Buddhist Retreats (5/2/01):

I'm just back from retreat. Most serious Buddhist practitioners go on long retreats regularly. I try and make a point of going at least twice a year, in the middle of the year and in January. They represent an opportunity, as the word "retreat" implies, to leave the "mundane" world behind for awhile to give yourself the opportunity to renew your practice in ideal conditions and to experience where youíre at yourself more deeply. Usually the retreat centres are in quiet, natural settings, which in themselves are conducive to spiritual renewal. The retreat I went on was for two weeks and because it is for people who have asked for ordination involved quite a lot of study as well as meditation.

For beginners we usually run weekend retreats that start on Friday night and finish on Sunday afternoons. They're designed to be a gentle introduction and usually emphasise a particular theme associated with meditation and/or reflection. We have run several of these in Toowoomba at one of the local Catholic schools retreat centre. They've been very successful. Other retreats are longer, usually ten days, for people who feel up to it, and tend to be run in other centres including Sydney, Melbourne and New Zealand. These retreats may be mixed or single-sex.

Again, when one is ready for it, solitary retreats are highly recommended to experience oneself even more deeply; at the moment we are looking for a suitable site in the Toowoomba region. Just being on retreat in a lovely situation, meditating daily and mixing with spiritual friends has an uplifting effect. One definitely experiences a higher, more refined state of consciousness. Iíve certainly come back feeling more relaxed and inspired. Of course, then the art is to try and maintain this as you renters the mundane world, for you are hit by the coarseness of this world as soon as you leave the retreat. The speed, the noise, the aggression, the rampant consumerism and so on. The practice of loving-kindness towards self and other (metta bhavana ) is very valuable in this regard.

A new six-week Introducing Buddhism course is starting at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre (TBC) within the next two weeks.

Inquiries regarding courses and activities can be directed to the TBC at 4659 7760 or our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Entering the Stream (12/2/01):

A model for spiritual practice I often suggest at the Toowoomba Buddhist centre (TBC) is known as the Threefold Path - the Path of Ethics, Meditation and Wisdom or Insight. Each of the stages depends on each of the others ­ they supplement each other - you really need to practice all of them, not just one of them. Of course the aim of Buddhism is to become Enlightened ­ to escape the delusion that binds us through attachment to the conditioned world. Only by fully de-conditioning ourselves can we achieve total freedom ­ Nirvana. Then we can live in the midst of the conditioned world unconditionally, not dependent on the condition of attachment to desires that we use to try and maintain our security.

Whilst Enlightenment may be a fair way over the horizon, in the meantime we can plunge into the stream that will inevitably lead us there. As has been pointed out in the last several articles in this column, once our regular practice begins to break us out of the pull of the conditioned, we can increasingly rely on being drawn on spontaneously by the pull of the Unconditioned, the spiritual. This pull is often likened to a great river emptying into the ocean. We're standing alongside that river and in the beginning of our spiritual journey usually just tipping our toes in the water.

We could say that the distance from the point where we are standing to the edge of the river corresponds with the first stage of the path, the stage of ethical practice. This needs to be traversed before we can dive or (wade) into the river. Once we've taken the plunge the distance from the edge of the river to midstream corresponds to the second stage of the path, the stage of meditation. Once we've reached midstream and begin to feel the mighty force of the current flowing toward the ocean, we just have to abandon ourselves to it; this is the point of Stream-entry, the point of no return. And the distance form there to the ocean itself is the third stage of the path, the stage of wisdom. A new six-week Introducing Buddhism course is starting at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre (TBC) on Tuesday evening the 19th of February 2001. Inquiries regarding courses and activities can be directed to the TBC at 4659 7760 or our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.  

Introducing Buddhism:

A new day-time, six-week 'Introducing Buddhism' course starts at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre (TBC) on Thursday the 21st February 10am-12noon. These courses are for people who want 'to know' more about Buddhism before perhaps exploring it more. It's clear that interest in Buddhism is increasing in the West. Our centre is part of a pioneering movement that is helping Buddhism spread and adapt to Western culture - and adapt it must, as it always has when it moved into a new culture. For example, it adapted quite significantly when it moved from India into China, because the Chinese civilisation was so developed.

Similarly, as it moves into the West, it is encountering for the second time a highly developed civilisation. To survive in this Western context Buddhism has to evolve past its traditional Asian forms. As they exist at the moment they are too difficult to assimilate for the vast majority of Westerners, who tend to see them as curiosities, or are attracted to their exoticness. But if you want to really change and grow psychologically and spiritually you cannot bypass your own Western psychological and cultural conditioning. All of us brought up in Western cultures have been deeply, unconsciously, conditioned by its cultural forces such as Christianity, scientific rationalism, utilitarianism, materialism, commercialism, democracy, intellectualism, individualism and the doctrine of rights, to name a few.

Part of the spread of Buddhism into the West involves an information explosion on it (for example books, TV programs, the internet). Where there is lots of information there is the also the danger of ill-informed views and opinions and simply 'getting the wrong end of the stick'. So the 'Introducing Buddhism' course offered at the TBC goes back to the core teachings of the Buddha (which have become known as 'Basic Buddhism'), that all major traditions share at their heart. These include formulae like The Four Noble Truths, The Eightfold Path, The Three Characteristics of Conditioned Existence, The Law of Conditioned Co-production, the nature of the human condition and the origin of suffering. The course is primarily designed to clarify views and clear up misconceptions through discussion and exposure to people's different points of view. It is also taught in a clear Western style of expression and English. For information please contact us on 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Buddhism and Society (23/2/01):

The teachings of Buddhism have always been applicable to society at large as well as the individual. You can't ever really fully separate the individual out from society, so you can't talk about individual growth without taking into account the state of the society. The historical Buddha himself had much to say on these matters and was what we would call today a social reformer.

Just as the ultimate aim for the individual in Buddhism is to seek Enlightenment, so too Buddhist social policy (if we can call it that) is centred around creating societies that foster spiritual development. This is the bottom line; this is where society should be heading. This may sound overly idealistic but I would argue that its not. In fact I would say that to have such an aim is realistic because it equates with what, perhaps at a pretty deep level, people really want, and need. The institutions of government and policy ignore this at their own peril. It is dangerous for them to do this because human nature will rebel if their needs arent met!

So the ultimate aim is to create a society that helps spiritual growth, or at least recognises this as a core value of society. Moving back from this ultimate ideal, an 'enlightened' society at least recognises the importance of facilitating the psychological and cultural growth of its citizens. However, it is no use talking about these lofty ideals if people's basic needs of water, food, clothing, shelter, hygiene, health, education and meaningful work are not being met. There is a hierarchy of people's needs and you can't satisfy the higher ones when and if the basic ones are not being met. This is where Buddhism starts.

When we examine current political and social policies in Australia (and in many other so called 'developed countries') we have to say that from a Buddhist perspective they are sadly lacking. They certainly lack an ideal vision for the society for a start. Also I think its fairly safe to say that they have become overwhelmingly and unhealthily obsessed with economic matters. They emphasise and concentrate on matters solely that pertain to the 'economy' - that abstract entity that no one, from leading economists to politicians, really understands anymore - and neglect the more concrete, basic needs of human beings. People, citizens, the electorate (being human beings) will not put up with this. The signs are everywhere that they are indeed very 'fed up' with the current economic obsession. More next week. For enquiries about courses and activities at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre (TBC) can be directed to the TBC at 4659 7760 or our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba. An open day/garage sale is planned for sunday March 11th.

Buddhist Social Policy (2/3/01)

In the last article we introduced the idea that Buddhism has a social perspective as well as a spiritual one. In fact you can never really separate these two aspects from each other. We pointed out that the focal point, therefore, of a Buddhist social policy is to try and create social conditions that foster Enlightenment or at least spiritual development. However, it is recognised that people's more basic (survival) needs have to be met as a necessary condition before spiritual development can be a realistic goal.

The trouble with the overwhelming orientation towards economic policy that seems an 'obsession' of contemporary government policy is that it doesn't recognise these broader needs of human beings. Karl Polyani in his book The Great Transformation (published in the 1940s) pointed out that one of the unfortunate by-products of capitalism is that it turns people into mere commodities and resources to be apportioned at the whim of market forces. Prior to the industrial revolution and the advent of capitalism, Polyani claims that earlier European societies were organised more around co-operation and stability (eg. the guild system).

