Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Living: Abstaining from Intoxication

 

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RIGHT LIVING Undertaking the Commitment to Abstain from Intoxication Intoxication is unhealthy. Refraining from intoxication is healthy. (MN 9) What are the imperfections that defile the mind? Negligence is an imperfection that defiles the mind. Knowing that negligence is an imperfection that defiles the mind, a person abandons it. (MN 7) One practices thus: “Others may become negligent by intoxication, but I will abstain from the negligence of intoxication.” (MN 8) There are these two worldly conditions: pleasure and pain. These are conditions that people meet—impermanent, transient, and subject to change. A mindful, wise person knows them and sees that they are subject to change. Desirable conditions do not excite one’s mind nor is one resentful of undesirable conditions. (AN 8.6)

Reflection We have within us a natural instinct to pursue pleasure and avoid pain. One of the Buddha’s great insights is that both are hardwired into our minds and bodies and are thus an inevitable aspect of the human condition. Knowing this and accepting it as true allows us to watch the interplay of the two without needing to change what is happening. A wise person is mindful of both pleasure and pain, regarding them evenly. Daily Practice Practice becoming aware of feeling tones, both pleasant and painful, as they arise accompanying all experience. Cultivate a posture of noticing each one, acknowledging how it feels, and letting it change into something else, as it will naturally do. Give up the hopeless task of chasing after pleasure and fleeing pain and simply appreciate, with equanimity rather than excitement or resentment, the changing nature of experience. Tomorrow: Maintaining Arisen Healthy States One week from today: Abstaining from Harming Living Beings Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media #DhammaWheel Questions? Visit the Dhamma Wheel orientation page.

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Via Daily Dharma: Real Faith

 

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Real Faith Real solid faith is irreversible. Even if hundreds of thousands of people oppose us and say no to our actions on the path to liberation, we won’t be intimidated and change our beliefs. Khenpo Sodargye, “Faith in Buddhism” CLICK HERE TO READ THE ARTICLE

The Surrender of Equal Taste By Anam Thubten Learn how to use prayer and Tara embodiment to overcome our inherent resistance to change.  Read more »

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Via The Tricycle Community \\ Three Teachings on the “Heart Sutra”

 

Browse our online courses » August 28, 2025 Emptiness and Compassion    Recited in temples around the world and chanted by millions of practitioners each day, the Heart Sutra is arguably the most important scripture in Mahayana Buddhism.  The Heart Sutra is said to contain the essence of the Buddha’s teachings and reveal the fundamental nature of reality. It’s a profound expression of the Buddhist doctrine of emptiness, shunyata—and the compassion that goes hand-in-hand with the realization of emptiness.  For many practitioners, this doctrine can be perplexing and difficult to grasp. What does it really mean to accept our bodies, sensory experiences, and all of reality as empty? How would this awareness change the way we live?  As the Buddha taught it, the principle of emptiness is anything but nihilistic. Instead, it is the very foundation of compassion and liberation. If we can recognize that all things are fundamentally boundless and devoid of a separate, fixed existence, we find the keys to free ourselves from all causes of suffering. This realization of emptiness is thus described as the “perfection of wisdom,” or as Thich Nhat Hanh translated it, “the insight that takes us to the other shore.”  Discover the profound wisdom of the Heart Sutra in this week’s Three Teachings, which provide three unique lenses on the text’s core teachings and enduring importance.  Forward today's teachings to a friend » The Heart Sutra: The Foundation of Understanding With Rev. Dosung Yoo The essence of the Heart Sutra is shunyata, emptiness. In this Dharma Talk series, Won Buddhist minister Rev. Dosung Yoo explores the doctrine of emptiness as the foundation of liberation and the ultimate antidote to suffering.   Watch now » Losing Ourselves in the Heart Sutra By Jayarava Attwood What does it mean when the Heart Sutra says that there is “no form”? New scholarship suggests that the text may be describing the results of a meditation practice known as the yoga of non-apprehension, which enables an experience of the absence of sense perceptions.  Read more » What’s in a Mantra? By Donald S. Lopez Jr.  The Heart Sutra culminates in the prajnaparamita mantra: gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha. Celebrated Buddhism scholar Donald Lopez takes a close look at the mantra of the perfection of wisdom—“the mantra that completely pacifies all suffering”—and its role in the sutra.  Read more » Follow Us

Via Daily Dharma: The Wisdom of Gratitude

 

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The Wisdom of Gratitude  Gratitude and appreciation are the greatest ways we can “return” the kindness and compassion we’ve received. Such gratitude surpasses any material gift, because it’s rooted in wisdom—the understanding that our lives are the result of countless connections to others.  Rev. Ken Yamada, “Illness Is My Friend” CLICK HERE TO READ THE ARTICLE

The Delusion of Memory By Ajaan Pannavaddho, translated by Ajaan Dick Silaratano A monk in the Thai forest tradition presents a teaching on the essential differences between intellectual understanding and direct insight. Read more »

Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Action: Reflecting upon Social Action

 

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RIGHT ACTION Reflecting Upon Social Action However the seed is planted, in that way the fruit is gathered. Good things come from doing good deeds; bad things come from doing bad deeds. (SN 11.10) What is the purpose of a mirror? For the purpose of reflection. So too social action is to be done with repeated reflection. (MN 61) A person is content with any food they may get, speaks in praise of such contentment, and does not try to obtain things in improper or unsuitable ways. Not getting things one does not worry, and getting them one makes use of them without being greedy, obsessed, or infatuated, observing such potential dangers and wisely being aware of how to escape them. (AN 4.28)

Reflection Contentment is a healthy character trait, to be cultivated by appreciating what you have at every opportunity. Every moment your mental state plants a seed that becomes rooted in the traits of the unconscious mind, influencing what mind states will arise in the future. Feeling content here and now inclines the mind to feel content in the future, while obsessing over what you do not have only leads to more discontent. Daily Practice Practice intentionally being aware of the things you have rather than focusing on what you lack. This will not only lead to greater personal happiness but contribute to social harmony as well. There is always something you can feel content about, even if it is just the fact that you are able to eat a meal every day. Notice when you find yourself wishing for something different regarding food and try to let go of this and be content. Tomorrow: Abstaining from Intoxication One week from today: Reflecting upon Bodily Action Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media #DhammaWheel Questions? Visit the Dhamma Wheel orientation page.

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