The Way Things Appear: full moon - Friday 5th December 2025
It is easy to do that which is of no real benefit to oneself; it is difficult indeed to do that which is truly beneficial and good.
Dhammapada 163
When we register just how complex and challenging this human existence has become, the task of trying to change it can appear impossible. There is already enough evidence showing how powerful technology causes fragmentation, both within communities and individuals, contributing to despair. There is also evidence that unimaginably good things can happen. If you have ever broken a bone, the recovery process takes time. Healing doesn’t happen according to our preferences – though healing can happen. The task of addressing the suffering in our world, inwardly and outwardly, takes effort. Let us not just settle for the way things merely appear to be. May the Buddha’s wisdom serve to inspire us.
SEEING THE FLAWED AS FLAWED: full moon - Wednesday 5th November 2025
The clear seeing that knows that which is flawed as flawed, and that which is pure as pure, can lead beings to transcend misery.
DHAMMAPADA v. 319
Can we view that which is flawed as flawed without adding an indignant, It shouldn’t be this way? The simple perception of how things should and shouldn’t be is not so much the issue. It is by getting lost in feelings of wild indignation that we contribute to the chaos. Compared with an imaginary world where beings aren’t acting out of greed, hatred and delusion, then yes, our world shouldn’t be this way. However, surely we need to acknowledge that the reason things are this way is that there are causes. If we remember to bring careful attention to the causes for the misery, then we will be in a better position to make a difference.
BEYOND OVERWHELM: full moon – Monday, August 19th, 2024
“By endeavour, vigilance, restraint and self-control, let the wise make islands of themselves which no flood can overwhelm.”
DHAMMAPADA v 25
When so much of the world that surrounds us focusses on the opposite of restraint, it can be difficult to not feel overwhelmed by sense impressions. Where the Buddha highlights the need to develop restraint, it is not because he wants us to feel like a failure. Rather, he is pointing directly at that which is worth investing in. We have a limited amount of attention. In what do we invest our attention? The values of the ‘casual culture’ encourage us to invest in distractions which can serve the purpose of temporarily relieving us from fear and confusion. The values encouraged by our wise teachers serve an altogether different purpose. The virtues of vigilance and restraint, for example, equip us with resilience and stability, so that even when we do encounter chaos we won’t have to be defined by it.