Free Buddhist Audio

In this week's FBA Podcast, "Buddhism and Science", Manjuvajra condenses the Evolution talks into one that puts the spiritual life into the context of evolution – an update of Bhante's Higher Evolution talks. Talk given at the Bristol Buddhist Centre, April 2013.

This week's FBA Podcast is a lovely talk by Vajrasakhi, current chair of Tiratanaloka Retreat Centre in Wales. In "Reality As A Way Of Life" Vajrasakhi shares her thoughts on Enlightenment as a way of living, a way of being conscious, a way of being aware, even creatively aware.

This week's FBA Podcast is the third talk in the LBC Buddhophany series by Subhuti titled:"Meeting the Buddha In Reality". Subhuti concludes with a rousing call to take the Buddha's invitation to meet him in reality. To do this we need to engage with the Buddha on the level of history and myth.

This week's FBA Podcast, comes from Vidyamala, speaking at Manchester Buddhist Center in 2012. Entitled "Awareness is Revolutionary", she encourages us to change our minds to change the world, speaking about the life-changing power of awareness.

This week's FBA Podcast, comes from Lokabandhu at Buddhafield's Green Earth Awakening event in May of 2013. Entitled "A Buddhist Approach to Changing the World", Lokabandhu explores how Buddhists might take on the heroic task of affecting the world for the better. After reviewing the Buddhist concept of conditionality, he draws on examples such as Dr. Ambedkar and Triratna's paradigm of the 'New Society' to illustrate how lasting social and personal change might successfully be brought about.

This week's FBA Podcast, by Padmavajra, was given during the 2013 Young men's retreat at Padmaloka. Entitled "The Way of the Dharma Warrior", Padmavajra describes the qualities of the Dharma Warrior and how Dharma Warriors are fighting in the great battle between the spiritual community and the group – fighting for the liberation of the truly human individual against the forces of mediocrity and uniformity – the battle with Mara who embodies those forces. Padmavajra concludes with David Jones' magnificent evocation of a warrior in his poem 'The Hunt'.

This week's FBA Podcast, by Vajratara, is a tour-de-force of a talk entitled "Young People, the Bodhisattva Ideal, and Padmasambhava". Vajratara weaves together her first contact with meditation and the Dharma (being forced to go by her best-friend's Mum!), early explorations with drugs, her love of teaching, how to build a spiritual community, Padmasambhava, and the Bodhisattva Ideal.

This week's FBA Podcast, by Dhammagita, is entitled "Dads and Mums, Truth and Lies". Given at a Dharma Day festival talk at the West London Buddhist Centre in July 2011, here Dhammagita celebrates the Dharma – emphasising the importance of truth and authenticity – and ends with a heartfelt expression of gratitude to her own teachers.

This week's FBA Podcast, by Sanghamani, and given during the Buddhafield East "Buddhism and the Natural World" retreat, is entitled "May All Your Weeds Be Wildflowers". Sanghamani draws inspiration from the use of images in nature linked to the Buddhas Enlightenment, Maras assault, and calling the earth goddess to witness and how we can use them to help us contact our own fearlessness and confidence. She encourages us to see our weeds as wildflowers and use metta to plant new seeds in order to create our own Buddhafields. She also speaks personally about the Buddhafields as places that offer the perfect conditions for spiritual growth. Listen out for and be patient with the creaking mast of the Rainbow Tent ship!

This week's FBA Podcast, by Sangharakshita explores the Sutra of Golden Light and is entitled "Nature, Man and Enlightenment.". We seek happiness, but often we find that our desires and aspirations are in conflict. This struggle and its resolution are symbolically portrayed in the sutra by the figures of the Monk and Drdha, the Earth-Goddess. Talk given in 1976.