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Come Vibe with Venerables, and Engage with Buddhist Elders Friends, We are very lucky to have great Buddhist masters and Venerables in the world. Their deep practice inspires ours. Sadly though, it is not always easy for us to meet with them. Good news: our team at?Buddhism.net?is thrilled to introduce the?Vibe with Venerables?series where each week,?we get to talk “live” to a Buddhist master together. Here is the idea: ? Live, interactive, and open to all.?We will meet online and learn together, “live”, with a Venerable. The Venerable can choose to pre-record the talk, but the Q&A will always be “live”—because real dialogue is where wisdom deepens. ? Exposure to different Venerables.?We will be inviting different Venerable teachers from all three major schools of Buddhism to lead the Dharma & dialogue sessions with us. ? One hour.?We begin with a?roughly?30-minute Dharma talk?by a Venerable monastic, followed by?30 minutes of “live” Q&A, where attendees can ask questions and engage directly with the speaker. ? Cadence.?We plan for a weekly cadence of the live Dharma & dialogue, with a specific Venerable. Then, we might break for a little bit, and another Venerable will be invited to lead the next few sessions. ? Consistent and structured.?We commit to a fixed day and time each week for the same Venerable, starting with a 2-4 week series per Venerable. When another Venerable comes on, the time and date of the week may change. ? 100% donation-based.?You are welcome to attend completely free. All donations go?entirely?to the Venerable’s organization in the spirit of dāna, the practice of cultivating generosity. Why This Matters The Buddha named good spiritual friendship (kalyā?a mittatā), which includes having both good spiritual friends and good spiritual teachers, as “the first vital condition for the development of the factors of enlightenment.” [Ref: A?guttara Nikāya 9.1] We hope that in addition to learning Dharma, this series will also help you gain the good spiritual friendship necessary for your eventual enlightenment. Join Us Show up. Ask questions. Support the Venerables who so generously share their time and wisdom. We can’t wait to meet you online. More details coming soon.?Subscribe to our mailing list, so you won’t miss the announcements. https://lnkd.in/g2kPdiK9 With metta, Meng ??

Breaking the Causal Chain of Suffering Free Audiobook Excerpt: https://lnkd.in/gvMyHp5U "In the case of ending ignorance and suffering, the most powerful access point is craving. Craving is something you can take direct action on and, as we stated in the previous post, once you weaken craving, you directly weaken the five hindrances, which then directly weakens ignorance, which in turn further weakens craving. You then ride that virtuous cycle until ignorance is destroyed, and then suffering ends. Soryu explains it in a complementary way: as you reduce craving more and more, you eventually reach a point where there is not enough craving to sustain ignorance. When that happens, ignorance breaks enough for you to clearly see that craving causes suffering. That motivates you to reduce craving even more. Eventually, with the complete elimination of craving, there is also the complete elimination of ignorance and the end of suffering. What is the Buddha’s teaching on ending suffering by breaking craving? That is right, it is the Four Noble Truths! In that sense, the Four Noble Truths can be seen as one derivative of dependent origination, albeit the most concise, most understandable, most practicable and most powerful one, which is why the Buddha emphasized it so much and so often. This insight answers a question that vexes almost every sincere Buddhist student I know. See, in the Four Noble Truths, the Buddha teaches that craving causes suffering but in dependent origination, he teaches that ignorance causes suffering. Which is it? Dammit, which is it? Once you understand the intimate, co-dependent relationship between craving and ignorance, you can clearly see for yourself that the answer is: both." Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gH5wzCqa #DependentOrigination #BreakingTheChain #FreedomFromSuffering #BuddhismForAll #Mindfulness

