Our Dharmabyte today takes us into the heart of Buddhist ritual, into the heart of the sevenfold puja, with a special chanting of the “Prajnaparamita Hridaya Sutra” – The Heart Sutra – in Sanskrit. The entire puja is recited in both Sanskrit and English, a real treat for all ritual lovers courtesy of Satyadhana, the puja leader. 

This Sevenfold Puja (http://freebuddhistaudio.com/audio/details?num=OM788)was recorded at the North American Order Convention in 2008.

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Dharmabytes Podcast #24 - "Prajnaparamita Hridaya Sutra (The Heart Sutra) in Sanskrit" by Various

Sunyata, (Sanskrit, also shunyata; Pali: suññat), in Buddhism, translated into English as emptiness, voidness, openness, spaciousness, is a Buddhist concept which has multiple meanings depending on its doctrinal context. (Wikipedia)

Our FBA Dharmabyte today is simple. The “Sunyata Mantra” was recorded on retreat and is now being shared on Free Buddhist Audio. From the Anapanasati Web Extras (www.freebuddhistaudio.com/audio/details?num=OM767) provided by Viveka, from the retreat led in 2003.

We invite you to join us! 

Subscribe to the Dharmabytes podcast here: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/dharmabytes-from-free-buddhist/id416832097

And follow us on The Buddhist Centre Online: http://thebuddhistcentre.com/freebuddhistaudio

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Dharmabytes Podcast #307 - "Sunyata Mantra" by Viveka

A recording of the salutation to the Three Jewels, the Tiratanavandana, chanted in the Padmaloka Retreat Centre, 2020.

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Tiratanavandana Morning Chanting At Padmaloka

Dharmabytes Podcast #1054 "Tiratanavandana Morning Chanting At Padmaloka"

Padmavajra first met Sangharakshita when he was 17 and in this talk he shares some of his own most cherished memories of Bhante, including his experiences of being with him in India when he returned there in the 1970's to found the Order there. Urgyen Sangharakshita - Bhante - who died in 2018, is not only the founder of the Triratna Buddhist Order and Community, but also teacher and spiritual friend to Padmavajra. Excerpted from the talk entitled Urgyen Sangharakshita: The Bodhisattva's Reply given at Sheffield Buddhist Centre, 2019. 

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Urgyen Sangharakshita: The Bodhisattva's Reply

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A Positive Longing (Dharmabytes Podcast)

Amitasuri explores what can happen when faced with well-being, illness, ageing and death, and looks at how the Dharma might influence our response. Amitasuri takes her Dharma practice to her work as a Buddhist Hospital Chaplain, where she supports health and well-being through pastoral, religious and spiritual care for staff, patients and their families in a number of hospitals in Greater Manchester. This talk was given at Manchester Buddhist Centre, 2015.

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Living What We Love - a Response to the Four Sights

Living what we Love (FBA Podcast)

According to the Buddha we see permanence where there is impermanence, substantiality where there is insubstantiality, see the unlovely as beautiful and the unpleasant as pleasant. How does this affect us? And even more importantly, what can we do about this? Yashobodhi makes the simple yet profound connection between ignorance and suffering. Excerpted from  the talk Distortions of the Mind given at West London Buddhist Centre, 2017.

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Distortions of the Mind

A Sure Sign of Ignorance (Dharmabytes Podcast)

Sangharakshita tells the story of Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha-to-be, up to the time of his Enlightenment, drawing out the significance of some of the key events. Here we encounter the Buddha receiving help on the path to Enlightenment. Excerpted from the talk The Way to Enlightenment given in 1972.

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The Way to Enlightenment

Becoming a Buddha (Dharmabytes Podcast)

Nagasiddhi traces the period after the Buddha’s going forth: as he masters meditation then turns towards extreme asceticism in his quest to overcome dukkha. Having taken himself to the brink of death, the Buddha-to-be finally realises that he must find his own ‘middle way’ to liberation. This talk is part of the series In the Footsteps of the Buddha given during a Buddhist Centre Online home retreat, 2021. This magical week-long retreat explores the images, myths and symbols of the Buddha’s journey to awakening using dharma talks, meditation, storytelling, puppetry and art. Visit 'In the Footsteps of the Buddha' for more resources from this retreat: https://thebuddhistcentre.com/footsteps

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Giving Up Asceticism and the Rose Apple Tree

Giving Up Asceticism and the Rose Apple Tree (FBA Podcast)

Nagesvara draws out the significance of the episode from the life of the Buddha where he recollects a memory from childhood of natural, spontaneous samadhi. From the talk entitled The Rose Apple Tree, given as part of the retreat series Body of Bliss: ways into Samādhi, Buddhafield, 2021.

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Body of Bliss_31_The Rose Apple Tree

A Natural Unfoldment (Dharmabytes Podcast)

Sanghamani draws inspiration from the use of images in nature linked to the Buddha's Enlightenment. Invoking Mara's assault and calling the earth goddess to witness and how we can use them to help us contact our own fearlessness and confidence. From the talk May All Your Weeds Be Wildflowers given at Buddhafield East, 2011. Listen out for the creaking mast of the Rainbow Tent ship!

