Dharmabytes From Free Buddhist Audio

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte is another reading from The Perfection of Wisdom Sutras. This one, and#8220;A Reading of the Suchness of the Skandhasand#8221; beautifully shared with us by Kulaprabha from the talk, and#8220;Reflection on the Five Skandhasand#8220;, the second guided reflection in the series and#8216;Night Lily Garden of the Midnight Way and#8211; Emptiness and the Great Compassionand#8217;. and#8220;As stars, a fault of vision, as a lamp, a mock show, dew drops or a bubble, a lighting flash or a cloud, so we should view that which is conditioned.and#8221;

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte today is and#8220;A Reading of the Heart Sutraand#8221; is just that, and itand#8217;s very beautifully read indeed! This is an excerpt from the talk, and#8220;Reflection on the Five Skandhasand#8221; by Kulaprabha, the second guided reflection in the series and#8216;Night Lily Garden of the Midnight Way and#8211; Emptiness and the Great Compassionand#8217;.

Although innumerable beings have been led to nirvana, no being at all has been led to nirvana. Sangharakshita eloquently delivers todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte and#8220;The Diamond Sutraand#8217;s Fundamental Insightand#8221; from the talk and#8220;The Diamond Sutraand#8221; given in 1969.

Seeing is a good word to describe the dawning of insight. Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte and#8220;Seeing with Insightand#8221; is from the fourth talk in Padmavjaraand#8217;s wonderful series on the Dhammapada, the most popular of early Buddhist texts. All of the Buddhaand#8217;s core teachings are here and#8211; held in heart and mind thereand#8217;s more than enough in the Dhammapada to take us as far in our practice as we can imagine, and then on beyondand#8230; This material is intended for use with the Dharma Training Course for Mitras (see our and#8216;Studyand#8217; section, year three). Talk recorded at Padmaloka Retreat Centre, 2007 The full talk, also titled and#8220;Seeing with Insightand#8220;, is part of the series The Dhammapada and#8211; the Buddhaand#8217;s Way of Truth.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte titled and#8220;In response to the Buddhaand#8221; Sangharakshita explores how we come into contact with the Buddha through our intellect, emotion and our will. From the talk and#8220;Intellect, Emotion and Willand#8221; given at the opening of the Manchester Buddhist Centre in 1996.

Exploring the first of the four and#8216;superconscious statesand#8217; todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte titled and#8220;Integrationand#8221; by Sangharakshita takes us in for a closer look at the energies of both the conscious and unconscious mind and how the process of integration leads to greater harmony and ease. Excerpted from the talk, and#8220;A Method of Personal Development,and#8221; given in 1976 as part of the series and#8220;Buddhism for Today and Tomorrow.and#8221;

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;The Clouded Dragonand#8221;, is an excerpt from a gem of a talk from Abhaya. With his customary dry wit and sharp eye he leads us on the crazy paving path through the Diamond Sutra and#8211; a text guaranteed to turn your world upside-down. Sharing his love for one of Sangharakshitaand#8217;s poems titled The Clouded Dragon, Abhaya makes some excellent evocations of rigorous Dharma practice as part of the everyday business of life. This is an excerpt from the talk titled and#8220;The Diamond Sutraand#8221; given at the Triratna Buddhist Order National Order weekend 2003

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Life Gone Forth is Wide Openand#8221;, Padmavajra takes us into the strong experience of Going Forth into homelessness. Sometimes life presents us with extremely difficult choices that seem to set us apart from those we love. Through personal reminiscence and classic Zen poetry that evokes a truly rich awareness, we see the Buddha, Hakuin, Dogen and Ryokan as they struggle to make sense of this fleeting world of form. This excerpt is from the talk and#8220;The Buddha, Hakuin, Birth and Deathand#8221; given at Padmaloka Retreat Centre, 2004 This talk is part of the series and#8220;Tangling Eyebrows with Zen Masters.and#8221;

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Four Reasons Why We Fear Death and#8220;, Kulaprabha explores the Abhaya Sutta on the theme of spiritual death. The death of our fixed, bounded self, the self that is made up of bundled habits and preferences and views and#8211; especially views about existence and non-existence. So donand#8217;t be surprised if, when contemplating the impermanence and unreliability of that small self, you taste fear. Itand#8217;s natural enough in the circumstances. This is an excerpt from the full talk and#8220;Spiritual Death, Fear and Fearlessnessand#8221; focussing on the Abhaya Sutta. This talk was given on retreat at Taraloka Retreat Centre in 2008.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;The Third Great Stage of the Pathand#8221;, Sangharakshita talks about the process of spiritual death as the cultivation of unselfishness. This talk, titled, and#8220;The Path of Spiritual Developmentand#8221; is a book launch for and#8216;The Essential Sangharakshitaand#8217; published by Wisdom Publications. Recorded 2009 at Essen, Germany. Talk translated in German.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;What is Gratitude?and#8221;, Sangharakshita reflects on the Buddhaand#8217;s achievement of Enlightenment, drawing our attention to an often overlooked feature of this great event and#8211; the Buddhaand#8217;s expression of gratitude to the tree that sheltered him. A timely look at ways to cultivate this essential positive emotion. This is an excerpt from the talk Looking at the Bodhi Tree given in 1999.