Breaking the Causal Chain of Suffering Excerpt: "In the case of ending ignorance and suffering, the most powerful access point is craving. Craving is something you can take direct action on and, as we stated in the previous post, once you weaken craving, you directly weaken the five hindrances, which then directly weakens ignorance, which in turn further weakens craving. You then ride that virtuous cycle until ignorance is destroyed, and then suffering ends. Soryu explains it in a complementary way: as you reduce craving more and more, you eventually reach a point where there is not enough craving to sustain ignorance. When that happens, ignorance breaks enough for you to clearly see that craving causes suffering. That motivates you to reduce craving even more. Eventually, with the complete elimination of craving, there is also the complete elimination of ignorance and the end of suffering. What is the Buddha’s teaching on ending suffering by breaking craving? That is right, it is the Four Noble Truths! In that sense, the Four Noble Truths can be seen as one derivative of dependent origination, albeit the most concise, most understandable, most practicable and most powerful one, which is why the Buddha emphasized it so much and so often. This insight answers a question that vexes almost every sincere Buddhist student I know. See, in the Four Noble Truths, the Buddha teaches that craving causes suffering but in dependent origination, he teaches that ignorance causes suffering. Which is it? Dammit, which is it? Once you understand the intimate, co-dependent relationship between craving and ignorance, you can clearly see for yourself that the answer is: both." Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gH5wzCqa #DependentOrigination #BreakingTheChain #FreedomFromSuffering #BuddhismForAll #Mindfulness

Mundane Right View Free Audiobook excerpt: https://lnkd.in/gPwQcgka "The Buddha defines mundane right view as: There is what is given and what is offered and what is sacrificed; there is fruit and result of good and bad actions; there is this world and the other world; there is mother and father; there are beings who are reborn spontaneously; there are in the world good and virtuous recluses and brahmins who have realized for themselves by direct knowledge and declare this world and the other world. This definition says three things: 1. Actions have consequences, especially ethical ones, including across lifetimes. 2. There is still a mundane world, so do not use Buddhism to deny the mundane world even as you work towards transcending it. 3. There is a path, and there are wise and virtuous teachers you can learn from." Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gjexGJ4Z #RightView #Karma #NobleEightfoldPath #BuddhismForAll #EthicalLiving

Mundane Right View Excerpt: "The Buddha defines mundane right view as: There is what is given and what is offered and what is sacrificed; there is fruit and result of good and bad actions; there is this world and the other world; there is mother and father; there are beings who are reborn spontaneously; there are in the world good and virtuous recluses and brahmins who have realized for themselves by direct knowledge and declare this world and the other world. This definition says three things: 1. Actions have consequences, especially ethical ones, including across lifetimes. 2. There is still a mundane world, so do not use Buddhism to deny the mundane world even as you work towards transcending it. 3. There is a path, and there are wise and virtuous teachers you can learn from." Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gjexGJ4Z #RightView #Karma #NobleEightfoldPath #BuddhismForAll #EthicalLiving

Have you ever wondered who is behind the deep, beautiful voice, narrating the part of the Buddha in the audiobook of Buddhism For All? We asked Ajahn Sona, Abbot of Birken Forest Monastery in Canada if he would voice the Buddha in our Audiobook Buddhism For All, and he very graciously agreed. We are very grateful! We hope you will greatly benefit from this Audiobook and our print book, Buddhism For All! Ajahn Sona is a first-wave Western Theravada ordained monk and the Abbot of Birken Forest Buddhist Monastery (‘Birken’). After several years of practice as a lay hermit, the young Bhikkhu Sona took full monastic ordination in 1989 with Bhante Henepola Gunaratana Mahathera at the Bhavana Society in the United States. He later trained at Ajahn Chah’s monasteries in northeastern Thailand for several years before returning to Canada in 1994. Ajahn Sona now draws on both the Sri Lankan and Thai scholastic and meditative traditions in his teachings, in addition to his modern western sensibilities. His pre-monastic education in philosophy, humanities, and classical Western music have aided him in understanding the Western psyche and in establishing paradigm bridges between East and West. Here, Ajahn Sona has recorded a lovely video message to share his involvement in the Buddhism For All Audiobook Project. Thank you Ajahn Sona! We hope all of you will greatly benefit from this audiobook and our book, Buddhism For All! https://lnkd.in/dxq-sn_U

