2023-10-13 Bhante Sujato. Meditation on feeling and form, two of the five aggregates. Dhamma talk on the MN35 Cūḷasaccaka Sutta (The Shorter Discourse With Saccaka). Saccaka as an early "troll" figure. Discussion of the dramatic way the debate takes place and how the Buddha refutes Saccaka's argument that Self is the five aggregates.

2023-10-06   Bhante Sujato. Meditation on light and the breath. Dhamma talk on the story of Anuruddha, Nandiya and Kimbila found in both MN128 Upakkilesasutta (Corruptions) and MN31 Cūḷagosiṅgasutta (The Shorter Discourse at Gosiṅga) . Discussion of the background to these three and why the sutta is framed the way it is, Anuruddha evading questions and gradually revealing things. Discussion of the eleven things that blocked the Bodhisatta's meditation. Comparison of how this sutta talks about light with Yajnavalkya's description of the self and light in Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 4.1.1

2023-09-29   Bhante Sujato. Meditation on the parts of the body. Dhamma talk on Ven. Sāriputta's MN28 Mahāhatthipadopama Sutta (The Longer Simile of the Elephant’s Footprint) . Discussion of the elements as gods that reflect the sacredness of the world we live in. The integration of the four elements, and a shorter discussion of how Ven. Sāriputta also fits in anicca, non-self, forgiveness, metta into the four noble truths.

2023-09-22   Bhante Sujato. Meditation on consciousness of the gradual movement and subtle dimensions of the breath. Dhamma talk on MN26 Pāsarāsisutta/Āriyapariyesanasutta (The Noble Quest). The question of what Āḷāra Kālāma and Uddaka Rāmaputta taught and what may be missing from MN26. Āstika versus the nāstika/neti neti wings of Upanishadic thought, the dimension of nothingness. Also mentioned are MN29 and DN3.

2023-09-15   Bhante Sujato. Meditation on finding anything that is ourself. Dhamma talk on MN22 Alagaddūpamasutta (The Simile of the Cobra). The simile of the raft, and the various comparisons of self and non-self: 6 grounds for views. How non-self is almost always grasped in tthe wrong way like the simile of the snake/cobra.

2023-09-08   Bhante Sujato. Meditation on "what's done is finished". Dhamma talk on MN23 Vammikasutta (The Ant-Hill). Dicussion of how "the gods love hidden things" in the Vedic literature and the possible obscure meanings of the various things that the hero is digging for in this sutta with reference to the Vedic culture.

2023-09-01   Bhante Sujato. Meditation using the five stratgies of calming unskilful thoughts in Madhupiṇḍikasutta: 1. Focus on another thing that gives rise to more wholesome thoughts. 2. Examine ther drawbacks of unskillful thoughts 3. Ignore and forget the thought 4. Stop the causes of unskilful thoughts 5. With exertsion 'crush mind with mind'. Dhamma talk on the final on the trilogy in Majjhima on thought: the same five strategies found in MN20 How to Stop Thinking / Vitakkasaṇṭhānasutta.

2023-08-25   Bhante Sujato. Meditation using the Dvedhāvitakkasutta strategy of dividing thoughts into two classes: wholesome and unwholesome, focus on the drawbacks of unwholesome thoughts. Dhamma talk following on from last week's trilogy of suttas in Majjhima on thought (vitakka/sankappa) MN19 Dvedhāvitakkasutta (Two kinds of thought).

2023-08-18   Bhante Sujato. An insight practice meditation on being aware of how far away from your meditation you are when you realise you have lost your meditation. Dhamma talk on MN18 The Honeycake Sutta. Discussion of Bhante's updated version of this sutta. The Buddha's interlocutor Daṇḍapāṇi as representing someone with a past grudge. Discussion of the senses -> contact -> feeling -> perceiving -> thinking -> proliferating -> judging -> being beset by proliferation and judgements sequence from Mahākaccāna's explanation of the Buddha's words explored in Concept and Reality. References: Concept and Reality by Bhikkhu Ñāṇananda lotuslibrary.com/ebooks/concept-and-reality-in-early-buddhist-thought.

2023-08-11   Bhante Sujato. Meditation on mudita. Dhamma talk on reality, with reference to the idealism vs realism debate in philosophy, the elements, the senses, delusion (delulu) and how the Buddha did not assume things, often asking and clarifying. Discussion of Thursday night's discussion between the Australian Sangha Association including Bhante Sujato, Venerable Thubten Chokyi and Noel Pearson on the First Nations Voice to Parliament.