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May All Your Weeds Be Wildflowers

Meeting Mara with Flowers (Dharmabytes Podcast)

On a warm spring day, under the overhanging branches of the Sycamore tree in the Buddhist Centre garden, Parami richly evokes Gautama's quest, realisation, and their relevance for today's world. This talk was given on Buddha Day at the Birmingham Buddhist Centre, 2010.

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Under the Bodhi Tree

Under the Bodhi Tree (FBA Podcast)

How do you get used to being Enlightened? What happened to the Buddha in the weeks after his breakthrough experience? Kamalashila uses the framework of the System of Meditation to shed light on the process that unfolded in the Bodhisattva's mind and body as Enlightenment dawned by connecting us imaginatively with the symbolism and image of Muchalinda, the great serpent, coiling his body protectively round the meditating Buddha. Excerpted from the talk Absorption - After the Enlightenment, 2008.

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Absorption - After the Enlightenment

The Subtle Elements (Dharmabytes Podcast)

A beautiful introduction by Ratnavandana to the Brahma Viharas as an integrated set of practices flowing from metta - loving kindness. Her central image is that of a tree, deep rooted and spreading its canopy wide as she evokes a profound, personal connection to the cultivation of the ‘sublime abodes’: loving kindness, compassion, joy with others, and equanimity.

Ratnavandana also leads a guided meditation on cultivating a connection to the Brahma Viharas.

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07 Uppekha - Equanimity; Lukewarm Indifference, Neutrality

06 Mudita - Joy With Others; Vicarious Pleasure And Intoxication

05 Karuna; Over - Identification With Suffering; Horrified Anxiety And Sentimental Pity

04 The Near - Enemy Of Metta; Metta As Consciousness - Alan Wallace On Metta

03 The Brahma Viharas Individually; Metta

01 The Brahma Viharas As A Tree

The 100-syllable mantra of Vajrasattva, the Buddhist bodhisattva figure associated with purification of the heart and mind as we cultivate wisdom and compassion.

Recorded at the 2015 Pan-American Triratna Buddhist Order Convention in Mexico.

For more: thebuddhistcentre.com/tags/pan-american-2015

Vajrasttva Mantra

The mantra of Akshobhya, archetypal blue Buddha of the eastern quarter. 

OM Vajra Akshobhya Hum.

Chanted by members of the Triratna Buddhist Community in Bristol.

Akshobhya Mantra

A rousing recording of the Avalokiteshvara Mantra from the Triratna European Chairs Assembly in January 2014. The harmony is led by Amalamati from Valencia.

Avalokiteshvara is the Bodhisattva of compassion, and his thousand-armed form is the symbol for the Triratna Buddhist Order at work in the world.

Recorded live during the 'Offerings' section of the Sevenfold Puja at Adhisthana Retreat Centre in Herefordshire, UK.

Avalokiteshvara Mantra

The mantra of Padmasambhava, the great guru credited with having brought the Buddha's Dharma to Tibet...

Om Ah Hum Vajra Guru Padma Siddhi Hum

Recorded at a puja on the Young Buddhist weekend retreat at Adhisthana, 2013. 

Padmasambhava Mantra

The mantra of Amoghasiddhi, the archetypal green Buddha of the northern quarter, associated with fearlessness.

Om Amoghasiddhi Ah Hum

Chanted by the Triratna Buddhist Community in Bristol, UK.

Amoghasiddhi Mantra

The mantra of Ratnasambhava, archetypal golden Buddha of the southern quarter associated with spiritual riches...

Om Ratnasambhava Tram (Trang)

Chanted by the Triratna Buddhist Community in Bristol, UK.

Ratnasambhava Mantra

As a companion piece to his talk exploring the correlation between Akshobhya, the archetypal Buddha of the eastern quarter, and metta (loving kindness), Tejananda leads a rousing harmonized chant of the Akshobhya mantra itself. 

OM VAJRA AKSHOBHYA HUM

Recorded for the International Urban Retreat 2015 at Vajraloka Meditation Retreat Centre, Wales.

Here is the guided introduction and guided meditation for day 6 of the 2015 Triratna International Urban Retreat on the theme of 'Living In The Greater Mandala'.

www.thebuddhistcentre.com/urbanretreat

This set comprises:

01 Rijumitra guides through a full-length Mudita Bhavana meditation (Cultivation of Sympathetic Joy), the third of the Brahma Viharas series of Buddhist practices.

02 In his third short talk on mantra, Tejananda looks at Amitabha and discusses the relationship between his Discriminating Wisdom and the intimacy of a joyful approach to all things that arise in conditioned existence.

03 As a companion piece to Tejananda's talk exploring the correlation between Amitabha, the archetypal red Buddha of the western quarter, and mudita, here is a harmonized chant of the Amitabha mantra. 

