The Buddhist Centre

The Triratna International Council has been a going concern for 11+ years–but in many ways it's just getting started. Meeting again in person for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic, it's undergoing something of a renaissance; renewing itself through the work of Buddhists from around the world, all united in their heart wish to work together to help exemplify a path of everyday practice for a planet that really needs a humane path out of suffering. We meet friends from India, Latin America, Oceania, Europe and the UK–as well as the hard-working team who help pull such an ambitious endeavor together every couple of years; convening interim gatherings at regional and national level to make sure we get the best out of this great assembly. We hear why it all matters–what relevance such meetings have for our own community and for anyone interested in genuinely consensual ways to approach questions of leadership, strategy and direction. Perhaps most importantly of all, we hear evoked what it means to share

Welcome to a new season of the podcast! ❤️ Since the 1970s Kamalashila has been exploring meditation and, as an author and teacher in the Triratna Buddhist Order, shaping our understanding of meditation in all its practical magic and mystery. These days he spends much of his time at home in rural England, leading in-depth meditation retreats online for members of the Order. Join us in his garden amongst the summer birds and wildflowers of Suffolk for a conversation about how sadhana – a lifelong, 360º approach to Buddhist meditation and practice – transforms our consciousness and our whole way of experiencing the world. You can't understand it all rationally, Kamalashila says, and this perspective sits comfortably with his embrace of technology and the Internet as effective, if imperfect, tools with which to pursue a personal and communal exploration of the Dharma. What emerges is a vision of Buddhism that knows to be genuinely learning we must also accept that how we see things is often simply wrong. In

In this final episode of the current season of the podcast, Bodhilila, Chair of the West London Buddhist Centre, is in conversation with Lama Rod Owens, bestselling author of ‘Love and Rage: The Path of Liberation Through Anger’.  Their exchange weaves across a number key Dharma threads, beginning with a sense of how being in the body can be a way to step out of systems that stop us reaching our full potential as human beings; a way to reclaim agency and autonomy; and a place for the aspiration to grow beyond our own sufferings and limited self-views. Diversity in its fullest, most positively abundant sense, is never far away; nor is a sharp awareness of the need to turn aside from hatred towards empathy and compassion, always from a place of being well resourced. “It’s a hard thing to hear,” says Lama Rod. “When you think you’re normal but your normality comes at the expense of large groups of people, to the detriment of other people. But that’s not the same thing as hate.” We hear how vital it remains t

We're on the road this week with a festive episode of the podcast to celebrate Vidyamala: the extraordinary inspiration behind Breathworks who has just been made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the Queen’s Birthday 2022 Honours List. She has been honoured for her Services to Wellbeing and Pain Management as Co-founder of Breathworks, an organisation which teaches mindfulness-based approaches to people coping with pain, illness and stress. In a riot of birdsong, on a beautiful day in early summer, we were delighted to be able to join Vidyamala in her garden just after the news broke, along with her partner Sona, and her friend Aryajaya. As well as marking the occasion, we remember the very hard road travelled through pain that led to the foundation of Breathworks and its vital contribution to the welfare of so many people. Having passed on her wisdom to over 600 accredited trainers in 35 countries, Vidyamala's work isn't "just mindfulness"—it's now a whole transformative movement capa

When tens of thousands of Ukrainian refugees began to cross the border with Poland, the Triratna community at Krakow Buddhist Centre got involved with the same great generosity that has marked the Polish people's response to war flaring up uncomfortably close to home. In this episode we hear from Saddhajala and Nityabandhu on the ground in Krakow—not just about the war in Ukraine but about how Buddhist practice has enabled them to meet the crisis and try to bring to life "a blueprint for a new world". By turning their Centre into a place of refuge they have been able to help with families seeking shelter and live out their own ideals. It has made a difference. A moving conversation about practical love and a community of friends finding new cultural expression for Buddhism in their own language as a way to get ready to meet the worst of the world with the best of it. And save Simon the bulldog! Show notes Sanghaloka - Buddhism in Krakow and Warsaw (Polish) Sanghaloka -  Buddhism in Krakow and Warsaw (Eng

