- 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…
- The Karmic Gym: Why Kindness to AI Matters (Even if it Can’t Feel)
If AI might or might not be sentient, how should we treat it? In this companion video to "AI and the Vagueness of Sentience," I propose "strategic compassion": treating AI systems with kindness and moral consideration regardless of…
- Heart of Early Buddhist Practice: the Sangha or an Island?
On the one hand the Buddha recommended the sangha as a vital place of practice, one of the three jewels. On the other hand, at the end of his life the Buddha recommended we take refuge in ourselves and the dharma, and in nothing else. Can…
- Buddhism and the AI "Alignment Problem"
Can Buddhist dharma help align AI values with our own? I'll explain how Buddhism provides a model of ethical wisdom training, and why knowledge of it might be helpful to AI researchers.
- Buddha on Organized Religion
Why did the Buddha's teachings become an organized religion? Was it a good thing that they did? I'll consider what an organized religion is, some of its drawbacks and benefits, and then turn to an account from the early suttas of what the…
- The Buddha on Food and Eating
What did the Buddha have to say about food and eating? I'll discuss his one important teaching on the matter, as well as look at some controversies on the topic with his monastics. Then I'll turn to some advice he had for a prominent…
- Coming Back is Part of Practice
We live stressful lives and often our practice takes a back seat. We may feel there's some "magic pill" out there that will make life better, or we may simply let it all lapse. We'll discuss that all, and see why coming back is a central…
- Sudden and Gradual Awakening
The goal of Buddhist practice is to achieve awakening or nirvana. But it seems there are different approaches to awakening, and maybe even different kinds of awakening: sudden and gradual. We will look at early Buddhism and Zen in…
- Authenticity: Good and Bad
Many of us feel that being authentic is a life goal. We will look at that claim, and with the help of a recent article, compare the goal of authenticity with another more plainly ethical goal. We will ask if there may be a potential…