In 1775, during the process of collecting books for the Sìkù qúanshū (四庫全書) project, an empire-wide literary inquisition was imposed on the deceased monk Jīnshì Dánguī (今釋澹歸) (1614–80).

The Qianlong Emperor and his officials went to extraordinary lengths to posthumously prosecute a Ming-official-turned-monk for his unflattering writings about the early Qing, showing the limits of monastic withdrawal and the importance of historical memory.

[In Taiwan,] two Humanistic Buddhist groups have influenced the majority of Buddhists on the island to adopt important aspects of sustainable lifestyles. This multi-sited ethnographic study uses participant observation with formal and informal interviews to research these two groups—the Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation and Dharma Drum Mountain—in the two different social contexts of Taiwan and California.

A comparative analysis of the results finds that the believers’ adoption of pro-environmental lifestyle changes is strongly influenced by their membership in a strong moral community, by sensing the material and social, or “terrestrial,” strain of environmental degradation coupled with a feeling that the government and other official institutions are not doing enough, and by integrated religious teachings, which include theory and praxis, from authoritative figures who model the desired behaviors. Moreover, this study shows the power of the sacred to inspire behavioral change, which, in the context of Buddhism, is cultivation of the bodhisattva ethic

Theravada as practiced by most converts in the West is distinguished by the absence of monasticism, its dominant institution. Nevertheless, Thai Forest monasticism has managed to gain a foothold in the convert West, thanks to the efforts of convert monastics trained in Thailand. This article analyzes the missionary project to “monasticize” Western lay converts through the history of Birken Forest Monastery in British Columbia, Canada, founded in 1994.

To establish a monastery in Birken’s isolated, non-Buddhist environs, the abbot, Ajahn Sona in effect created a lay village to attract converts to and to teach them their role in orthodox Thai Forest monasticism. The all-consuming nature of the monasticization project among laypeople has cut short the training of a homegrown Sangha at Birken, demonstrating the challenges of establishing a domestic convert monasticism and the continuing dominance of the laity in North American Theravada.

Even the remote mountain monasteries have broadened their access to lay visitors. Nowadays monastic and lay Buddhists have more occasions to meet than before and the current intensification of their relationships brings important redefinitions of their respective identities.

I focus on a one-week retreat for laity in a Buddhist monastery dedicated to meditation. This case study examines the ambiguous goal of this retreat programme that combined two aims: initiating lay practitioners to the monastic lifestyle and the practice of kanhwa son meditation; and establishing a group of lay supporters affiliated to the temple. This temporary monastic experience was directed towards an intense socialisation of the participants to the norms and values of an ascetic lifestyle, blurring some aspects of the border between lay and monastic practices of Buddhism. However, this paper suggests that this transitory rapprochement contributed to both challenge and strengthen the distinction between the renouncers (ch’ulga) and the householders (chaega).

This is the first important function of Sangha: it carries and conveys the many components of the Buddhist tradition that can’t be shared through writing.

A talk on the importance and benefits of practicing in community.

They arouse faith in things that are dubious, and they don’t arouse faith in things that are inspiring. When a foolish, incompetent untrue person has these four qualities they keep themselves broken and damaged.

After reflection, you should criticize those worthy or criticism, and praise those worthy of praise.

It’s the same vows, but the volume is turned up, if I may say so.

An anthropologist and Buddhist practitioner discusses her field work at the meditation center of Lapchi in Kham ཁམས (Yushu ཡུལ་ཤུལ་ Prefecture, Qinghai 青海). She discusses how the strict ascetic practices of Master Tsultrim Tarchen are inspiring a new generation of Tibetan Buddhists, touching on the role of charisma in perpetuating the Dharma and on the paradoxically social nature of renunciation.

When you live with good friends, good companions, and good associates, you should live supported by one thing: diligence in wholesome qualities.

When a mendicant has faith, approaches, pays homage, asks questions, actively listens to the teachings, remembers the teachings, reflects on the meaning, and practices accordingly, the Realized One feels inspired to teach [them].

How we should approach the Dhamma and Dhamma teachers.

