Barre Center for Buddhist Studies

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The Steadfast Family Man (Anguttara Nikaya 5:40 & 3:48)

Poem
Andrew Olendzki
Fall 2004

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Most Buddhists have always been and continue to be laypersons and householders. These verses from the Numerical Collection of discourses paint a picture of a householder who is both refuge and support for an entire family unit or of a community. Of course these days such a person might just as soon be a woman as a man, or might even be an organization or a group. In either case it is the shelter provided by faith and virtue that enables the family to flourish. Its members are protected from the unwholesomeness of the world like a grove of trees is sheltered by the mountain from harsh winter winds.

Faith, or confidence in the truth of the teachings, allows access to the nurture and guidance of the Buddha’s wisdom, while virtue is both a foundation upon which a life of practice can be built and a shield against the potentially dire consequences of immoral activities. As the Buddha has often suggested, one’s true safely only comes from a network of relationships that have been carefully and respectfully cultivated. And as he has further said and demonstrated, a life of virtue can serve a much larger good than merely one’s own when it is shared with one’s companions on the path.

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Insight Journal

Fall 2004

Download PDF

In this volume:

War and Peace

By Andrew Olendzki

Article

The Working of Boundless Compassion

By Tai Unno

Interview

In This World, Hate Never Yet Dispelled Hate

By Sarah Doering

Article

A Comprehensive Matrix of Constructed Experience

By Andrew Olendzki

Sutta Study

Generating Spiritual Friendship: Reflections from a Gray Haired Mentor

By Jean Esther

Article

Lessons from an Illness

By Marilyn Judson

Article

What Is Mindfulness… And Why Is It Important to Therapists?

By Christopher K. Germer

Article

The Steadfast Family Man (Anguttara Nikaya 5:40 & 3:48)

By Andrew Olendzki

Poem

 

All issues:

See all Insight Journal issues

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  • Home
  • About Us
    • New and Notable
    • COVID-19 Safety Protocols
    • Mission and Values
    • Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
    • Board of Directors
    • IMS
    • Staff
    • Job Openings
    • Getting to BCBS
    • Mailing List
    • Contact Us
  • Onsite Programs
    • Current Course Calendar
    • Everything You Need to Know About Residential Programs
    • Typical Residential Schedule
    • Continuing Education Credits
    • Financial Assistance
    • Teacher Dāna
  • Online Programs
    • Upcoming Programs
    • Wisdom Collaborations
    • Previously Offered Programs
    • Cancellation Policy
  • Path Programs
  • Teaching Faculty
  • Resources
    • Insight Journal
    • Bhikkhu Anālayo’s Offerings
    • The Daily Sit
    • Freely Offered Dharma
      • Events
      • Courses
    • BCBS Publishing
    • BCBS Bookstore
    • Access to Insight
    • Dharma Seed
    • Ways to Engage in Social Justice
  • Generosity
    • Donate
    • Recurring Donations
    • Planned Giving
    • Stocks, DAFs, and IRA Gifts
    • Teacher Dāna
    • Volunteer