I might be a secular Buddhist.

 Oh my goodness, I think I am a Secular Buddhist (Am I?).

Secular:  The dictionary defines it as; denoting attitudes, activities, or other things that have no religious or spiritual basis. And (of clergy) not subject to or bound by religious rule; not belonging to or living in a monastic or other order. (This is when I looked up the word on Secular).

I have a long history of study in Buddhism.  I started studying in the 1970s when I had seen Kung Fu movies and the television series starring David Caradine.  I was enamored with the Shaolin monks and what the wisdom was and how they approached problems.   I continued in college reading and absorbing anything I could related to Buddhism, music, art, writings, books and the like.  I was deep into it.  I had no access at the time to anyone who actually WAS a Buddhist.   I had taken many martial arts classes, workshops and spent a long time learning different techniques; throws, arm bars, takedowns, kicks and falls… I still never met any of my teachers that were actually Buddhists.  They studied it, but they were largely Westerners knowledgeable about some Buddhist concepts, some Taoist concepts and many cultural concepts that related to the techniques I was studying. 

Later I happened to find a meditation retreat hosted by a not so local temple a little ways from my home.  I went and immediately became immersersed and enamored by it.  I hung around the temple, talked often to the abbot, learned from him and eventually became close friends.  I then became 

The simili of the empty cup.  >>> A good start to approach but not to stay that way.  Once you know you know and you should discuss and debate each subject with yourself and with others to see through it and go from there. 

Doug’s Secular Dharma explains it as;   “it is not a fixed thing, there is no definition, it is something made up as we go along.”  It is a practice that we follow.

There are  some fundamental differences between traditional Buddhism and Secular Buddhism.  Namely rituals and images.   It really seems as if it is a more educational study of the practice and attempts to define each of the concepts of Buddhism in more modern non cultural ways.  “Devotional practices require you to (sort of ) have a belief in something like a god, because you are debasing yourself in front of something, it has to be something that’s extremely powerful presumably, something that is wise and good.”   So 

I think this is a pretty good definition in that it is a fluid and changing definition and one that as you start to practice will help you without dogma.  Later as you get deeper without drowning, you can begin to see the historical, cultural and psychological benefit of all of those things that you once denied.  

(Story of the monks and priests joking around, and then when I asked them why they were not that way in public… basically they said that if they acted as they did when they met in private, they would be ridiculed by their parishioners and they would complain and that would cause more trouble than it was worth.  It is better to show solidarity in individuality to gain the slow and gentle acceptance from your own parishioners than to try and force it and shock them.  They may leave or abandon or even attack you...

Secular does not mean cherry picking…

Secular does not deny practices, but hopes to reframe them into more palatable forms for the Westerner to practice.   

The problem with traditionalists: FIxated in culture and lineage, staunch in their belief in what is right or wrong. 

Supernatural attachments.

Reliance on cultural and traditional aspects that …

The problem with secularists:

More often than not, they are reformed from another religion and had a poor experience and did not get deep enough into that practice to lose the self in it.  

They drop essential practices as either archaic or 

How the Buddha practiced was preserved in a monks aspect.  It is a way for us to apply this to our own lives as they are for a lay person.   Not as a struct 

The middle path…Somewhere between secular and 

Practical application of the dharma without traditional supernatural concerns 

https://www.buddhistinquiry.org/article/secular-buddhism-new-vision-or-yet-another-of-the-myths-it-claims-to-cure/

Doug's Dharma on Secular Buddhism. https://youtu.be/UtRk4qD8a-0

The six senses, (Six Sense Doors)

The Six Sense Doors - Coming to your senses

The Centered Path, Part 10 of Buddhist Basics (ref: Chachakka Sutta, et al)

Continuing with the 'class' on the basics of Buddhist practice, here is another offering. Make sure you follow along with the cheat sheet for the basics on our website, and download the sheet. here is a link:

https://thecenteredpath.org/buddhism-downloads

You can also find some of the blog entries in video form on our YouTube channel; The Centered Path.

Known in Pali as ‘Ayatana’ it translates as ‘sense base’ or occasionally ‘Vishaya’ or domains.  Related to the Five Aggregates, we have the six sense doors. Experienced in three basic tones (sensations) of pleasant, unpleasant, or indifferent. 

