from avijja and…
There is a rather interesting sutta in the Samyutta in which the Buddha illustrates the meaning and significance of the term sankharo in a straightforward manner: Idha bhikkhave, assutavā puthujjano ariyānaṃ adassāvī ariyadhammassa akovido ariyadhamme avinīto, sappurisānaṃ adassāvī sappurisadhammassa akovido…
Imagine you just planted an apple tree. Well, you actually took one little apple seed and found a nice spot for it to grow. Then you covered it with some earth and sprinkled water over the spot. Every day you…