Dharmabytes from free buddhist audio

Mokshalila is in conversation with Samantabhadri about her work as a massage therapist on a palliative care unit, being alongside those who are nearing the end of their life. From the talk entitled Meetings At the Edge given at Taraloka Retreat Centre on a retreat called Facing Death, Embracing Life, 2015. *** Follow the Free Buddhist Audio podcast. High quality, full-length Dharma talks weekly si...

Suddhaka highlights how the thing we spend the most time doing in our lives, our livelihood, impacts our mental states and is therefore an integral part of the path. How can we make our work an expression of our practice? How can our livelihood be the doorway to true happiness? From the talk entitled Perfect Livelihood given at Brixton Buddhist Centre , 2017. *** Follow the Free Buddhist Audio pod...

Parami offers an enthusiastic exploration of the earthy and ethereal details of everyday spiritual practice, especially within the framework of a sense of the 'collective'. Some great and pretty funny stories from early, would-be-revolutionary experiments with co-operative working ("The opiate of the masses has arrived!"), and some wise words from her subsequent experience of trying to square the...

In a clear talk based on her experiences of work in the civil service, as a mindfulness teacher and in the Buddhist world, Taramani introduces tips on working ethically, meaningfully and in a way that supports spiritual practice. She explains livelihood as a limb of the Eightfold Path, using ideas from Sangharakshita, Steve Jobs, and others. From the talk entitled Work, Inner Work, and the Search...

How can our livelihood and our networks be a doorway to leading our lives in a way in which our eyes can be wide open rather than our eyes being wide shut? Pasannamati points out that there is more to Perfect Livelihood than the work we do. Outside of our work we have a whole load of choices on how we spend our time and money which impacts other people's livelihood. From the talk entitled Tinker,...

Ratnaprabha describes the qualities of mindfulness in a talk about the fifth precept, intoxication and mindfulness.  Excerpted from the talk entitled The Fifth Precept given at the West London Buddhist Centre, 2013. *** Subscribe to our Free Buddhist Audio podcast - a full Dharma talk every week! Follow our blog for news and new Dharma FBA on Twitter FBA on Facebook FBA on Soundcloud

Introducing the speech precepts, Bodhilila explains the Buddha's advice on how to communicate effectively. How do you decide when and how to speak, using criteria of helpfulness, truthfulness, and whether or not it is pleasant to hear? From the talk entitled The Buddha's Speech given at West London Buddhist Centre , 2017. *** Subscribe to our Free Buddhist Audio podcast - a full Dharma talk every...

Marking the 50th anniversary of his own 'Going Forth' in India, Sangharakshita offers us his thoughts on the significance this adventure had for him and reflects on its relation to the Buddha's search for Truth - with particular regard to actions of body, speech, and mind. From the talk Reflections on Going Forth , 1997. *** Subscribe to our Free Buddhist Audio podcast - a full Dharma talk every w...

Here Candradasa explores the third precept and the Buddha's moral code generally and we get some sense of where we might look to find ways to work effectively with our strongest desires in ways that lessen attachment and help us see reality more clearly. From the talk entitled   Sex and Morality, Going Beyond Puritanism given in Portsmouth, NH, October 2012. This talk is part of the series Religio...

Drawing on sources from Russell Brand to Tenzin Palmo, Suryadarshini navigates the third precept. Covering sex, relationships, confessional writing, and social media, she offers suggestions for how to start a shift from attention and attachment into stillness, simplicity and contentment. From the talk entitled Sex and Social Media: From Attention and Attachment to Contentment given at Norwich Budd...

What's in it for me? Our natural human tendency is to take, to grasp, to cling. If you can give though, there is hope, spiritually speaking. Generosity is an attitude of heart and of mind, an attitude of one ' s whole being. Sangharakshita describes the altruistic aspect of the Bodhisattva and the reconciliation of the apparent antithesis between the interests of others and of self by practising t...

Danapriya explores how our inner world reflects to the outer world. How do we want to live in the world? How do our views impact our practice of generosity? Where do we direct the energies of craving and desire? Excerpted from the talk entitled Giving Is Enjoyable given at Croydon Buddhist Centre , 2015 . *** Subscribe to our Free Buddhist Audio podcast - a full Dharma talk every week! Follow our...

Dayapakshini explores the relevance of the First Precept to our lives with extracts from the Abhisanda sutta, especially that of freedom from oppression to limitless numbers of beings. Excerpted from the talk entitled The First Precept given at the Croydon Buddhist Centre , 2015 . *** Subscribe to our Free Buddhist Audio podcast - a full Dharma talk every week! Follow our blog for news and new Dha...

