Dhammarato Dhamma

Comfortable Practice | Scott B #2 | 9.9.22

Scott and Dhammarato talk about the structure of good practice, which does not involve going on retreat or becoming a statue. #sitting #repetition #sukha
Buddhist Symbolismhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhist_symbolism
Sayagyi U Ba Khinhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sayagyi_U_Ba_Khin
S. N. Goenkahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S._N._Goenka
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00:00:00 The actual teachings of the Buddha00:01:45 Three symbols of early Buddhism; U Ba Khin, sitting meditation, and retreats00:08:07 The word “meditation” does not appear in any sutta; the Buddha taught ānāpānasati; brahmaviharas 00:11:30 The body should be comfortable; listen to your body; sit upright00:33:52 Knowingly doing something wholesome over and over again, not endurance00:38:50 Practice often: six ten minute sittings; two types of sati00:49:40 Ānāpānasati outside a formal sit; wakey, wakey; intentionally breathing in long…00:56:00 The breath and the thing you’re doing; wake up and make a change: samma sankappa01:00:39 More frequently rather than longer; developing continuity: congratulate, nourish, nurture01:02:56 Significant change in ten minutes

Expert in One Skill | The Sangha UK #80 | 9.7.22

The Sangha discuss how practice perfects one skill: seeing dukkha, dukkha-nirodha and how the jhāna fit into this training. #training #naruto #jhana
Suttas mentioned in this discussion (Bahiya of the Bark-Cloth)https://suttacentral.net/ud1.10
Scott and Dhammarato talk about the four jhānashttps://youtu.be/P3mxq8h8o4I
Narutohttps://youtu.be/74C_v098Gls
Dragon Ball Z - Fight Against Gravityhttps://youtu.be/8nVk4NSy9Rw
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00:00:00 Anxiety and state of mind00:04:24 Mind is the forerunner; victimhood is comfortable00:07:15 Knowledge and vision of things as they are; applied and sustained wholesome thoughts00:15:54 Heaven and hell between your ears; dependent origination; sati00:20:30 Angry, dissatisfied, not liking, not wanting; choosing the wise road00:25:16 Resting naturally without seeking or describing; good enough; abundance of freedom00:29:05 Gazing versus hunting00:30:01 Bahiya of the Bark-Cloth (Ud 1.10); “resting” is not a precise word; processes are skillful or unskillful 00:41:19 Skill development; trash arises; insight; dependent origination is a multi-faceted jewel; expert in dukkha, dukkha-nirodha; first jhāna as a training00:56:35 Mastery of the first jhāna; don’t worry about the other jhānas01:00:43 Naruto; Dragon Ball Z training analogies to teaching first jhāna; letting go01:18:43 Scott and Dhammarato talking about the four jhānas

Questions from Over There | Dean #7 | 9.7.22

Dean and Dhammarato talk about guarding the senses, virtue, avoiding transmitting dukkha, misconceptions about the jhāna, attainments, mindfulness, and Dhammarato’s hobbies and activities. #virtue #craving #satisfaction
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00:00 Guarding the senses03:45 What is virtue? Dukkha, dukkha-nirodha: good behaviour is to avoid transmitting dukkha06:49 Ignorantly wanting something you don’t have; endurance 16:25 Uprooting rather than managing suffering19:35 Misconceptions about fourth jhāna; advertising and bragging about attainments24:34 Discernment; what are you thinking about right now? how are you feeling right now?27:48 Having a wholesome conversation29:40 Don’t use the word “mindfulness”; daydreaming 32:03 Peripheral awareness, being in your senses35:10 Ten minutes six times per day; remember and be glad you can see38:46 Students on the island40:51 Dhammarato’s hobbies43:35 Disrobing; drinking and eating out; learning to do nothing

The Music of Life | Martin V #2 | 9.4.22

Martin and Dhammarato explore practice by analogy to learning a musical instrument: practice in seclusion, practice in front of others (performance, busking), and practice for the music #practice #seclusion #performance
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00:00 This is an active practice in three ways: seclusion, performance (busking), just the music 06:55 Putting the Dhamma in ordinary life11:27 The Buddha, the Dhamma, the Sangha; begin to think about where you can find nobles22:48 Understanding how the mind works; the second noble truth26:24 Looking at what we are doing and making a change; samma sankappa30:52 Gladdening the mind: injunction, instruction, thought33:02 The Life of Brian; never mind, start again35:59 Catching unwholesome thoughts; using the breath; developing sati39:45 Look into the five aggregates and paticcasamuppāda

