Dharma Roads

Send us Fan Mail In this episode I explore the relationship between poetry and paying attention – the ways in which poets are mindful - noticing things that often get missed in the merry-go-round of life. In the act of making poems, poets practice a kind of mindful attention – taking notice of what is happening in, and around, themselves in a clear-sighted yet caring and compassionate way. One of...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode I offer a few personal thoughts on what might be called a ‘sceptical approach to Zen Buddhism,’ or, perhaps more accurately, a worldview rooted in the ideas and practices of both Zen Buddhism and the sceptical philosophy established by the ancient Greek thinker, Pyrrho of Elis – who lived from around 360 – 270 BCE. I relate these thoughts to the practice of mindful...

Send us Fan Mail In this extended episode I explore some of the ideas and works of the American multi-disciplinary artist, John Cage – who was born in 1912 and died in 1992 – particularly noting parallels with the practice of zazen and mindful meditation. In 1950, Cage met D.T. Suzuki and began to learn from him about Zen. Cage was never a Zen practitioner, in the usual sense, but his understandin...

Send us Fan Mail There are many sources of wisdom and advice about how to live a ‘good life.’ Buddhist teachers have much to say about how to minimise suffering and maximise wellbeing. But we can extend what is called ‘dharma’ - the body of Buddhist wisdom and advice - to include many other non-Buddhist sources. In Western philosophy, other religions and indigenous cultures there are many teachers...

Send us Fan Mail As always with these talks, I am offering my thoughts in order to prompt reflection and discussion. The theme of this episode, race, class and identity, is a huge and complex topic and I can only on touch on a few aspects. I highlight what I see as a Buddhist perspective on these matters. In some ways, this talk follows on from Episode 12 on ‘Truth, delusion and usefulness’ – part...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode I offer a few reflections on some of the things I have learnt from Zen practice and how it has come to be so central to my life. I suggest that zazen, Zen meditation, is an art that enables the practitioner to gain insights into the chattering and acquisitive self and to discover another way of being that draws on the boundless creative energy of the mind – Beginne...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode I discuss some of the meanings of the term, ‘truth,’ and explore the ways in which different concepts of truth affect how we see the world and how we relate to each other. I go on to suggest that it may be more beneficial to human wellbeing to think in terms of what is ‘useful’ rather than what is ‘true.’ This talk may seem more abstract and theoretical than many o...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode I talk about cultivating equanimity and composure, even as we experience joy and happiness. I suggest that changing our relationship with experiences, to take account of the transient nature of everything we think and feel, is a crucial aspect of developing wisdom and peace of mind. This leads to some thoughts on hope and despair, optimism and pessimism. I hope you...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode I talk about anger – how we think about it, manage and make use of it, and how we can learn to let go of it. I then discuss how feelings of anger are often associated with making judgments – how the judgments we make can too easily give rise to feelings of injustice, resentment and anger. I then consider some of the reasons why suspending judgment is considered to...

Send us Fan Mail This talk is about mindful meditation, what it is and how it is described in the literature of Buddhism - with a particular focus on The Four Foundations of Mindfulness as described in the Satipatthana Sutra. I also discuss the practice of ‘bare attention’ – an approach to mindful meditation associated particularly with Zen Buddhism.

Send us Fan Mail In this talk I describe how the development, in an individual, of the skills outlined in the Buddha's 'Eightfold Path,' can become the ethical values for a whole society – a ‘culture of awakening?’ I also explore some of the connections between Buddhist ideas and practices and what we might call an ecological worldview.

Send us Fan Mail In this episode I discuss the Eightfold Path – a well-known and important outline of how the Four Noble Truths or Tasks are to be developed and realised. These are set out in the Dhammacakkappavattana sutra, usually referred to in English as Setting in Motion the Wheel of the Dharma – an account of one of the Buddha’s first teachings. I go on to briefly explore the concepts of duk...

Send us Fan Mail In this talk, I briefly discuss the Pali Canon, the early texts of Buddhism, and also say a little more about how suffering arises from our struggle to deal with the impermanent and interdependent nature of existence. I also introduce and describe three important Buddhist terms: metta – ‘loving kindness,’ karuna – ‘compassion’ and ahimsa – ‘non-violence.’

Send us Fan Mail In this episode I talk about the Four Noble Truths – one of the central teachings of the Buddha. I also try to explain why there is so much emphasis on non-attachment in Buddhism and what is meant by ‘attachment’ or ‘craving’, and ‘non-attachment.’

Send us Fan Mail In this short talk I am going to describe what in Buddhism are often referred to as the Three Marks of Existence. These three marks, or conditions, of existence are considered as central tenets of the Buddha’s teaching within most Buddhist schools. The first mark of existence is impermanence – anicca; the second is anatta – often referred to as non-self; and the third is dukkha –...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, I suggest that we consider eco-grief as one of many forms of suffering ( dukkha in Buddhism) arising from the transient nature of existence and from our insatiable desires or attachments to things and sensations. I'll look at two aspects of eco-grief: on the one hand, a feeling of loss at what is passing, dying or being degraded; and on the other hand, a deep...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode I explain why the Podcast is called Dharma Roads , rather than Dharma Road . I also talk about notions of truth and suggest that it may be helpful to think in terms of what is useful, rather than trying to decide what is true or false. I am not suggesting that there are no truths, but that there are many truths.

Send us Fan Mail In this first episode I explain what the word 'dharma' usually means in Buddhism and why the podcast is titled, 'Dharma Roads.' I suggest that there are many roads to wisdom and peace and that in the twenty-first century we have access to a global storehouse of teachings and traditions. What is important is that we learn from these teachings and traditions in o...