This article first examines three interrelated aspects of Korean monastics: (1) the stigmatization imposed on monastics during the Neo-Confucian Joseon dynasty, (2) the persistence of these stigmas in the minds of Koreans, and (3) their internalization among Korean monastics themselves. The article then draws out the impact of these three aspects on the late and limited emergence of lay leadership.

Generally, even if we are attached to our own tradition, it is important that we have no antipathy towards other traditions.

A humorous, but insightful, analysis of Tibetan Buddhism’s four schools.

Those bhikkhus who are accomplished in virtue, accomplished in concentration, accomplished in wisdom, accomplished in liberation, accomplished in the knowledge and vision of liberation: even the sight of those bhikkhus is helpful

A description of the path, from hearing the good teachings up to enlightenment explained via the seven awakening factors.

Since in the teachings of Shin Buddhism Obon itself is nothing special but provides one of the opportunities for listening to the Buddha Dharma, there is no reason to do something special for it. In traditions other than Shin Buddhism, however, Obon is a special, fancier and more serious event for people to welcome their ancestors back home.

A short and humorous explanation of the Japanese tradition of Obon.

In Ulan-Ude, the multi-ethnic, multi-religious capital of Buryatia, most laypeople make use of “Buddhist counseling” (Rus. priyom u lamy ), or various ritual, medical and other services that ameliorate illness and misfortune. Laypeople consult lamas about a range of issues from economic to familial matters, from imp attacks to joblessness. Such Buddhist counseling is one of the most common kind of interactions with Buddhist institutions and practices in Buryatia. At the same time, it is a deeply contested practice, as local critiques refer to the rise of “consumerist”, “commercialized”, “utilitarian” or “bad” Buddhism.

Focusing on public hearings held in 2006 in which temple wives (jizoku) aired their grievances, the article examines the unique challenges that Japanese Zen must confront since the Meiji Reforms eliminated celibacy from the priesthood.

The charismatic and idiosyncratic Ajaan Man and his widely revered forest-dwelling disciples remained on the rim of the establishment for much of their lives — yet constituted the mystical core of orthodoxy

This book provides an analysis of the political and historical context in which the modern Thai Forest Tradition arose.

Someone who experiences a kaicho as a child will have attained full status as an adult by the time of the next kaicho, and will have become an elder member of the community by the time of the one after that. […] The emotional significance of this time frame is not immediately obvious, but becomes clear through conversations with residents of Yokkamachi…

Reverends, what is the vital condition for the development of the awakening factors?

A mendicant grounded on these five things should develop four further things.

How spiritual friendship forms the foundation of the holy life.

This critique, most commonly expressed as criticism of “rich” temples and monks, juxtaposes an idealised Buddhist monastery against the increasing influence of political groups and [wealthy] individuals within local wats.

The heart’s wish of one who is virtuous succeeds because of his purity.

When giving with a certain wish in mind, you can get it.

This sutta provides a canonical basis for the ubiquitous Buddhist practice of “dedicating the merit” of an offering.

Samādhi, in all its glory is Samudaya.

Luang Dta Maha Boowa talks at the funeral for Ajahn Paññā about the importance of good teachers to keep us straight on the path.

This is the practice. I ask that all of you practise. Don’t ignore your heart, alright? Don’t let the Kilesa walk all over it.

Nature is understood as a process of life, of which human beings are an immanent part. Returning to nature and remembering that we are nature is essential for health and wellbeing.

Mendicants, there are these five drawbacks of placing faith in an individual.

friends and colleagues, relatives and family should be encouraged, supported, and established in three things.

Only simple living can bring real satisfaction.

This is the difference between a Realized One, a perfected one, a fully awakened Buddha, and a mendicant freed by wisdom.

The Buddha declares that a mendicant is freed by wisdom by non-attachment to the aggregates, in just the same way as he himself. He then explains that the difference between himself and another awakened mendicant is simply that he was the first to discover the path and teach it to others.

Vaḍḍha, do not get caught
in the endless thicket of the world…

What is so dear to you about contemplatives?

The story of Rohinī’s conversion.

There are, bhikkhus, these four qualities that make one an elder. What four?

