THANISSARO BHIKKHU

Generating Desire November 28, 2008 Part of the definition of right concentration is that you seclude your mind from sensual

When Things Aren’t Going Well November 14, 2008 Some of the discourses give an impression that the practice is a

Endurance Made Easier January 27, 2009 We’re practicing to put an end to stress, suffering, and pain. But the practice

Thinking Your Way to Stillness January 8, 2009 There’s a common perception that meditation doesn’t involve any thinking. You just

Acceptance October 31, 2008 As with so many other issues, the Buddha took a middle road when it came to

Perfections as Priorities August 21, 2008 We sit here focused on the breath, mindful of the breath, alert. We want

An Anthropologist from Mars May 28, 2008 Years back, I taught a course on the forest tradition at a Buddhist

A Well-Thatched Roof December 25, 2008 There’s a short verse in the Canon where a monk’s sitting in his hut

Dealing with Limitations March 25, 2007 We live in a conditioned world, which means that we have to learn how

Attachment vs. Affection November 5, 2008 The word for clinging, upadana, also means to feed. The upadana of a tree is the soil

The Reality of Emotions August 15, 2007 There’s a passage in T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets where he raises an important question: Suppose

Moving Between Thought Worlds December 27, 2008 We’ve all had the experience when we’re asleep of finding ourselves in a

Shame & Acceptance April 13, 2009 Ajaan Fuang would sometimes tell me the story of his childhood. He was born

Lust June 7, 2009 One of the customs of the noble ones is to delight in developing and to delight

Fear & Anger April 3, 2009 One of the reasons we focus on the breath as the foundation of our

The Uses of Fear September 25, 2008 There are three qualities that the Buddha listed as the roots of unskillful

Medicine – Timely & Timeless September 18, 2008 The Buddha often compared himself to a doctor. And the Dhamma was