The Lay Disciple
This is the disciple of the Buddha, living in the house. He has confidence in the Buddha’s awakening. He trains himself to purify his actions and his speech. He cultivates generosity, learns to sacrifice and let go. And this is…
Category: Dhamma
Māgandiya Sutta (Māgandiyo) – MN.75 (VIII, 5)
Majjhima Nikaya, Middle collection M. 75th (VIII, 5) Māgandiya Sutta (Māgandiyo) translated from Pāli by Karl Eugen Neumann THIS HAVE I HEARD. At one time the Blessed One was staying in the Kuru country, in a town of the Kurus called Kammasadammam,…
God and Jesus in Buddhism
Okay, the following anthology seemed long overdue – I found that especially in a Western Christian environment many Buddhists do not know what the Buddha (or the early Buddhist literature, depending on the grade of your trust) had to say…
Ox and crops
From the Theragatha, the Verses of the Elders. 445. Uppajje te sace kodho, āvajja kakacūpamaṃ; Uppajje ce rase taṇhā, puttamaṃsūpamaṃ sara. (1) 446.‘‘Sace dhāvati cittaṃ te, kāmesu ca bhavesu ca; Khippaṃ niggaṇha satiyā, kiṭṭhādaṃ viya duppasun”ti; 445. If anger arises…
Buddhism: More Than Mere Philosophy
A dear friend of mine–that happens to be a fairly new convert to Theravada Buddhism–emailed me with a question. Is Buddhism more than just a philosophy? A colleague of hers, upon hearing of her new-found religion, quickly dismissed her ambition…
The Heretic Sage
Many of you already know about my deep gratitude towards Ven. Ñāṇananda who I consider to be one of the greatest living Dhamma and Meditation masters. If anything you ever read on this blog might have helped you, all that…
The Yoga Sutra: a handbook on Buddhist meditation?
Take a classic text of Hinduism, the revered Yogasutra (approx. 200 BCE (2)) and compare its semantics and vocabulary to the Buddhist canonical texts. Such a comparison will make it pretty obvious that the author of the Yoga Sutra was…
Blind Faith – Gratitude – Disrespect
Sometimes we forget all about gratitude and respect for the help we receive from others. If one were to look at our attitude towards the many hardships and sacrifices of all the people who came before us who made it…
If someone were to ask you
“Tell me, which part of the Tripitaka is the most ancient? Which part would I want to read, study and practice if I look for the most authentic instructions?” The answer is very simple. There are two little collections of…
Paticcasamuppada – Stop the burning flames
Famous words by the Buddha: Vuttaṃ kho panetaṃ bhagavatā: yo paṭiccasamuppādaṃ passati so dhammaṃ passati; yo dhammaṃ passati so paṭiccasamuppādaṃ passatīti. Paṭiccasamuppannā kho panime yadidaṃ pañcupādānakkhandhā. Yo imesu pañcasu upādānakkhandhesu chando ālayo anunayo ajjhosānaṃ so dukkhasamudayo. Yo imesu pañcasu upādānakkhandhesu chandarāgavinayo…