Secular Buddhism for Skeptical Atheists

Socials! @omgmikehoffman @d0ug7a5 podpondpods@gmail.com In Buddhism, the main duality considered is generally "suffering" and "enlightenment". Quite different to "good" and "evil" or the "good" and "bad" lens through which we often experience life. Or is it? Evil is a pretty loaded term. Can we ever know whether something is wholly "good" or "bad"? A lot of this is about the stories we choose to tell ourselves. "Good is a point of view Anakin" - is thinking "beyond" good and bad just a ...

Socials, you say!? @omgmikehoffman @d0ug7a5 podpondpods@gmail.com Issue: - The traditional Buddhist notion of "metta" is often translated as 'loving kindness' or 'compassion'. If you do Headspace meditations and do visualisations involving being flooded with golden light, that is actually a visualisation of "metta". - "Be kind" - it's a hashtag; it sounds simple and easy. Let's see if it is. - Metta development/cultivation ("metta bhavana") - 'loving kindness meditation'. Concept: The 5 stage...

Socials: @d0ug7a5 @omgmikehoffman News and social media are more divisive than ever. Covid has exposed a lot of mis- and disinformation and conspiracy theorists. It's a natural response to be reactive and combative. This is leading to the breakdown of relationships. What can we do about it? Parable: The Wild ElephantOne of the many lives of the Bodhisattva was spent as an ascetic. This one time, he came back as the most superior ascetic in the whole order and everyone used to ...

With so much flux right now, the world can feel like it's getting on top of us. How many of these problems are actually truly ours? Are we defined by our problems? Concepts:Ego (See season 1 episode Big Ego)Inner and outer problems (See parable)Acceptance If you can solve the problem,Then what is the need of worrying?If you cannot solve it,Then what is the use of worrying?-Shantideva In Modern Buddhism, Geshe Kelsang says there are two types of problem, an inner and an outer problem:We should...

Mike: @omgmikehoffmanDougie: @d0ug7a5A lot of people have found themselves suffering from conditions and situations they didn't expect, such as long covid, the loss of many loved ones, other health issues and personal catastrophes .It's human nature to get hung up on why me, spiraling in grief and self pity. So how can we move away from that?Concept:The Four Noble Truths3. That type of suffering can be avoidedThe Eightfold Path6. Right Effort: preventing the arising of unwholesome states, and...

Mike: @omgmikehoffmanDougie: @d0ug7a5Issue:Everything is changing all the time! Mike and Dougie talk about letting go in the face of disappointment and we have a tough listener question about the shootings in Plymouth and the turmoil in Afghanistan.Concept:The Three Universal Truths 1. Nothing is lost in the universe2. Everything Changes3. The Law of Cause and Effect The Four Noble Truths2. Suffering is caused by our own clinging3. That type of suffering can be avoidedUpādāna - clinging...

*Spoiler - we never really do move on. Recorded before the covid-19 pandemic hit the West hard, but more relevant now than ever, Dougie and Mike examine what it means to accept the death of a loved one, as well as how to face up to your own mortality.

Mindfulness - what's it all about? Turns out its about your brain. Dougie and Mike explore mindfulness, meditation, and the observable changes that they can bring about in the human body.

...or: how to stay sane in the apocalypse! Mike and Dougie take apart their own neuroses and put their brains back together using buddhist principles and practical techniques.

What goes around comes around... or does it? Mike and Dougie take a look at one of Buddhism's best-known ideas - the principle of Karma, and the Eightfold Path.

Mike and Dougie explore the Four Noble Truths, what suffering is and how to avoid it (clue: we can't) and consider what we can do to start questioning the stories we tell ourselves. Can we be more flexible about how we perceive ourselves?LinksNice summation of the Four Noble Truths for novicesDecades of Scientific Research that Started a Growth Mindset RevolutionHang on to Your EgoPerfectionism, worry, rumination, and distress: A meta-analysis of the evidence for the perfectionism cognition t...

Mike and Doug give you a taste of what's to come.