Archive for March 2018
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…
Read MoreOn Taste and Connoisseurship
Is it important or worthwhile to cultivate refined taste or connoisseurship in one’s aesthetic preferences? This often seems to be one of the aims of formal education. We’ll look at some Western thinking around the notion of refined pleasures, and then look at some of the Buddha’s thoughts on the same topic. Some suttas mentioned:…
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