1. The Eye/ Seeing, then the eye consciousness which causes one of the basic tones and craving..  

2. The Ear/ Hearing, then the ear consciousness which causes one of the basic tones and craving..

3. The Nose/ Smelling, then the nose consciousness which causes one of the basic tones and craving..

4. The Tongue/ Tasting, then the tongue consciousness which causes one of the basic tones and craving..

5. The Body/ Touching, then the body consciousness which causes one of the basic tones and craving..

6. The Mind/ Thinking. then the mind consciousness* which causes one of the basic tones and craving..

In some cases, there are also two more:  The seventh:  Manas-Vijnana or Mind Knowledge, Which is basically ‘common sense’, and the thoughts we have about an object.  These may be informed, uninformed (ignorant) or neutral also.  

The Eighth:  Alaya-Vijnana: Storehouse Consciousness.  The collection of consciousness and thought.  Seed thoughts.   (typically they can be considered under mind)

Mind Consciousness is the coordinator of the first five. It is recognized in three different ways.  

1. Recognition of physical objects based on memory. 

2. Comparative cognition, remembering similar things

3. Non-cognition, or imaginary objects. 

The mind is represented as an internal  sense organ which reacts to the sense objects that include impressions, feelings, perceptions and volition. 

As part of the 12 parts of dependent origination:  Ignorance - Formations - Consciousness - Names and forms - the six bases - contact - sensations - craving (suffering) - clinging - becoming - birth - old age and death 

The six sense doors help us to watch our experiences as they happen as well as be able to sense them as they are and realize the attachments and cravings without being misguided by them.  We also can use this to better understand our own minds and how they and the senses muddle reality. 

The Five Precepts: Moral guide to training

 The Five Precepts: Moral guide to training

So we continue with the basics. This entails the basic five lay precepts. When you take more 'vows' to study and better your life and the world more and more precepts are added. First the five, then ten then 14 and then 256 or something like that... (depends on a few conditions). Check our Patreon to help with donations: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=29813343 and do not forget to check and subscribe to the YouTube Channel;  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrvvatiJB0_w1Z8-OAfAcA.  

Thus, I have heard…

The Precepts are a list of rules to live by.  In the Theravada tradition, there are five for the layperson there are 8 in Mahayana and 14 in Vajrayana.  For most ministers there are ten or so.  I will list them, but we will focus on the main 5.  There are over 200 for monks and even more for nuns!  Practicing them Improves the chances of developing merit and good karma in this life. 

They were developed for the sangha to live together harmoniously and be able to practice without affecting others or oneself in an unskillful way.

The main and basic lay precepts are: (positive aspects in parentheses)

1.  Refrain from taking a life… not just killing.   (Act with loving kindness)

2.  Refrain from taking what is not given… not just stealing (Be generous,

3.  Refrain from harmful speech… not just lying (practice calm and silence)

4.  Refrain from harmful sexual and emotional practice… (contentment and kindness)

5.  Refrain from using intoxicants that make you heedless. (practice clear headed mindfulness)

To expand to the Mahayana, we add three more.  Most though consider these more in depth and not for the general laity.

6.       Not to eat at wrong times, (after mid-day) can also mean certain kinds of foods too, garlic, onion, meat, eggs.

7.       Not to sit on high expensive beds, or animal skins.  Basically, means to overindulge in material comforts.

8.       Not to over adorn with makeup, jewelry, or perfume. Can include dancing, singing, or playing music with attachment.

For Ministers there is the addition of these two.

9.       Avoiding places of ill-repute (gambling, burlesque etc)

10.   Avoiding abuse or waste of the donations or money under one’s charge.

Vajrayana also has a whole set, which has to do with credentials, condemnation of others, failure to practice etc… It does cover the basics above but is a fair bit more complex.

So, what do you do if you break a precept?  You acknowledge it and move on trying to be mindful of that in the future and try to not do that again. This whole philosophy is a process and dynamic.  We are human and we are fallible.  If we learn from our mistakes, we become better.  Now, some of the precepts are grounds for expulsion from a sangha.  Some are just for personal practice as mentioned above, some need to be confessed to a ‘Dharma friend’ for guidance, some to he Maha-Sangha or elders for guidance.  The five or so main ones are best for contemplation and reflection.  Notice too there is no ‘thou shalt’ stuff going on here.  It is the fore thought (pre-cept) of these as a practice in daily life. If we are practicing mindful attentiveness and skillful attention and concentration, then we can see these before we do them and be able to better our own lives and the lives of everyone around u

Setting into motion the Wheel of Truth, The Four Noble Truths

Setting into motion the Wheel of Truth…

The Centered Path, Part 1 of Buddhist Basics  (based on the Samyutta Nikaya )

Thus I have heard-

After the Buddha attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree near Benares India, he set out to tell his friends, the five ascetics he practiced with for years.  They were not too happy with him as he gave up the rigorous practice and took some snacks from a girl leaving offerings for a tree god.  They saw that something was definitely different about him so the five listened and learned…

It is based on a physician’s work, all four parts were necessary to complete the job.  The identification of the disease, the cause, whether it can be treated and the prescription.

