This series of lectures explores the direct teachings of the Buddha himself as preserved in some of the oldest records of his discourses. The first part of the series, covering fifty-two of the discourses (Parts I to IX), constitutes a systematic study program in the teachings of Early Buddhism. The later part of the series

Continue Listening »

The Sutta-Nipāta contains some of the oldest discourses in the Pali Canon. It is a rich source of texts offering guidance to lay Buddhists and also abounds in suttas that extol the contemplative ideals of early Buddhism. Though the Sutta-Nipāta as a collection exists only in the Theravada tradition, some of the individual suttas are

Continue Listening »

In the fall of 1979, while living at the Washington Buddhist Vihara, Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi gave a series of lectures on the fundamental teachings of Early Buddhism. Bhante Gunaratana, at the time the President of the Buddhist Vihara Society, suggested he record the lectures so that the Vihara could distribute them as a set of cassette

Continue Listening »

Dasa Pāramīs : Ten Perfections The word pāramīs literally means perfections. The southern Buddhist commentaries define the Pāramīs as “noble qualities beginning with giving, accompanied by compassion and skillful means, and untainted by craving, conceit, and wrong views.” Originally, in southern Buddhists texts as explained in the Buddhavangsa, the idea of the Pāramīs was introduced

Continue Listening »

Pali is the language used to preserve the Buddhist canon of the Theravada Buddhist tradition, which is regarded as the oldest complete collection of Buddhist texts surviving in an Indian language. Pali is closely related to Sanskrit, but its grammar and structure are simpler. Traditional Theravadins regard Pali as the language spoken by the Buddha

Continue Listening »