
Hosted by Dharmachakra · EN

Back in the Buddha's time, it's thought that there were lots of people who were looking for meaning, going from teacher to teacher. Sometimes they were householders, sometimes royalty, but they were all shopping around - shopping for wisdom. The Buddha met many people like this. He also met people who'd achieved quite a bit by following other teachers, or those who had themselves become teachers. There were those who worshiped fire and those who practised austerities. There were nihilists and eternalists. And then there was Bahiya – Bahiya of the Bark Garment, as he was known. Here, Jayagupta reads his own story, 'Looking for Bahia' in which he reflects on his own quest for meaning, using that as a context for retelling and reflecting on the life and death of Bahiya and the simple teaching that he received from the Buddha. This talk was given at Sheffield Buddhist Centre, 2026. *** Help us keep FBA Podcasts free for everyone! Donate now Subscribe to the FBA podcast: A full, curated, quality Dharma talk, every week. Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

As part of the series on Personal Development (system of practice) Parami helps us understand how important spiritual death is in our lives. She explores the small moments of letting go which help us to break through ego clinging, allowing freedom and creativity to emerge. This talk was given at Glasgow Buddhist Centre, 2026. *** Help us keep FBA Podcasts free for everyone! Donate now Subscribe to the FBA podcast: A full, curated, quality Dharma talk, every week. Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Padmavajra explores the symbolism of Padmasambhava's famous exile in the eight great cremation grounds. And explores the important teaching that The Eight Consciousnesses (aṣṭa vijñānakāyāḥ) of the Yogacara are regarded in Tantric Buddhism as the eight great cremation grounds. So, we are always in the realm of decay and death. Yet the cremation ground is also the place of initiation, and in this masterful and fascinating talk, remembering his own teacher Sangharakshita's period of "exile" from respectable Buddhist circles in the 1960s in London, Padmavajra explores a significant series of initiations that Padmasambhava received during a crucial period in his life and mythic story. This talk was given at Padmaloka Retreat Centre, on the men's Spring Great Gathering, 2026. *** Help us keep FBA Podcasts free for everyone! Donate now Subscribe to our Dharmabytes podcast: Bite-sized clips - Buddhist inspiration three times a week. Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

In this imaginative talk, which begins with an evocation of how unbelievably fortunate we are to be able to practice together in community, Candradasa speaks to one of the four lineages of our sangha as drawn out by Urgyen Sangharakshita, Triratna's founder. He evokes the lineage of practice as a continuous chain of human inspiration and curiosity – from ancient peoples around the fire, to Siddhartha on the cusp of personal failure under the bodhi tree, to Sangharakshita in India, and finally to the current generation of practitioners who must embody and transmit the Dharma. This talk was given in March 2026 as part of the 'Live United' retreat, bringing together members of the Order holding positions of responsibility in Canada and the U.S. with visiting guests from Europe who also hold major responsibilities in Triratna. Aryaloka Buddhist Center, 2026. *** Help us keep FBA Podcasts free for everyone! Donate now Subscribe to the FBA podcast: A full, curated, quality Dharma talk, every week. Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Padmavajra explores the profound lines from Sangharakshita's Dedication Ceremony: "Here seated, here practising My our mind become Buddha, May our thought become Dharma May our communication with one another be Sangha" Recorded at the Autumn Going for Refuge weekend retreat at Padmaloka Retreat Centre, 2024. https://www.freebuddhistaudio.com/audio/details?num=LOC6267 *** Help us keep FBA Podcasts free for everyone! Donate now Subscribe to our Dharmabytes podcast: Bite-sized clips - Buddhist inspiration three times a week. Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Dhammamegha speaks about Sangha as Dharma practice and how spiritual community and friendship with the admirable are part of our heritage in Triratna. A talk given on the Triratna Buddhist Community International Gathering at Adhisthana, 2017. *** Help us keep FBA Podcasts free for everyone! Donate now Subscribe to our Dharmabytes podcast: Bite-sized clips - Buddhist inspiration three times a week. Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Is it possible to create a society in which all social, economic, and political arrangements will support the development of true individuality? In this lecture, Sangharakshita discusses a number of principles essential to the successful transformation of our current society. This talk is part of the series Buddhism for Today – and Tomorrow, given in 1976 and digitally remastered in 2026. Support the Digital Legacy project by Dharmachakra *** Help us keep FBA Podcasts free for everyone! Donate now Subscribe to our Dharmabytes podcast: Bite-sized clips - Buddhist inspiration three times a week. Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

The Dharma meets androcentricity and culture wars. Maitrisiddhi explores how we can relate to views on gender without polarising. She asks, how do we bring the Dharma to bear on our and others' deeply-held views? And how do we hold some of Sangharakshita's conditioned views? Honest, nuanced, sensitive. This talk was given at Taraloka Retreat Centre, as part of the series entitled Daughters of the Buddha: Lineage of Freedom, 2026. *** Help us keep FBA Podcasts free for everyone! Donate now Subscribe to our Dharmabytes podcast: Bite-sized clips - Buddhist inspiration three times a week. Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

There's a story about the Buddha bowing to the tree under which he has just gained Enlightenment. Inspired by this this story, Vajragupta sees the whole path to Awakening in terms of gratitude. The grasping mind cannot feel grateful. But the Awakened know and feel just how deeply they are supported and enabled by other people, other life, and conditions in the world around them. Vajragupta uses poetry and anecdotes to give four suggestions for "turning our lives into gratitude". He sees the practice of gratitude as a wisdom or insight practice. From the mind-set and perspective of gratitude, the world becomes larger, more beautiful and abundant, and we naturally wish to give back. This talk was given at Croydon Buddhist Centre, 2025. *** Help us keep FBA Podcasts free for everyone! Donate now: https://freebuddhistaudio.com/donate Subscribe to our Dharmabytes podcast: Bite-sized clips - Buddhist inspiration three times a week. Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dharmabytes-from-free-buddhist-audio/id416832097 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4UHPDj01UH6ptj8FObwBfB

How do you get used to being Enlightened? What happened to the Buddha in the weeks after his breakthrough experience? Kamalashila explores these questions in two ways - using the framework of our System of Meditation to shed light on the process that unfolded in the Bodhisattva's mind and body as Enlightenment dawned; and connecting us imaginatively with the symbolism and image of Muchalinda, the great serpent, coiling his body protectively round the meditating Buddha. This talk was given on the Triratna Buddhist Community's International Retreat, 2008. Kamalashila passed away in October 2024, to learn more about him and his contributions to Triratna, visit https://kamalashila.co.uk/ *** Help us keep FBA Podcasts free for everyone! Donate now: https://freebuddhistaudio.com/donate Subscribe to our Dharmabytes podcast: Bite-sized clips - Buddhist inspiration three times a week. Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dharmabytes-from-free-buddhist-audio/id416832097 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4UHPDj01UH6ptj8FObwBfB