Taking the Five Precepts Online

You may take Refuge and take the Five Buddhist Precepts anytime right here from this page. Even if you have taken them before you can reaffirm them by going to a private place and chanting along (click play on the audio below). Going for Refuge and taking the Precepts define a person as a practising Buddhist.

Going for Refuge gives a continuous perspective on life by referring to one's conduct and understanding of the qualities of the Buddha (wisdom), Dhamma (truth) and Sangha (virtue). The Precepts are for reflection and to define one's actions as a responsible human being. There is a formal means of requesting Refuge and Precepts from a bhikkhu/bhikkhuni, which is as follows:

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In early January I attended a talk given by Venerable Buddharakkhita. It was a very special evening devoted to a guided meditation and talk on Mudita - sympathetic joy. It is not a topic I have heard spoken of much before so I have written down what I learnt from him. Mudita is one of the 4 Brahma Viharas or Divine Abidings, the others being loving-kindness, compassion and equanimity. These are all powerful antidotes for self-doubt, unfriendliness, cruelty and unbalanced destructive mind states....

One technique for managing anxiety and producing peace and calm is meditation. I have used it very successfully in managing anxiety and have learnt much about how to do it.

Meditation objects can vary and there is no one 'right' object that helps everyone to reduce anxiety. It is important to find the object that best suits you. ...

It is with some regret that I need to report to our members the hardening of attitudes towards us and in particular to Ajahn Brahm by some senior monks from the Wat Pah Pong group, obviously still angry and annoyed over the Bhikkuni ordination in October 2009. I have just re-read my report from last year, and realized that the harmony and forgiveness I was hoping for last year seems still to be a long way away. It feels like things have got worse. Over the past year I feel our committee and our supporters have, in the interest of harmony and peace, suppressed a lot of feelings and words that could have been said, in the hope that the silence would allow these disaffected monks, who are displaying ill will towards Ajahn Brahm, a clear view of what they are doing in order for them to see where they are at. ...

Please join -anytime- the Dhammaloka community in Perth Western Australia in their Buddhist chants. These are chanted every Friday night before the mediation and weekly Dhamma talk, however you can chant along anytime! Are you doing a home retreat?



Would you like to pay homage to the Dhamma in the morning, take the 5 Precepts at home or just recite the Metta Sutta before you begin your meditation? Use this recording and its text as it suits you...in your daily Dhamma practice....

PART 1: Sustained attention on the present moment

"The goal of this meditation is the beautiful silence, stillness and clarity of mind."

Meditation is the way to achieve letting go. In meditation one lets go of the complex world outside in order to reach the serene world inside. In all types of mysticism and in many traditions, this is known as the path to the pure and powerful mind. The experience of this pure mind, released from the world, is very wonderful and blissful.
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Introduction

For more than 2,500 years, the religion we know today as Buddhism has been the primary inspiration behind many successful civilizations, a source of great cultural achievements, and a lasting and meaningful guide to the very purpose of life for millions of people. Today, large numbers of men and women from diverse backgrounds throughout the world are following the Teachings of the Buddha. So who was the Buddha and what are his teachings?
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If you practise this meditation it can help you stay positive towards yourself and others. It can also help to keep you calm and kind in difficult situations and reduce irritation and anger. Kindness is an antidote for anger and irritation. Many Buddhists use this loving kindness meditation extensively and particularly to dissolve anger and bitterness from the past....