We start the exploration of the Ten Unskillful Behaviors with one that is called “useless talk” or “idle talk.” This might seem like a strange place to begin, but there are good reasons to start here, not the least of which is to establish the theme that these are “unskillful behaviors,” not “moral failings.” That is, they are behaviors that tend to produce bad outcomes, and that’s why it makes sense to avoid them.
Read MoreThis year I’m going to try to actually do the book on the practice of virtue. This is an introductory post that outlines the territory I plan to cover.
Read MoreBuddhism talks a lot about sexual misconduct, but I haven’t found the teachings offered by Buddhism to be all that practical. This is an attempt to unpack that and think about how we might change. I offer no conclusions, but hopefully a little useful insight on the problem.
Read MoreWhich is a more effective way of engaging with the world, of changing the world? Should we undertake to fight evil where it is seen, to crush those who cause it? Is there any hope for a pacifist approach? Or is that frame backward? Should we instead ask, is there any hope for a warlike approach? Rather than imagining that pacifism might be at all effective, perhaps we should wonder if perhaps it can be more effective.
Read MoreIt can be difficult to notice and correct when you are meditating in a place of spaciousness. I’ve been having that problem for a while, and this is my latest attempt to describe how I deal with it.
Read MoreWhat is awakening? Why is it such a big deal? Why do people describe it in so many different ways?
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