Self/identity

We can be relentlessly self-critical, to the point of anxiety. Early Buddhism gives us insight into how best to understand and work with this negativity, helping us to tone down our inner critic.

Our sense of self is a brilliantly constructed illusion. We'll take a peek behind the curtain at how it all comes together.

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…

Derek Parfit was one of the greatest philosophers of recent decades, and yet most people have never heard of him. His remarkable views on personal identity explicitly followed those of the Buddha. I'll look at Parfit's life as well as…

A question from one of my viewers. In addition to the fraught question of "no self" in early Buddhism, I'll consider some of the pros and cons of self-love (or of what passes for it, at any rate). We'll look at a couple of early suttas…

In his many discourses on cultivating lovingkindness, the Buddha doesn't touch on any practices directed at self-love. Why might this be? We will look at an early sutta for clues.

Is it really necessary to become Buddhist if we agree with the Buddhist dharma and want to practice? We will look at the Western (and Vedic) notion of religious identity and belonging before turning to the example of early Buddhism. How…

We'll look at a story from the early tradition that illustrates our innate tendency to self-love, and how this tendency can be turned to more outward compassion for others.

I did an earlier video where I discussed some of the pitfalls of searching for authenticity in our daily lives. One alternative to a direction of authenticity is to pursue a practice of "faking it until you make it". But is this a good…

The unconscious plays a key role in recent theories of psychology. Does it have any counterpart in Buddhism? Well ... sort of. We will look at the suttas of early Buddhism in particular, at one way we may be able to recover some ideas…

We construct our own identities throughout our lives. While these constructs can be useful and healthy at times, often they are not, and in the longer term they can get in our own way. Using a Buddhist understanding of the person we will…

Theravāda Buddhism can be seen both as very old and very new. We'll go over the ways Theravāda has roots in the earliest forms of Buddhism, as well as the way it may be a very recent form of religious identity. This is a huge topic and so…

One way we create our identity is with our clothes. Here we’ll discuss robes that traditional monastics use, and consider how they differ from the clothing that the rest of us use. We’ll also consider ways that we can make contemplation…

We structure our lives through our stories, but in what ways can they lead us astray? We'll look at how story is important using some comments by YouTube filmmaker Casey Neistat. Then we'll look at the story of the Buddha, and the stories…