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Death and#038; Clarityand#8221;, by Vajradharshini brings us a beautiful piece on the hardest of subjects. Using zen poetry and a happily wide-ranging series of quotations (from Tibetan lamas to Ezra Pound), Vajradarshini explores her own fatherand#8217;s death as a way to approach attitudes to death and dying. This excerpt, from the talk: and#8220;The Transitoriness of Life and the Certainty of Death,and#8221; focusses on practice, a sense of urgency and being in the moment, she asks us: how do we want to spend our time?

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;The Dharma is Everywhere, is a beautiful short talk by Aryashila of the Croydon Buddhist Centre exploring impermanence. She uses the challenging poetry of Leonard Cohen and others, as well as her own deep life experience, to show that reality does not conform to ordinary wishes, but yet facing it squarely can be supremely uplifting, not sad. Talk given at the Sangha evening of the West London Buddhist Centre.

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;What Can We Be Sure Of?and#8221; is a taste of Jnanavacaand#8217;s fabulous take on Einstein, Schroedinger, and all that stuff you wished you understood about quantum physics but despaired of ever knowing so as to impress at partiesand#8230; Well, now you can learn all about it — as well as how it relates to Dharma practice and the Buddhaand#8217;s view of a truly luminous Reality. Very classy stuff from a great speaker with the most infectious laugh on the planet! We wonand#8217;t give any more away here — settle back and enjoy a brain-expanding, soul questioning except from the talk, and#8220;Buddhism and Quantum Physicsand#8221; given at the Triratna Buddhist Order Convention, 2005

More listening joy from Vajradharshini in todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Enlightenment is Different for Each of Us.and#8221; From the talk and#8220;We Have a Huge Barrel of Wine But No Cupsand#8221;, this is another splendid journey around the idea of Enlightenment, using the languages of surrender and discipline from the Sufi context. It’s as heady as a sumptuous wine, but also sobering and down to earth, whether we’re “following a railing in the dark” or and#8220;wandering inside the red world”. Drink up! Talk given at Taraloka Retreat Centre, 2005

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;On Creativityand#8221;, is from a sparkling talk by Sangharakshita titled and#8220;Fields of Creativityand#8221; on a theme close to his heart. Full of warmth, wit and stimulating ideas. Talk given in 2001.

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Positive Changeand#8221; is brought to us by Sangharakshita himself, founder of the Triratna Buddhist Order and Community. In Buddhist practice, the traditional method of choice for effecting positive change in oneand#8217;s life is meditation. Here Sangharakshita takes a closer look, focussing on the and#8216;superconscious statesand#8217; (characterised in turn by integration, inspiration, permeation, and radiation), the practice of developing universal friendliness, and the distinction between calm and Insight. From the talk and#8220;A Method of Personal Developmentand#8221; given in 1976 as part of the series Buddhism for Today and Tomorrow.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;The Greatest Tragedyand#8221;, Subhuti invites us to look into the tragedy of not knowing what we want. He shares his thoughts on the nature of Samsara, contact with the Dharma and realisation as the deepest happiness. This is and#8216;Eight Verses for Training the Mindand#8217;: Talk 1 from the four-part series on this Tibetan text attributed to Kadampa Geshe Langri Tangpa.

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Everyone Needs the Dharma and#8211; Milarepaand#8217;s Songand#8221; has Sanghrakshita delightfully reciting words from the song. The Dharma is defined as whatever contributes to the development of the individual. In the full talk, and#8220;Western Buddhists and Eastern Buddhismand#8221; Sangharakshita emphasizes the importance of distinguishing Buddhism as a universally applicable path of development from the specifically Eastern cultural forms it has been associated with in the past, and explains why an authentic, non-sectarian Buddhist movement is needed in the West. Talk given in 1979. This talk is part of the series and#8220;A New Buddhist Movement and#8211; the Meaning of the FWBO.and#8221;

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, is titled and#8220;Buddhism and the Mindand#8221; is an excerpt from the talk and#8220;Meditation: the Expanding Consciousnessand#8221; by Sangharakshita. A traditional exposition of Buddhist meditation looking at why we meditate; preparation for meditation; the five meditation practices designed to counteract the five mental poisons; and the three stages of meditation. Talk given in 1967.