Some of the team at the Urgyen Sangharakshita Trust join us for a deep dive into the art of digital storytelling and biographical work online, as we hear about the ongoing creative challenges involved in helping a spiritual community hold the legacy of their teacher across generations. Sangharakshita was a brilliant, complex, sometimes provocative and controversial figure. He was also a friend, a thinker, a writer, and a hundred other things besides. Prajnaketu and Suryanaga discuss with us the making and remaking involved in creating a new web-based life of the founder of the Triratna Buddhist Community and Order. The conversations steers between reverence for what has been given and experimentation around what's ahead as we plot a course through the digital landscape of Tik Tok, dank memes, and new social media. The modern web opens up new possibilities for carrying the learnings and lessons of the past. This is a great collective reflection on lineage, history, and possibility as we continue Sangharakshi

This week's episode is a wonderful conversation from our archive of live events here on The Buddhist Centre Online, featuring our host Paramananda and his guest Maitridevi, Chair of Taraloka Buddhist Retreat Centre for Women in Wales. Starting from a poem by W.S. Merwin, an initial conversation about gratitude for life despite all our knowledge of sorrows blooms into a shared set of reflections on impermanence, on our lack of centrality as a species, and on meditation as an exchange of gifts between us and the earth. How do we activate a sense of everything being alive? Maitridevi evokes ideas of a 'Buddhist Animism', and of the personification of the earth as Green Tara, derived from Dridha, the ancient Indian earth goddess. She and Paramananda explore the shamanic, the punk, the Delphic and oracular; all in the service of uncovering how genuinely sacred wisdom and energy might be said to come up out of the earth. This is an intimate, ultimately encouraging exchange about the great conundrum and tension t

Sometimes a new Dharma book turns up that manages to seem both effortlessly profound and very funny. Of course, Satyadasa's The Sound of One Hand is actually the product of hard-won experience, and we're delighted to welcome him to the podcast to talk about his wonderful memoir as a tale of struggle, inspiration and the meeting of twin lineages in his life: Dharma practice and family. We hear Satyadasa's account of the challenges and joys to be had figuring out how to find a spiritual path when you have a "visible disability" (he was born without his left hand fully formed). Learning to do this within established communities, institutions, and set ways of conceiving of a Buddhist life was the cause of much soul-searching, but Satyadasa has wry anecdotes to spare as he freewheels like his hero Bob Dylan from childhood meditation experiences with his grandfather to studies at Oxford to Buddhist London in the early part of this century. No one is fixed, Satyadasa reminds us, and this conversation is also a r

To mark Earth Day 2022, we’re joined by four friends who, one way or another, are involved with Buddhist activism. From the Buddhafield project to XR Buddhists to Silent Rebellion, we hear tales from the edge of socially engaged Buddhist practice, exploring what, if anything, Buddhists have to offer the world of protests, disruptions and often polarized issue-based politics.  Amaragita, Katja Behrendt, Priyadaka and Yogaratna offer a thoughtful set of reflections in articulating why a distinctive Buddhist approach to urgent issues like climate change and racism can be effective; both at transforming ourselves as we move deeper into Dharma practice—and at attracting anyone looking to speak out but wanting to avoid negative cycles of violence and harmful speech or action. As you’d expect, we hear a number of key questions held without easy answers; and in them also a call to action rooted in kindness, awareness and the desire to connect. This is an inspiring conversation moving from curiosity to empathy, resil

Karuna USA believes that every individual deserves a decent life and the opportunity to achieve their potential, regardless of caste, race or ethnicity. Social and economic systems with high levels of inequality hurt everyone’s progress. That’s a fact. Working together we can challenge these systems and ensure access to a fair and decent life for all. Karuna USA stands in solidarity with those communities barred from achieving this right, and especially with women whose empowerment is key to the transformation of societies. Together with our local community partners in South Asia, we work tirelessly to ensure that those living in abject poverty, forced into bonded labor, or dehumanized by a social designation such as “low caste” can access opportunities for a better life. *** Support Karuna USA: https://www.karuna-usa.org Support Karuna in the UK: https://www.karuna.org Support Karuna Deutschland: https://www.karunadeutschland.org/de/ *** Visit The Buddhist Centre Live (events year-round on Buddhism,

