Is Meditation Selfish Decmber 6 2017

This is my Wednesday Dhamma talk on the direct teachings of the Buddha as preserved in the sutta Pitaka, the second book of the Pali Canon. These talks are streamed live every Wednesday at noon Eastern US time.

My Wednesday noon podcast will be on the immediate difficulties constantly arising in the world and how these constant examples of craving, aversion, and deluded thinking often distract from meditation and developing the Dhamma. Often, distraction manifests in the (wrong) view that it is selfish to engage in mediation and Dhamma practice when there is such suffering in the world.

Shortly after his awakening, the Buddha recognized the ill’s of the world as rooted in ignorance declaring “The world is aflame. Rooted in ignorance the world is afflicted by sensory contact and perceives suffering as ‘self.’ Rooted in ignorance, it misunderstands ‘self’ and becomes anything other than ‘self.’

He then taught a dhamma that at the very least will bring calm to a mind inflamed by worldly events better able to contribute to a peaceful world.

A related article is here: https://becoming-buddha.com/becoming-explained-the-loka-bhava-and-mula-suttas/

Siddartha Gotama awakened, gained full human maturity, and became Buddha. He spent the last forty-five years of his life teaching anyone interested to do the same.

The purpose of these talks is to clearly present these teachings free of the adaptations, alterations, and embellishments that have developed since Siddartha Gotama’s passing.

Siddartha Gotama awakened to Dependent Origination which clearly and directly shows that it is ignorance of Four Noble Truths results in ongoing disappointment, unsatisfactoriness, and suffering - in a word Dukkha. He taught an Eightfold Path to become empty of ignorance.

Subtle but very effective strategies have developed due to the need for continued self-establishment to ignore this basic ignorance.

I will occasionally discuss the confused and contradictory modern “dharma’s” and the continuation of ignorance and suffering that follows.

An audio only version of this video is available at my podcast archive: https://becoming-buddha.com/becoming-buddha-podcast/

A video of our classes including a beginning Shamatha-Vipassana meditation is available here: https://becoming-buddha.com/dhamma-stream-videos/

Here is the archive for all of my Dhamma articles and talks: https://becoming-buddha.com/dhamma-articles-and-talks-archive/

If you find benefit from this talk please consider a donation: https://becoming-buddha.com/support-john-and-becoming-buddha-com/

Thank You. Peace.