Dharmabytes From Free Buddhist Audio

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;A Creative Response,and#8221; Subhuti encourages us to and#8220;Ignite your heart!and#8221; Duality is inherently unsatisfactory. By opening yourself up to the sufferings of the world, you open up to a transcendental force, which is the only real solution to the problem of suffering. An excerpt from the talk, and#8220;Eight Verses for Training the Mind: Talk 4,and#8221; part of the series and#8220;Eight Verses for Training the Mind.and#8221;

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;The Buddhaand#8217;s Creativity,and#8221; Vishavapani looks behind the veils of history, legend and the texts themselves to conjur a vivid, felt image of the Buddhaand#8217;s personality. From the talk and#8220;The Buddhaand#8217;s Personalityand#8221; given during the launch of and#8216;Gautama Buddha: The Life and Teachings of the Awakened Oneand#8217;.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Tibetan Art as Religious Artand#8221; Sangharakshita talks about how every aspect of traditional Tibetan life is infused with religious significance, not least Tibetan architecture and iconographical painting, the topics of this lecture. From the talk and#8220;Symbols of Tibetan Buddhist Artand#8221; given in 1968 as part of the series and#8220;An Introduction to Tibetan Buddhism.and#8221;

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Beauty as a Gateway to Wisdomand#8221; Srivati talks on creativity as a way of life, especially when that life is in flux and the ground of our being is shifting. Through her own poetry and reflections on writing and art, Srivati evokes an aesthetic path into the very heart of Reality. Talk given at Taraloka Retreat Centre, Great Gathering 2000

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Art and Transformative Communicationand#8221; is an excerpt from the highly acclaimed talk, and#8220;Art and The Spiritual Lifeand#8221; by Sangharakshita, 1969. and#8220;Art is the organisation of sensuous impressions that express the artistand#8217;s sensibility and communicate to his audience a sense of values that can transform their lives.and#8221;

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Ted Hughes on the Bardo Thodol and#8221; Candradasa reads a fascinating, poetic rendering of this ancient Buddhist text on death and dying. From the talk, and#8220;Death and the Biggest Questions of Alland#8221; 2005, as part of series: and#8220;Religion Without Godand#8221; given at the Portsmouth (NH, USA) Buddhist Center, 2012.

In this weekand#8217;s FBA Podcast and#8220;Life and#8211; For A Limited Time Only,and#8221; Suriyavamsa begins with the inevitability of death and some of our habitual attitudes to death and suffering, reading from contemporary poets. He brings out the Buddhist perspective that life and death are not separate, but parts of the same process. This talk was given at Parinirvana Day 2010 at the Glasgow Buddhist Centre.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;The Mahaparinirvana Suttaand#8221; Sangharakshita takes us through a beautiful retelling of the Buddhaand#8217;s last days. From the talk, and#8220;The Tantric Symbolism of the Stupaand#8221; by Sangharakshita, 1971, part of the series Creative Symbols of the Tantric Path to Enlightenment.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Does the Buddha Exist After Death?and#8221; Sangharakshita explores this centuries old question. From the talk, and#8220;The Meaning of Parinirvanaand#8221; by Sangharakshita, 1972.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;The Psychical Energies of the Stupaand#8221; Sangharakshita takes us through a poetic and magical journey of the psychical energies of the five elements within and around us. From the talk, and#8220;Five Element Symbolism and the Stupaand#8221; by Sangharakshita, 1971, part of the series Parables, Myths and Symbols of Mahayana Buddhism in the White Lotus Sutra.

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte , continues on our Parinirvana/Vajrasattva/Confession as Practice theme. Titled and#8220;Verses of Confession,and#8221; Padmavajra is exploring the transformative magic that is Bodhichitta practice. In this excerpt he reflects on the Verses of Confession of Faults and#8211; powerful expressions of the human situation, small-mindedness in the context of life and death, concluding with a reading of the confessional verses from the Sevenfold Puja. From the talk and#8220;Death and Desire,and#8221; the second in a great three-part series on and#8216;The Alchemy of Loveand#8216; given at Padmaloka, 2004.

and#8220;And there he saw a man beating that drum. Then from the sound of the drum he heard these confessional verses.and#8221; Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte, and#8220;Shifting the Centre of Gravity: Confession,and#8221; is an excerpt from the talk, and#8220;The Spiritual Significance of Confession,and#8221; by Sangharakshita, 1976.

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte , and#8220;Loving Samara,and#8221; is a talk specially recorded by Viveka Chan in San Francisco for the LBCand#8217;s Parinirvana Festival Day, 2012, entitled and#8216;He Who Was So Kindand#8217;.

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte is an excerpt from a personal talk and#8220;Life as an Order Memberand#8221; by Lokeshvara, the last in a series of four talks given to men training for ordination on the and#8216;What Is the Orderand#8217; retreat at Padmaloka, 2011.

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte and#8220;The Bodhisattva as Hero,and#8221; by Sangharakshita is from the talk and#8220;The Heroic Ideal in Buddhismand#8221; given in 1969. Buddhism is sometimes seen as weak or negative. Using examples from the Pali Canon and Mahayana texts, this lecture shows that, on the contrary, heroic and positive qualities are essential in the Buddhist spiritual aspirantand#8217;s quest for Enlightenment. Talk given in 1969.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte and#8220;The Compassionate Hearer,and#8221; Padmavajra puts us in touch with Bodhichitta as song. Here he shares with us the Shurangama Sutra on OM MANI PADME HUM, the mantra of Avalokitesvara, the one who hears the cries of the world. From the richly rewarding talk and#8220;The Sound of Realityand#8221; given at Padmaloka Retreat Centre, 2004.

In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte and#8220;Buddhist Dragons,and#8221; Sangharakshita shares a few thoughts on the naga, or Buddhist Dragon. From the talk, and#8220;Protectors of the Dharmaand#8221; in the and#8220;Transformation of Self and Worldand#8221; series on The Sutra of Golden Light by Sangharashita, 1976. In this series Sangharakshita here shows how one of the most popular of Mahayana Sutras takes on the idea of transformation, and finds the beauty that awaits us in the dream that is also like Reality.

Todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte is titled: and#8220;Dr. Ambedkar and Social Revolutionand#8221; from the recently released talk, and#8220;Dreaming Angels.and#8221; In this excerpt Vajratara evokes the social revolution of Dr Ambedkar. A revolution, she says, which is still needed to overthrow unhelpful attitudes in society, free the disadvantaged and give meaning to those who long for a higher life. Talk given at the Womenand#8217;s National Order Weekend, December 2012.

The real Bodhichitta is neither individualistic nor altruistic. In todayand#8217;s FBA Dharmabyte and#8220;Bodhicitta Arisingand#8221; Sangharakshita talks with us about Stream Entry, a radical transformation in the nature of Going for Refuge, and the four levels of the arising of the Bodhichitta. This is an excerpt from the talk and#8220;Looking Ahead a Little Wayand#8221; by Sangharakshita in 1999.

We decided to publish a short talk today for our FBA Dharmabyte: and#8220;Diversity in the Triratna Buddhist Order,and#8221; by Saddhanandi given in 2003. Saddhanandi, and#8216;She who delights in Faithand#8217;, is the Chair of Taraloka Retreat Centre for Women. Here she talks about her own life, past and present, as a process of uncovering the true art of living. This talk is part of the series and#8220;Diversity in the Western Buddhist Orderand#8221;.