A recollection about how I went for Buddhist alms (piṇḍapāta) in a very small Christian town of Geneva, Florida. We discuss the method of going for alms and using mettā or Loving-kindness as a basis for going for alms, to make it a meditation, and to make one safe and approachable. I enjoyed this time. It inspired myself and I hope it inspires you too.

Here we talk about the first precept of killing. Summary: In Buddhism, “Killing” is defined by the technical mechanics of the mind, not by social laws. The unwholesome Kamma is complete only if Five Factors are present: Presence: A Living Being. Perception: Knowing it is alive. Intention: A mind bent on killing. Effort: Making the attack. Result: The being dies. If all five are met, the precept killing (pāṇātipāta) is broken. This rule applies equally to Self-Defense, Euthanasia, and Abortion—Kamma judges the intention to destroy life, not the justification for doing so.

I recently found this DVD and extracted the MP4 from it. Then I extracted the \"story\" of how I became a monk. This is actually old information if you have been following my posts. However, this is from 20 years ago. It gives a glimpse of what the kuti was like and how I was at the time. At the very end, I was so grateful to the fact that I made it as a monk that I began to cry. However, the interview was cut at that point for privacy reasons. This is actually a book called Going For Broke: Travelogs on Becoming A Buddhist Monk \"I once had a visitor from America. He brought a video camera with him and asked me the David Byrne Question, \"Well, how did I get here?\" So I proceeded to tell him the story about how I first got turned on to meditation, how I decided to leave my job, the watch story, the Sai Babba slipper story, WPN and of course The Ordination Story. I completed the 30 minute saga with the phrase \"So…Here I am Bhikkhu Subhūti!\" while stroking the robes that I was wearing. I then thought about how I would explain the different adventures that I've had and all the exciting things I've done and then say that this experience has surely been the best. So I followed that thought and started to say, \"You know…I've done a lot of …\" but something happened at that moment. A big lump formed in my throat and I felt my eyes start to well up. I couldn't go on much longer. I cut everything short and finished abruptly with, \"… But this has made me the most happy!\" with a quivering voice. At this time, tears were falling down my face and I couldn't speak any more. I couldn't even tell the person who was filming me to stop. I could only wave my hand and do some \"cut\" director sign language to tell him to stop.\"

Learn how to sit in meditation on the floor without needing to do any stretching. The secret is to sit on the floor more often and do your work on the floor. But How? This short video shows you how with a bed laptop desk.

Here we discuss the details regarding what \"Beautiful\" means through the sobhana cetasikas (beautiful mental factors). There are no mysteries in Theravada. Everything can be defined if you follow the abhidhamma and commentaries.

Here I discuss some things about the support that came as a result of using my alms bowl.

I will be going to the USA in a few days. I was thinking of all of the anger that is on the left these days. When the left is in control, it is the opposite. Loving-kindness is a good thing and should be practiced often.

This is a Dhamma Talk I gave at Wat Khao Sanamachai about Kauai, alms and how loving-kindness wins battles. It is translated into Thai by a Lao monk who lives there. The full story can be seen at http://subhuti.withmetta.net/2015/11/26/676/

I had to remove a sticky label from a flask. I thought it would be good to give. a small video on how to remove adhesive residue simply by using oil. You can use any type of oil. I had coconut oil so I used that.

Late term abortion, there's no controversy. You have a living being, you have perception that it's a living being, you have desire to end the life of that living being. You make an effort by signing consent forms and giving commands to the doctor. The doctor is also involved with this and that unborn child dies. So we have five factors. So the question is, what about an early term abortion? So in Theravada Buddhism, life starts with Patisandhi. This is the rebirth linking consciousness. Basically, when the egg becomes fertilized, that is when life begins. 96% of biologists believe that life begins at fertilization. Although many might not believe that it's really fully a human, they probably believe it is alive, more than a plant. We have a commentarial story in Prajika called the Elaka Chatuka. Elaka means goat and Chatuka means the four stories related to the goats. There's a person who sees an image in the dark, let's say a hunter, and he decides he wants to kill that image. But he thinks it's a goat and he kills that living being. Later the lights come on and he sees that it's his mother who is on all fours or under a blanket. His intention was for a goat. It turned out to be not only human, but his own mother. The severity of the kama is with the reality of what actually died. So it doesn't matter whether you believe that it's some type of animal or whether you believe it's some type of whatever. If you have all five factors, then the reality is that it's human. And that's how the kama is. And that's why monks have to be very careful about how they give advice. So it's very important.

In this talk, I explore the Cūḷakammavibhaṅga Sutta and share the story of reconnecting with my first meditation teacher after nearly two decades. The focus is on the seeds of kamma that we plant continuously through our actions. What kind of seeds are we planting right now?

A presentation on projects led by Bhante Subhuti. Tipitaka Pali Reader Buddhist Sun PM12E (also called PEU Pali English Ultimate Dictionary or English Abhidhan Dictionary) Classical Theravada Website (classicaltheravada.org) American Monk Website (americanmonk.org)

Description of Buddhist Sun app which helps monks know when Solar Noon is.