Mendicants, do you see Sāriputta walking together with several mendicants? … All of those mendicants have great wisdom.

Beings come together because of a common element.

A faithful laywoman with a dear and beloved only son would rightly appeal to him: …

There are ten warm-hearted qualities that make for fondness and respect, conducing to inclusion, harmony, and unity, without quarreling. What ten?

Monks, there are these eight bonanzas of merit, rewards of skillfulness, nourishments of happiness…

Judging by this fish’s approach, by the ripples it makes, and by its force, it’s a big fish, not a little one.

How to assess a person’s ethics, purity, resilience, and wisdom.

If a senior mendicant is unethical, of bad character, this is how they’re ugly, I say. … If you associate with, accompany, and attend to that person, following their example, it’ll be for your lasting harm and suffering. …

A bad mendicant is like hemp: uncomfortable to be in close contact with.

One such as that is
like a sewer
brimful with years of filth
for it’s hard to clean one full of grime.

The Buddha encourages the monks to just expell those who are wicked and stubborn.

You are my children, my sons, born from my mouth, born of the Dhamma…

The Buddha compares himself and his disciples to the Brahmins, and encourages his community to be as open-handed with the Dhamma as he was.

Walking together, dwelling as one,
the knowledge master mixes with foolish folk.

One of the Buddha’s attendants learns to listen to the Buddha’s advice.

What if I were to dwell in dependence on this very Dhamma to which I have fully awakened, honoring & respecting it?

What a Buddha bows to.

Participation in the program predicted increases in subjective well-being and mindfulness over time compared to the control group. Regardless of condition, frequency of meditation predicted lower psychological inflexibility and higher mindfulness, well-being, and progress toward values. Length of meditation session predicted a greater ability to observe experience, and prior meditation experience predicted greater nonreactivity to experience.

Embarrassed the organizers were indeed, even dismayed, when they were showered with fervent thanks from the women participants for organizing such a wonderful spiritual experience…

This article discusses the modern reenactments of the Nunohashi kanjoe (the Cloth-Bridge Consecration [Initiation] rite) in Tateyama-cho, Toyama prefecture, and the religious and political issues they raised. Originally a popular Edo-period rite for women’s salvation, the Nunohashi kanjoe was obsolete for one hundred and thirty years, until it was reconstructed and performed as the main spectacle of the Culture Festival ibento (event) in Tateyama in 1996. A decade later, in 2005, 2006, and 2009, its reenactments were resumed as ceremonies of traditional healing. This paper follows the progression of these attempts at transforming a Buddhist ritual into a modern-day cultural event. It looks at the gap between the politics and purposes behind the reenactments of the rites, and the reactions of the women who participated in them. It further considers general issues illuminated by these reenactments, such as the nature and status of religious experiences, and the relations of religion and state in contemporary Japan.

Being perceived as a good Buddhist woman worked as a powerful form of career capital for the respondents in the sample, who used their faith to combat gender disadvantage in their work settings.

Is this venerable one restrained without fear, not restrained by fear, and does he avoid indulging in sensual pleasures because he is without lust through the destruction of lust?

The Buddha gives a thorough and exacting method for those who wish to investigate his qualifications as a spiritual teacher.

Western Buddhist communities must acquire an entirely different system of communicating – one in which silence occupies a central position.

There is the case where a certain individual doesn’t practice for the subduing of passion within him/herself but encourages others in the subduing of passion

Four kinds of people. See the previous sutta for their relative ranking.

The person who practices to benefit both themselves and others is the foremost…

See the next sutta for how…

Meghiya, when the heart’s release is not ripe, five things help it ripen. What five? Firstly, a mendicant has good friends…

A monk leaves the Buddha to go into solitude, only to find his mind overcome by unskillful thoughts. When he asks the Buddha about this, he gets a heartfelt summary of the entire path.

Surely, venerable sir, we are living in concord, with mutual appreciation, without disputing, blending like milk and water, viewing each other with kindly eyes.

The Buddha comes across three mendicants practicing diligently and harmoniously, and asks them how they do it. They explain how they skillfully deal with the practical affairs of living together. Only when pressed by the Buddha do they reveal their attainments.

