Skeptical Buddhism
@skepticalbuddhism.bsky.social
asks how well we've understood what the Buddha taught, as we see him in our oldest versions of his talks. By going back to those ancient texts, and studying the culture of his time, can we get a more accurate sense of it? An iconoclastic Secular Buddhism.
Pinned
0.0/ A Table of Contents for Skeptical Buddhism POSTS on Bluesky.
Table of Contents begins with post 1/. Each time I post a new thread I'll add a comment to this post indexing and introducing the contents. You can use the hashtag for each to find the first post. For example this one is #SB0of10K
Table of Contents begins with post 1/. Each time I post a new thread I'll add a comment to this post indexing and introducing the contents. You can use the hashtag for each to find the first post. For example this one is #SB0of10K
1/ The central section of Dependent Arising (DA), which we're calling "Rituals", using the Buddha's metaphorical word for our habits of thought, can be seen as the best-understood part of the lesson, since it deals with our experience of the here-and-now.
#SB40of10k
#SB40of10k
November 8, 2025 at 7:02 PM
1/ The central section of Dependent Arising (DA), which we're calling "Rituals", using the Buddha's metaphorical word for our habits of thought, can be seen as the best-understood part of the lesson, since it deals with our experience of the here-and-now.
#SB40of10k
#SB40of10k
1/ Before we take a look at how all the pieces of the Rituals section of Dependent Arising (DA) fit together, I'd like to talk about the theory I mentioned back in post #SB37of10k on craving (*taṇhā*).
#SB39of10k
#SB39of10k
November 1, 2025 at 2:40 PM
1/ Before we take a look at how all the pieces of the Rituals section of Dependent Arising (DA) fit together, I'd like to talk about the theory I mentioned back in post #SB37of10k on craving (*taṇhā*).
#SB39of10k
#SB39of10k
1/ The last link in the "Rituals" section, in the middle of the links of dependent arising (DA) is *upādāna* which is usually translated as "clinging".
#SB38of10k
#SB38of10k
October 25, 2025 at 11:44 PM
1/ The last link in the "Rituals" section, in the middle of the links of dependent arising (DA) is *upādāna* which is usually translated as "clinging".
#SB38of10k
#SB38of10k
I apologize for the long break (which will continue a bit longer). Dealing with a lot of repetitive pain and distracting myself by going back over books read too long ago: Olivelle's Upanisads, Gombrich's "What The Buddha Thought" and various works by Jurewicz.
I shall return!
I shall return!
September 26, 2025 at 1:39 PM
I apologize for the long break (which will continue a bit longer). Dealing with a lot of repetitive pain and distracting myself by going back over books read too long ago: Olivelle's Upanisads, Gombrich's "What The Buddha Thought" and various works by Jurewicz.
I shall return!
I shall return!
1/ Some interesting patterns begin once we get to craving. Though craving is sometimes described the way the earlier "feeling" and "contact" are described, as having the quality of arising from the sense organ that triggered it, it is also given a more specific, three-part definition.
#SB37of10k
#SB37of10k
July 12, 2025 at 7:54 PM
1/ Some interesting patterns begin once we get to craving. Though craving is sometimes described the way the earlier "feeling" and "contact" are described, as having the quality of arising from the sense organ that triggered it, it is also given a more specific, three-part definition.
#SB37of10k
#SB37of10k
1/ The next link in the "Rituals" section of Dependent Arising (DA) is usually translated (from *vedanā*) as "feeling" though recently "experience" has been suggested (e.g. by Ajahn Brahm) and I like it, though I'm still on the fence about it.
#SB36of10k
#SB36of10k
July 5, 2025 at 11:18 AM
1/ The next link in the "Rituals" section of Dependent Arising (DA) is usually translated (from *vedanā*) as "feeling" though recently "experience" has been suggested (e.g. by Ajahn Brahm) and I like it, though I'm still on the fence about it.
#SB36of10k
#SB36of10k
0.0/ A Table of Contents for Skeptical Buddhism POSTS on Bluesky.
Table of Contents begins with post 1/. Each time I post a new thread I'll add a comment to this post indexing and introducing the contents. You can use the hashtag for each to find the first post. For example this one is #SB0of10K
Table of Contents begins with post 1/. Each time I post a new thread I'll add a comment to this post indexing and introducing the contents. You can use the hashtag for each to find the first post. For example this one is #SB0of10K
June 28, 2025 at 8:15 PM
0.0/ A Table of Contents for Skeptical Buddhism POSTS on Bluesky.
Table of Contents begins with post 1/. Each time I post a new thread I'll add a comment to this post indexing and introducing the contents. You can use the hashtag for each to find the first post. For example this one is #SB0of10K
Table of Contents begins with post 1/. Each time I post a new thread I'll add a comment to this post indexing and introducing the contents. You can use the hashtag for each to find the first post. For example this one is #SB0of10K
This is my "Contact Me" thread. My Chat's set to "Allow messages from: Users I Follow" to eliminate spam.
