Dharma Talks

A dharma talk exploring perception and equanimity in meditation practice.

Step Seven in recovery involves humbly asking for the removal of our shortcomings. This dharma talk explores the Buddhist understanding of humility and letting go as essential practices for spiritual growth and recovery.

According to Bhikkhu Bodhi, it is said that “the purpose of the Buddha’s appearance in the world… is to proclaim the four noble truths.” This was also the Buddha’s very first teaching where he “set in motion the wheel of the dhamma.” We will explore these four truths of suffering, the origin of suffering, the […]

At some point, hopefully we begin to fall in love with meditation and the inherent wisdom we gain from this path of practice. This means we really make it a top priority, not because we “should” or think it’s a good idea, but because we start to see the tangible benefits manifesting in our life. […]

In this talk we will explore how our perceptions are often conditioned by many assumptions, beliefs, habits, desires, attachments, misconceptions, resentments, and more. Through mindfulness practice, we can even begin to train our perceptions and counteract our conditioning, allowing us to respond to events with greater wisdom and less reactivity.

In the Maha-parinibbana Sutta, we learn what occurred during the last few months of the Buddha’s life. We will explore a few episodes from this sutta and examine some of the Buddha’s compassionate teachings during this poignant time leading up to his death.

In daily life, we have a lot of distractions that can easily cause our minds to be quite scattered and distracted, and lacking in composure or serenity. One aspect of insight meditation practice that we are gently cultivating is what we call concentration, or samadhi in Pali. Buddhist scholar Bhikkhu Analayo says the term samadhi […]

This dharma talk explores three essential qualities for recovery: gratitude, acceptance, and honesty. Walt discusses how these practices support both spiritual development and sustained sobriety, drawing from Buddhist teachings and recovery principles.

According to Ajahn Sucitto in his book Parami: Ways to Cross Life’s Floods, the parami of truthfulness can be understood in two ways. The obvious way is that we do not tell lies or mislead others with our speech (including written communication). The other way, Ajahn Sucitto says, “refers to perception, to the ability to […]

The main person who gets in the way of allowing us to feel sympathetic joy (mudita in Pali) and gratitude is you know who. Often we compare ourselves to others and find we don’t measure up in some way. Envy and jealousy are the opposites of sympathetic joy. The Buddha encouraged us to challenge our […]

A dharma talk examining the role of spiritual awakening in recovery and how developing compassion – both for ourselves and others – creates the conditions for healing and transformation.

A talk exploring the mental attitude of metta (lovingkindness) and its cultivation in meditation practice.

The Buddha often pointed to craving as the cause of our suffering. Walt explores how craving arises and how we might come to the end of craving. When we start to see this with mindfulness and clear comprehension, we have more freedom to choose healthy habits over unhealthy habits, and we can begin to value […]

We often hear the phrase to “just let it go,” but sometimes that can be frustrating advice. In this talk, we will explore the insights we are encouraged to investigate which can lead to a profound letting go as a result of ongoing insight meditation practice. It can also be very helpful on a less […]

Walt begins this talk with his experience of the Golden Buddha, and goes on to explore non-clinging as a way of unveiling our own inner treasure. He offers concrete examples of impermanence in daily life which support letting go.

According to Bhikkhu Bodhi, upekkha, the Pali term we usually translate as equanimity, could literally be translated as “there in the middleness.” This points to the balancing power of equanimity. It is also sometimes described as an evenness of mind. When we have cultivated this quality over time in our practice, we are not as […]

A comprehensive exploration of how Buddhist dharma teachings support and enhance recovery practices. This talk bridges ancient wisdom with modern recovery approaches.

Some thoughts and readings related to making wise effort in practice to cultivate the wholesome and eradicate the unwholesome.

A brief definition of metta or loving-kindness, followed by some stories and an introduction to the practice.