Letting go

The Buddha identified three ways we cling to a sense of identity over time. We'll look at all three in the light of one early commentarial interpretation linking each one to a different mental defilement. Then we'll consider how we can…

Renunciation practice is often overlooked in contemporary Buddhism, but it's central to the Eightfold Path. What is it, and how can we navigate it skillfully, in particular as laypeople living ordinary lives?

We crave attachment, and yet attachment brings suffering. The way out is through a practice of letting go. After describing the phenomenon of attachment, we'll discuss some practices of letting go as well as some of their benefits.

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…

What does artificial intelligence have to tell us about the central Buddhist teaching of non-self? We'll delve into some of the recent advances in AI, focusing in particular on the chat programs ChatGPT (GPT-3 -- recorded before the…

The practice of non-attachment to all things is at the heart of Buddhism. How can we work with such a practice though when it comes to those closest to us: our friends and family? We will consider this problem and how in fact a…

Non-attachment is at the heart of Buddhist practice. How is it different from mental "detachment"? We will look at what non-attachment means in early Buddhism and how it differs from detachment.

Is our task to learn to accept the world as it is, or rather to escape from it somehow? We will look at ways that both approaches are found in Buddhism, and how they can be reconciled.

What is a minimalist lifestyle? How does it relate to the teachings we find in early Buddhism? We'll look at both those questions.

How much control do we really have? We'll look at some aspects of control that are real and useful, then we'll turn to some deeper aspects of control that the Buddha argued we need to overcome and let go of in order to live better lives.

We'll look at aspects of the Buddhist idea of nonattachment in this video, asking what it means and how we might go about practicing it. We will also look at the "near enemy" of nonattachment, something that should not be confused with it.