The path to freedom | EN | Bhante Sujato

How does the mind work? Often we don't understand, and we create problems for ourselves and others. But it IS possible to develop wisdom and to be free!

In Buddhism it is done by developing samatha and vipassana.

Samatha is the emotional approach, having a genuine emotional engagement or emotional wholeness. The benefit is obvious: You feel good, it is nice to be happy, so you keep meditating, maybe even for the rest of your life. This leads to a life of reflection and growth, taking responsibility of yourselves. It also create a place of safety, you have found this place where you can be peaceful, happy and loving and caring, stability and clarity.

Vipassana is seeing clearly, for example by reflecting on your meditation, cause and effect, investigation of three characteristics in the six senses or the five aggregates – either through direct experience or inference.
This leads to stages of awakening, wisdom and freedom.

This is why we are teaching, we believe that anybody can realize wisdom, and engage with the teachings in a sincere way. Step by step, we move from darkness to light, ignorance to knowledge, from suffering to freedom.

This teaching was given during a retreat at Venabu in October 2024.

  • Publisert: 2024-11-07

    From the opposite side of the planet, the retreat's instructor Bhante Sujato came by plane to Oslo, and he was transported straight to the mountains to rest and overcome jet lag, before the retreat at Venabu started.

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About the Author: Bhante Sujato

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Bhante Sujato, born Anthony Best in Perth, Australia, is a Theravāda Buddhist monk, scholar, and former musician who was ordained in Thailand in 1994. He founded Santi Forest Monastery in NSW, co-founded SuttaCentral for early Buddhist text translations, and has published widely on early Buddhism. His work includes supporting Bhikkhunī ordination and translating the four Nikāyas into English. He travels extensively to teach Buddhism and meditation retreats.

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