This means that if you want to chat privately, you can leave a comment here, and I will follow you back. Or we can public chat with comments on this thread, whichever you prefer.
#SBcontact
This means that if you want to chat privately, you can leave a comment here, and I will follow you back. Or we can public chat with comments on this thread, whichever you prefer.
#SBcontact
June 28, 2025 at 7:11 PM
This is my "Contact Me" thread. My Chat's set to "Allow messages from: Users I Follow" to eliminate spam.
This means that if you want to chat privately, you can leave a comment here, and I will follow you back. Or we can public chat with comments on this thread, whichever you prefer.
#SBcontact
This means that if you want to chat privately, you can leave a comment here, and I will follow you back. Or we can public chat with comments on this thread, whichever you prefer.
#SBcontact
1/ In this thread we're going to concentrate on what, at first glance, is the simplest of the twelve links of dependent arising (DA), and that is contact (*phassa*). And though it is -- it really is -- simple, it carries a lot of weight because it's a pivot point.
#SB35of10k
#SB35of10k
June 28, 2025 at 11:56 AM
1/ In this thread we're going to concentrate on what, at first glance, is the simplest of the twelve links of dependent arising (DA), and that is contact (*phassa*). And though it is -- it really is -- simple, it carries a lot of weight because it's a pivot point.
#SB35of10k
#SB35of10k
1/ Another significant difference in the way I understand dependent arising (DA) is related to, connected to, or maybe I'd call it "parallels" the previous thread in an interesting way.
#SB34of10k
#SB34of10k
June 17, 2025 at 11:54 PM
1/ Another significant difference in the way I understand dependent arising (DA) is related to, connected to, or maybe I'd call it "parallels" the previous thread in an interesting way.
#SB34of10k
#SB34of10k
1/ I've mentioned before that dependent arising (DA) has two directions: backward and forward. As I've been thinking about describing the next link — contact/*phassa* — I've realized understanding the directions is critical to recognize contact's special role.
#SB33of10k
#SB33of10k
June 5, 2025 at 2:23 PM
1/ I've mentioned before that dependent arising (DA) has two directions: backward and forward. As I've been thinking about describing the next link — contact/*phassa* — I've realized understanding the directions is critical to recognize contact's special role.
#SB33of10k
#SB33of10k
1/ A few things before covering the "Rituals" section. First, a story the Buddha passed on of a moment in his life you may not have heard before. (This is the story of my life: in doing research I very often find interesting bits that say better what I've been trying to say.)
#SB32of10k
#SB32of10k
April 26, 2025 at 2:42 PM
1/ A few things before covering the "Rituals" section. First, a story the Buddha passed on of a moment in his life you may not have heard before. (This is the story of my life: in doing research I very often find interesting bits that say better what I've been trying to say.)
#SB32of10k
#SB32of10k
1/ In considering descriptive names for the middle section of dependent arising (DA), so far we're working on "Rituals". In the last post I discussed an unproven theory of mine. In this post: evidence that the theory makes sense, in the Buddha's own voice.
#SB31of10k
#SB31of10k
April 22, 2025 at 8:54 AM
1/ In considering descriptive names for the middle section of dependent arising (DA), so far we're working on "Rituals". In the last post I discussed an unproven theory of mine. In this post: evidence that the theory makes sense, in the Buddha's own voice.
#SB31of10k
#SB31of10k
1/ Here we cover "feeling" and "contact" to finish our discussion of the evidence for my "theory in process" that, in the middle section of dependent arising (DA), the names of the links are meant to call to the minds of his audience rituals that build up the self .
#SB30of10k
#SB30of10k
April 19, 2025 at 9:03 AM
1/ Here we cover "feeling" and "contact" to finish our discussion of the evidence for my "theory in process" that, in the middle section of dependent arising (DA), the names of the links are meant to call to the minds of his audience rituals that build up the self .
#SB30of10k
#SB30of10k
I’m on vacation for a couple of weeks. Will return to posting in April.
March 21, 2025 at 9:50 AM
I’m on vacation for a couple of weeks. Will return to posting in April.
1/ We have two points to cover on the broad subject of calling the middle section of dependent arising (DA) "Rituals". The first is the way the names of the links suggest fire rituals, the other is the Buddha's use of the word for rituals in the place of that whole middle section.
#SB29of10k
#SB29of10k
March 12, 2025 at 9:12 PM
1/ We have two points to cover on the broad subject of calling the middle section of dependent arising (DA) "Rituals". The first is the way the names of the links suggest fire rituals, the other is the Buddha's use of the word for rituals in the place of that whole middle section.
#SB29of10k
#SB29of10k
1/ Now that we've discussed the evidence that shows how well the shape of the Vedic creation myth matches up to the initial links of dependent arising (DA) we'll start covering how that myth affects the overall structure of the twelve links.
