Regular events

Dharma Monday

Friendship in the Spiritual Life - connecting me, connecting you

We all need friends, at least we all need to feel a sense of connection with others. 'Kalyana mitrata', spiritual friendship, is a distinctive emphasis in the Triratna Buddhist movement, a really important part of our spiritual lives.

Ananda was the Buddha's closest companion and friend, and was familiar with all of his teachings (the Dharma). When he declared that he'd reflected and concluded that 'kalyana mitrata' was half the spiritual life, the Buddha replied: "Say not so Ananda, say not so. 'Kalyana mitrata' is the whole of the spiritual life."

Sangharakshita, who was the founder of Triratna, said "For most of us [in the West] the central problem of the spiritual life is to find emotional equivalents for our intellectual understanding [of the Dharma]." The practice of spiritual friendship is one of the key ways of engaging our emotions.

There are certain conditions which make it more likely for spiritual friendship to arise. These conditions relate to both the personal, and the wider context, the collective, in our case the community of people practising the Dharma. This series of talks explores what this means in Triratna, and how it helps our spiritual lives.

The first talk is an introduction to the theme. What does it mean to be a spiritual friend? How is this different from a personal friend? How can spiritual friendship help us become happier, freer, more at peace?

In the second talk Sujiva will talk about what friendship means in today’s world of Facebook friends and increasing isolation.

In the third talk Karunajoti will share her reflections on the precious nature of spiritual friendship. She will speak about the scope of spiritual friendship within Triratna and how this forms the basis from which an ever-widening circle the sangha grows.

In the final talk, Purna will talk about the Buddha as the original exemplar of spiritual friendship, Bhante Sangharakshita as one of our modern day spiritual friends, and spiritual friendship as a distinctive emphasis in our movement.

Dharma night is suitable for those who would like to learn more about Buddhism. It is also a popular night for regular friends to drop in and practice together. If you are a beginner but can't get to/or have just started one of our meditation classes, you are still welcome to come and join in.

The usual program for the evening is a talk or discussion on some aspect of Buddhism, tea break, then group meditation to end the evening.

When

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