Mendicants, a resident mendicant with five qualities shows compassion to the lay people. What five?

For Māra’s stream is breasted now
And nullified, its reeds removed;
Rejoice then, bhikkhus, mightily
And set your hearts where safety lies.

Drawing parallels with a cowherd guiding his herd across a dangerous river, the Buddha presents the various kinds of enlightened disciples who cross the stream of transmigration.

What kind of person does not torment himself, not being interested in self-torture, and does not torment others, not being interested in torturing others?

Contrasting the openness of animals with the duplicity of humans, The Buddha explains how to lead the religious life in a way that is truly admirable.

Bhikkhus, whether for a layperson or one gone forth, I praise the right way.

The wrong eightfold path is the wrong way; the right eightfold path is the right way.

… those who have not long gone forth, who are newcomers in this Dhamma & Vinaya should be encouraged, exhorted, and established in these five things.

See how troubled are those with attachments…

A faithful laywoman with a dear and beloved only daughter would rightly appeal to her, ‘My darling, please be like the laywomen Khujjuttarā and Veḷukaṇṭakī, Nanda’s mother.’

Neither laywomen nor nuns should wish for possessions, honor, or fame.

Bhikkhus, possessing three factors, a shopkeeper soon attains vast and abundant wealth…

And how does a bhikkhu have benefactors?

Shopkeepers and mendicants both have to be clever, responsible, and well supported.

And how does a bhikkhu who has a good friend develop and cultivate the Noble Eightfold Path?

Endowed with these five qualities, a king’s elephant is worthy of a king…

… seeing this danger in association,
fare singly as the rhino’s horn.

If you can’t find a good teacher, it’s better to wander alone than to consort with fools.

But because, Master Gotama, monks, nuns, celibate laymen, laymen enjoying sensual pleasures, celibate laywomen, and laywomen enjoying sensual pleasures have all succeeded in this teaching, this spiritual path is complete in that respect.

Vacchagotta finally lets go of his obsession with meaningless speculation and asks directly about spiritual practice.

Whenever there are arguments and quarrels, tears and anguish, arrogance and pride, and grudges and insults to go with them, can you explain how these things come about?

The Buddha is questioned on the source of quarrels and disputes, and on the highest level of spiritual attainment.

… ascetics and brahmins who are not free of greed, hate, and delusion for sights known by the eye, who are not peaceful inside, and who conduct themselves badly among the good by way of body, speech, and mind. They don’t deserve honor, respect, reverence, and veneration.

In discussion with a group of householders, the Buddha helps them to distinguish those spiritual practitioners who are worthy of respect from those who aren’t.

Some questions to ponder and discuss after watching this video:

• Are there any minority groups that have not historically or still might not feel welcome in your community?
• What norms or behaviors contribute(d) to that?
• Are there any people you’d have a hard time “greeting with a smile” if they showed up at your temple?

Although we have acknowledged the mutually beneficial nature of the archetypal relationships between teacher and meditator, it is certainly the case that this ideal is often not met.

Mendicants, these six things are unsurpassable. What six? The unsurpassable seeing, listening, acquisition, training, service, and recollection.

But none of them compare with the Dhamma.

It is painful to dwell without reverence and deference. Now what ascetic or brahmin can I honor, respect, and dwell in dependence on?

Let me then honor, respect, and dwell in dependence only on this Dhamma to which I have become fully enlightened.

Who should a Buddha revere?

There is a person who is not to be associated with…

You should associate with people who are equal or better than you.

I do not perceive another single factor so helpful as good friendship…

Friendship with admirable people is the prime external factor to help those in training.

… the Saṅgha may, if it wishes, turn the bowl upside down for a lay follower on eight grounds.

The Buddha allowed the monks to protest in a peculiar way which has actually been used, for example by the Burmese.

Aspiring to these three forms of bliss, a wise person should guard his virtue.

You should not cultivate the kind of person who causes unskillful qualities to grow while skillful qualities decline. And you should cultivate the kind of person who causes unskillful qualities to decline while skillful qualities grow.