With the advent of international trade, industrialisation and laissez-faire capitalism in the 17th and 18th centuries, the market place became the dominant forces within society. The European countries and the Americas had to deploy capital and labour into their new industries and market their products through trade to maintain their comparative economic advantages over each other. This is what Polyani meant by The 'Great Transformation'. A transformation from a situation where societies were organised to meet human needs on a more cohesive, co-operative basis to one in which competition dictated by market forces was emphasised.

Looking at contemporary society one can only conclude that nothing much has changed. Competition and market forces alone, from a Buddhist perspective, do not create societies that meet peoples broader human needs, let alone foster their spiritual development. Enquires about courses and activities at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre (TBC) can be directed to the TBC at 46597760 or our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba. The open day/garage sale mentioned in last week's column has been postponed till April due to the Toowoomba Show where we hope to have a stall.

The Unfamiliar Self (9/3/01):

The other night, in the Introducing Buddhism class that is being run at the TBC currently, we were discussing the nature of self. We were talking about how people become overwhelmingly identified with their interactions and relations with things in the 'outside' world. Things like possessions, belongings, fashions, friends, groups, beliefs, roles, qualifications, status, our profession or job, and so on. We use these external orientations or interactions to define ourselves, in fact, to define our identity.

Furthermore, we use their qualities or characteristics to distinguish us from others, to set ourselves apart. Creating our identity also involves actively 'identifying' with these things; that is, equating our 'self ' with their qualities. To put it simply, we use these external relations to give our self an identity, and then 'identifying' with the identity becomes a powerful way of creating and maintaining that sense of self.

But aren't we 'inside' too? Isn't there an inside world too and where is our self there? Here I think we become less certain, less sure of our ground. We know the external dimension of ourselves quite well because we identify so completely with them ­ they're more familiar. But trying to define or describe ourselves from the inside is a lot less familiar. The situation has been likened to trying to describe a hole in a piece of wood. The easiest way is to describe it in terms of the colour, texture and shape of the wood that surrounds it ­ "it is a brown, round, smooth hole". The hole's identity (so to speak) is derived in this way from the wood around it.  But is this really the hole? The hole is actually just empty space!

So it is with our self. Is the self really all those external things we identify with? Or is it what is inside of them? How familiar is that to us? We all agreed in our chat at the TBC that the inside part of ourselves was not very familiar to us and like anything unfamiliar perhaps a bit frightening! In some ways it is like a hole ­ a sort of emptiness or space or even a vacuum. How easy it is for our consumer-driven economy and society to play on this and drag us along with it as we fall  prey to all the advertising, because we identify with it. Less so if we are quite comfortably at home or resident within. The Chinese have a saying: "Are you a guest in your own house; or are you the host?"  For enquiries about courses (on entering within) and activities at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre (TBC) can be directed to the TBC at 4659 7760 or our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

How We Create Our Self (16/3/01):

As well as maintaining our 'self' by identifying with our external relationships with things - possessions, professions, friends, fashions, beliefs and so on - we create ourselves from within with our own minds. The human mind is capable of looking into itself or bending back on itself Technically this ability is known as reflexivity. This term shares its meaning with the more common use of the word 'reflex' describing the process of nerve impulses moving from a stimulus to the central nervous system and then back out to a muscle.

Humans are not just aware, they're aware that they're aware! This is the mind bending back on itself or looking into itself. The awareness of something being aware produces our experience of self-hood - it is in fact self-awareness. Whenever we think, our minds retreat inwardly in a sort of self-referencing arc. We can close our eyes and consciously think about ourselves or analyse ourselves. We can look back into our memories and construct a sense of our past, or we can imagine ourselves in some future situation (try it). This is often called 'reflection', another word that shares its meaning with reflexive.

Actually, our mind is doing this bending back on itself or referring back to itself all the time. You could describe it as a process of self-referencing. This self-referential process is happening continuously and very fast so that it is largely unconscious. We're not aware that we're doing it (unlike when we're consciously reflecting). We're continually remembering our self, imagining our self, thinking about our self, generating feelings about our self, forming attitudes toward our self, and so on. That is why we have expressions like 'positive or negative self-image' or 'low self-esteem'. They refer to personal experiences produced by these self-referencing arcs within our own minds.

In this way, according to Buddhism (and other Eastern traditions), the mind 'manufactures' its sense of self. But actually there is no real self! No self, that is, in the sense of some independently existing entity, outside of this process. There is simply the process of continuous self-referencing, which is happening so fast that it's analogous to a cinematic film. The film actually consists of a great number of single snap shots which when projected onto a screen give the impression of a continuous event. Each of our mind's self-referential arcs is like a snap shot which form a series happening so fast we think that what they're projecting (the experience of a self) is a continuity - a solidly existing and independent entity. But, actually, 'Who am I? The one who asked the question, or the one about whom I asked the question?' For enquiries about courses (on entering within) and activities at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre (TBC) can be directed to the TBC at 4659 7760 or our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Goals in Buddhism (23/3/01):

The goal of Buddhism is usually described as Enlightenment or Nirvana. These are profound states of being because they involve complete freedom or emancipation from the process of conditionality. You are no longer at the mercy of these conditioning forces, which are acting on us all the time. It's difficult to imagine being completely free from the process of conditionality in a conditioned world. This is one of the reasons Nirvana and Enlightenment are described traditionally as states of being that are incomprehensible to the ordinary, intellectual mind. You can only experience them.

In this sense, therefore, Enlightenment may be thought of as a long way off. In articles over the last couple of weeks we've described another, more proximate goal known as Stream-entry. This is where you have actually broken away from the forces of conditionality to such an extent that you're guaranteed to eventually achieve Enlightenment. This in itself is a pretty major goal. But what about in the meantime? Well Buddhism makes this guarantee: if you practice it sincerely and correctly then you will see results immediately, or at least within five minutes! Buddhism teaches that you will definitely see results in this lifetime. You don't have to wait until after death to reap the fruits of your spiritual practice.

For example, if you are uptight and you sit down and do a meditation practice like the mindfulness of breathing you will become calmer. If you start to meditate and practice ethics on a daily basis, and you keep it up, you will definitely experience a change for the better in your overall state of consciousness: you'll become more tranquil and happier - guaranteed! In fact for most people coming on the courses offered at the Buddhist centre this is a realistic, initial goal: to become a saner, healthier and happier human being. Most people agree that this is a worthwhile starting point. The TBC is running a stall at the Toowoomba Show next week and then after Easter we're starting a new Introduction to Meditation course. Enquiries can be directed to the TBC at 4659

Giving (1/4/01):

Last week we talked of a basic aim of Buddhism in the West being to help people become saner, healthier human beings asa first step on the way to Enlightenment. The old proverb springs to mind that a journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step. Enlightenment may be a thousand miles away, but whatever you do you won't get there till you take that first couple of steps. The Insight into Reality that is at the heart of Enlightenment doesn't arise till you have become a more concentrated and happier person. So the first steps are usually about doing things to help you become more tranquil and emotionally more positive.

That is why in Buddhism the practical path starts with ethics. If you practice an ethical lifestyle you become happier. This sort of happiness isn't a 'high', or an extreme state like elation. It's much simpler. It's the feeling tone associated with the absence of inner conflict, guilt or shame. You have peaceful mind and experience contentment. Unethical lifestyles produce the opposite: inner conflict, guilt, remorse and usually the restlessness associated with compulsive craving. Serious Buddhists practice a minimum of five ethical precepts in their lives. But the Buddhist path often starts with something even simpler still.

The first step is often the practice of 'giving' or generosity. So if practising say five ethical precepts is too much for you can start with this simple principle of dana or giving. This quality of generosity is something that strikes Westerners when they visit traditionally Buddhist countries in Asia. People are always giving each other gifts. This 'giving' is something sadly lacking in our societies. We try and teach children to share, but don't do it ourselves as adults. We often feel embarrassed and don't know how to respond when someone gives us something: it's unfamiliar to us. Our lives have become so individualistic, so insular that, if anything, we try and rescue ourselves from the insecurity this has produced by hoarding our own material possessions, which is virtually the opposite to giving and sharing.

