Since the point of the suttas is to inform practice, does anyone have further comments on their experience of the relative stability of concentration developed when walking rather than sitting? :anjali: Mike Hi Mike As it turns out, I developed a new appreciation for walking meditation when I staye...

Hi Jeffrey I don't know of any particular works that approach the topic from the angle that Ven Pategama Gnanarama takes. It seems to me that others here who are more well read and conscientious in studying the Pali Canon could help to clarify your question: it appears that Ven Pategama Gnanarama's ...

I would say that much of this philosophy as a way of life spirit has been lost in many quarters of western philosophy. I think this is very sad, though I think we still see in some places such as in continental philosophy (existentialism) and maybe in ethics or classical studies. I'm not sure why t...

Sooner or later there has to arise reconciliation with one's own western culture and its roots. So it is good to reveal ubiquity of wisdom and to abandon the myth of "the wisdom of the east" and the myth of "the one and only wise and holy guy". :sage: Indeed. According to what i...

Hi all, To pick up on Javi's points, I'd like to share some ideas that may be helpful in framing this discussion and they may also be helpful to your own personal inquiries into such matters. The following ideas are informed by the research of the late French philosopher Michel Foucault, particularl...

Yes, whilst it may not always be accurate or helpful to say that they teach the 'same' things, there are certainly many points of agreement. I too have been compiling various sayings, by Marcus Aurelius, etc. But I think if there were points of agreement it is likely that there were actual exchanges...

Thank you Ben and Javi. Look, I have to be honest. I've been selective with my reading of Nietzsche. I know thinkers like Betrand Russell (a precise analytical mind, no doubt!) had criticised Nietzsche and dismissed his writings, saying something to the effect that they are literary works passing of...

Dear Chris I don't know if I didn't know or if I forgot that your mother passed away a year ago. The last time I saw you briefly was in June or July last year—you were giving alms at Dhammagiri whilst I was staying there. I understood back then that your mother was in ill-health. I'm sorry to hear a...

What the Nieztschean interpretation of 'death of God' posits is that God's death leaves exposed an EMPTY space that cannot be filled. I think we could explore the parallels with Buddhist ideas about emptiness, in both the Theravada and Mahayana. But it is beyond my expertise to go into this here. Al...

Hi all Ok... this thread has caught my attention. As it turns out, I'm engaging with certain Nietzschean themes in my work at the moment. So if I may share some of my thoughts for collective consideration. I'm not an expert on Nietzsche as such but I think there may be certain questions provoked by ...

I too am curious about reading Buddhism alongside Nietzsche. But since such an exercise requires some effort, I shall refrain from making any claims about specific arguments—I say this not so much to imply anything about others' capacity or interest (or lack thereof) in doing the same; I'm just admi...

Thanks for this Mike. While I cannot claim to have studied the topic carefully or systematically, I've always been very curious about the question of how we ought to relate to papanca. Like many others, I've always accepted it as mental proliferation or a ceaseless movement of thought-conceptuality-...

Hi Charon Excellent topic! If you haven't already researched into it, there is a significant body of scholarship on the influence of Western imperialism on Buddhism--indeed, it was under the conditions of colonialism that 'Buddhism' was 'discovered', or one could say, 'invented' insofar as no such p...

Hi all I just read this essay on 'Belief' by Buddhist scholar-practitioner Donald Lopez Jr. I highly, highly recommend it. The entire essay can be read on Google Books: http://books.google.com.au/books?id=zhc7UkW8eHcC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA31&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false" onclick=...

So, to an extent, the emergent 'Western Buddhism' that we are participating in today has developed alongside the modern notion of 'spirituality'. There is arguably some degree of inter-involvement in the development of 'spirituality' (albeit a very slippery and ambiguous one) and contemporary Buddhi...