#SB28of10k
#SB28of10k
March 6, 2025 at 2:51 PM
1/ Now that we've discussed the evidence that shows how well the shape of the Vedic creation myth matches up to the initial links of dependent arising (DA) we'll start covering how that myth affects the overall structure of the twelve links.
#SB28of10k
#SB28of10k
Until this moment I never thought I'd quote-post on this account, but if you've read and even just begun to understand my efforts to explain sankhara, here is a beautifully expressed, living example. Understanding why the Buddha used the word sankhara deepened my appreciation of Matthew's tale.
I turned up the music in my truck because I'm dying.
Reflections on mortality salience, a thread.
Reflections on mortality salience, a thread.
March 3, 2025 at 5:23 PM
Until this moment I never thought I'd quote-post on this account, but if you've read and even just begun to understand my efforts to explain sankhara, here is a beautifully expressed, living example. Understanding why the Buddha used the word sankhara deepened my appreciation of Matthew's tale.
1/ Part Two: In the last thread we covered the first two links: ignorance and "drives" (*saṅkhārā*). This time we pick up from where we left off, with consciousness and its relationship to name-and-form, and the senses.
#SB27of10k
#SB27of10k
March 1, 2025 at 6:14 PM
1/ Part Two: In the last thread we covered the first two links: ignorance and "drives" (*saṅkhārā*). This time we pick up from where we left off, with consciousness and its relationship to name-and-form, and the senses.
#SB27of10k
#SB27of10k
1/ Part One: We've seen that the Buddha used the names of the first five links of dependent arising (DA) to subtly call to the minds of his audience the then-familiar shape of a fundamental creation myth that had been around for centuries. Why did he do that? What does it tell us?
#SB26of10k
#SB26of10k
February 25, 2025 at 6:49 AM
1/ Part One: We've seen that the Buddha used the names of the first five links of dependent arising (DA) to subtly call to the minds of his audience the then-familiar shape of a fundamental creation myth that had been around for centuries. Why did he do that? What does it tell us?
#SB26of10k
#SB26of10k
1/ We're almost done with describing the scholarly support for this way of looking at why the initial links of the Buddha's most fundamental lesson, dependent arising (DA) are structured the way they are. We'll now focus on the fifth link, *saḷāyatana*, the six senses.
#SB25of10k
#SB25of10k
February 21, 2025 at 1:50 AM
1/ We're almost done with describing the scholarly support for this way of looking at why the initial links of the Buddha's most fundamental lesson, dependent arising (DA) are structured the way they are. We'll now focus on the fifth link, *saḷāyatana*, the six senses.
#SB25of10k
#SB25of10k
1/ In the last several threads, we've explored the initial links of the Buddha's classic version of dependent arising (DA), seen through the lens of the Prajāpati myth. In this thread we'll consider the fourth: name-and-form (*nāmarūpa*).
#SB24of10k
#SB24of10k
February 16, 2025 at 9:37 AM
1/ In the last several threads, we've explored the initial links of the Buddha's classic version of dependent arising (DA), seen through the lens of the Prajāpati myth. In this thread we'll consider the fourth: name-and-form (*nāmarūpa*).
#SB24of10k
#SB24of10k
1/ This time we'll spend a little time looking at the Vedic philosophies underlying the early links of dependent arising (DA) and get much closer to an understanding of the mystery word *saṅkhārā*.
#SB23of10k
#SB23of10k
February 12, 2025 at 8:16 PM
1/ This time we'll spend a little time looking at the Vedic philosophies underlying the early links of dependent arising (DA) and get much closer to an understanding of the mystery word *saṅkhārā*.
#SB23of10k
#SB23of10k
1/ Moving forward through the links of dependent arising (DA), we went from ignorance to *saṅkhārā* last time, and here we'll consider ignorance and *saṅkhārā* but heading toward consciousness. But first I'd like to focus on a mini-pattern in Prajāpati's story.
#SB22of10k
#SB22of10k
February 9, 2025 at 5:35 AM
1/ Moving forward through the links of dependent arising (DA), we went from ignorance to *saṅkhārā* last time, and here we'll consider ignorance and *saṅkhārā* but heading toward consciousness. But first I'd like to focus on a mini-pattern in Prajāpati's story.
#SB22of10k
#SB22of10k
1/ We can now move on to each of the initial links, the ones that parallel the Prajāpati creation story, beginning with the very first one, "ignorance" (*avijjā* in Pali, *avidyā* in Sanskrit) and the second, our mystery-word, *saṅkhārā*.
#SB21of10k
#SB21of10k
February 5, 2025 at 9:29 AM
1/ We can now move on to each of the initial links, the ones that parallel the Prajāpati creation story, beginning with the very first one, "ignorance" (*avijjā* in Pali, *avidyā* in Sanskrit) and the second, our mystery-word, *saṅkhārā*.
#SB21of10k
#SB21of10k