Secular Buddhism for Skeptical Atheists

Socials! @intralocal @d0ug7a5 podpondpods@gmail.com In Buddhism, the main duality considered is generally "suffering" and "enlightenment". Quite different to "good" and "evil" or the "good" and "bad" lens through which we often experience life. Or is it? Evil is a pretty loaded term. Can we ever know whether something is wholly "good" or "bad"? A lot of this is about the stories we choose to tell ourselves. "Good is a point of view Anakin" - is thinking "beyond" good and bad just a trap that leads to us being evil? Concept: Good and Evil - Buddhism suggests we have an innate sense of 'good' and 'evil'. If we are looking to be kind, then it just follows naturally right? - There's no sense of "absolute evil" in Buddhism really. - In Buddhist reincarnation, a demon can use karma to attain rebirth as something less unpleasant. "The suffering of demons in the hell realms is invoked negatively to warn practitioners to be more diligent in their spiritual efforts—in part to avoid rebirth among these unfortunate beings." - This is not at all an idea unique to Buddhism - Beyond Good and Evil - Nietzsche Parable: The Horse A farmer and his son had a beloved horse who helped the family earn a living. One day, the horse ran away and their neighbours exclaimed, “Your horse ran away, what terrible luck!” The farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not.” A few days later, the horse returned home, leading a few wild horses back to the farm as well. The neighbours shouted out, “Your horse has returned, and brought several horses home with him. What great luck!” The farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not.” Later that week, the farmer’s son was trying to break one of the horses and she threw him to the ground, breaking his leg. The neighbours cried, “Your son broke his leg, what terrible luck!” The farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not.” A few weeks later, soldiers from the national army marched through town, recruiting all boys for the army. They did not take the farmer’s son, because he had a broken leg. The neighbours shouted, “Your boy is spared, what tremendous luck!” To which the farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not. We’ll see.” Listener question: - What are some of your favourite resources for further reading on Buddhism? (Alice, Canberra) - https://tinybuddha.com/ - https://tricycle.org/ - https://vice.com/ - Full Catastrophe Living - Jon Kabat-Zinn - The Subtle Art of Not Giving A Fuck - Mark Manson Links: https://bit.ly/3EVIgPd Jay Mavani: Parable of the horse - Maybe so, maybe not. We'll see. The full parable of the horse along with an analysis of the parable by Jay https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780195393521/obo-9780195393521-0171.xml Oxford Bibliographies: Demons and the demonic in Buddhism The summary of a long-read analysis on Buddhist concepts of the demonic

Socials: @d0ug7a5 @intralocalNews and social media are more divisive than ever. Covid has exposed a lot of mis- and disinformation and conspiracy theorists. It's a natural response to be reactive and combative. This is leading to the breakdown of relationships. What can we do about it? Parable: The Wild ElephantOne of the many lives of the Bodhisattva was spent as an ascetic. This one time, he came back as the most superior ascetic in the whole order and everyone used to follow him. There was another ascetic in the same order who was jealous of the Bodhisattva. So, to remove the Bodhisattva from his path, he asked some elephant keepers to intoxicate a ferocious elephant by giving it liquor and then letting it loose on the Bodhisattva’s path. The ferocious and drunk elephant was let loose on the street and people ran in every direction to save their lives. The Bodhisattva continued walking down the path and looked calm. Suddenly, a woman, who was very frightened, accidentally dropped her child at the feet of the Bodhisattva. The wild elephant walked up to them and as it was about to trample them, the Bodhisattva placed his hand on its forehead and gently stroked it. Suddenly, the wild elephant became calm and bowed in front of him. Everyone was amazed to see this miracle. Questions: - From Max in Newton Aicliffe - “Where do you think psychedelics fit into the picture of Buddhism & spirituality? Some people cite them as catalysts for spiritual growth & great tools for personal development whereas others would argue they’re a lazy attempt to by-pass the work required to gain spiritual enlightenment & peace. Please share your thoughts.” - Joao from Pará - “You talk a lot about meditation practice. Are there things you do in your day to day lives - other than literally sitting down to meditate - where you think some of the same benefits of meditation might apply?” - Luke in London - what kind of microphones are you using? Links: https://bit.ly/3izpZNb Kidsgen: Stories from Buddha Teachings (The Wild Elephant) The location of the short version of the wild elephant story, along with many others https://wapo.st/3BtkiJh The Washington Post: Elephant Walk tests the Buddhist principles of a trained mind and inner peace A medium length examination of the relevance of the wild elephant to the concept of mindfulness and the importance of meditation https://bit.ly/3wMsTmy Wikipedia: The Noble Eightfold Path A basic summary of the Eightfold Path