The beauty of giving is that it is something you can do easily and straight away. It's not complicated and it's something practical that anyone can do. And it will have an uplifting effect on your mind. It also sets up and prepares the ground for a more thorough practice of ethics. Give it a try. A new Introduction to Meditation course is starting at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre on Tuesday evening (7-9pm) April 24th. Enquiries can be directed to the TBC at 4659 7760 or our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Simply Happy (6/4/01):

Through the practice of Buddhism it is possible to change from an unhealthy, neurotic, unhappy state to a healthy, happy, human one. Often just to achieve this is the starting point for many people who walk through the doors of a Buddhist centre. Later it's possible to climb past this point and become a 'very' happy human being experiencing an uninterrupted stream of higher levels of consciousness. Actually it's interesting to reflect on this a bit more. There is the suggestion in Buddhism that we accept far too low a level of consciousness as our normal one, and that in fact this low level is not the normal, natural, human state.

Children are often seen to be in a very happy state, and indeed in many traditions it is encouraged to 'become like a child again'. That is not to say that this is a particularly 'spiritual' state because, even though happy, children are often, if not usually, very self-centred. No, what we are talking about here is simply a natural, human state of happiness that is available to all of us. This state is often romanticized, as well, as perhaps typical of earlier humans in the so-called primal societies. When we talk of happiness in these senses we're usually talking about things like being care-free, spontaneous, taking joy from living in the present, playing, laughing and so on.

The higher states of consciousness accessible through meditation are known as the dhyanas in Buddhism and traditionally there are eight of them. Not only can one experience them through meditation but also you can live in the first one as your normal everyday consciousness. They are spoken of as 'higher' simply because they are happier, more concentrated and more refined than our normal consciousness, which tends to be distracted, emotionally stormy, and prone to craving and aversion.

A new Introduction to Meditation course is starting at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre on Tuesday evening (7-9pm) April 24th. Also a daytime course Introducing Buddhism is being proposed to start on Thursday 26th April 10am-12noon for those of you at home during the day. Enquiries can be directed to the TBC at 4659 7760 or our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Buddhist Easter Message (16/4/01)

According to the dictionary 'Easter' was named after the Old English Goddess of Dawn. Dawn or sunset occurs in the east, and in fact the origins of the word share this connotation of the word 'east', as in East-er. Dawn is obviously the start of a 'new' day and the ancient festival of Easter is associated with fertility and renewal. In the northern hemisphere the timing of the festival is spring - the period when new life appears after the death of winter. So implicit in the celebration are ideas of fertility, rebirth, new-ness and change.

According to Buddhism we tend to have a fixed view of our self and this is one of the biggest hindrances to growth. The ideas associated with Easter can challenge this. Our fixed view of our self is our habitual acceptance of our present experience of 'our' self as being unchanging and ultimate. We can't believe that we can change, can become a new self. Our whole culture is based on the materialistic view that things are fixed and unchanging. Applied to ourselves we have sayings like 'an old dog can't change its spots' and so on.

We are so familiar, so used to ourselves, so used to thinking of ourselves in a certain way. We think, 'This is Me. I'll always be like this: I may change a bit but I'll still always be the same old me.' We just can't believe that this Self, this Me, this 'I' as we are experiencing it here and now, can ever be completely changed, transformed, transfigured - consumed as it were by fire, so that out of the ashes of that old self a new self can arise. We refuse to accept that this can happen even once: let alone many times. Ancient celebrations like Easter challenge this way of thinking. They are, therefore. a useful opportunity to 'celebrate' the fact that self change is possible.

A new Introduction to Meditation course is starting at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre on Tuesday evening (7-9pm) April 24th. Also a daytime course Introducing Buddhism is being proposed to start on Thursday 26th April 10am-12noon for those of you at home during the day. Enquiries can be directed to the TBC at 4659 7760 or our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Buddha Day (3/5/01):

This month we celebrate Wesak a major festival celebrated all over the world by Buddhists. It usually happens on the day of the full moon in May (Wesak or Veask is the name of the month in the Indian calendar). During this day people celebrate the birth, Enlightenement and death of the Buddha, thus it is also commonly known as "Buddha Day" - we'll be celebrating it at the TBC on Monday night next.

Usually we tend to think of "the Buddha" as Gautama Buddha, the historical Buddha born in our time (c.563BCE). But actually he is "a Buddha" indicating the fact that that there is not one Buddha but many. In fact Gautama Buddha himself said to his followers: 'Monks, it is just as if a person wandering through the jungle, the great forest, should see an ancient path, travelled along by men of former times ... So also monks, have I seen an ancient path, travelled along by fully Enlightened Ones of former times ... And what is that ancient road, that ancient path travelled along by fully Enlightened Ones of former times? It is just the Noble Eightfold Path ...' (Sanyutta Nikaya, 12, 65).

It is quite commonly known in Mahayana and Theravadin Buddhist countries that Gautama Buddha, although historically unique, cosmologically speaking is just one of a long line of Buddhas, past present and future. In fact it is considered that this particular kalpa (Aeon) - an infinitely long period incorporating the existence of a universe (infinite numbers of universes coming and going according to Buddhist cosmology) - that we live in happens to be a "Greatly Auspicious" one (mahabhaddha-kappa) in which five Buddhas come into the world. Those of the past were Kakkusandha, Konagama, Kassapa, Gautama, and the future Buddha being Metteya (Skt. Maitreya). The attainment of Enlightenment is a constantly reoccurring event in the universe - the rediscovery of a universal law. A Buddha is someone who rediscovers it and teaches it to others.

An Open Day/Garage Sale will be held at the TBC (4 Thorn Street, Toowoomba) on Sunday the 27th May 10am - 2pm. All are welcome. For enquiries about courses and activities being run at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre contact the TBC on 4659 7760 or our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Becoming More Positive (10/5/01)

In an article a couple of weeks ago we mentioned the fact that through the practice of Buddhism it is possible to change from an neurotic, unhealthy, unhappy state to a healthy, happy, human one. Often this is the starting point for many people who walk through the doors of one of our Buddhist centres; and this is often a provisional aim of the courses we offer at the centre. If you keep up a basic Buddhist practice, namely the practice of Ethics and Meditation, then you should get happier - guaranteed. If you are not, you are doing something wrong, something that is not a truly Buddhist practice.

Usually it is a case of simply not keeping it up on a regular, daily basis. Sometimes it's because we want sudden, dramatic changes and we're not being patient enough with ourselves. The practice works slowly and incrementally and maybe we don't notice the changes, but they are happening. We live in times where the 'quick fix' and gross highs are emphasised. It is well known in natural healing that it often takes a slow, incremental process over time for us to become unwell. To heal 'naturally' also takes a slow, steady, small step-by-step process. So we have to be patient with ourselves and not unrealistically expect dramatic, overnight results.

If you do keep up a basic practice you will definitely experience results for the better. Some of the symptoms are the following: an experience of an inner peace characterised by an absence of inner conflict, guilt and more contentment; loss of interest in 'sitting in judgement' on yourself and others; an unmistakable ability to enjoy the moment; a loss of the tendency to worry; taking delight in the ordinary; a tendency to think and act more spontaneously; prolonged periods of feeling happy for no apparent reason. Later it's possible to climb past this point and become a 'very' happy human being experiencing an uninterrupted stream of higher levels of consciousness. Increasingly we find ourselves having to make allowances for unforseen positive events.

An Open Day/Garage Sale will be held at the TBC (4 Thorn Street, Toowoomba) on Sunday the 27th May 10am - 2pm. All are welcome. For enquiries about courses and activities being run at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre contact the TBC on 4659 7760 or our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

BUDDHISM NOT A PANACEA:

With the fashionable interest in Buddhism these days one gets the impression that there is a perhaps overly-romanticized perception of it out there - that Buddhism is a panacea or cure-all; a sort of magic potion. Some of the books on Buddhism tend to paint a rosy, 'sugary-sweet' version of the teachings. What they say about the Dharma is true but there is usually not much real practical guidance on how you put it into effect in your life. So the writings seem somewhat platitudinous and superficial.

