Dhamma Talks
Second Night: Five Hindrances
Pursuing the development of a more integrated personality prior to spiritual transcendence, Peter described sentient beings as "energy transformation" beings, emphasizing that the five hindrances (sense desire, aversion and ill will, sloth and torpor, restlessness and...
First Night: Precepts and Retreat Perspectives
During this first Dhamma talk of the one-week retreat, Robert reviewed the five Precepts: Avoiding hurting others, avoiding hurtful speech, avoiding dishonesty and theft, avoiding hurtful speech avoiding hurtful sexual behavior, and avoiding dulling the mind with...
Why We Go On Retreat
During this dialogue, various sangha members who have had retreat experience described why the intensive immersion in meditation practice that occurs on retreat is valuable for nurturing personal satisfaction and spiritual advancement. [s3mm type="audio"...
The Third Turning Of The Wheel
During this dialogue, Robert described the developmental arc of Buddhism from the primary cultivation of ethical balance and transcendental insight through the realization of the absence of a separate self, finalized in the manifestation of compassion in the Mahayana...
Living With Uncertainty
During this talk, Kitty explored how Buddhist practices help us relate to the inevitable uncertainty of life, sharing some of her experiences working with Hospice. She used material from Pema Chodron's book "Comfortable With Uncertainty" as reference. She also...
Stress Is To Be Understood
Peter began a dialogue that is expected to last several months on the Four Noble Truths as we understand them in the context of 21st century neuroscience and psychology. He described the First Noble Truth as stress, and how stress manifests in our mind/body process. ...
Life With The Buddha’s Teachings
During this dialogue, Tommy reflected back over the last two dhamma dialogue topics, relating them specifically to his practice of realizing them in his daily life. He shared his appreciation for how the teachings supported him during a recent family medical crisis,...
Satipatthana-Mindfulness of Breathing
—In this dialogue, Judy presented two translations of the beginning of the Satipatthana Sutta, usually translated as The Four Foundation of Mindfulness, and then explained how important it is to practice mindfulness of breathing meditation in order to understand the...
Four Noble Truths Introduction 2013
During this talk, Peter introduces a long-term project, to revisit the Four Noble Truths concept from the perspective of the 21st century. Much of the Dhammacakkapavattana Sutta (the first teaching of the Buddha after enlightenment) contains cultural add-ons that...
Awakening The Mind
In this talk, Peter reviews the value of developing the 7 Awakening Factors through tranquility practice. This process allows deeply conditioned attachments to self-states and how a more dispassionate view of old relationship dynamics supports increasing equanimity.
