Archive of Talks

Although meditation techniques for quieting the mind are widely taught, it sometimes seems that we are left on our own to find specific paths to  insights that could change our own particular lives.  Yet there exist practices which encourage and support the development of such insights, life-clarifying and life-changing.  This week, Michael guided our reflections on, and… Read more

There are many moments during each day where our mind brings upthoughts of resentment, greed, fear, or doubt. These thoughts can seem wildly random, coming from nowhere at all; what can we do? But the teachings tell us that these experiences are lawful: there is always a cause and effect. Buddhist practice is about observing… Read more

This Sunday, Don again took us on an excursion into the jhanas, those states of deeper concentration that were touchstones for the Buddha and his disciples.  These progressive levels of focus can be accessed in well-defined progressive stages, and a high level of jhana is the subject of the dharma talk by Leigh Brasington which anchored our… Read more

Is there a better moment than this moment? That is a key question that Narayan Helen Liebenson posed during a recent Dharma talk devoted to liberation realized as always already in the present moment. Sam hosted this week as we explored this insight using excerpts from Narayan’s talk, along with more input from John Peacock. Sam quoted from the Middle… Read more

Throughout the ages of Buddhism, monks have been supported by receiving food from their communities, traditionally by going on rounds with a begging bowl. The lay people would place food and medicine within these large bowls which would then be used by the monks not only to feed themselves but also their entire Sangha. Even… Read more

We may have begun spiritual work in a quest for certainty, but the more we examine our lives, the more we see how uncertainty is a constant – just as the Buddha predicted.  Darryl has chosen excerpts from a talk by Mark Nunberg to help frame our exploration of the role of uncertainty in our lives.… Read more