An approach to the Dhamma for skeptics & this-life-only folk, in general; people who simply can't be bothered to accept ancient cosmologies, psychic powers, flying monks, and who dismiss the Four Truths as a result.

To them, Buddhist teachings are for the purpose of making one's worldly life better. Obviously that misapprehends the Dhamma; these people are better off just calling their activity 'eclectic meditation', since there is no reference to the Four Truths in such a case. And not every modern annihilati...

The weight of the evidence seems to indicate that an annihilationist wanderer would not need (nor be told) to accept rebirth in order to practice, even up to non-return.

So that's interesting. Maybe some secular folk would benefit from this information?

Without refernces it is difficult to verify or confirm the dates/events. References are wafting loose throughout academia & the internet, which isn't so very difficult to peruse; this is more of a summary than an argument. :shrug: A lot of the work comes from Schopen, Analayo, Sujato, Dutt, Bro...

Kaneki wrote:So I was very excited to find there is a systematized step by step process of cultivating the path factors

This is in the Suttas too, called the 'Gradual Path'.

Without the atmosphere, the water would turn to ice. Space is really cold... ...but on the side facing the sun, water would evaporate due to a lack of convection. :stirthepot: Why oh why did the Buddha not teach us about physics and astronomy? Alack! I am ruined, what was once set upright is overtu...

Some quick thoughts on a timeline that would describe some important developments, and otherwise set up a framework for understanding the shapes of Early Buddhism. I'll edit this for accuracy & detail, over time. --- ca. 455-400 BCE Buddha's teaching career relic veneration at cetiyas preliminar...

It seems to me that samatha is a method of jhana in a basic way. Vipassana is the Buddhist approach to such samatha, yoking it to the Path. Other teachings about jhana do other things, heading in other directions.

“Bhikkhus, of the speculative views held by outsiders, this is the foremost, namely: ‘I might not be and it might not be mine; I shall not be, and it will not be mine.’ And what, bhikkhus, is right view that is affected by the taints, partaking of merit, ripening in the acquisitions? ‘There is what...

...The present reality of anything before me -- be it a cow or something as complex and as general as the "world" -- rests on the a posteriori , but its depth and complexity lies in the a priori . There is no such thing as a purely synthetic a posteriori judgment , the a priori is implica...

Hi Dave, I'm having difficulty understanding this. Par for the course, when I write. Let's see here. Can you clarify which are the second group of four? Here is the first group; these things lead to stream-entry: Association with people of integrity Listening to the true Dhamma Appropriate attentio...

mikenz66 wrote:I think he is referring to the four thing in the previous sutta, but it is not completely clear to me:

There are 8 factors. Four of them are the ones that lead to stream-entry; the other four are factors of a stream-entrant.

So, one set of four leads to the other set of four.

Obviously I'm unable to communicate well & unable to think clearly. f*** it.

... There's tabacco in your Wikipedia graph, right next to amphetamines. And, tobacco isn't against the precept. Notice that "heedlessness" isn't on that graph anywhere. The point is that the term psychoactive - which you've been focused on - is too broad. A bit of beer doesn't cause heed...

:alien: Well, sorry to bother y'all. Saying someone is on a crusade, presenting irrational and absurd information and then responding with a cartoon emoticon is so very good argumentation. If you are going to direct near-offensive comments at someone and then leave, why post at all for maybe no oth...