A Handful of Leaves   

Readings in Theravada Buddhism

Not to do any evil
To cultivate good
To purify one's own mind:
This is the teaching of the Buddhas.
-- Dhp 183

What's New [Last updated on Oct 6, 2004]

 

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Some suggested starting points for newcomers to this site, including "What is Theravada Buddhism? ".

 

On one occasion the Blessed one took up a few simsapa leaves in his hand and asked the bhikkhus as to which was more, the few leaves in his hand or those in the forest. The bhikkhus replied that the leaves in the hand are few, but those in the forest are more and numerous. Then the Buddha said "So too, bhikkhus the things I have directly known but have not taught you are numerous, while the things I have taught you are few like these leaves in my hand". And why bhikkhus have I not taught those many numerous things? Because they are unbeneficial, irrelevant to the fundamentals of holy life, do not lead to dispassion, to peace, to direct experiential knowledge, to Enlightenment, to Nibbana. Therfore I have not taught them. "And what have I taught is this- There is suffering, there is cause of suffering, there is cessation of suffering and there is path leading to cessation of suffering. Why? Because this is benefical and relevant to the fundamentals of holy life, leading to dispassion, to peace, to direct experiential knowledge, to Enlightenment, to Nibbana. Therefore bhikkhus make effort to understand that there is suffering, there is cause for suffering, there is cessation of suffering and there is path leading to the cessation of suffering".(Simsapa Forest- Samyutta Nikaya).

Life of the Buddha in pictures   1. The Birth of the Bodhisatta. On a full-moon day in the month of May (Visakha) 2600 years .... 2. Life as a Prince. Manifold was the variety of all the sensuous delights within the palace, .... 3. The realities of life. All King Suddhodana's efforts to protect his son from the four  ... 4. The Great going forth. On the day of the Esala full-moon (July) the Crown Prince receives... 5. Experiment with Asceticism. For six long years the ascetic Gotama, as Prince Siddhattha was now known, ... 6. Enlightenment. Discarding both extremes of luxurious living and self mortification .... 7. The First Discourse. Having realized the Four Noble Truths - the Noble Truth of Suffering; the Cause of Suffering ... 8. Go now and wander for the welfare of the many. The Buddha stays on at Isipatana for the rainy season... 9. The law of Causation or Dependent Arising. After His Enlightenment under the Bodhi-tree at Buddhagaya, the Buddha reflects... 10. The Philosophy of change. The Buddha teaches that all conditioned things are in a state of flux or change, and thus ... 11. Unsatisfactoriness of Life. According to the Buddha, whatever is impermanent is subject to suffering,... 12. Buddha teaches that all Phenomena is soulless. When a thing is impermanent, as all... 13. Freedom of thought. At times referred to as the Buddha's Charter of Free inquiry this discourse ... 14. Towards human dignity. Sunita was a scavenger born into a so called outcaste community.  .... 15. Equality of women. It was the Buddha who first gave women her rightful place in a society which had earlier ... 16. Human freedom. In the time of the Buddha it was common for both men and women to enter into services ... 17. Ministering to the sick. In spite of the fact that the study and practice of medicine and surgical science has ... 18. Psychic Therapy. The Buddha speaking on the mind, has also spoken on mental disorders ... 19. Compassion to Animals. In the Buddha's time there were various animal sacrifices taking ... 20. Buddhist Economic System. Many who are not familiar with the Buddha's Teaching classify it as a religion for the next .. 21. Buddhist Education. It is a method of teaching that is based on the mental development of the ... 22. Administration of Justice. Certain statutes regarding the administration of justice, were .... 23. World Peace. In the Buddha's Teaching the highest emphasis is laid on the ... 24. The Maha Parinibbana. The Buddha was born as a prince under a tree, gained Supreme ..

The Path to Freedom

An introductory self-guided tour of the Buddha's teachings, based on excerpts from the Pali Canon.

The Pali Canon

An outline of the Pali Canon (Tipitaka), including a selection of modern translations of over 700 important suttas, all indexed by sutta name, subject, proper names, and similes.

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A library of some 200 books, essays, and transcribed Dhamma talks by masters from the forest traditions , various authors from the Buddhist Publication Society , and other contemporary writers . Also included are Study Guides on selected topics of interest to students of Buddhism.

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