Undefended Dharma with Mary Stancavage

In a recent talk, dharma teacher Larry Ward mentioned living rather than believing.  Mary spends time unpacking what this might mean and how one could go about just being present without ties to fixe…

When the Buddha gave his first teaching after his Awakening it is thought of as when the wheel of the dharma was set in motion. The Buddha taught the middle way between the two extremes of sensual in…

The importance of connection cannot be overstated and we are currently in a time of deep division on so many levels. In this talk Mary discusses the ways we are disconnected and how we use the practi…

The Buddha taught the nature of suffering and the end of suffering. Then end of suffering is liberation. In this talk Mary discusses what liberation can mean in our lives right now and how to see wha…

The Buddha taught about the five hindrances as what gets in the way of our liberation. Although we may have memorized the list, recognizing the subtle ways they show up in our lives is another matter…

In this short talk, Mary reflects on the the statement that thoughts are not the enemy, although often we think they are.  It's not the thoughts as much as our relationship to them that are what we n…

Because the challenges we face these days are so daunting and seemingly endless, it is even more important to have love and connection as a foundation of both our practice and how we move through the…

The onslaught of violence, hatred, greed, and ignorance has been relentless and it's in these moments we ask how is it even possible to live with an undefended heart, and would we even want to. Mary …

From the Archives: This talk is the second in the Undefended Heart series. Mary discusses how we can use the heart practices to chip away at the armor that has built up around our hearts and which ke…

Taking refuge in the Buddha is part of what's known at the Triple Gem - Refuge in the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. In this talk Mary talks about how when we take refuge in the Buddha, we're taking refu…

In this short talk Mary discusses the ongoing challenges of the world today and how we can utilize our practice to take care of ourselves. We need to watch our reactivity, be willing to step back, an…

If we can't let go of our preconceived notions or ideas, we're bound to stay stuck. The Buddha taught us to let go of our views and the teachings on 'don't know mind' or 'beginner's mind' address thi…

What does this even mean? What is the dharma? How do you do it? How does it do you? Mary reflects on this idea and how the practice, dedication to the teachings and the development of insight allow t…

With the chaos in the world today it's really important that we don't lose sight of the joy that is available regardless of circumstances. In this talk Mary discusses the Buddha's teachings on joy an…

Most of us are familiar with the traditional way the Brahma Viharas, or heart practices, are taught. However the usual phrases and categories of people we offer loving kindness, compassion,  and joy …

The fifth and final of the lay precepts is about avoiding alcohol and drugs that lead to heedlessness. Mary discusses the differing viewpoints on this precept as well as how we can expand it out to i…

The 4th Precept is about being wise and careful not only with our speech, but with all our communications. In this day and age of instant connection it's especially imperative that we bring awareness…

The 2nd Precept is not to take what is not freely offered and the 3rd is to avoid sexual misconduct. In these teachings and admonitions, the Buddha was able to touch into behaviors that cause so much…

FROM THE ARCHIVES: This talk, recorded almost five years ago, is still timely today. How do we deal the the excruciating moments that can happen in our lives? How do we deal with grief, loss, fear an…

Starting with this talk Mary will look at the Five Training Precepts. The Precepts are the Buddha's advice to lay people on how to live in harmony with the world. The first one asks us to not take a …