For the Dharma to work it has to be put into effect in one's life. It's not enough to just read books about Buddhism and to think how interesting or profound the philosophy is, or how comforting the noble sentiments are that it espouses. In reality the practice of Buddhism requires a lot of effort and quite hard work. Conventional religion has been criticised as an 'opiate of the masses' ­ as something we can drug ourselves with, as it were, or comfort ourselves with ­ instead of facing up to reality. Traditional Buddhism is the direct opposite to this; it's about facing reality squarely in order to truly escape from suffering. So it is not for the faint-hearted, or those deluding themselves by projecting onto it something that it's not. In the West we are all too good at first unrealistically putting something up on a false pedestal and then, when it doesn't live up to our projections onto it or our miss-perceptions of it, we tear it down, usually having totally missed the point.

The practice of the Dharma requires effort, work, training, study, education, meditating ­ a lot of 'doing'. One who 'practices' the Dharma practices ethics as training principles, takes precepts, and keeps up a daily meditation practice day in a day out. Of course this work is not without its rewards and pleasures; if it wasn't we wouldn't keep it up. But it does require constant effort ­ a life without effort is ultimately one of escapism.

New six week courses starting in June at the TBC are, Introducing Buddhism on Tuesday evening 12th June 7-9pm and Traditional Meditation during the day Thursday 14th June 10am-12noon; enquiries to 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Aims Of the Buddhist Column (17/5/01):

I thought it might be a good idea to discuss some of the aims of this column on Buddhism, as it's been going a couple of years now. By and large the feedback from readers has been positive and supportive. People have reported things like, for example, the articles sparking of some hope or a bit of inspiration for them when life has seemed somewhat meaningless of late. When the 'Star' ran a competition not long ago for a book on Buddhism they said the response was good. Of course, inevitably, from time to time one also gets negative comments.

An obvious aim of this column is to inform people about the nature of Buddhism, what may be for many an 'alternative' traditional of spiritual development. To do this we draw on 'Basic Buddhism'. This is the core teaching or philosophical formulae that are shared by all Buddhist traditions and go back to the Buddha himself. Related to this is a concern to clarify the Buddhist teaching, known as the Buddha Dharma, because there are all sorts of mis-conceptions about the teachings out there. A lot of people read books about Buddhism (indeed it has become quite fashionable) or study it on their own, and it's possible for misunderstandings to arise, or to read into it a meaning, which isn't actually there. Discussing these ideas in a study group with someone who has more experience than you can help bring such matters to light. To foster this type of interaction is one of the main functions of our study groups and they seem to go quite successfully in this regard.

A more fundamental aim is simply to try and help people. To provide the reader with some practical advice on how to draw on traditional Buddhist teachings in a way that makes them relevant to dealing with the complex and problematic aspects of living in modern, Western societies. So the aim is to help people grow psychologically - in a word become happier - and spiritually. May all beings be happy!

An Open Day/Garage Sale will be held at the TBC (4 Thorn Street, Toowoomba) on Sunday the 27th May 10am ­ 3pm. All are welcome. For enquiries about new meditation and philosophy courses starting in June at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre contact the TBC on 4659 7760 or our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Spreading the Dharma 31/5/01:

To spread the Dharma (the Teaching of the Buddha) has always been considered important in Buddhism. But this is not trying to convert people to Buddhism; actually you can't convert people to the Dharma, they can only convert themselves. This is because it emphasises trying the teaching out in your own life to see if it works, not blindly believing in some doctrine. It is offered to people as a gift, because it can help people clarify their thinking and guide them in their practice.

We've just finished another six-week meditation course at the TBC attended by sixteen people and five people doing a daytime course on Buddhist philosophy. The feedback from both courses has been very positive indeed. On the Queen's birthday long weekend we're running a three day retreat for a mixture of beginners and those more experienced in meditation. Our weekend retreats are usually from Friday nights to Sunday afternoons, so this one will be a little longer (by request).

Our approach on retreats is not to overload people with too much meditation initially; also we rise at around 6.30 am or 7am for the first sit of the day. We feel that meditation must be enjoyable otherwise people won't keep it up. Doing too much too intensely on a retreat can end up with people barely surviving the retreat rather than coming away inspired to keep up a practice. Later on as they become more experienced the length and intensity of meditation is built up on ten day and two week retreats in other centres.

The TBC is also running its first in-service training seminar for some dozen or so teachers of the Study of Religion in Toowoomba schools next Monday afternoon at the centre. The theme is 'Issues in Contemporary Buddhism in the West'. It's quite common for high school students to do a project in year 12 on Buddhism these days and as a consequence we've had a lot of students visit our humble centre over the last couple of years. So the Dharma spreads. New six week courses starting in June at the TBC are, Introducing Buddhism on Tuesday evening 12th June 7-9pm and Traditional Meditation during the day Thursday 14th June 10am-12noon; enquiries to 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Self-Awareness Not Just Thought (14/6/01):

We were discussing in one of our classes recently just how much we identify the mind, or self-awareness, with thought. In other words, we tend to equate self-awareness with thinking about ourselves. In the West we seem less used to moving our awareness inside in a non-thinking way, whereas in the East there is a long tradition of this. Basically we think a lot about everything ­ about ourselves and about other things. It has become a sort of filter through which we relate to the world - analysing, interpreting, and making judgements.

In fact there is a point of view that we think too much. I seem to recall that it was R. D. Laing who coined the phrase the 'pathology of over-thinking'. We also live in a culture that has elevated the intellect to the main, or even the only, way of gaining knowledge. So it's no wonder that we are prone to using the intellect as our way of relating to everything. However, the intellect is limited. For example, can you really 'know' yourself by reasoning about yourself alone. The reasoning mind by its very nature splits itself into the 'reasoner' and the thing being reasoned about. Ask yourself the question "Who am I?" Are you the one asking the question or the one about whom the question was asked; or are you the one who just asked that question?

In reality thinking is only one aspect of self-awareness; furthermore, it is possible to be self-aware without thought. It is possible to direct one's self-awareness, or mind, within (or onto anything for that matter) and experience oneself directly. You can experience your felt bodily sensations and your emotions directly without reasoning about them or analysing them. You can even experience your thoughts without thinking about them! The practice of meditation deepens an individual's ability to use this other, non-thinking aspect of self-awareness. Courses on Buddhist meditation and philosophy are running regularly at the Toowoomba Buddhist centre (TBC) ­ please direct enquiries to 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.  

Buddhism in the West (21/6/01):

The Buddha Dharma must express itself through the culture in which it finds itself ­ neither compromising with it nor ignoring it. At the same time it must remain Buddhism, faithful to the spirit of the tradition. Throughout its history this has been its way. As Buddhism spread from India to Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka, China, Japan, Korea and Tibet the essential teachings were expressed in new ways in the new language and culture. Its different schools are not so much exclusive, rival sects but the response of the Buddhist tradition to new climates and temperaments.

What is essential about Buddhism is beyond specific times and circumstances. It is universal in application, capable of expressing itself wherever there are conscious beings. In this sense it is no more Eastern than Western and is as relevant today as at any time in the past. However, the modern west presents circumstances never encountered by it before. Apart from its entry into China, Buddhism has never encountered such a highly developed culture. It would be naïve of it to ignore this heritage and if it did it would have little appeal. Few would be prepared to discard their own culture completely to adopt that of a Japanese, Thai or Tibetan wayof life. Indeed those who do perhaps hunger after the exotic and are disenchanted with their own culture.

There are also other features entirely new to Buddhism in the West. For example, in Asia Buddhist institutions, practices and teachings evolved within agrarian monarchies. This form of established Buddhism can't be directly transposed into Western civilisation, which is so thoroughly secular, industrialised and urban. Real Buddhism in the West must express the essentially timeless, traditional teaching in a way that communicates to people in the West today. Courses on Buddhist meditation and philosophy are running regularly at the Toowoomba Buddhist centre (TBC) ­ please direct enquiries to 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Non-Existence of Self (28/06/01):

At the heart of the Buddha's Enlightenment was his insight into the Law of Conditionality. The fact that every single phenomenon in the universe has evolved through a gigantic network of causes and conditions. Everything we encounter is but a temporary perturbation of energy and matter in a vast web of interconnected conditions stretched out infinitely over time and space. One phenomena depends for its existence on the properties of another phenomena. Everything we encounter can be analysed and reduced to the conditions that produce it, spread out over space and time.