Free Audiobook excerpt: https://lnkd.in/gZQ_znFV Aspects of Nirvana "First, it’s useful to know the literal meaning of the word nirvana. Nirvana literally means “going out”, as in the extinguishing of a flame, so in that sense, nirvana means “extinguishing”. But what is extinguished in nirvana? The most obvious thing that is extinguished, of course, is craving. Indeed, the Buddha equates nirvana with the “ending of craving”. Nirvana is also the extinguishing of greed, hatred and delusion (the original Pali words almost rhyme: lobha, dosa, moha), commonly known as the three poisons. In relation to craving: greed relates to the grasping aspect of craving, hatred relates to the aversion aspect of craving, and delusion is a necessary condition for the arising of craving, so the extinguishing of delusion guarantees the extinguishing of craving both now and in the future. The three poisons are also known as the three fires." Read more here: https://lnkd.in/g4GXqdPg #Nirvana #FreedomFromSuffering #BuddhismForAll #LettingGo #ThePathToPeace

Aspects of Nirvana "First, it’s useful to know the literal meaning of the word nirvana. Nirvana literally means “going out”, as in the extinguishing of a flame, so in that sense, nirvana means “extinguishing”. But what is extinguished in nirvana? The most obvious thing that is extinguished, of course, is craving. Indeed, the Buddha equates nirvana with the “ending of craving”. Nirvana is also the extinguishing of greed, hatred and delusion (the original Pali words almost rhyme: lobha, dosa, moha), commonly known as the three poisons. In relation to craving: greed relates to the grasping aspect of craving, hatred relates to the aversion aspect of craving, and delusion is a necessary condition for the arising of craving, so the extinguishing of delusion guarantees the extinguishing of craving both now and in the future. The three poisons are also known as the three fires." Read more here: https://lnkd.in/g4GXqdPg #Nirvana #FreedomFromSuffering #BuddhismForAll #LettingGo #ThePathToPeace

Not Mine, Not I, Not My Self Free Audio: https://lnkd.in/gBWMN4pa Excerpt: "In the famous Discourse on A Lump of Foam, the Buddha compares bodily form to a lump of foam floating on the river: it appears substantial at first, but when properly inspected, one would find it to be “void, hollow, insubstantial.” ... Sensation is compared to water bubbles: they look real, but they form and disappear very quickly. ... Perception is compared to a mirage, it looks real, but it is nothing more than a projection." ... The analogy for volitional formations is extra interesting...: that a banana tree does not actually have a trunk. ... thoughts and emotions may seem real, but when investigated closely, they turn out merely to be creations of mind: insubstantial and often not particularly useful. Finally, ... the Buddha compared consciousness to a magician’s illusion. Everything a magician does looks so real. It looks like he really made a ball disappear and then reappear somewhere else. It looks like he really cut a woman into two, and then put her back together. But they are all just deceptive illusions. Similarly, consciousness appears substantial, but when it’s investigated, nothing is found that has any substance." Read More Here: https://lnkd.in/g6DsugfV

Not Mine, Not I, Not My Self Excerpt: "In the famous Discourse on A Lump of Foam, the Buddha compares bodily form to a lump of foam floating on the river: it appears substantial at first, but when properly inspected, one would find it to be “void, hollow, insubstantial.” ... Sensation is compared to water bubbles: they look real, but they form and disappear very quickly. ... Perception is compared to a mirage, it looks real, but it is nothing more than a projection." ... The analogy for volitional formations is extra interesting...: that a banana tree does not actually have a trunk. ... thoughts and emotions may seem real, but when investigated closely, they turn out merely to be creations of mind: insubstantial and often not particularly useful. Finally, ... the Buddha compared consciousness to a magician’s illusion. Everything a magician does looks so real. It looks like he really made a ball disappear and then reappear somewhere else. It looks like he really cut a woman into two, and then put her back together. But they are all just deceptive illusions. Similarly, consciousness appears substantial, but when it’s investigated, nothing is found that has any substance." Read more here: https://lnkd.in/g6DsugfV #NoSelf #Impermanence #BuddhismForAll #LettingGo #WisdomPath