The Buddha sets up a framework on things to be cultivated or avoided and Venerable Sāriputta elaborates.

There are six proper occasions for going to see an esteemed mendicant…

The right time to visit a monastic is when you need guidance and support.

If they listen to your advice, you should establish them in the four factors of stream-entry.

You should encourage your friends in the Dhamma.

Each year, the local community celebrates the day that Khru Bah Neua Chai Kositto became a monk.

May all these beings have happy minds! Listen closely to my words…

A popular Theravāda chant and a peak into how the Sangha ritually continues the Buddha’s role as “teacher of the devas.”

Where dreadful serpents slither,
where the lightning flashes and the sky thunders
in the dark of the night;
there meditates a mendicant

Brahmā Sahampati appears to the Buddha and speaks in praise of the renunciates staying fearless in the deep forest, and celebrates the many who have found freedom.

Householders and homeless alike,
Each a support for the other

The reciprocal ways in which monks and lay supporters benefit each other.

But Mahākassapa refused those deities…

A deva-king disguises himself to give alms to Ven. Mahā Kassapa.

Dharma principles are manifested in the social construction of norms and beliefs and in the ways macro-level social structures and change are founded on micro-level social interactions embedded in mundane moments

I recollect ninety eons back but I’m not aware of any family that’s been ruined merely by offering some cooked almsfood.

Mahāvīra asks Asibandhakaputta to refute the Buddha on behalf of the Jains. He suggests to try to trap the Buddha with a dilemma: he claims to have compassion for householders, yet visits them with a large Saṅgha in a time of scarcity. But the Buddha claims no family is harmed by this.

The attainment of good states relies on an example: someone to awaken in us a desire to better ourselves.

In Buddhism it’s all about what you do: you can’t just wait for good things to come. We put much more emphasis on doing good than on getting something good.

… there are these five kinds of wealth. What five?

… there is no way a personal offering can be more fruitful than one bestowed on a Saṅgha

When his step-mother Mahāpajāpatī wishes to offer him a robe for his personal use, the Buddha encourages her to offer it to the entire Saṅgha instead. He goes on to explain that the best kind of offering to the Saṅgha is one given to the dual community of monks and nuns.

I offered all those flowers with a happy mind

Following the precepts, leading a restrained life, practicing generosity, and having faith brings much happiness.

But I offered them much more food than you did! Yet, I have been born in a lower heavenly world. Having offered very little, how did you receive more happiness than me?

Devas discuss the importance of thinking about the whole Noble Sangha when giving alms instead of individual monks.

… in three cases one may be understood to have faith and confidence

How to know a faithful person.

… someone with a mind of love…

One way to practice dana is by giving money, and another is by giving time.

We had decided to sell up and establish a forest monastery somewhere in the countryside.

How the first, Thai forest monastery came to be established in England.

… having fulfilled our duty, free of remorse and regret, we were reborn in a superior realm

Some deities come to the Buddha and speak of their practice in their past life and, in so doing, explain the conduct expected of lay people towards monastics.

a knowledge master,
evolved, learned, and unflappable—
can help others to contemplate,
so long as they are prepared to listen carefully.

A good teacher, like a good boatman, is one who knows firsthand how to cross to the further shore.

Each year, Ma collects more and more superstitions

Are we really living according to our ideals?

A talk on overcoming philosophical laziness.

When we think about spiritual formation, I think it’s done best when it’s amplified through a community.

A full-throated defense of teaching children (and adults!) the Dharma as a “first language.”

When we adopt a Buddhist perspective on the wounds that afflict our world today, we soon realize that these wounds are symptomatic: a warning signal that something is fundamentally awry with the way we lead our lives.

You can also listen to this book on Pariyatti’s website.

The point of Metta is not what we feel about a person, at least not in the beginning, but rather what we aspire to

A thorough account of love and relationships from a Buddhist perspective.

I have no problems with doing ‘Otsutome’ at the Hondo of our temple every morning and every evening. Chanting sutras to praise the virtue of Amida Buddha, and reciting the nembutsu to express gratitude for the process of interdependence at the end of Otsutome makes me feel great!

A few memories from a Japanese Shin Priest.

