Guided Meditation and Buddhist Dharma Talk with Susan Stone

Then & Now: Unfamiliar Thoughts About the Buddha's Teachings

Focusing on our root tradition, Insight (Theravada Buddhism), Susan offers thoughts about factors that shaped the Buddha's teachings. The talk explores the Buddha's fundamental assumption that differing social circumstances significantly impacted the spiritual capabilities of his listeners. This assumption held that individuals who lived in harsh circumstances, like most of the peasantry, hadn't time or inclination to practice deeply, while those in relatively easeful circumstances, like townspeople, were more likely to be receptive to deeper teachings. Thus, the Buddha taught different layers of spiritual truth and awareness practices to different groups of householders. The Buddha further assumed that the mark of an individuals sincerity about the spiritual path was their "going forth", leaving householder life and becoming a monk or nun in his Order. He welcomed individuals from all classes into his monastic order. Moreover, the Buddha made it clear that he honored all layers of the teaching, calling each "a blessing supreme" Nonetheless, he did speak with two voices--one was the voice that addressed householders and offered teachings about elementary or intermediate awareness practices and spiritual truths. The other was the voice of an awakened Buddha, which addressed the monastics who gathered around him and offered to them the highest teaching. As contemporary seekers, we might consider what significance this historical context has for our personal practice.