- What Did the Buddha Teach About Love and Relationships?
Does early Buddhism allow for romantic affection and love? We'll look at two ways to understand love, both as universal and as personal, and how the Buddha regarded them.
- What Did the Buddha Teach About Wealth?
How does wealth intersect with the dharma? We'll look at some of what the early texts say about wealth and poverty, as well as some of their challenges and opportunities along the path.
- How To Be A Good Friend: Early Buddhist Teachings On Friendship
Friendship was very important in early Buddhism. I'll discuss what the Buddha had to say about friendship, as well as some key differences between true and false friends.
- How Was the Buddha Down-to-Earth? Demythologizing Prayer, Deities, and Devotion
How was the Buddha a down-to-earth, pragmatic teacher? In this second video on the subject (the first is linked below) we'll look at some of the ways the Buddha demythologized many deity practices of his day, as well as his skepticism…
- How Was the Buddha Down-to-Earth? His Approach to Ritual
How was the Buddha a down-to-earth, pragmatic teacher? We will look at his views on some of the most important ritual practices of his day, and how he was skeptical of them.
- The Buddhist Nun Who Taught a Brahmin a Lesson
To begin I'll discuss how the Buddha was skeptical of certain brahminic ritual practices such as river bathing. Then I'll turn to the interesting story of an early Buddhist nun from a lowly background who gave a pointed lesson to a brahmin.
- Lessons and Practices from the Fire
I'll outline three lessons learned from the fire, worldly wise things that helped out in a time of need, as well as two practices that I've found useful. I'll also consider a couple of key early Buddhist suttas.