The Four Noble Truths.

1.      The truth of suffering.  The Pali word for this is ‘Dukkha’ which means unsatisfactory, painful, or commonly, suffering basically, always changing (Life is challenging) We have identified there IS suffering, it should be understood and can be understood.   It is a practice to develop compassion for ourselves and others. Dukkha is a common bond of all beings. There should be a practice to realize, ‘Hm, I suffer, so does everyone else, it is not just me.’

2.      The truth of the cause of suffering.  In Pali, Samudaya, also known as attachment, craving or desire…  (The cause is the mind struggling to respond to challenge)  As we discuss this it also includes the ignorance we have towards it) The practice is to realize the desire for sense pleasure (think of food), desire to become (what we are not or do not have) desire to let go of (the origin of suffering is attachment to desire)

3.      The truth to the end of suffering. In Pali, Nirodha or eliminating, cessation, or ending.  I.E. The end is near... (A peaceful mind and an end to the struggle is possible)  Three parts, There is or can be cessation of suffering, the end of dukkha should be realized, the cessation has been realized.  Here we can begin to practice to let go of delusions.  Contemplate ‘why this?’ ‘what does this mean?’ ‘How can this be?’ There is possibility and hope here, if we apply ourselves...

4.      The truth of the way leading to the cessation of suffering - Eight Fold Path.  In Pali, Magga or the way/means (Wise is in use for ‘skillful’ or ‘right’ which are common interpretations) They are separated into three parts which we will discuss later. 

a.      Wise View or understanding of the cause of suffering

b.      Wise intention or resolve and motivation to end suffering

c.      Wise speaking that clarifies our challenges and way out of them

d.      Wise action and behavior that supports our practice.

e.      Wise Lively hood that does not cause more suffering.

f.       Wise effort to cultivate a peaceful mind, life, and habits

g.      Wise concentration that cultivates steadiness and focus on ease and peace

h.      Wise mindfulness that cultivates alertness and balance

Don't forget to check out the website, thecenteredpath.org where you can also download most of these write ups. I am working piecemeal on them and it takes time, so pleas practice patience. and go on YouTube and look for our play list which I have videoed discussions of each of these for further contemplation. Here is a link to the channel.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrvvatiJB0_w1Z8-OAfAcA

Also please know, I am working on getting the class back in person as soon as the quarantine lifts and there is no mask requirement.  I am not 'yet' doing any online meditations but that is in the works.  Please make sure and subscribe so you can see more and get the updates, also make sure and share to friends on Facebook and other social media as that helps the numbers get to a point that advertising can be done.  YouTube needs to have us at 1,000 subscribers and we are now at around 250.  

This is the first part of the Cheat Sheet I made regarding the basics of Buddhist Teachings.  I will be posting on Facebook as well as producing the according videos for each of the subjects.  Some are more than one page or one video.   Your support and encouragement is really appreciated, thank you!  

With Metta, 

Rev. Sean

The Five (Plus) precepts of Buddhist practice; a moral guide for training.

Thus, I have heard…

The Precepts are a list of rules to live by.  In the Theravada tradition, there are five for the lay person there are 8 in Mahayana and 14 in Vajrayana.  For most ministers there are ten or so.  I will list them, but we will focus on the main 5.  There are over 200 for monks and even more for nuns!  Practicing them Improves the chances of developing merit and good karma in this life. 

They were developed for the sangha to live together harmoniously and be able to practice without affecting others or oneself in an unskillful way.

The main and basic lay precepts are: (positive aspects in parentheses)

1.      Refrain from taking a life… not just killing.   (Act with loving kindness)

2.      Refrain from taking what is not given… not just stealing (Be generous,

3.      Refrain from harmful speech… not just lying (practice calm and silence)

4.      Refrain from harmful sexual and emotional practice… (contentment and kindness)

5.      Refrain from using intoxicants that make you heedless. (practice clear headed mindfulness)

To expand to the Mahayana, we add three more.  Most though consider these more in depth and not for the general laity.