For example, this computer I'm word processing on doesn't work with out the electricity it is using, and that comes from a coal-fired electricity plant, which burns coal that comes from the earth and was formed three hundred thousand years ago by vast geological events in the earth's history. It also comes from the glass and plastic and the human ideas that invented and created this technology, and it doesn't work without human fingers dancing around on the key-board and mouse. Everything in this conditioned world is contingent. Everything we know IS NOTHING in itself; it has no existence apart from the many conditions that make it possible ­ it IS those conditions. Modern physics and ecology says much the same thing as the Buddha said two thousand five hundred years ago.

However, because we have self-consciousness we experience ourselves as separate from everything. As a result we feel incomplete, alone, insecure. But actually we are inseparable from the environment around us. Taken to its extreme implication this means we do not exist as we think we do ­ that is, we are not a completely independent existing self. In fact the implication is that we, as we normally think of our selves, do not ultimately exist! Deep in our hearts we seem to know this but we repress it and crave to be. So on the one hand we feel separate and incomplete, on the other, we know we're not separate and therefore don't ultimately exist. The result is a very deep sense of existential anxiety and discomfort that fuels a quest for security. As Shakespeare said: "To be or not to be, that is the question." Courses on Buddhist meditation and philosophy are running regularly at the Toowoomba Buddhist centre (TBC) ­ please direct enquiries to 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Dharma Day (4/7/01):

Last week we celebrated Dharma Day at the TBC whilst it's was being celebrated around the world on or near the night of the full moon in July. This festival celebrates the first public utterance by the Buddha of the Dharma after his Enlightenment. The discourse he gave is now known as the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta ­'Setting the Wheel of the Dhamma in Motion'. The significance to the Buddhist is that in his First Discourse the Buddha made again available the Highest Truth, a Universal and Transcendental Teaching.

A Buddha is actually someone who re-discovers the Dharma and reveals it again for the first time in that particular era. The recent, historical Buddha (Gautama Buddha born c.563 BC) described it as like finding an ancient rack that had been overgrown in the jungle, and that others had trodden this track before him. The Dharma itself is based on a universal law ­ the Law of Conditioned Co-production ­ that all things arise in dependence upon a complex nexus of conditions. Although what is rediscovered is perennialthat particular Buddha expresses it in his own terms. Other Enlightened beings that follow become enlightened as a result of learning from the Buddha. So although they share the enlightenment experience, a Buddha is different in that he has discovered the truth for himself. But all enlightened beings can become Buddhas.   We use the festival to personally reflect on the significance of the Dharma coming into the world. Many people in the sangha and many people who come to the courses we run at the TBC are very drawn to the Dharma. I have seen it inspire them, answer questions, give them peace of mind. Many people report that when they encounter the Dharma it's like coming home. I have seen the Dharma have a soft, steady and profound impact on people and bring about unmistakable positive change, right here in the Toowoomba community. On occasions people express gratitude for the opportunity of having been introduced to the Dharma. I have experienced the benefits of the practice of the Dharma myself and simply can't go past it!

Whenever the Dharma has entered into a culture it has had a profound effect on it for the better. This can give hope to us as we witness its rapid spread now in the West with all its social and environmental problems. We consider it fortunate to be born so close to the advent of the Buddha and to be pioneers in the spread of the Dharma in Australia. Courses on Buddhist meditation and philosophy are running regularly at the Toowoomba Buddhist centre (TBC) ­ please direct enquiries to 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Right Views (11/7/01):

One of the ways we secure ourselves is with our views. By this I mean our opinions, beliefs and values. We often completely identify with our beliefs and blindly believe in them. The fact that people use their beliefs, say religious beliefs, to maintain their ego-identities is one reason why people are so defensive about them. If we criticise or question their beliefs it's as if we're attacking their very existence.

One of the important teachings that the Buddha is credited with is the recognition that most of our views, beliefs and opinions are actually at base simply rationalisations for us following our sense desires. In other words, they are in fact elaborate constructs, which we create and use to justify to ourselves our doing just what we want to do. So for this reason the clarification of views is considered very important in Buddhism.  Also, when we study the Dharma on our own it is possible to misunderstand it, or read something into it that isn't there, or twist it around to suitourselves.

This is particularly the case these days with so many books around on Buddhism and the fact that it has become quite fashionable in the West. One often encounters, when teaching the Dharma these days, the fact that people studying Buddhism want it to be what they want it to be. Rather than taking it on its own terms they twist it into something that suits them. Another example of rationalisation and what we call wrong views in Buddhism.

So group study and discussion (even debate) is an important part of the Buddhist practice to try and dig out and gradually eradicate these wrong views, which can lead to confusion and suffering. Right views help lead to clarity and happiness. Traditionally, views are evaluated in Buddhism by seeing if they make reasoned sense, elicit an intuitive response, and if their validity can be tested out in experience. Courses on Buddhist meditation and philosophy are running regularly at the Toowoomba Buddhist centre (TBC) ­ please direct enquiries to 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

The Benefits of Practicing Ethics (2/8/01):

One of the reasons a Buddhist practices ethical precepts is so he or she can concentrate effectively in meditation. You see there is this simple relationship recognised in Buddhism between being happy and being able to concentrate. The happier you are the better you can concentrate and vice versa. One way of keeping happy is practising an ethical lifestyle of non-violence, generosity, loving kindness, contentment, skilful speech and mental clarity.

The type of happiness this produces is not some form of suspect elation, but rather a steady peace of mind with an absence of conflict and guilt. The mind of a person living unskilfully, dominated by craving, anger, aggressive speech and mental confusion, is not at peace - it's not calm and still, it's stirred up by these mental states. You can't describe such a mental state as a happy one.

The more you practice ethics the more at ease you feel with yourself. You've overcome unskilful mental states, you feel happy, triumphant, more 'together', more balanced, more satisfied with yourself. The Buddha said in one of his discourses you would feel within yourself "an unmixed ease". And this sense of ease just gets deeper and deeper. You feel more whole, more complete in yourself. You're able to cope better; you feel you have more strength, more confidence, and more integrity and so you are less fearful.

You now act in a consistent way, you're not carried away by distractions or unskilful mental states, or unskilful actions or words ­ you're in control of yourself. You feel that you are the host in your own house, not a guest. It's very simple really this connection between ethics and happiness. A new six-week Introducing Buddhism starts at the TBC on Thursday morning August 9th 10am-12noon ­ please direct enquiries to 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Money and Buddhism (9/8/01):

The Buddha in his time gave lots of practical advice on social relations. One of the most famous accounts is the Sigalaka Sutta: 'To Sigalaka Advice to Lay People'. Some of the material in it indicates that in Buddhism there is no prohibition against accumulating wealth. In one part the sutra says; "The wise man trained and disciplined gathers wealth just as the bee gathers honey, and it grows like an ant-hill higher yet. With wealth so gained the layman can devote it to his people's good."

The key thing in Buddhist ethics is your motive. So making money is OK, or not, depending upon whether your motive is greed, power, delusion, on the one hand, or generosity, helping others and clarity of purpose, on the other. Traditionally in Buddhist Asia the heads of the family  accumulated wealth to help support the family, and this in situations in which there was no social service system as a back up. This is still very much the case today and often wealthy Asian businessmen lead quite frugal lives.

There is nothing wrong in earning money, for example, by providing a genuine service for people. Thus Buddhism is not necessarily against business, as I suspect some people may assume. It certainly is of course critical of greedy, exploitative business; but there is certainly a role for ethical business. Society couldn't work without businesses playing a role. We're interested at the TBC in setting up team-based Right Livelihood businesses that give Buddhists (and others) the opportunity to earn a living and at the same time practice ethics.

In the same Sutra the Buddha also gave advice on dividing one's wealth (or income) into four parts: one part to "enjoy at will"; two parts to "put to work", for example to run the home; and one part should be "set aside as reserve in times of need (in modern terms to earn interest or invest)". There are still vacancies for anyone interested in joining the Introducing Buddhism course that started this week on Thursday morning 10am-12noon; contact the TBC at (07) 46597760.