OM AMIDEVA HRI

Recorded for the Triratna International Urban Retreat 2015 at Vajraloka Retreat Centre, Wales.

Amitabha Mantra

Beautifully read by Sangharakshita, these readings are taken from the oldest scriptural texts and evoke the real spirit of early Buddhism - the struggles, the joys and the triumphs of ordinary people who followed the path to Truth.

Recorded in 2000 to mark the Digital Legacy project to begin transferring Dharmachakra's archive to digital format!

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Mangala Sutta

Dr B. R. Ambedkar (1891-1956) was one of the most extraordinary figures in the history of India. He was born in poor circumstances as an Untouchable – high castes regarded physical contact with Untouchables as polluting and condemned them to do the dirtiest of jobs, sweeping and the collection of human detritus. But Dr Ambedkar’s natural ability and determination (and some good fortune) enabled him to rise above caste prejudice and become one of the founding fathers of modern India. He was the chief architect of the Indian constitution introduced at Independence in 1947 and saw the concept of Untouchability made illegal. But he had campaigned for decades. In 1936 Dr Ambedkar wrote a speech – famously not delivered – in which he outlined the case against the whole existence of caste divisions in India. In Annihilation of Caste, rationally and methodically, he takes apart the basis on which caste exists, and which has delivered harm, pain and misery on untold generations – and continues to do so. Individuals such as Mahatma Gandhi shamefully continued to defend caste distinctions (his response is included here). Even today, in modern India, many of the 200 million Dalits (as the ex-Untouchables now call themselves) experience severe prejudice and violence. Annihilation of Caste is as important a political statement concerning basic human rights as The Rights of Man or The Communist Manifesto, and is just as relevant in the 21st century where caste and class still exercise a baleful effect on society. In 1956, despairing of true justice for the ex-Untouchables within Hinduism, Dr Ambedkar, and millions of his followers, converted to Buddhism.

Read by Sagar Agya

With thanks to Dharma Audiobooks: http://dharmaaudiobooks.com

Annihilation of Caste - Part3

Annihilation of Caste - Part 2

Annihilation of Caste - Part 1

Annihilation of Caste - Introduction

Vajradevi leads a beautiful sevenfold puja compiled by Maitrisiddhi from the Pali Canon, with the Shakyamuni mantra and a new version of the 'sabbe satta sukhi hontu' mantra at the end.

Puja to the Buddha Drawn From the Pali Canon

Refuges And Precepts

Going For Refuge

Naravira begins by sharing some reflections on the sevenfold puja and its nearest parallel in western culture with opera as a multi-sensory experience with sight, sound and action all being included - tho' puja also has the additional sensory impression of smell, and everyone gets to take part! The puja includes the Avalokitesvara, Padmasambhava and concluding mantras and a reading from Dilgo Khyentse on the intrinsic nature of mind.

This talk is part of the series Pathways to the Beautiful Mind: Bristol Rains Retreat 2019: https://www.freebuddhistaudio.com/series/details?ser=X167

Classic Sevenfold Puja Introduced and Led by Naravira

The last in a series of talks from the 2019 Triratna International Council. This year's theme is major elements from the Dharma biography of Sangharakshita, Triratna's founder, which are of wider relevance to anyone endeavouring to lead a Buddhist life.

This talk begins with Dhammarati's intimate account of his immediate personal experience of the death of his teacher. From there, this talk blossoms into a deeply felt manifesto about the practice of harmony as way to cultivate insight into the nature of reality as a community, and as an individual within a community. It's also about how sanghas can survive the death of their founder and flourish. 

Taking in Sangharakshita himself on the future of the Order he founded, William Blake, the Cetokhila Sutta, and the Karaniya Metta Sutta, Dhammarati offers a condensed, down-to-earth guide to working with others as a practice that conduces to the good of all.

For more, follow https://thebuddhistcentre.com/internationalcouncil

Dhammarati - Looking Ahead A Little Way

The Avalokiteshvara mantra featured during the Saturday night puja at the Big One 2019. Earlier in the day Moksatara reminded us in her talk on the theme of 'Blueprint for A New Society' of the importance of sangha, and how we can all become hands or arms of the thousand-armed Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion.

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Young Buddhists' Big One 2019: Avalokiteshvara Mantra

A puja at the 'Big One' wouldn't be complete without a Padmasambhava mantra - here's a rousing version complete with harmony before the ritual moved to the outdoors, culminating in a bonfire!

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Young Buddhists' Big One 2019: Padmasambhava Mantra

Subhadassi talks about dharma practice in challenging times, drawing on poetry & literature (Pablo Neruda & Franz Kafka) and the Perfection of Wisdom Tradition (especially the Heart Sutra). We also bump into the householder Vimalakirti, Subhadassi's wife & children, the Diamond Sutra, Compassion, the Three Lakshanas & Hakuin along the way.

Talk given for Brighton Buddhist Centre Dharma Day, July 2020.

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Here, Then - Dharma Practice In Difficult Times

Podcast #472 "Here, Then"

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