On the Uposatha, Tahn Pamutto gives a reflection on the brahma-vihara of Mudita. This mind state translates as ‘Gladness’ or ‘Sympathetic Joy’, and is based on a deep joy and appreciation in good fortune, wholesomeness, and success. Often overlooked because it seems too simplistic or doesn’t directly combat ill-will like the other brahma-vihara’s, it is […]
On the Uposatha night, a sick Tahn Pamutto gives a reflection on how we can come to understand the ups and downs of life in a buddhist context. We do this by considering the four noble truths, and specifically cultivating the ‘duty’ to each of these truths. Suffering is to be understood, Craving is to
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In this Uposatha talk, Tahn Pamutto provides encouragement in developing mindfulness, an essential component of the eightfold path, and describes the Buddha’s framework of the Four Foundations of Mindfulness which helps guide that effort and make it fruitful.
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On the Uposatha, Tahn Pamutto offers a reflection on four streams of Puñña, or Merit: Dānā, Service, Instruction, and Bhāvana. Elaborating on each one, he describes how they get progressively more powerful and sublime until the final stream of merit, which culminates in nibbāna itself.
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Our latest weeklong retreat has concluded in Shelburne, MA. The retreat and visit of NYC resident Tahn Santi brought quite a surge of interest in the small gathering space, with 16 different friends visiting over the course of a few days. But for the most part it was a quiet, in-house venture. The evening sit
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In this Uposatha reflection, Tahn Pamutto discusses the vital quality of Equanimity or Upekkha. This quality shows up in a number of lists of wholesome qualities to be cultivated, notably always at the end or as the culmination. By explaining the various ways the term is used, it’s possible to move towards a definition of
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In this Uposatha reflection Tahn Pamutto goes up against the notion that you have to believe in Karma and Rebirth to be a Buddhist – where the idea comes from and what exactly the Buddha talks about as essential in the understanding of karma.
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In this Uposatha reflection, Tahn Pamutto reflects on the ‘Homage to the Triple Gem’, a sort set of verses that are among the most commonly chanted pāli phrases in theravāda buddhism. These phrases are known as the epithets of the Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha, and are a great reflection on what it means to grow
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