We're joined this week by Buddhist teacher and mentor, Danapriya, author of 'It’s Not Out There'. Most of us constantly look outside ourselves for something: happiness, love, contentment. But this something is not out there. ‘It’ is within us. We are full of these qualities: happiness, love, contentment and more. In 'It’s Not Out There', Danapriya, helps us to look inside ourselves in such a way that life becomes more vivid, joyful and extraordinary. As you'd expect, this is a profoundly optimistic conversation around the connections between love and grief, love and wisdom—and how we can live to pass on what we have been given. Get your copy of 'It's Not Out There' by Danapriya Visit Danapriya's website Connect with Windhorse Publications on Instagram for news of more Buddhist books! *** Visit The Buddhist Centre Live (events year-round on Buddhism, mindfulness, meditation, and culture) Come meditate with us online six days a week! *** Theme music by Ackport! Used with kind permission. #Buddhism #B

We are delighted to announce a new episode of The Buddhist Centre Podcast, marking the start of a new season of curated conversations. We begin the new season with some role reversal! Instead of his usual place hosting guests, Dhammamegha from Windhorse Publications puts Candradasa in the hot seat to talk about his new book, 'Buddhism for Teens', just published by Rockridge Press. Download a sample chapter and get a copy of 'Buddhism for Teens' It's not always easy for teenagers to navigate their lives at home, at school, and with friends, but through Buddhist meditation and mindfulness practices they can discover a path to inner calm and awareness. Buddhism for Teens introduces teens to a Buddhist way of seeing things, and helps them build their emotional strength, their sense of self, and their connection to the world around them. Dhammamegha and Candradasa explore the themes of the book, looking at how Dharma stories and practice can help anyone—teen or adult—move past the things that restrict or cons

A full Dharma life: you can come to it from anywhere, and it will lead you in unimagined ways... From the investment banking hothouses of the City of London, to visionary experiences in a field with Green Tara and the Chemical Brothers at the Glastonbury Festival, here are stories told by a team of people dedicating their work to setting up conditions for a future where the great hope of the Buddhist path is available to all. We hear why connecting across cultures and geographies is a practice of love and trust that's worth making your life's work, dissolving isolation and loneliness one connection at a time. If you think you know what fundraising is or who FutureDharma are—think again! This is how we really change the world: story by story, person by person. And a myriad of inspiring projects are born to renew the heart of a community. This is One World. Together we are One Sangha. Will you give so that our International Sangha can keep reaching out to more people than ever before? Give now the One Sa

Join us for a deep dive into the relationship between art, aesthetics, the environment, and the inner life of people, objects and houses! In this episode we discuss the current ecological and biodiversity crises with an artist and a poet, asking how an appreciation and fuller understanding of beauty itself can help us take action in our own lives. Be prepared to have your notions of "the beautiful" challenged and, hopefully, also affirmed as we range with our guests Padmacandra and Vilokini from the world of wabi-sabi to the lost stories of an old theatre, from the rainy streets of Venice to the re-wilding of a field and garden in England. Time to set out for "The Greater Mandala of Uselessness"! Show notes The Tale of the Whale by Karen Swann and Padmacandra The Many Jewels: Buddhism, Writing and the Arts (a podcast series with Padmacandra) Wisdom Beyond Words by Sangharakshita (source for the teaching on "The Greater Mandala of Uselessness"). Wabi-Sabi *** Check out our Dharma Toolkit space for deta

A conversation exploring the central role of strong personal friendships in creating a culture that encourages women and girls in India to take seriously their own aspirations - whether in Buddhist training or life in general. Abhayanavita and Tarahridaya are wonderful leaders and exemplars in this work, speaking across generations, across gender, and across caste to help inspire the new Buddhists of India. From extremely difficult conditions each has forged her own path towards safety, respect and acceptance. And in a time of terrible challenge from the ongoing ravages of Covid-19 amongst the poorest people in their communities, both are beacons of positivity to anyone striving for liberation from suffering. This is a welcome message of hope from two great friends to all who hold India in their hearts. Help save lives in India and Nepal! Find out more about Karuna's work in India and Nepal *** Check out our Dharma Toolkit space for details of all we have on offer to help you stay inspired through the