How can we decide between right and wrong? The Eastern criterion of ethics is psychological rather than theological: ethical behaviour is said to express higher orders of awareness. Here, Sangharakshita details the first precept, that of abstention from all forms of violence and harm towards other beings. Cultivating the positive aspect of this precept is the embodiment of maitri, love, as express...

Siladevi reflects on an aspect of Buddhism that is often played down, but is nonetheless an organic part of Buddhism - that of working together with others to effect change in the world. Excerpted from the talk The Ideal Society and the Ideal Individual entitled given at Manchester Buddhist Centre during a day in commemoration of the death of Bhante Sangharakshita, 30 October 2019.   *** Subscribe...

Is awakening near or far, is the path sudden or gradual? Dharmashalin presents Sangharakshita's metaphor on Buddhahood being like an evolutionary process, this time with more emphasis on metta as both an essential basis and method for inviting a sudden shift towards awakening on the basis of a gradual approach. From the talk Metta As Method and Support For Breaking Through to Buddhahood given at B...

Kulaprabha recounts an episode from the Vimalakirti Nirdesa to draw out how one generates the great love in response to the suffering of beings. This is the third of four talks exploring Vasubandhu's Four Factors entitled Contemplating the Suffering of Beings given at Taraloka Retreat Centre , 2010. In his treatise Generating Bodhi Resolve, Vasubandhu describes them as able to generate the resolve...

Jnanavaca discusses metta as the foundation of samadhi, taking us back to basics and reminding us to dwell with patience and acceptance in the body. Excerpted from the talk entitled Metta as the Foundation of Samadhi given as part of the online retreat  Towards Insight: Three Myths  led by   Jnanavaca and Maitreyabandhu  at Adhisthana , 2020.   *** Subscribe to our Free Buddhist Audio podcast - a...

Jvalamalini introduces us to Vasakha, a generous laywoman disciple of the Buddha. Her story from the early sangha is about the Buddhist attitude to wealth and about the effects of generosity on the donor. From the talk entitled As Garlands From a Heap of Flowers given at Bristol Buddhist Centre, 2017. *** Subscribe to our Free Buddhist Audio podcast - a full Dharma talk every week! Follow our blog...

There is an unfolding process within us – in each moment we have a choice to move towards the painful and unskilful, or we can move towards liberation. Faith is the intuition that there is a way of responding to experience that moves us away from suffering and towards liberation. What most deeply matters to us? What conditions allow for the process of flourishing to happen? Dhammarati calls on the...

Intelligent and thought provoking, Candraprabha shares personally about three views, or three attitudes, she's uncovered in the course of her many years of spiritual practice. A helpful exemplification of how we can investigate our underlying attitudes in relation to our ability to live a Dharma life. From the talk entitled Bodhicitta: a Personal Talk from the Moon of the Mind: Bodhicitta Great Ga...

Vajrasakhi leads a 'cherishing' metta bhavana based on the positive precepts. Here she introduces the practice emphasizing the crucial importance of a positive and loving relationship with ourselves. From the talk entitled Positive Precepts Metta Bhavana from the Moon of the Mind: Bodhicitta Great Gathering , an (online) retreat for women training for ordination and Order Members offered by Taralo...

In his truly creative and poetic way, Ananda explores how various life experiences have shaped his understanding of the Dharma-Niyama. Something is being shown to us when we are prepared to look. This short talk was given on the European Order Gathering at Wymondham College, 2013, on the theme of the gathering was 'Karma niyama in the service of the Dharma niyama'.   *** Subscribe to our Free Budd...

Sangharakshita explores the nature of the Buddhist spiritual community and why it is so essential to spiritual life... Excerpted from the talk entitled The Spiritual Community , part of the series  Introducing Buddhism , 1966. *** Subscribe to our Free Buddhist Audio podcast - a full Dharma talk every week! Follow our blog for news and new Dharma FBA on Twitter FBA on Facebook FBA on Soundcloud

Maitrisara explores two kinds of action: skilful and unskilful in the light of understanding, seeing possibilities. Buddhist ethics is as much a matter of intelligence as it is good intention. From the talk entitled Perfect Action given at Birmingham Buddhist Centre , 2021, as part of the Sangha Night series on the Noble Eightfold Path. *** Subscribe to our Free Buddhist Audio podcast - a full Dha...