Author: Selfless Anatta
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Human Suffering: Understanding Dukkha in the First Noble Truth
The Buddha’s encounters with suffering and his quest to understand and alleviate it, leading to the foundational Buddhist teachings on the universal nature of suffering (dukkha). The Traditional Story of the Buddha When a prince named Siddhārtha Gautama was born, the mystic seers of the time told the royal family that Siddhārtha would either become…
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The Downside of Beauty, Fame, and Wealth: The Illusion of Happiness and Fulfillment in Worldly Attainments
Most people engage in worldly pursuits, laboring under the false impression that they will find personal wholeness or satisfaction there. No satisfaction Dissatisfaction with life is a problem as old as antiquity. For savages of pre-history, life was a constant struggle to procure enough food to survive and obtain shelter from predators and other humans…
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Tibetan Buddhist Lamrim: The Initial Scope Meditations
A summary of the initial scope with links to detailed explanations of the five meditations. The Initial Scope, Intermediate Scope, and Great Scope of Lamrim When people are very young, they learn to crawl; later, they learn to walk; finally, they learn to run. Each skill builds on the previous one. Similarly, the scopes of…
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What is Buddhist Samsara?
Samsara refers to the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, characterized by suffering, impermanence, and the perpetual cycle of existence. In nature, nearly every process we observe exists in a cycle. It begins, grows, peaks, fades, and ends, most often repeating over and over again. Celestial bodies, like stars, have a life cycle. When they…
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Mindfulness Meditation Mastery: A Journey to Observing, Directing, and Sustaining Mental Focus
The ability to observe the mind, control its focus, and sustain concentration are the key practices of mindful meditation. A personal journey From the time I was very young, I observed the activity of my mind. I was an only child, growing up in a rural area, so I had plenty of alone time, often…
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Tibetan Buddhist Lamrin: Actions and Their Effects
Understanding Karma, morality, and personal responsibility For every action a person takes, there is an inevitable response, a consequence that will follow, connecting the action back to the source. Just as a spider’s web provides support while also ensnaring the spider, individuals reap the rewards of their wise choices and endure the consequences of their…
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Tibetan Buddhist Lamrim: Refuge Practice
Finding support in religious figures, religious teachings, and the community of believers. Where do people look for guidance and support when circumstances are challenging? For much of the last 2,500 years, many have turned to organized religion. Generally, major religions instruct their followers to seek inspiration, guidance, and support from their Gods, holy books, and…
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Autism and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy: Unmasking the ‘Snake Oil’ Claims
The US Food and Drug Administration has published a warning for parents to beware of false or misleading claims about HBOT for treating autism. I know a family who purchased a hyperbaric oxygen chamber for their home to treat their son with autism. It was expensive. A cheap one costs about $10,000, and some go…
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Tibetan Buddhist Lamrim: The Dangers of Lower Rebirth
Is it possible that you could have been born a creature other than a human? All the major world religions use some form of a carrot-and-stick approach to motivate good behavior. The carrot is a reward for good behavior, such as going to heaven, gaining favor with God, being reborn in comfortable circumstances, reincarnation in…