… dwell with yourselves as your own island, with yourselves as your own refuge

For the conclusion, read the very next sutta: SN 47.14.

I shall keep reciting the Way to the Beyond

Perhaps the last sutta of the early Pāli Canon, the Pārāyanānugītigāthā extols the virtues of the Buddha and of those who preserve, and realize, his teachings.

A spiritual community is nothing if it cannot take care of its most vulnerable.

A spirited defense of the anitiya rules of the Bhikkhu Pātimokkha which require monks to take allegations of sexual impropriety seriously: a responsibility many Buddhist monks and leaders today have failed to live up to.

‘I don’t say it’s like this. I don’t say it’s like that. I don’t say it’s otherwise. I don’t say it’s not so. And I don’t deny it’s not so.’
A sensible person reflects on this matter in this way: ‘This teacher is dull and stupid.’

Venerable Ānanda lists eight warning signs to avoid when choosing a spiritual teaching: starting with materialism and ending with a few answers to common questions about the Arahants.

Even if a house is of inferior quality, if decorated with flowers, it will appear to be a bower. It will become the source of a ‘clear mind’

💐

The second day is similar to the first, except that you do not consume even the tiniest amount of food or drink

A ceremony from the Tibetan Tradition, focusing on the recollection of Avalokiteśvara.

… the role of Buddhist temples in providing aid and taking care of survivors in the wake of the disaster, including the indispensable function of Buddhist monks to conduct funerals and other ceremonies, and their vital responsibility for helping the survivors overcome their suffering.

To deal with social dukkha, habitual tendencies rooted in the Three Poisons have to be identified and redressed in the constitutive social, cultural, and political environments too. In other words, Buddhist social theory recognizes that the manifestations of the Three Poisons are as much a matter of institutionalized, normative knowledge-practices as they are private, personal tendencies.

… there are at least three major orientations within Sinhalese religion: 1) Bodh Gaya, commemorating the enlightenment experience; 2) Kataragama, where access to transformative “this-worldly” sacral power is sought; and 3) Kandy, where religion legitimates a people’s cultural and political past and present through civil ceremony

What all three pilgrimages have in common is functional in nature: the need to cope with various manifestations of dukkha

… it may be America’s destiny not to make Buddhism perfect but to make it banal

I allow you, monks, to turn the bowl upside down

How the Burmese saṅgha used the allowance in AN 8.87 to protest injustice.

When you build a spiritual, kind community, wherever you are in this world, that is what we rely on

We are committed to living simply and sharing our time, energy, and material resources with those in need.

… the saṃgha is a collective body of people who wish to live doing only what they love to do—that is, Buddhist practices.

Don’t try to be someone else

Reverend Sirs, I would like the reverend bhikkhus and bhikkhunis—as well as the laymen and laywomen—to listen to these passages frequently and to ponder on them.

That nuns did participate in the transmission and explication of the sacred texts is, however, proven by both literary and epigraphic records.

A well-written overview of what the historical record says about early Buddhist women.

We don’t doubt that the Buddha attained nibbāna, but we doubt very much that we can

Paying money to this teacher I came to an understanding of the values of “This World.”

Buddhism is a middle course, a via media; pragmatic and innovative

A smartly written introduction to the sociology of Buddhism from the inside looking out.

There is no way to healing. Healing is the way.

… the owners of the monastery are the worldwide and “timewide” community of monks and nuns

Aside from the Buddhist lessons, it teaches a standard curriculum of Burmese, English, math, and science. Recently, monastic schools have become an officially recognized part of the Myanmar’s education system, and students can move from them to state schools.

Psychopaths are more likely to be attracted to singing, dancing, love, light, miracles, and channeling. Usually psychopaths have a great deal of trouble sitting quiet and still. I appreciate the boring facade of Buddhism, as it is a great protection.

A new age mystic gives his advice on how to identify psychopaths on the spiritual journey.

Despite Bill’s many painful experiences, he never lost his faith in the transformative, human potential to awaken. His lifetime of spiritual stumbling is a rich source of warnings and advice, especially for Westerners still struggling to get a foothold in a tradition.

