Who are the benefactors in our lives? These beings can help us connect with the boundless quality of Metta, unconditional love.

Doug and Jon discuss the importance of these beings and they impact they have on our lives.

After Jon’s surgery we return to the topic of patience a rather necessary quality when it comes to recovery.

Sometimes, it’s necessary to look at unhelpful forms of practice to recognize what’s truly skillful. In this episode, Doug and Jon look at an early sutta where the Buddha addresses some truly bizarre forms of practice and the potential karmic consequences.

Doug and Jon spend this time talking about the line between greed and desire.

Jon is headed for surgery in the coming week. Can his practice help alleviate some of the fear that might arise?

Doug and Jon talk about the first 5 of the 10 fetters which keep us from freedom.

Doug and Jon offer support just in case you’ve made a New Year resolution to have a daily meditation practice.

Our year end podcast includes a guided meditation and a bit more talk on embodied practice.

Jon has just got back from a long retreat, so we discuss his experiences, as well as offering a few book recommendations for the holidays and New Year.

The Diggin’ the Dharma logo is the topic of our discussion this week. A few folks have found it potentially offensive. We talk about this and more in this weeks episode.

All that we know and experience is in this body.

Doug and Jon discuss what is meant by embodiment and how do we know when we know.

As we maybe recovering from a Thanksgiving meal we consider eating and food in the context of early Buddhist practices. Has meditation, mindfulness and Buddhism impacted the way we eat?

It’s always a good time to practice gratitude but heading into Thanksgiving is a good reminder . Doug and Jon discuss the various practices of gratitude within a Buddhist framework.

Perception is one of the Five Aggregates of Clinging and critical to our understanding of self and the world we live in.

With the upcoming election in the US we will look at politics and Buddhism. Should we allow our Buddhist ideals to influence our voting?

As we record this episode, Elon Musk has recently purchased Twitter. His purchase raises all sorts of questions relevant to Buddhist practice, perhaps most importantly of Right Speech. What should be allowed online? How should we practice on Twitter or other social media platforms?

If the Buddha had access to social media would he have used it? Was he striving for fame or did it just arrive? In this episode, Doug and Jon explore the topic of Buddhism and Fame

How do the common five hindrances come into your practice and your life? We discuss some common and uncommon antidotes to these hindrances which in many ways, are not hindrances but opportunities.

Following on our discussion about death, here we look at the Buddha’s Five Reflections— daily reminders or the realities of life!