Cal: @intralocalDougie: @d0ug7a5A lot of people have found themselves suffering from conditions and situations they didn't expect, such as long covid, the loss of many loved ones, other health issues and personal catastrophes .It's human nature to get hung up on why me, spiraling in grief and self pity. So how can we move away from that?Concept:The Four Noble Truths3. That type of suffering can be avoidedThe Eightfold Path6. Right Effort: preventing the arising of unwholesome states, and generating wholesome states, the bojjhagā (seven factors of awakening). This includes indriya-samvara, "guarding the sense-doors", restraint of the sense faculties.7. Right Mindfulness (sati; Satipatthana; Sampajañña): "retention", being mindful of the dhammas ("teachings", "elements") that are beneficial to the Buddhist path.[34][note 4] In the vipassana movement, sati is interpreted as "bare attention": never be absent minded, being conscious of what one is doing; this encourages the awareness of the impermanence of body, feeling and mind, as well as to experience the five aggregates (skandhas), the five hindrances, the four True Realities and seven factors of awakening.Upādāna - clingingParables: The Second Arrow"When touched with a feeling of pain, the ordinary uninstructed person sorrows, grieves, and laments, beats his breast, becomes distraught.So he feels two pains, physical and mental.Just as if they were to shoot a man with an arrow and, right afterward, were to shoot him with another one, so that he would feel the pains of two arrows…”OR"In the parable of the arrow, sometimes called the second arrow, you picture yourself walking through a forest. Suddenly, you’re hit by an arrow. This causes you great pain. But the archer isn’t done. Can you avoid the second one? That’s the arrow of emotional reaction. Dodge the second by consciously choosing contemplation. It will help you avoid a lot of suffering.After telling the two arrow parable, the Buddha said, “In life, we cannot always control the first arrow. However, the second arrow is our reaction to the first. And with this second arrow comes the possibility of choice.”"RAIN:RecogniseAcceptInvestigateNurture or Non-identificationLinks:https://bit.ly/3kurizo Vox: It’s okay to be doing okay during the pandemicA thought piece on how people feeling survivors' guilt during COVID can use mindfulness to give themselves a break and refocus on helping where they canhttps://bit.ly/3z6Sybe Tricycle: The Second ArrowA short quotation-formatted version of the second arrow parable. Tricycle is a nonsectarian Buddhist quarterly magazine based in New Yorkhttps://bit.ly/2VUIqUZ Big Think: This Buddhist Parable Can Ease Your Suffering During a CrisisAn in-depth analysis on the second arrow and its place in Buddhist philosophyhttps://bit.ly/3wMsTmy Wikipedia: The Noble Eightfold PathA basic summary of the Eightfold Pathhttps://bit.ly/3eJThaT Wikipedia: The Four Noble TruthsA basic summary of the Four Noble Truthshttps://bit.ly/3ygZcuI Tara Brach: RainAn overview of the RAIN guide to self compassion

*Spoiler - we never really do move on. Recorded before the covid-19 pandemic hit the West hard, but more relevant now than ever, Dougie and Cal examine what it means to accept the death of a loved one, as well as how to face up to your own mortality.

...or: how to stay sane in the apocalypse! Cal and Dougie take apart their own neuroses and put their brains back together using buddhist principles and practical techniques.

Cal and Dougie explore the Four Noble Truths, what suffering is and how to avoid it (clue: we can't) and consider what we can do to start questioning the stories we tell ourselves. Can we be more flexible about how we perceive ourselves?LinksNice summation of the Four Noble Truths for novicesDecades of Scientific Research that Started a Growth Mindset RevolutionHang on to Your EgoPerfectionism, worry, rumination, and distress: A meta-analysis of the evidence for the perfectionism cognition theory