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Old News Archive
April-May 2005
© 2005

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(2005-05-30) Two new book offerings

- Gifts He Left Behind: The Dhamma Legacy of Ajaan Dune Atulo (Phra Rajavuddhacariya), compiled by Phra Bodhinandamuni and translated from the Thai by Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2005, 141k/50pp.)
  A collection of short anecdotes and quotations from Ajaan Dune, as recalled by one of his long-time monastic comrades. Ajaan Dune's straightforward words are rich with deceptively simple insights that reflect a profound grasp of Dhamma. His unique presentation of the four noble truths, which echoes through these pages, is breathtakingly clear: "The mind sent outside is the origination of suffering; the result of the mind sent outside is suffering; the mind seeing the mind is the path; and the result of the mind seeing the mind is the cessation of suffering."
- Mudita: The Buddha's Teachings on Unselfish Joy: Four Essays by Nyanaponika Thera, Natasha Jackson, C.F. Knight, and L.R. Oates (a digital transcription of the Buddhist Publication Society's 1983 "Wheel" Publication No. 170).
  The short essays in this book explore the role in Buddhist practice of one of the most often overlooked of the four sublime states (brahma-vihara): mudita — sympathetic or unselfish joy. Essays unclude "Is Unselfish Joy Practicable?" (by Nyanaponika Thera), "Unselfish Joy: A Neglected Virtue" (Natasha Jackson), "Mudita" (C.F. Knight), "The Nature and Implications of Mudita" (L.R. Oates). Also includes a passage on cultivating mudita from Buddhaghosa's fifth-century commentarial work Visuddhimagga.

(2005-05-06) A talk by Ajaan Suwat

- The Strategy of a Peaceful Mind, by Ajaan Suwat Suvaco, translated from the Thai by Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2005; 17k/4pp.)
  Viewing peace of mind as a skillful strategy helps the meditator settle the mind down into concentration. But its uses also extend to more advanced stages of meditation, by helping one disengage from all involvement with the aggregates, thereby bringing the meditator to the threshold of Awakening. In this remarkable talk Ajaan Suwat weaves together teachings for beginning and advanced meditators, alike.

(2005-04-28) Printable Uposatha day calendar

- The 2005 calendar of uposatha observance days is now available in a more convenient one-page printable PDF version.

  A link to the current uposatha calendar will henceforth always appear at the bottom of this "What's New" page.

(2005-04-02) Three talks by Ajaan Lee...

- Starting Out Small: A Collection of Talks for Beginning Meditators (Portfolio 3), by Ajaan Lee Dhammadharo, translated from the Thai by Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2005; 30k/8pp.)
  Three more talks from the "Starting out Small" series: "The Essence of Merit," "Intent," and "The Fresh Flavor of Dhamma."

...and a new study guide on Merit

- Merit: A Study Guide. Often misunderstood in the West as quaint and irrelevant to serious practice, the Buddha's teachings on puñña (merit) actually play an essential role in the development of a wise sense of self. This anthology explores the meaning of merit and how it functions to instill in the practitioner the qualities necessary to carry him or her to stream-entry and beyond.

(2005-04-01) An essay on Nirvana

- A Verb for Nirvana, by Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2005; 30k/12pp.)
  As long as we think of Nirvana (Nibbana) as a place — as a destination localized somewhere in space and time — we misunderstand its fundamental significance. In this essay (backed by a selection of sutta excerpts) the author shows that Nirvana is the ending of the entire samsaric process of becoming that creates time and space in the first place. Upon enlightenment one doesn't "enter" or "reach" Nirvana; one simply "Nirvanas."