6.       Not to eat at wrong times, (after mid-day) can also mean certain kinds of foods too, garlic, onion, meat, eggs.

7.       Not to sit on high expensive beds, or animal skins.  Basically, means to overindulge in material comforts.

8.       Not to over adorn with makeup, jewelry, or perfume. Can include dancing, singing, or playing music with attachment.

For Ministers there is the addition of these two.

9.       Avoiding places of ill-repute (gambling, burlesque etc)

10.   Avoiding abuse or waste of the donations or money under one’s charge.

Vajrayana also has a whole set, which has to do with credentials, condemnation of others, failure to practice etc… It does cover the basics above but is a fair bit more complex.

So, what do you do if you break a precept?  You acknowledge it and move on trying to be mindful of that in the future and try to not do that again. This whole philosophy is a process and dynamic.  We are human and we are fallible.  If we learn from our mistakes, we become better.  Now, some of the precepts are grounds for expulsion from a sangha.  Some are just for personal practice like mentioned above, some need to be confessed to a ‘Dharma friend’ for guidance, some to he Maha-Sangha or elders for guidance.  The five or so main ones are best for contemplation and reflection.  Notice too there is no ‘thou shalt’ stuff going on here.  It is the fore thought (pre-cept) of these as a practice in daily life. If we are practicing mindful attentiveness and skillful attention and concentration, then we can see these before we do them and be able to better our own lives and the lives of everyone around us.

The Three Refuges, a commitment to learn, (Ti Sarana)

Thus, I have heard…

The recitation of the three refuges is the initial and ongoing commitment to learn and experience Buddhism as a thinking individual.  It is the first step in ‘becoming’ a Buddhist.  It is often a ceremony like a baptism, but the volition is our own and the locus of control is from us only.

Although the speaking of the three refuges occurs hundreds of times in our practice as it is a common initial chant for all Buddhists who are attending a ceremony or a workshop.  You will commonly hear it in ‘Pali’, the oldest of languages that Buddhist scripture is in.   Often the word refuge is replaced with teaching or guidance as it is more active to take guidance than refuge.  Refuge means to be safe from pursuit, danger or trouble, a shelter.  This is more of a commitment to learn.

It is not like you are promising to join a gang or team or something, it is a solemn oath to practice and really involve ourselves in this learning. We say it three times to really settle it.  In many traditions of old religion three is a powerful number and saying anything three times meant it could not have been said by accident or just jokingly.  Repetition also holds the following intentions:  request for refuge, intention to observe the refuges, acceptance of the vow to follow them.

Buddham Saranam Gatchami…I go to the Buddha for guidance/teaching/refuge

Dhammam Saranam Gatchami…I go to the Dharma for guidance/teaching/refuge

Sangham Saranam Gatchami… I go to the Sangha for guidance/teaching/refuge

Dutiyampi Buddham Saranam Gatchami…A second time, I go to the Buddha for guidance/teaching/refuge

Dutiyampi Dhammam Saranam Gatchami…A second time, I go to the Dhamma for guidance/teaching/refuge

Dutiyampi Sangham Saranam Gatchami…A second time, I go to the Sangha for guidance/teaching/refuge

Tatiyampi Buddham Saranam Gatchami…A Third time, I go to the Buddha for guidance/teaching/refuge

Tatiyampi Dhammam Saranam Gatchami…A Third time, I go to the Dhamma for guidance/teaching/refuge

Tatiyampi Sangham Saranam Gatchami…A Third time, I go to the Sangha for guidance/teaching/refuge

What am I taking refuge in?  This is called commonly the Three Jewels of Buddhism.  There are deeper levels to this ceremonial practice as well.  We can understand it a little better and deeper with this graph.   In Tibetan or Vajrayana practice there is often a fourth refuge in your guru or specific teacher, Theravada, Hinayana, and Zen do not do this.

	The Buddha	The Dhamma (Dharma)	The Sangha
Externally (outer refuge)	The teacher	The way	The guides
Internal (inner refuge)	Awakening	Experiential understanding	Making use of experience
Direct experience (secret)	Emptiness	Clarity	Unrestricted experience

When you practice and study Buddhism as a philosophy, religion or spirituality you are taking refuge, in ceremony you are taking it out loud for the whole universe to realize.  You are making a vow to wake up.    Often in the ceremony it is lead by a monk or minister and you will receive a Dharma name.  This is a reminder of your new promise to progress in this endeavor.  It is related to the Bodhisattva Vows as well as the Eight-Fold Path, among others.   The next step on the practice of Buddhism is taking the 5+ precepts…

Follow us on our website:  www.thecenteredpath.org or find us on FaceBook and Instagram.  We meet at least twice a week and have a YouTube Channel under 'The Centered Path'

The Noble Eight-Fold Path: The checklist to reduce suffering.

