Book Club: Raising Resilience

As both a parent of two teenage boys and a clinical psychologist who works with children and teens, I look for ways to parent that cultivate both loving and brave hearts. Christopher Willard offers some practical advice to parents in his book Raising Resilience, which focuses on ten universal principles, drawn from the ten paramis,…

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Don’t Buy This Book!

My good friend Justin Whitaker and I have a paper in the recently published Oxford Handbook of Buddhist Ethics. I’ll discuss some aspects of our paper, how it relates to Buddhist ethics, and some other interesting points before getting to the meat of the matter: why you shouldn’t buy this book! Justin Whitaker’s blog (highly…

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Buddhist & Stoic Wisdom for a Skeptical Age

Today we will look at Antonia Macaro’s great new book “More Than Happiness: Buddhist and Stoic Wisdom for a Sceptical Age”. We’ll consider what it says about the projects early Buddhism and Stoicism have in common, as well as mention some interesting questions she raises. Check out my Patreon page!

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The Dharma of Modern Mindfulness: A Review

One of the most common misunderstandings about MBSR and the other mindfulness-based interventions is that they consist of meditation techniques that have somehow been extracted or divorced from their original context in traditional Buddhism. From this standpoint, critics have referred to mindfulness as “Buddhism lite,” as a simple gimmick to reduce stress and, therefore, a…

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The Dalai Lama’s Secular Turn

Is the Dalai Lama a secular Buddhist? In two of his recent books he has outlined a universal, secular ethical program grounded in basic human values that are shared by believers and nonbelievers alike. We will take a look at these two books and discuss some of their conclusions and implications. Check out my new…

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Why Buddhism is True

Today we’ll be taking a look at Robert Wright’s new book Why Buddhism is True, some of its positives and negatives, and whether or not it fits well with secular Buddhism. Robert Wright’s YouTube videos can be found HERE.

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Buddhist Economics?

We look at Buddhism as an approach to economics, following two recent books: The Buddha on Wall Street by Vaddhaka Linn, and Buddhist Economics by Prof. Clair Brown. We will consider whether what they propose is really Buddhist, and whether it’s really economics. And we’ll consider whether in the end it matters.  

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Good Books on Early Buddhism

Here are the books mentioned in the video: Bhikkhu Bodhi: In the Buddha’s Words Rupert Gethin: The Foundations of Buddhism Williams, Tribe, Wynne: Buddhist Thought Walpola Rahula: What the Buddha Taught Richard Gombrich: What the Buddha Thought Richard Gombrich: Theravāda Buddhism, 2nd Ed. Johannes Bronkhorst: Buddhist Teaching in India Anālayo: Satipaṭṭhāna, the Direct Path to…

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The Buddha Before Buddhism: Review of Fronsdal

In his new book The Buddha Before Buddhism, Gil Fronsdal undertakes a translation of the Aṭṭhakavagga or Book of Eights, one of the Buddha’s most profound and enigmatic teachings, also widely considered one of his earliest. As is to be expected from his previous translation of the Dhammapada (2005), Fronsdal’s book is lucid and readable, one that should…

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