Dharmabytes From Free Buddhist Audio

Our FBA Dharmabyte, today is a preview for this weekendand#8217;s full length FBA Podcast. In and#8220;and#8220;The Dharani: Spell of Protection,and#8221; Candradasa shares his thoughts on The Rite of Protection. From the talk: and#8220;Magic For the Modern Worldand#8221; from the and#8220;Religion Without Godand#8221; series given at the Portsmouth Buddhist Center, 2012.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;and#8220;Compassionate Action,and#8221; Sangharakshita talks about Chetul Sangyu Dorje, his teacher who gave him the Green Tara sadhana practice. Green Tara the radiant Bodhisattva of compassion, inspiration to many who lead a Buddhist life aspiring to beauty and a steady openness in the face of the mysteries of existence. From the talk given to inaugurate Taralokaand#8217;s new shrine cabin dedicated to Tara, titled: and#8220;On Tara.and#8221;

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;and#8220;Mantric Sound,and#8221; Sangharakshita explores this fascinating symbol of the Enlightened Mind. From the talk, and#8220;The Symbolism of Colours and Mantric Soundand#8221;, given in 1971 as part of the series and#8220;Creative Symbols of the Tantric Path to Enlightenment.and#8221;

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Sound Offering to Padmasambhava,and#8221; is the mantra chanted at the end of the Sevenfold Puja practiced in the Triratna Buddhist Community. Chanted by Vipulakirti, the mantra includes beautiful harmonies.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;No End to Love,and#8221; Padmavajra describes how love is constant, continuous and spontaneous. This talk, and#8220;Introducing the Great Love,and#8221; was given at the beginning of an intensive retreat focused on the Metta Bhavana meditation practice, the Development of Loving Kindness.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;A Creative Response,and#8221; Subhuti encourages us to and#8220;Ignite your heart!and#8221; Duality is inherently unsatisfactory. By opening yourself up to the sufferings of the world, you open up to a transcendental force, which is the only real solution to the problem of suffering. An excerpt from the talk, and#8220;Eight Verses for Training the Mind: Talk 4,and#8221; part of the series and#8220;Eight Verses for Training the Mind.and#8221;

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;The Buddhaand#8217;s Creativity,and#8221; Vishavapani looks behind the veils of history, legend and the texts themselves to conjur a vivid, felt image of the Buddhaand#8217;s personality. From the talk and#8220;The Buddhaand#8217;s Personalityand#8221; given during the launch of and#8216;Gautama Buddha: The Life and Teachings of the Awakened Oneand#8217;.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Tibetan Art as Religious Artand#8221; Sangharakshita talks about how every aspect of traditional Tibetan life is infused with religious significance, not least Tibetan architecture and iconographical painting, the topics of this lecture. From the talk and#8220;Symbols of Tibetan Buddhist Artand#8221; given in 1968 as part of the series and#8220;An Introduction to Tibetan Buddhism.and#8221;

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Beauty as a Gateway to Wisdomand#8221; Srivati talks on creativity as a way of life, especially when that life is in flux and the ground of our being is shifting. Through her own poetry and reflections on writing and art, Srivati evokes an aesthetic path into the very heart of Reality. Talk given at Taraloka Retreat Centre, Great Gathering 2000

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Art and Transformative Communicationand#8221; is an excerpt from the highly acclaimed talk, and#8220;Art and The Spiritual Lifeand#8221; by Sangharakshita, 1969. and#8220;Art is the organisation of sensuous impressions that express the artistand#8217;s sensibility and communicate to his audience a sense of values that can transform their lives.and#8221;

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Ted Hughes on the Bardo Thodol and#8221; Candradasa reads a fascinating, poetic rendering of this ancient Buddhist text on death and dying. From the talk, and#8220;Death and the Biggest Questions of Alland#8221; 2005, as part of series: and#8220;Religion Without Godand#8221; given at the Portsmouth (NH, USA) Buddhist Center, 2012.

In this weekand#8217;s FBA Podcast and#8220;Life and#8211; For A Limited Time Only,and#8221; Suriyavamsa begins with the inevitability of death and some of our habitual attitudes to death and suffering, reading from contemporary poets. He brings out the Buddhist perspective that life and death are not separate, but parts of the same process. This talk was given at Parinirvana Day 2010 at the Glasgow Buddhist Centre.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;The Mahaparinirvana Suttaand#8221; Sangharakshita takes us through a beautiful retelling of the Buddhaand#8217;s last days. From the talk, and#8220;The Tantric Symbolism of the Stupaand#8221; by Sangharakshita, 1971, part of the series Creative Symbols of the Tantric Path to Enlightenment.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Does the Buddha Exist After Death?and#8221; Sangharakshita explores this centuries old question. From the talk, and#8220;The Meaning of Parinirvanaand#8221; by Sangharakshita, 1972.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;The Psychical Energies of the Stupaand#8221; Sangharakshita takes us through a poetic and magical journey of the psychical energies of the five elements within and around us. From the talk, and#8220;Five Element Symbolism and the Stupaand#8221; by Sangharakshita, 1971, part of the series Parables, Myths and Symbols of Mahayana Buddhism in the White Lotus Sutra.

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte , continues on our Parinirvana/Vajrasattva/Confession as Practice theme. Titled and#8220;Verses of Confession,and#8221; Padmavajra is exploring the transformative magic that is Bodhichitta practice. In this excerpt he reflects on the Verses of Confession of Faults and#8211; powerful expressions of the human situation, small-mindedness in the context of life and death, concluding with a reading of the confessional verses from the Sevenfold Puja. From the talk and#8220;Death and Desire,and#8221; the second in a great three-part series on and#8216;The Alchemy of Loveand#8216; given at Padmaloka, 2004.

and#8220;And there he saw a man beating that drum. Then from the sound of the drum he heard these confessional verses.and#8221; Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Shifting the Centre of Gravity: Confession,and#8221; is an excerpt from the talk, and#8220;The Spiritual Significance of Confession,and#8221; by Sangharakshita, 1976.

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte , and#8220;Loving Samara,and#8221; is a talk specially recorded by Viveka Chan in San Francisco for the LBCand#8217;s Parinirvana Festival Day, 2012, entitled and#8216;He Who Was So Kindand#8217;.

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte is an excerpt from a personal talk and#8220;Life as an Order Memberand#8221; by Lokeshvara, the last in a series of four talks given to men training for ordination on the and#8216;What Is the Orderand#8217; retreat at Padmaloka, 2011.

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte and#8220;The Bodhisattva as Hero,and#8221; by Sangharakshita is from the talk and#8220;The Heroic Ideal in Buddhismand#8221; given in 1969. Buddhism is sometimes seen as weak or negative. Using examples from the Pali Canon and Mahayana texts, this lecture shows that, on the contrary, heroic and positive qualities are essential in the Buddhist spiritual aspirantand#8217;s quest for Enlightenment. Talk given in 1969.