That said, however, the book’s interpretation of “enlightenment” should be taken cautiously, as his understanding seems to come from ecumenical assumptions that the various “contemplative traditions” (never defined) all describe the same goal. A bit of a black sheep even within the heterodox, secular “Insight” community, Bill Hamilton is best read with his own warning in mind, that “monks and nuns make safer teachers than laypeople, especially if they are actively associated with their tradition.”

Just as the sun is valued not only for its own intrinsic radiance but also for its ability to illuminate the world, so the brilliance of the Buddha is determined not only by the clarity of his Teaching but by his ability to illuminate those who came to him for refuge

The Buddha’s first generation of followers established the traditions and values of the early Sangha. Indeed, it is nearly impossible to understand Buddhism without understanding the lives of the early Buddhist saints. This rich and inspiring series of biographies edited by Bhikkhu Bodhi mainly draws from the traditional commentaries of the Theravāda tradition and so provides an excellent balance between readability and faithfulness to the source material. A must read for all students of Buddhism.

This case study of Dhammananda Bhikkhuni and her students at Watra Songdhammakalyani gives both a concise summary of the situation for female ordination in Thailand and a compelling case for ordination in general.

Thought is the source of desire.

A fairy sings a love song for the Buddha, and Sakka asks a few deep questions.

Recollecting that nun’s faith, ethics, learning, generosity, and wisdom, [one] applies her mind to that end. This is how a nun lives at ease.

The Buddha interrogates a group of shy monks, and explains why he reveals the attainments of his disciples.

… this is the nature of a person accomplished in view. Though they might manage a diverse spectrum of duties for their spiritual companions, they still feel a keen regard for the training in higher ethics, higher mind, and higher wisdom.

The Buddha taught the reluctant, quarrelling monks of Kosambi to develop themselves in love and harmony, reminding them of the higher aspirations for which they ordained.

A dispute about livelihood or about the Pātimokkha would be trifling, Ānanda. But should a dispute arise in the Sangha about the path or the way, such a dispute would be for the harm and unhappiness of many

Hearing of the death of the Jain leader, Nigaṇṭha Nātaputta, and their subsequent disputes, the Buddha encourages the Saṅgha to swiftly resolve their own disputes. He lays down a series of seven methods for doing so, which form the foundation for the monastic code.

“Why, exactly, do you teach some people thoroughly and others less thoroughly?”

The chief Asibandhakaputta asks the Buddha why, if he has equal compassion for all, he teaches some more than others. The Buddha answers with a simile of a field: a farmer knows to put most of their effort into the fertile land.

“It’s incredible, it’s amazing! Who can’t become a stream-enterer these days?”

It’s never too late to practice.

There’s always something we can do to progress towards Awakening. And it’s something that has benefits all along the way.

Ayya Santussika encourages us to strive earnestly for Stream Entry.

Our body is not life, but just a house. Life is energy. The coming together of mental, kammic and cosmic forces — that is life.

The mind of equanimity, poised beyond the play of worldly opposites, is the highest safety and security, but to gain this equanimity we stand in need of guidance. The guidance available cannot protect us from objective adversity. It can only safeguard us from the dangers of a negative response—from anxiety, sorrow, frustration, and despair. This is the only protection possible, and because it grants us this essential protection such guidance can be considered a genuine refuge.

In this important treatise, Bhikkhu Bodhi gives context and rigorous definition to the refuges and precepts based on the traditional commentaries. If you want to know exactly what makes someone “a Buddhist,” this is the book for you.

Helpful for avoiding cults, for reassuring Westerners that Buddhist religious authority isn’t regressive, and a fascinating example of the West grappling with unfamiliar forms of spiritual education.

…when these people meditate they’re awfully grim.

Ajahn Geoff reminds Westerners to ground their meditation practice in generosity.

The idea of the Buddha nature, or the earlier idea that “this mind is brightly shining, but it is defiled by visiting defilements,” point to a potential for good deep in everyone…

A defense of Buddhism in light of some Western critiques and an encouragement to try out one particular Eastern practice.

See SN 45.49 for how to use a good friend to advance on the path.