Habit ­Tendencies (16/8/01):

The Dhammapada is a collection of practical advice from the Buddha gathered it seems from direct disciples to preserve what they'd heard. It's a sort of ready reference guide or handbook on a whole range of issues and is very widely known and read in the Buddhist world.  It's only fitting that we should draw on its advice from time to time. Verse 121 says: "Do not underestimate unskilful actions, thinking, 'They will not effect me.' A water-pot becomes full by the constant falling of drops of water. Similarly the spiritually immature person little by little makes himself unskilful."

That's what happens according to the Buddha Dharma. Little by little our everyday actions accumulate and cut a track in our consciousness building up habit tendencies upon which future reactions to similar circumstances tend to run. These habit-tendencies are known as the samskaras or karmic tendencies. For example, a person who repeatedly gives way to anger gradually builds this into their character and this has consequences for others and back on the person, such as, anxiety, risk of heart disease and other ailments.

Verse 122 says: "Do not underestimate skilful actions, thinking, 'They will not effect me.' A water-pot becomes full by the constant falling of drops of water. Similarly the spiritually mature person little by little makes himself skilful." Because it is easy to follow a well-worn reactive path of stimulus and response, harmful samskaras are easy to form and get trapped in. So the Buddha exhorted people to actively encourage the responses that do not come easily ­ love, forgiveness, patience, compassion in the face of hatred. Unskilful habits are strong but skilful ones are just as strong ­ this what the two verses are saying. We always have a choice. If we do not shape our own lives our samskaras will shape them for us. Courses on Buddhist meditation and philosophy are running regularly at the Toowoomba Buddhist centre (TBC) please direct enquiries to 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.  

Stop and Realise (23/8/01):

Meditation in Buddhism is classified into two main types ­ Samatha and Vipassana. Samatha practices aim to develop tranquillity, concentration and integration. Vipassana aims to develop Insight into reality. The relationship between the two is that to see reality or, as it is traditionally expressed, "to see things as they are", you need to achieve concentration. In our normal, everyday level of consciousness we don't see things as they are. We see the world dualistically, our self as separate from everything else, and everything disconnected from each other.

We also find some objects pleasant and other unpleasant  (what is pleasant or unpleasant for one person may be different for another) and this leads to a subjectively distorted way of seeing things. In reality, nothing is separate or disconnected from anything else and things are neither pleasant nor unpleasant ­ they just 'are'. So our minds are actively engaged in creating this dualistic, fragmented and subjectively distorted view of the world. They are stirred up with thoughts analysing and interpreting the objects and they are reacting with subjective emotions of craving and aversion toward the things that are perceived as pleasant or unpleasant.

Such a mind is not calm or concentrated; it tends to be agitated and distracted. So concentration is the first step in seeing things as they are and this is the function of samatha practices like mindfulness of breathing. They get you to 'stop'. The next thing is to 'realise' and this is the function of the vipassana practices. A typical vipassana practice is to become very concentrated and then to focus on an aspect of reality such as impermanence and to really 'see' this happening around you and in your own mind. If you do really 'see' it then Insight arises and goes deep into your heart and changes you forever. This is realisation. Courses on Buddhist meditation and philosophy are running regularly at the Toowoomba Buddhist centre (TBC) please direct enquiries to 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.  

Karma (30/8/01):

We at the TBC have just been on a weekend retreat the study theme of which was karma. What we discovered was that karma is a complicated topic. There is also a lot of misunderstanding around about just what it really is. Often the word is employed to make it mean both action and the results of action. But technically the word karma means action, and a separate expression, karma-vipaka or karma-phala, is used to indicate the results of action.

The basic principle is that actions have consequences. But it is not a form of fatalism or divine retribution in the Buddhist tradition. Only willed actions of body, speech or mind have consequences for us; involuntary actions do not constitute karma and thus will not bring about the results of karma. This doesn't mean that such actions produce no results at all; the unintentional act of dropping a brick on your foot certainly hurts as much as if you did it intentionally. What it does mean is that unwilled actions do not modify character.

Karma, or acts of will, in the past (including past lives) inevitably results in pleasant or painful results. However, and this is one of the most common misunderstandings, a pleasant or unpleasant experience in this life is not necessarily the result of karma. According to the Buddhist law of conditionality it may have been produced by other causes, for example, operating on the inorganic, organic or psychological level. It also may have been the result of karma; but this is only accepted if it cannot be explained by conditionality operating in these other areas. Courses on Buddhist meditation and philosophy are running regularly at the Toowoomba Buddhist centre (TBC) please direct enquiries to 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.  

Actions have Consequences (5/9/01):

One of the people in our current meditation course at the TBC raised an interesting point the other night. We were talking about dealing with the hindrances ­ mental states that arise whilst meditating which hinder becoming concentrated. There are certain traditional antidotes you can apply and the very first one, once you've become aware that you're caught up in a hindrance, is to consider the consequences. Consider the consequences, that is, of staying in that unskilful state of mind, for example, anger or ill will. This person said that she thought that we did not tend to do that much in Western culture ­ consider the consequences of our mental states.

It's an interesting point really. The whole of the Buddha's teaching hinges around the notion of conditionality or causality. We in the West can happily apply this principle of conditionality or causality to the observable world around us, in the realm of physics, chemistry and biology/ecology. But Buddhism says it also applies at the psychological level and the volitional level, the latter being the mental area of decision-making, choices, and so on. That is not so familiar to us in the West.

Really that is all the antidote to the hindrance is saying. That if you create certain mental states and motivated by them you make certain choices and decisions and act on that basis then this chain of mental conditions or causes is going to produce further conditions or consequences, like actions, which will come back on you. So it is a good idea to consider what the consequences will be on you and others before acting on the basis of a certain mental state. Anger can have dire consequences on you ranging from unpopularity and heart disease through to revenge, feuds and prison. New courses on Buddhist meditation and philosophy will be starting at the Toowoomba Buddhist centre (TBC) after the school holidays; please direct enquiries to 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.  

On Hatred (13/9/01):

After the dreadful events of last week it seems unavoidable to make some sort of relevant comment. In Chapter 1 of the Dhammapada, the words of the Buddha are expressed as follows: "Hatred can never put an end to hatred in this world ­ only loving-kindness can. This is an unalterable law. People forget that their lives will soon end. For those who remember, feuds come to an end (verses 5-6)." An unalterable (eternal) law, says the Buddha. Look to wherever long running feuds and wars are occurring (Northern Ireland, Middle East, Yugoslavia) and one can only conclude this is true. Generation after generation is brought up on hatred and perpetuate it along with death and destruction over centuries.

This is not to say that those who kill should not be brought to justice. Of course not ­ you can't have people going around exterminating people on a mass scale anymore than murdering individuals. But to look at the situation truly objectively, that is, free of subjective distortions like hatred and prejudice, one becomes aware of all the conditions that mix together and produce the never ending cycle of death, retaliatory strikes (revenge), more death/revenge and so on. After initial reactions of anger and shock many people in civilized countries do seem capable of reflecting on the bigger picture and seeing the complex origins of these situations, usually in which their own country has played a role in contributing to the problem.

The enormous reparations (monetary payments) that the Allies forced on Germany after the First World War impoverished the country to the point of common people being reduced to eating horseflesh. This laid the grounds for the rise of Hitler and the Second World War. To solve the problem at its root the solution based on loving-kindness, as some politicians already 'seem' to be saying, is not just military. It is also diplomatic, political and economic. "The world will never be the same again" has been said many times before. Conditioned existence by its very nature is impermanent, uncertain and insecure; the way out of this according to Buddhism is to face this fact squarely. New courses on Buddhist meditation and philosophy will be starting at the Toowoomba Buddhist centre (TBC) after the school holidays (Tuesday 9th October 7-9pm and Thursday 11th October 10am-12noon). Please direct enquiries to 46597760 or www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.  

