Recordings - Boulder Tuesday Evening Dharma Talks
From time to time I give dharma talks at the Tuesday Night Sangha here in Boulder, typically when I am substituting for David Chernikoff, the Sangha's primary teacher. When I have these recordings available I'll post them here.
These are my oldest recorded talks, going back as far as 2014.
Mindfulness of Mental Formations - March 19, 2024
A discussion on the meaning of the third foundation of mindfulness and how it can be practiced.
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The Dhamma of Loneliness - December 6, 2022
This talk is based on some reflections on a section of Pema Chodron's book "When Things Fall Apart"
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Preparing for a New Year - Setting Our Intentions - December 29, 2020
The importance of "Intention" in the Buddha's teachings and how we can relate that to the western tradition of making New Year's resolutions
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How One Discovers Truth - February 25, 2020
This talk is based on the Canki Sutta from the Majjhima Nikaya, where the Buddha explains the difference between preserving the Truth and discovering the Truth.
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The Dhamma of Our Reactions to the Current Ecological Crisis - September 17, 2019
This talk came out of discussions I have been having with other Dhamma teachers about how we, as Buddhist, can make a contribution to bringing about the changes needed to save our planet.
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A Buddhist View of Relationship With Others - August 27, 2019
This talk grew out of a wedding I officiated at earlier this summer. It made me think about how all of the Buddha's teachings could be applied to how we relate to one another. The first few Minutes of the talk got chopped while I was explaining this origin.
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The Sammaditthi Sutta - Teaching on Right View - July 25, 2017
Right View, sometimes called Right Understanding is the first step on the 8-fold path. We need to begin by pointing our heart/mind in the right direction.
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Working With Reactive Emotion - June 13, 2017
One of the most useful things that arises from practice is that we learn to work more skillfully when the difficult things arise in life.
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Right Effort - May 9, 2017
It seems that this topic is one of my favorites, since there are now two talks here on this subject. Hopefully I keep learning more, and learning how to express my thoughts more clearly.
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The Three Modes of Practice
To have a balanced mediation practice we need to be mindful in three different ways; in daily life, in our daily practice on the cushion, and on retreat. This talk examiines these three modes and how they relate to and support each other.
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The Three Layers of Delusion
In our normal waking state we are usually caught in one of three unwholesome mind states, greed, aversion and delusion. The first two are sometimes easy to notice because they have such strong physical/emotional states associated with them. Delusion is more difficult to notice, because we are too deluded to actually notice that we are caught. This talk explores the three main forms of delusion, our own private delusions, cultural delusions and delusions that all human beings experience.
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Taking Refuge: Where Practice Begins
In Theravada Buddhist practice the first thing we do at the start of the day, or at the start of a practice session, or on the first day of a long retreat; is take refuge in the Buddha,the Dhamma and the Sangha, chanting the Pali refuge chant.
Why do we do this? What does this mean? What is the significance?
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The Importance of Forgiveness
Forgiveness is a common theme that runs through all religious and contemplative traditions. Why is forgiveness so important? There are three aspects to forgiveness that we should consider; asking for forgiveness from others, forgiving others and forgiving ourselves.
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The Metta Sutta
The metta Sutta is the Buddha's primary teaching on Metta, the practice of Loving-Kindness. Part of the practice of Metta may include the chanting of thios sutta, as is done here at the start and the end of the Dharma talk on the sutta's meaning.
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The Four Messengers
The Four Messengers is the story the Buddha told about how he came to start practicing. In this talk I tell that story and then look at how it is relevant to today's practice and practitioners.
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Vedana: Feeling Tone
Vedana is an important mental factor that has only three possible states; pleasant, unpleasant and neutral. It occurs directly after every moment of contact at the sense doors and is part of three key teachings of the Buddha.
It is the secound Foundation of Mindfulness, it is a part of the Cycle of Co-dependent Arising and it is one of the Five Aggregates.
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The 7 Factors of Awakening
The Seven Factors of Awakening is one of the dhammas is the 4th Foundation of Midfulness, the last section of the Satipatthana Sutta, the Buddha's primary teaching on Vipassana. They describe the progress path of practice that leads to enlightenment.
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Wise Effort: The Foundation for Mindfulness and Concentration
Wise Effort (or Skillful Effort or Right Effort) is the sixth step on the eightfold path, and is the first of the three Bhavana or Practice steps. Without wise effort mindfulness and concentration will not be fruitful.
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