The Noble Eight-Fold Path: The checklist to reduce suffering.

For 2020 I have changed the format of our Sunday morning meditation intention. On the website www.thecenteredpath.org I have loaded some documents to help us study the basics of Buddhist philosophy, practice, religion and spirituality to be applied to our lives as we live them as 'householders'. We do not live like monks or ascetics. We don't have the ability to study like they do, to understand it and be so immersed in it that it becomes the very air we breathe. But we can get pretty close if we can realistically apply it all to our daily lives.

Each Sunday we sit for stillness, following the breath. Then we read a page or two to get an intent and reason to contemplate. This is a good way to apply this teaching for ourselves and to better understand it. I do this so that I can really 'own' the material. When I was in medic school (I was an EMT for over 10 years in Los Angeles) we would teach people by making sure they 'hear one, see one, do one, teach one' This way we get all parts of the learner's ability whether kinesthetic, visual or auditory learning.

I will be discussing these as well in my series on YouTube (the channel is also 'The Centered Path' Here is the second of many that we had for our class. Remember to go to the website and download the 'cheat sheet' as well as the paper we use for class. Perhaps you can follow along in spirit and intent on your own during your own practice.

You are always welcome to come by or contact me for more information. Come on by and sit with me!

Thus, I have heard…

The fourth part of the Four Noble Truths:  Known as the Path. The Buddha taught for 45 years, and this is the Buddhist guide for living a simpler life.  It was explained again and again, differently for different people and their situations. For a person to be in balance there are two qualities to develop equally; compassion (Karuna) and wisdom (Panna).   This is often viewed as the eight spokes of a wagon wheel. There is not one really above or before another, they all hold the hub and wheel together.

The ‘right’ or skillful way of. Often it is displayed as a Dharma Wheel with eight spokes relating to the path itself. There is also the insinuation that there is not one ahead or above another, and that it is all part of the cycle of practice.

Prajna/Wisdom)

1.       View, belief or understanding – Am I seeing what is there, or what I want to see?  “It is what it is”. Seeing things in their true nature, without name, judgement or label.  This is possible when the mind is free of impurity and developed through meditation. This is the process of understanding the Four Noble Truths.

2.       Intention /thought– Am I truly living compassionately and wisely? Offering thoughts of love and non-violence toward all beings with selfish detachment.  Unconditional. Making spiritual growth and having/making a good life our purpose.

Silla/Morality or virtue

3. Speech – Am I saying anything behind anyone’s back I would not say to them directly?  This includes any talk that would bring about suffering; slander, harsh, ide, useless, gossip… Sometimes the only answer is ‘noble silence’

4. Action – Do I practice what I study and preach?  Promotion of honorable, moral and peaceful conduct. Avoid taking what is not given, destroying life, harmful sex actions, speech and thought.   We realize our actions have consequences.

5. Livelihood- Have I lost sight of my calling?  Am I living my calling? Avoid a profession that harms; weapons, war, killing animals, making intoxicants or poisons, cheating…

Samadhi/ Concentration

6. Effort -Am I pushing myself too hard or not hard enough?  Prevent evil and unwholesome states of mind, get rid of those already arisen, promote and cause good to arise in the mind and action.  The action of holding onto good and avoiding bad in mind, body and spirit.

7. Mindfulness/Meditation- Am I fully aware of this moment?  Diligently aware of our minds, attentive to the body (Kaya), sensations (Vedana), mind and thoughts (Citta) and things (Dhamma).  Being aware of one’s own mind is key. This is where you really can have control of your mind and its processes.

8. Concentration- Am focusing on the right things? This leads naturally to the four stages of Dhyana or trance.  1. Passionate desires and unwholesome thoughts are discarded, and happiness is maintained, even in daily life. 2. Tranquility and one pointedness of the mind, with joy and happiness remaining from 1.  3. Joy as an active feeling also subsides and equanimity is maintained. 4. All sensation, happiness and unhappiness, joy and sorry disappear and pure awareness remains. It is a feeling that you have awakened from a dream, the dream and delusion of being (independent).