New Buddhist Courses (21/9/01):

Our next six week  'Introducing Buddhism' course starts on tuesday night the 9th of October from 7-9pm. In this course we teach what is known as 'basic Buddhism'. These are the core teachings of Buddhism that are common to all traditions (although they may be buried under a great deal of cultural accretion). They are also 'core' in the sense that they are the teachings that Buddha himself taught from the beginning. They consist of The Principle of Conditioned Coproduction, the Four Noble Truths, the Eight fold Path and the Three Characteristics of Conditioned Existence.

Many people are learning about Buddhism these days from books and  the internet. There is a plethora of information out there; never before has so much been published in English on the subject. It is very easy to pick up misunderstandings or to read a certain meaning into something which isn't actually there. So the beauty of these courses is that you have the opportunity to discuss these core teachings with someone more experienced than yourself and also, through discussion, to hear other people's points of view and queries. People tend to enjoy these courses very much.

We're also starting an 'Introduction to Meditation' six week course on thursday morning the 11th of October from 10am to 12 noon. In these courses we emphasize two main meditation practices - the Mindfulness of Breathing and the Cultivation of Loving Kindness (Metta Bhavana). The practices are led, which means you are guided through them, and last about 20 minutes. The group discusses how they find each practice and raise any questions they wish to. A comprehensive set of notes is provided and these are studied to help people to set up the right conditions to make a  daily meditation practice successful. There is also plenty of information on the higher states of consciousness accessible through meditation (known as the dhyanas) and advise on how to handle the mental distractions that inevitably arise. Both courses are $85 (or $62 conc.). If you'd like to enrol please contact the TBC on 46597760.

Study and Practice at the Toowoomba Buddhist Centre (TBC) (27/9/01):

Buddhism has always stressed both study and practice. Nothing can substitute for practice as in meditating; but study can play an important role in clarifying mistaken views and influencing the depth of insight gained from meditating. The 'Introducing Buddhism' course starting next week (Tuesday 9th October 7pm) at the TBC is for people 'who want to know' ­ to inform themselves more about Buddhism. After describing the human condition and looking at the core teachings ('basic Buddhism') it focuses on the Threefold Path of Ethics, Meditation and Wisdom.

The 'Introducing Meditation' course starting next week (Thursday 11th October 10am) is for people 'who want to do'. It's more practical and is open to anyone wishing to learn how to meditate. It does of course adopt a Buddhist approach, which mainly recognises how important it is to set up the right conditions to meditate. If you get these conditions right meditative states should arise as spontaneously as an apple dropping off a tree when it's ripe. We emphasise two practices that the Buddha himself particularly emphasised ­ the Mindfulness of Breathing (annapanna sati) and the Cultivation of Loving Kindness (metta bhavana).

Finally on Saturday the 13th of October a senior order member of the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order (FWBO), Devamitra, who has been ordained for 27 years, is giving a series of four, forty-minute talks on the first chapter of the Dhammapada, which is open to the public. The Dhammapada is an anthology of verses attributed to Buddha long recognised as one of the masterpieces of early Buddhist literature. It starts by saying that everything is led by the mind and points out that a wise person heedful of this makes the necessary effort to train the mind. Devamitra is a very experienced speaker who has given hundreds of talks throughout Europe, USA, SE Asia and India. For details of these events please call the TBC on 46597760 or visit our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.  

Choices (18/10/01):

Last week we had a series of talks presented at the TBC by a senior order member of the Western Buddhist Order, Devamitra. The ethical teaching of the Dhammapada is expressed in the first pair of verses, often entitled "Pairs", although Devamitra preferred rendering it "Choices". The main point being made in this very early Buddhist literary masterpiece, is that the mind, through its actions (karma), is the chief architect of one's happiness and suffering both in this life and beyond. The first three chapters elaborate on this point, to show that there are two major ways of relating to this fact. A wise person is heedful enough to make the necessary effort to train his/her own mind to be a skilful architect. An unskilful person is heedless and sees no reason to train the mind.

The Dhammapada elaborates on this distinction, showing in more detail both the path of the wise person and that of the unskilful one, together with the rewards of the former and the dangers of the latter. The path of the wise person can lead not only to happiness within the cycle of death and rebirth, but also to total escape into the Deathless, beyond the cycle entirely. The path of the unwise leads not only to suffering now and in the future, but also to further entrapment within the cycle. The purpose of the Dhammapada is to make the wise path attractive to the reader so that he/she will follow it. The choice posited by the first pair of verses is not one in the imaginary world of fiction. It is the dilemma in which the reader is already placed by being born. We can make of ourselves what we want. Or be dragged around the wheel of life in endless reactive fashion. The choice is ours. For details of courses being offered at the TBC please call 46597760 or visit our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Healthy versus Neurotic Desire (25/10/01):

Craving is neurotic desire. Healthy desire is not a problem in Buddhism. We all have healthy desires, for example, hunger, thirst and sexual desire. They're instinctive and as such if we didn't satisfy them we wouldn't continue to exist either individually (food and drink) or as a species (sexual reproduction). These desires are rooted in our basic needs for sustenance as well as affection, intimacy and love. We need them satisfied and they can be satisfied quite simply - when we're hungry we eat, or thirsty we drink ­ and then the desire is fulfilled and it disappears.

Desire becomes neurotic, or turns into craving, when we 'project' onto the objects of desire a role beyond what they're actually capable of performing. In other words, when we want them to satisfy far more, say, than simple biological hunger or thirst or sexual desire. When we're seeking to satisfy strong, unfulfilled psychological needs and desires by using the drink, or food (or substance), or sexual partner for this end. In this way our inner (psychological) hungers and thirsts tend to become mixed up with our physical ones.  More often than not this process happens unconsciously and these tendencies become habitual.

The end result is that we become attached and addicted to these ways of trying to satisfy our neurotic desires. But of course the underlying desires aren't really being satisfied. The physical satisfaction is temporary and doesn't satisfy the psychological nature of the underlying desire. And so we need more and more. One test of whether we're neurotically attached to something is whether we can do without it or not. If we find this difficult then that's usually a sign we're dependent in some fashion.

Buddhism accepts that we're all prone to this tendency, because of our basic insecurity, till we're Enlightened. Recognising this fact, the practice of Buddhism involves developing sufficient self-awareness to know whether we are simply satisfying our natural desires in a healthy way, or being driven by neurotic desire, which is leading to attachment and dependency. For details of courses being offered at the TBC please call 46597760 or visit our website at www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Getting Stuck (2/11/01):

Someone picked up on the notion of getting stuck in ourselves in a meditation class this week. Traditionally in Buddhism there are ten fetters or chains that bind us to the conditioned world and prevent us becoming enlightened. They have to be broken to escape into Nirvana. The first of them is fixed view of yourself or personality view. This is what we get stuck in. We think that at the core of our being that we are what we think we are. In actual fact we're simply referring back to ourselves or keeping up an inner commentary on this idea of ourselves all the time. There is no real core self or nucleus separate from this process of constant introspection.

As we've said many times human consciousness is reflexive - it can bend back on itself - and it's this process of continuous self-referencing that gives us the illusion that a solid self exists. It's a bit like a cine film - we see solid moving objects on the screen but actually the film consist of a series of still photographs that are moving very fast to create the illusion of solid moving objects. In the same way we keep up a process of continuous reflexive arcs or inner commentary - we think about ourselves, have feelings about ourselves, we create images of our self, memories and so on - and really that is all we are, a mental process.

This is not to say that the illusion of self is not useful. Of course it is. Without it we could not be self-directing, purposeful beings. We couldn't make choices about where to take our lives. But to become overly attached to this sense of self, to really believe it exists as a solidly existing, independent entity at the core of our being and to fully identify with it and cling to it is a dangerous delusion from a Buddhist point of view. The reality is as Buddhaghosa, the great teacher of the Theravada), put it: "No doer of the deed is found; No one who ever reaps their fruit; Just bare phenomena roll on Dependent upon conditions all." For enquiries about activities at the Toowoomba Buddhist centre please phone us on (07) 597760 or visit our website www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Learning to Meditate (9/11/01):

The Toowoomba Buddhist Centre will be holding a daytime meditation course on Saturday the 17th of November. It will be run as part of a weekend retreat stretching over the weekend of 16th ­ 18th November and held at the local retreat centre we use in Toowoomba. The idea is that beginners can attend the whole weekend retreat if they wish (cost $100 or $80 conc.) or just for the Saturday (cost $30). The Saturday activity will consist of two, two-hour sessions from 10am-12noon and 2pm-4pm. These will consist of led meditation practices, discussion and study on setting up the right conditions for a successful mediation practice. In between there will be lunch and an opportunity to explore the surrounds and meet people.