Anapanasati Leads to Jhana | Markus M #9 | 9.5.22

Markus and Dhammarato talk about how gladdening the mind leads to a change of attitude. #mindfulnessofbreathing #confidence #jhana
Suttas mentioned in this discussionhttps://suttacentral.net/mn118https://suttacentral.net/mn48
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00:00 Gladdening the mind; changing our feelings04:47 Sensory input and talking to ourselves07:00 Being above the world; the ānāpānasatisutta; the four elements (MN 118)13:13 Sukha is the opposite of dukkha15:06 A change of attitude (MN 48)21:22 Removal of hindrances; sukha; piti; applied and sustained wholesome thought (first jhāna)

Wakey Wakey | Markus M #8 | 9.5.22

Markus and Dhammarato talk about the subtleties of sati. #mindfulness #nurturing #selfcriticism
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00:00 The residue of feeling from the immediate preceding thought02:50 Being in a critical mind state; looking for rehabilitation 06:40 Five out of the six senses are anchors; the mind rarely takes in new data11:45 Sati is a skill to be developed; first event on waking; begin to have nurturing thoughts

How Did Buddhism Reach the West? | The Sangha UK #79 | 9.4.22

The Sangha discuss how Buddhism spread to the West. #ashoka #blavatsky #thoreau 
Buddhism in the United Kingdomhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhism_in_the_United_Kingdom
Buddhism in the United Stateshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhism_in_the_United_States
Helena Blavatskyhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helena_Blavatsky
Henry Steel Olcotthttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Steel_Olcott
Pali Text Societyhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pali_Text_Society
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00:00 How did Buddhism come to the West? Disruption in China; intentional wandering; Asokha’s emissaries 05:33 The British in Sri Lanka; Thoreau, Emerson and Buddhism; Mme. Blavatsky, Olcott, and Krishnamurthi09:09 D T Suzuki; Zen in California; lack of nobles in the West; cultural differences14:28 Looking for nobility15:49 Schopenhauer & Nietzsche; postmodern philosophers; consumerism22:17 What’s the relationship between intellectuals and the rest of society?24:27 Wholesome qualities in non-Western cultures; underlying anxiety and fear; questioning30:23 Ignoble Buddhism in the West; the blind leading the blind37:11 The Dhamma is difficult to understand without a teacher; nobles in the West are ignored40:50 Kindling the fire of knowledge; rehabilitating the mind; good breathing

Views & Evidence | Robert Co #29 | 9.1.22

Robert and Dhammarato reflect on the difference between wise ignorance and foolish ignorance across a variety of social circumstances and relationships. #ignorance #evidence #happiness
Suttas mentioned in this discussionhttps://suttacentral.net/mn139
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00:00:00 The difference between wise ignorance and foolish ignorance; jumping to a conclusion00:12:29 Right view: get some evidence00:15:35 Is protest valuable? Revenge in politics; debt slavery00:27:41 Delusion is a step below ignorance00:34:40 Happiness as status; statistics as manipulation; using external standards00:41:32 Definitions of happiness; feeling and meaning (MN 139)00:52:12 Wise ignorance and right effort; insecurity of wealth; mansions as fortresses01:00:08 Finding the balance between wealth and poverty

Understanding Power | The Sangha UK #78 | 8.28.22

The Sangha discuss power as a proxy for safety, security, comfort, and satisfaction. #power #ideology #gratification
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00:00:00 Power as a proxy for safety and security00:06:01 Magical thinking and power00:07:47 Levels of organisation and ideology; how do we treat ourselves?00:15:03 Power and religion; the golden rule; treat people the way they want to be treated00:18:21 Running power trips on ourselves; sankhāra; gladdening the mind00:25:50 Everything starts in the mind; things are not dangerous00:28:32 A joke about marriage; critical thinking vs. nurturing; punishment vs. rehabilitation 00:35:32 Approaching family conflict through friendship; teasing00:39:53 Delayed gratification; trying and playing; it’s complicated but I’ll get it00:47:20 Consciousness constricts to the things we want00:55:31 Intellectual understanding; attitude; playing close attention to our thoughts so we can make a change01:00:40 Share the practice with a smile

The Sangha UK #77 | 8.25.22

The Sangha discuss various analogies providing insight into the nature of skill development during practice of the noble Dhamma. #skilldevelopment #mindfulness #experiment 
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00:00 Malicious gossip as normal behaviour; wrong speech and action08:44 Creating unwholesome stories; seeing how dukkha arises10:49 Looking at practice as skill development14:33 Dukkha is a repetitive process; refined sati; entropy in practice19:10 Snowboarding analogy; more subtle effort 20:37 Anxiety, restlessness, and worry - pay attention to the causes and conditions; dissatisfaction27:50 Engineering analogy: how does this work? Skill development starts with fundamentals32:17 Adjusting to new information; seeing patterns instead of sticking to an old heuristic35:50 The situation is not the problem36:44 Mara gets more skilled too; seeing subtle dukkha; ideologies and views in practice circles40:57 Teaching someone how to learn rather than creating dependency; providing a spark45:15 Learning from mistakes and feedback; trial and error; celebrating success