- Buddhist Training Is Meant to End
Doug asks when Buddhist training is supposed to end, and how anyone would know. Working from the simile of the raft and the Buddha's refusal to appoint a successor — telling the sangha instead to be islands unto themselves — he traces…
- Is Early Buddhism the "Real" Buddhism? (A Buddhist View)
Doug distinguishes the scholarly category of "early Buddhism" — texts and teachings closest to the historical Buddha — from a normative claim that earlier means more authentic or authoritative, arguing that historical priority does not…
- What I Got Wrong About Buddhism (And What Changed Everything)
Doug reflects on five key lessons he wishes he had understood earlier in his Buddhist practice: misconceptions about meditation, the importance of testing teachings rather than accepting them on faith, treating the Dhamma as tools rather…
- The Buddha on Movies, Music, and Media
What did the Buddha have to say about entertainment? Is it ever skillful for us? We'll consider the difference between monastic and lay lifestyles, and how the Buddha saw entertainment as part of an ordinary life. Then we'll consider ways…
- Avoiding the Trap of the 'Intelligent Fool' in Buddhism
The Buddha gave us a way to know about the world, but knowledge can become a trap without wisdom. How do we avoid becoming intelligent fools?
- Why Did the Buddha Warn Against Views?
One of the most counterintuitive and powerful aspects of early Buddhist thought is the practice of not clinging to views and opinions. What does this really mean? And why is clinging to views and opinions so dangerous?
- Practicing Buddhist Right View: Beginning at the Deep End
What is Right View in early Buddhism, and how can we practice it in line with the Eightfold Path? We'll consider various aspects of both mundane and supramundane right view, and how we can practice with them.
- Is there a "Buddhist Bible"? Key Buddhist Texts
Is there a "Buddhist Bible"? We'll consider some key Buddhist texts, by analogy with the Old and New Testaments. What are they, and how do they relate to one another? NB: This is not intended to be an exhaustive list — I only barely…
- Unveiling "Skillful Means" in Buddhism: Early Developments
What is "skillful means" in Buddhism, particularly in early Buddhism? We'll look at its usage in the early texts, in particular in one odd text where it seems the Buddha recommends a practice of sense desire, and then turn to its more…
- Did the Buddha Only Teach Suffering and Its Cessation?
It's often understood that the Buddha claimed only to teach about suffering (dukkha) and its cessation. But is this really so? We'll consider a recent paper by scholar and translator Bhikkhu Bodhi, and how to better understand the…
- Is Pleasure the Way to the Good Life? (Epicurus, JS Mill, and the Buddha)
A little comparison today: we'll look at two philosophers from the European tradition, Epicurus and JS Mill, and their idea that ethics and the good life stemmed from a life of maximal pleasure and minimal pain. We'll also compare these…
- "Buddha Before Buddhism": Considering Gil Fronsdal's Title and Translation
In this video we'll take a look at the idea of finding a "Buddha Before Buddhism," an idea suggested by a recent translation of the Chapter of the Eights (Aṭṭhakavagga) by Gil Fronsdal. I'll talk a bit about his book, then we'll turn to…
- The Buddha on "Magic"
The Buddha had a nuanced view on magic and the supernatural. We'll look at one crucial aspect of that view, corresponding to what we might term "conversion magic" or magical means used to convince and convert. Recorded before our house…
- What Does "Tathagata" Mean?
The Buddha often referred to himself as "the Tathāgata". But what does that epithet mean, and where does it come from? I'll look at some scholarly opinions, and then turn to the interesting history of the term. Recorded before our house…
- What if there Were a Permanent Self? The Three Pointed Emptiness in Early Buddhism
What if there were something permanent and unchanging we could possess? Are there conceptions of a self, or beliefs that we should look to as permanent sources of happiness? We'll look at an early discourse of the Buddha that answers…
- The Parable of the Raft in Early Buddhism: Right View and Non-clinging
The parable of the raft is one of the most famous early Buddhist parables. We'll look at it in context in this video, illustrating its place in a particularly profound early sutta.
- Did the Buddha Teach No Self?
Did the Buddha teach that there was literally no self? We'll look at that question and see what the Buddha had to say about the claim that there was absolutely no self. We'll also look at his broader picture of the self.
- The Buddha's Advice for Working With the Eight Worldly Conditions
Gain and loss, fame and infamy, praise and blame, pleasure and pain: they orient our lives. How should we work with these conditions most skillfully? We will look at what the Buddha had to say.
- The Preeminence of Dharma Among the Buddhist Refuges or Jewels
Many of us will be familiar with the three refuges or three jewels of Buddha, dharma, and sangha. But how do they interrelate? We will look at a number of early suttas that indicate the Buddha's approach to them, and that suggest the…
- Change is Bigger Than You Realize!
Understanding change is difficult, it's more difficult than we may think. Often we consider change to be too obvious to be important. But really change is the deepest insight in Buddhism, and knowing change is central to practice.
- Buddhism Dealing with Negativity
How does Buddhism help us to deal with negativity? Negativity can be a real drain on our energy and efforts. We will look at some elements of the early teachings that help us to put negativity in its proper context and learn to escape its…
- "Only This Is True": a Phrase the Buddha Questioned
When does certainty become a problem? Is it always a problem? We'll look at what the Buddha had to say about some people who expressed certainty and the extent to which the Buddha himself did so.
- Buddhist Right Speech and Promoting Social Justice
The Buddhist ideal of right speech counsels us to avoid harsh or divisive speech, but sometimes when pursuing social justice we may need to speak out. We will also look at the related topic of so-called "tone policing" online and how it…
- Can Bad Thoughts Be Good For You?
Can unskillful emotions and mental states become skillful in practice? We will look at a few interesting texts from the early Buddhist tradition that highlight ways that some unskillful states are always so while others can become useful…
- What is Authentic Buddhism?
What is authentic Buddhism? We'll take a look at that question from the point of view of the early texts. We'll see that they present us with two different ways we might approach the question.
- Real Buddha Quotes!
Are you looking for Buddha quotes? Then this is the video for you! I'll have ten pithy and interesting quotes from the canonical words of the Buddha. For all you nitpickers out there, yes I'm also one of you. There is no way to know…
- What's Up With Buddhist Celibacy?
This Q&A episode will tackle a few viewers' questions including one about celibacy in monastic Buddhist practice. We'll also consider questions about a regular exercise routine and how Buddhism might help with mild depression.
- The Buddha on Self and Non-Self
The Buddha's teachings on the self and on non-self are some of his most subtle, interesting, and unique. We'll take a look at them in this video. We'll also compare the Buddha's view of the self with that of western philosophers David…
- One Way the Dharma Can Bite Us
If we misuse the dharma it can come back to bite us: this is the upshot of one famous sutta. We will look at this sutta and consider some of its implications for our approach to the Buddha's teachings both online and in person.
- Why Read Early Buddhist Texts?
Why and how should we read the early Buddhist texts? We'll go through three reasons to read them, and outline three strategies to use when approaching them.