Podcasts religion Skillful Means Podcast #1: Spiritual Friends

#1: Spiritual Friends

Published: Sept. 30, 2019, 8 a.m.

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In Episode 1, we start at the beginning, with the phenomenon that gave rise to the shared project that is Skillful Means Podcast: spiritual friendship.\\xa0

In Buddhism, spiritual friends (Pali: Kaly\\u0101\\u1e47a-mitta, Sanskrit: -mitra) provide support and encouragement along the path. They may be monastic, lay peers, or teacher/student pairs. These relationships are fertile ground for better understanding the nature of the mind while also being protective in a world where contemplative practice is counter-cultural.\\xa0

We use stories from the Buddhist Canon as well examples from our own lives to illustrate the purpose of spiritual friendship (supportive of practice), how it operates (encouraging the wholesome), and what a spiritual friendship is not (concerned with fixing). We also talk about whether and how it shows up in parts of the yoga world.

Our hope is to inspire you to identify and foreground spiritual friends or potential spiritual friends in your life. We end with resources that will help in this endeavor.

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Sources and Further Reading:

  • \\u201cSpiritual Friendship,\\u201d excerpted from a lecture by Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi and published by Bodhi Monastery.

  • A big part of creating the conditions necessary for true happiness, according to Thanissaro Bikkho in his talk \\u201cSkillful Shelter\\u201d published on Tricycle.com, is choosing admirable friends.

  • In \\u201cThe Whole of the Spiritual Life,\\u201d American Buddhist nuns Thubten Chodron and Ayya Tathaaloka discuss friendship in an interview with Sarah Conover on Tricycle.com.

  • \\u201cMaking Friends on the Buddhist Path,\\u201d by Norman Fischer on Lionsroar.com opens with Ananda\\u2019s incomplete insight into the role of friendship in spiritual life and the Buddha\\u2019s teaching to Meghiya on the \\u201cfive things [that] induce release of heart and lasting peace.\\u201d
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  • In \\u201cGood Friendship is the Entire Spiritual Life,\\u201d published by the Garrison Institute, Josh Korda reflects on social connection in spiritual community.

  • In Beginning Anew: Four Steps for Restoring Communication, Sister Chan Khong, long-time friend of Thich Nhat Hanh and nun in the Plum Village monastic community, describes the conflict resolution process developed among the Plum Village monastics.\\xa0

Resources for developing spiritual friendship and sangha:

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