Posts by Doug Smith
What is Right Concentration?
The last stage along the Eightfold Path is Right Concentration. What sort of skills did this imply, at least in the context of early Buddhism? We will look at some of the Buddha’s famous similes in order to make sense of the training.
Read MoreBuddhist 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.
Read MoreWhat is Right Mindfulness?
Mindfulness meditation is increasingly popular nowadays, but its roots go back to early Buddhist texts associated with the seventh stage along the Eightfold Path. We will delve a little into these texts and attempt to flesh out the key aspects of mindfulness meditation in the early tradition.
Read MoreWhat is Right Effort?
Right effort is one of the more overlooked aspects of the Eightfold Path but may also be one of the most important. We’ll discuss the four parts of right effort and how to distinguish effort from “efforting”.
Read MoreWhat is Right Livelihood?
When looking at right livelihood within Buddhism, traditionally there are five prohibited livelihoods. However there is also a great deal of interesting additional material about inappropriate livelihoods for monastics, as well as a couple of wrong livelihoods for laypeople that the Buddha was reluctant to discuss. We’ll go over it all! It’s worth pointing out…
Read MoreQ&A: Video Music and Nonself Vlogging
So I’ll be asking you folks a question to start with, and then we’ll consider the issue of doing a vlog while taking the Buddha’s notion of non-self seriously. Are the two compatible or not?
Read MoreWhat Might the Buddha Say About Secular Buddhism?
What might the Buddha have thought about secular approaches to Buddhism? We will take a look at arguments found in a couple of early texts, the Apaṇṇaka and Sandaka Suttas, as jumping-off points. Our trip will take us through perhaps the earliest known materialist philosopher, as well as Blaise Pascal’s wager for the existence of…
Read MoreWhat is Right Action?
The Buddha gave three key examples of actions we should avoid, but nuances remain depending on our status as layperson or monastic, as well as our understanding of some of the more in-depth teachings about the self.
Read MoreWhat is Right Speech?
What did the Buddha have to say about right speech? It was more than just “Don’t lie.” Some of his conclusions may be helpful to us today in a world of instant communication, both one-to-one and one-to-many.
Read MoreVlog: Cults and Weird Buddhism
Today I’ll discuss some experiences with a teacher of mine who was in a couple of cults, plus an example of weird Buddhism that provides a bit of a lesson.
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