Bhante Sujato will be leading above discussions back to back thiw weekend. This event is organised by Amawatura temple in Sydney and they have asked to kindly invite all interested parties to join. Time: 7.30 pm to 8.30 pm AEST
Saturday 10/10/20: Happiness through morality in the modern world (English Sermon )
Sunday 11/10/2020: Wisdom and Compassion: The two wings of a bird
Thank you for the heads-up; I hope a recording will be made available for those unable to join the event live.
The idea of ‘happiness through morality’ is one I have been thinking about a lot lately. My workplace recently required all staff to complete the first 4 weeks of Yale’s online Science of Wellbeing course (the university’s most popular course in over 300 years). The course “highlights research that reveals misconceptions about what makes us happy — and the concrete steps we can take to live a more fulfilling life”.
Predictably, the course encouraged practices such mindfulness and gratitude, and discussed the negative effects of social media. All fine. What amazed me though, was the complete absence of any discussion about the role of ethics and morality in connection with happiness.
How incredibly fortunate we are to have the Buddha-Dhamma as our guide.
Moral and ethical living is the greatest gift to give oneself and to the world. Personal I believe that is why I felt totally at home first time visiting a monastery, safe and free. And I also believe that’s why Buddhism is quite easy to “sell” as a spiritual path to people with less sense for who they really are and their worth in today’s world.
Thank you for sharing this link. I noticed that the instructor has also published a podcast episode about the Buddha:
You’re going to suffer… so accept it. The very first of the “noble truths” in Buddhism is that pain and sorrow are unavoidable. By craving moments of happiness and mourning when they evaporate - we are setting ourselves up for a life of sadness. How do we teach ourselves to be less afraid of facing and dealing with suffering?