Enlightenment/awakening

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…

How do you know whether you are enlightened? On the one hand, grasping for attainments can block our progress along the Path. But on the other hand, many of us have a legitimate curiosity about what enlightenment might be like. The early…

How can we know who's really enlightened? It's not a simple question. We'll take a look at various early suttas that show even back in the Buddha's day it was not considered at all straightforward, but rather required a lot of time and…

We'll look at the traditional notion of "stream-entry" in early Buddhism, as well as one scholar's historical reconstruction of how the concept might have developed. Then we'll turn to some practical relevancies of stream-entry to us…

What makes us "truly spiritually inclined"? One aspect may be "nibbidā", a Pāli word with a number of interpretations. We'll consider those interpretations, and how becoming disenchanted is key to true spirituality.

Is Enlightenment possible in Buddhism or other similar paths? I'll first consider what enlightenment is, then turn to what it would mean to attain it. Finally I'll look at what kind of evidence we have about its attainment.

What is Buddhist enlightenment or awakening? I'll look at three early suttas for indications of different pictures of the knowledge and results gained through enlightenment. Then I'll turn to how the picture of such knowledge and results…

Right Effort in Buddhist practice has four aspects. The third aspect is known as "development". What is this effort to develop, and how can we practice with it?

One of the most well-known images of the Buddha shows him touching the earth at the time of his enlightenment. Yet no mention is made of such a gesture in the early texts. Where, when, and why did it arise?

What is Buddhism's end goal, and what then happens to humanity?

What's the difference between nirvana and enlightenment? I'll discuss both in this video.

A recent article claims researchers have created an artificially intelligent Buddha app for your smartphone. We'll consider what this means, and turn to the deeper question. Is an enlightened AI a possibility? If so, how? (Note: this…

The Buddha believed that teachers should not be followed on faith, but rather that they required investigation. I'll look at one key sutta where the Buddha outlines such an investigation, and discuss how it can be overinterpreted. What…

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…

What is the first jhana of early Buddhism? We'll look first at the idea of jhana and its role in the Buddha's search for enlightenment. Then we'll turn to the definition of the first jhana, what its various terms might mean, and finally…

The topic of Buddhist enlightenment fascinates many of us, but it can also get in the way of our practice. I'll discuss that in this video, and also what really matters most.

Is it possible to reach enlightenment with a few words? This is what we find in the story of the Buddha's enigmatic instructions to the wanderer Bāhiya. We'll look at those instructions and then turn elsewhere in the early canon to find…

Several years ago the eminent scholar and professor Richard Gombrich put forward a controversial thesis: that the Buddha believed practicing kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity could lead us directly to enlightenment. We…

There is a controversy over the meaning of "Buddha": two of the leading monastic scholars and translators don't agree. A few weeks ago I posted a video on Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi's idea that "enlightenment" translates "bodhi" and "the…

How do we find good fortune in our daily lives? I've written a book on answers from early Buddhism, which is just out! I'll discuss the origins of the book in a retreat by scholar and translator Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi: his kindness has made…

We'll take a look at a recent article by scholar and translator Bhikkhu Bodhi on the meaning of "Buddha" and his related realization. Some recent scholars have argued that it should be termed "awakening" and Buddha should therefore be…

Aṅgulimāla was a mass-murdering brigand who was converted by the Buddha into a monk, and who eventually became enlightened. We'll look at the most famous elements of his story and why they are important from an early Buddhist point of…

Who was the Buddha? In this introduction to his life, we will look at how he got started, and at his struggle to attain enlightenment. Then we'll turn to his personality and major accomplishments during his mature teaching career.

The Buddha's chief disciple was a man named Sāriputta. We'll look at his life and influence in this video. First we will look at where his main motivation seems to have lain, by looking in detail at how he encountered the Buddha dharma…

Do we need to have achieved the jhānas -- four deep states of meditative absorption -- in order to become enlightened? We'll look at some early texts for clues as to what the Buddha might have thought about this complex and controversial…

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…

What's the difference between the Buddha and other awakened beings? We'll look at answers to that question from the early texts. In particular we'll focus on one early sutta where the Buddha responds to that very question!

Was the Buddha omniscient? We will look at the attainment of nirvana or awakening and its overcoming of ignorance. We will also look at some evidence from the early suttas that the Buddha was not considered omniscient in his day. We will…

Is Buddhist enlightenment or awakening possible? Sometimes it seems as though it is extremely distant from us. We will consider the possibility of getting a glimpse of awakening, or having a partial awakening, focusing on one early text…

What are the seven Factors of Awakening in early Buddhism? We will look at their importance to the path, and grapple with a couple of different ways they can be understood.

In early Buddhism we find four stages through which we progress in our journey to awakening. We will discuss each of the four and look at one recent scholarly history that may uncover how these stages developed. We will then consider how…

One question we may have is whether the achievement of awakening -- or even that of being a Buddha -- means we no longer experience pain. We'll consider that question, with an emphasis on what the early texts say about what the awakened…

King Aśoka was arguably Buddhism's most important political convert. We'll look at how his edicts were modern, enlightened, and inclusive, bringing to fruition a Buddhist approach to society and politics.

We all want to make the world a better place, but doing so can be at times difficult, frustrating, even stressful. Rather than turning towards cynicism, why not start making the world a better place by working with yourself?

Nirvana or the awakened state is often said to be indescribable, and typically understood as permanent. We'll consider both of these claims, and look at a neat thought experiment by philosopher Frank Jackson along the way.

Fourth and last of the foundations of mindfulness is Mindfulness of Dharmas. In this second half of our introduction, we will continue going through the practices involved in this foundation. In particular we will go through mindfulness…

Recently the renowned translator and activist Bhikkhu Bodhi gave a daylong event on Buddhism and climate change. Today's video summarizes his concerns and diagnoses, and looks at some aspects of Buddhist practice that can help us in our…

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.

Mindfulness meditation is increasingly popular nowadays, but its roots go back to early Buddhist texts associated with the seventh stage along the Eightfold Path. We will delve a little into these texts and attempt to flesh out the key…

What might the Buddha have thought about secular approaches to Buddhism? We will take a look at arguments found in a couple of early texts, the Apaṇṇaka and Sandaka Suttas, as jumping-off points. Our trip will take us through perhaps the…

Philosophies and religions the world over have key texts outlining their founders' beliefs and aims. What are Buddhism's key texts?

The word "enlightenment" is used to describe a period of history in Europe, and a state of mind in Buddhism. What do these really mean, and do they share any important similarities?

Here we'll discuss what "awakening" ("bodhi") meant in an early Buddhist context. "Buddha" basically means "awakened" rather than "enlightened" so this is a key concept to get our minds around. This is my fifth YouTube video so it's still…

Lots of folks ask me for recommendations of good books on early Buddhism. I have a bunch of good ones here. This is my fourth YouTube video, so it's a bit rougher than some of the later ones. Apologies and thanks for watching!

Here we'll look at what the Buddha had to say about politics and society. He had a very interesting approach and some unique insights to provide! This is my third YouTube video, so it's a bit rougher than some of the later ones. Apologies!