A special episode of the podcast to invite you to Alive In Nature! - a series of live meditations and Dharma adventures from the Scottish Highlands! Find our more and reserve your space on Alive In Nature! For three Saturdays in spring or autumn - whichever hemisphere you are in, whatever state of lockdown you're living through - you're invited to sit with us and the amazing team from the Dhanakosa community in the birch woods of the Scottish Highlands. And to find your own "micro-adventure" in nature - in your own way, at your own pace (even if it's looking out your window!). By way of introduction to this experience, in this episode we go on a walk over the hillside at Balquhidder in the beautiful Trossachs region. The burn (brook) runs down the mountain through cataracts and waterfalls to the loch (lake) below; the snow in the pine forest crunches underfoot as we climb with Nayaka to a place of owls and foxes and roe deer... As he walks, Nayaka reflects on his own experience of a reciprocated relation

Live from Forest House near Rivendell Retreat Centre in the UK - we're not sure a podcast setting gets any more mythic than that! Our friends Mandarava and Nagasiddhi are running an online Home Retreat for us - with amazing puppets, original artwork for the event, and an abundance of magic images illustrating tales from the life of the Buddha. And you are invited! Register for a space on 'In the Footsteps of the Buddha' Meditation, storytelling, ritual, sharing collective spaces that can hold joy and difficulty - this will be an immersive, interactive space online like no other; a retreat to help keep you inspired at home that you can dip into or dive deep within, whatever your circumstances allow. You can hear just from how these two working artists talk about the  enchantment involved in gathering everyday materials to create objects replete with beauty and meaning that their approach to practice can help, especially through grief and life's sorrows. Join us and come dwell in a forest of imagination wi

Forty years of friendship around meditation, the Dharma, and a common interest in the workings of the 'psyche' - the human 'soul' - mark out this first pilot episode for a new series of live podcasts. Join Paramananada in conversation with a set of friends to explore and share together their 'Sources of Inspiration'. Our first guest is Atula (Richard Hudson), psychosynthesist and good friend to many in the Triratna Buddhist Community. Atula has made it his life's work to consider the place of darkness, descent, depth as  experienced aspects of spiritual life, rather than an obstacle to it. What follows is itself a soulful, insightful conversation about Atula's approach in therapy and in dream work (individual and collective); particularly looking at the inspiration he draws from James Hillman in considering the deep workings of human behaviour and of the mind itself. There's an urgent relevance here for anyone exploring ideas of integration and the felt tensions between "matter" and "spirit". William Blake

This episode was recorded in October 2020 when the project to bring online learning to kids from Nagpur's poorest communities was just getting started. Please support this vital work now if you can: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/aryaloka *** Aryaketu is amazing. For 20 years he has been forging a life of extraordinary service in India with the Buddhist 'Bodhisattva Path' as the main context for his work. His vital, pioneering computer training school - the Aryaloka Institute - is all about the social uplift of some of the most vulnerable young people in his home city of Nagpur. It is also dedicated to exemplifying the possibilities with the bigger ideas of freedom enshrined in the Buddha's teaching. Beyond the potentially life-changing qualifications they receive, it is this spirt of selfless service and liberation which Aryaketu tries to bring to the mentoring of students every day. In the pandemic, with schools closed or unsafe, Aryaketu's dreams of a better education and life for local kids h

Happy New Year! May 2021 prove a kinder, more hopeful year for all. In this first podcast of the year we turn to the magic of inner transformation, with a special episode to mark our forthcoming Home Retreat: 'The Alchemical Heart' with Paramananda. In our conversation around the work involved with an "alchemical" approach to meditation Paramananda explores the relationship between Buddhist perspectives on life and the social, political and psychological realms. And most importantly, its connection to a sense of reality as fundamentally poetic in nature. All in service to figuring out how we can live from a genuine, authentic place in our own experience. Aside from alchemy's place in various western wisdom traditions, if here it is all about internal change, then, says Paramananda, the body is the vessel: this is where the work happens - because it is the nearest bit of reality with which we can become intimate. And to do so we must engage with the language of the heart, which is the language of images. T