The two meditation practices that will be taught are the Mindfulness of Breathing and the Metta Bhavana ­ the Cultivation of Loving-kindness (metta). These are two meditation practices that the Buddha himself emphasised. They aim to develop increasing mental clarity, tranquillity and positive emotion ­ qualities badly needed in the world today. Thus the practices can also help establish a basis for starting the process of becoming a sane, healthy human being and more of a true individual. The calm and concentration the practices yield also provide a basis for developing insight into reality ­ "seeing things as they are" ­ a process sometimes summarised as 'stop' and 'realise'. If you're interested in booking in for either the day course or the weekend retreat please phone the TBC on 46597760 or visit our website www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Religions are not all the Same (15/11/01):

From time to time it is important to clear up mistaken views. Buddhism and the Buddha put a lot of importance on this. The Buddha himself said that most of our views are rationalisations of our desires ­ how we want things to be. These days we live in societies where there are a great deal of beliefs, values, attitudes and opinions being expressed through the various media. In can be quite confusing for young and old a like.

A common view I come across these days is that all religions in essence are the same. This is just demonstrably not true. They may have some similarities ­ like some aspects of their moral codes ­ but there are fundamental differences. For example, the Buddha was not a God. Buddhism does not start from the premise that a creator God started this world and is all-powerful. The Semitic religions are based on this notion - that their God is the one and all mighty. Some people would point to this as a fundamental cause of war and conflict throughout Middle Eastern and European history and it is still going on right up to the present. The Hindus have a totally different notion of God again.

In fact Buddhists consider that there is a fundamental problem with the God-idea and the God-religions, as the one Buddhist author describes them (K. Sri Dhammananda). In essence they fail to encourage people to take responsibility for themselves and their own moral lives. Instead they hand  this over to some external agent. This single point alone has very deep and profound psychological implications on how an individual conducts their lives, which it would take some time to elaborate upon.

Some religions try and depict the Buddha as just another prophet of God, like Jesus or Mohammed or certain Persian mystics in more recent history. This is of course a ridiculous notion to Buddhists who don't believe in the existence of a creator God in the first place. There have been many attempts to portray the Buddha like this in attempt to incorporate Buddhism into other religions. There are also many other important differences between the religions, which we will touch on from time to time. For example, the Buddha explicitly said his teaching was a means to an end; many religions become ends in themselves. The notion of Enlightenement is the hallmark of Buddhism and just what Enlightenement consists of is very clearly outlined. The path to it that the Buddha outlined is also very clear and is simply not found in the theistic religions. If you're interested in courses on Buddhist philosophy and meditation  we offer at the TBC please phone 46597760 or visit our website www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.

Other Realms (22/11/01):

We were discussing 'other realms' the other night in our Introducing Buddhism course. The fact that there are considered to be other invisible realms and beings according to Buddhism came as a surprise to some of the students. The Buddha mentioned that there are thirty-one planes of existence in the universe. One can be reborn into any of them depending on one's meritorious or unmeritorious deeds. Right at the bottom you get the duggatis or 'woeful courses', which consist of a hell realm, the animal realm and the realm of the hungry ghosts. These are states of unhappiness and are also known as the apayas or 'downfalls'. Next comes the human realm and after that the realms of the gods or devas (literally 'shining beings').

Six of the god realms (devalokas) are in the same realm of sense experience that we humans experience known as the kamma-loka, but are infinitely more blissful states than normal human existence. Then above these are sixteen realms of fine-material forms (rupa-lokas) and above that four formless realms (arupa-lokas). All these higher states are known as the suggatis or 'happy courses'. When the Buddha addressed human beings to give his teachings he was also addressing the beings in these thirty-one other realms. Thus the Buddha is known as a teacher of gods as well men.

All of these worlds or planes are still in the conditioned world or Samsara. Nirvana, the goal of the Buddhist life is in another dimension entirely. Given that six of the god realms are in the same plane that we as humans share it is considered that we could all be dwelling in a higher level of existence if we but made the effort - we settle for too low a level of consciousness. These god realms are also accessible through the levels of meditative consciousness known as the dhyanas, and practitioners do talk of encounters with the inhabitants of these realms on occasions. If you're interested in courses on Buddhist philosophy and meditation that we offer at the TBC please phone 46597760 or visit our website www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba. New course will now be running in February of next year. An open evening consisting of a led meditation practice and question and answer session will be held at the TBC on Monday evening the 3rd of December 7-9pm.  

Becoming Integrated (30/11/01):

One of the key 'operational concepts' in relation to psychological and spiritual development we use at the TBC is that of integration. The idea is that we consist of a bundle of selves or several sub-personalities encompassed in the same physical body. One self decides to meditate the next morning but then another self comes on line in the morning and rolls over and goes back to sleep. These selves can also reveal themselves, for example, in how differently we behave when at work, when at home and when we are with particular sets of friends. The sub-personalities are revealed in the paradoxes and oppositions in our character.

Usually these different selves are not pulling together. This is a state of being 'un-integrated' ­ our energies work against one another. To harmonise them or galvanize them requires some element of discipline and regular meditation practice supported by the observance of an ethical lifestyle. The aim of a regular meditation practice is to achieve first of all what we call 'horizontal integration' so that the various selves we are aware of in the conscious mind are pulled or shepherded together. Once this happens we attempt to achieve 'vertical integration', which involves bringing the unconscious together with the now integrated conscious mind ­ this is more difficult.

If we persist there is a gradual build-up of energy, which gains momentum until finally we are capable of breaking free of all habits whatsoever, especially the negative and unconscious ones. The very fact that our energies are not integrated means it is certain that we are in conflict about how much effort we want to put into our spiritual practice, a lot of us just says "Why bother?" So we have to continuously remind ourselves of why we are on the path and of what we want to become ­ we have to find ways of continuously motivating and inspiring ourselves. Mixing with spiritual friends at a centre is one good way of doing this. The Buddhist philosophy and meditation courses that we offer at the TBC will now be running in February of next year. Please phone 46597760 or visit our website www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.  

Buddhism and Uncertainty (9/12/01):

Buddhism is of course about spiritual development and this is normally thought of in terms of growing beyond the normal conception of self ­ in other words, self-transcendence. The first fetter that holds us back from this growth is fixed self-view. This can be defined as our habitual acceptance of our present experience of selfhood as being fixed, unchanging, and ultimate. We are so familiar to ourselves, so used to ourselves, so used to thinking of ourselves in a certain way, so used to feeling a certain way about ourselves. And our habitually patterned lifestyle is dedicated, as it were, to maintaining this familiar, felt-sense of ourselves.

We think, 'This is Me. I'll always be like this ­ I may change a little but I'll still be recognizably me.' We just can't accept that this self as we experience it now can be completely transformed, consumed, transcended. Indeed we are afraid of this possibility because it involves entering a realm of uncertainty. A well known paradox of self-growth is that someone who wants to grow is not happy with how they are at present, by definition, but they find it hard to accept that there are aspects of themselves they're not happy with. Also we're afraid of the unknown potential we have simply because it is unfamiliar. So we shrink back from growth to the safety and security of the familiar, the habitual.

Practising Buddhists accept that they're not satisfied with how they are and use this as incentive to keep striving. They are prepared, as daunting as it may seem, to enter into uncertainty, to face insecurity and the unfamiliar. It's hard work, but what's wrong with hard work? This is another major difference between Buddhism and the other religions. It deals with uncertainty and faces up to insecurity. Other religions try to comfort the insecurity of their followers by providing certainty, usually through blind belief. As a guest speaker at the TBC recently commented you don't fly jets into sky-scapers unless you are certain you're going to paradise! We had a very successful open evening at the TBC recently. The centre will close on December 15th and reopen late January 2002 with new six-week courses starting in February. For information contact us on 46597760 or visit our website www.fwbo.org.au/toowoomba.