Talk given by Arthaketu on 2026-03-07.

In this talk, Arthaketu explores the Buddhist teaching of the five hindrances, the mental obstacles that prevent us from entering deeper states of meditation and awareness. Using the image of queuing outside a club like Berghain and being turned away at the door, he illustrates how these hindrances can block our way.

But the story does not end there. Alongside the five obstacles, we also meet five friends who know how to get in. Through this playful metaphor, the talk points to the qualities that help us move beyond these barriers and enter higher states of consciousness.

Enjoyed this talk? You are warmly invited to visit Buddhistisches Tor Berlin in Kreuzberg in person. Join us for meditation, Dharma talks, and courses that support practice in everyday life.

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Talk given by Padmasagara on 2026-02-28.

In this talk, Padmasagara picks up threads from his last talk on The Wheel of Life and turns to the story of the Japanese Zen master Hakuin, who at one point in his life pushed himself so hard in practice that he became seriously unwell. Describing exhaustion, fearfulness, and physical distress, Hakuin sought help from a mountain hermit who diagnosed him with what he called "meditation sickness".

Drawing on this encounter, the talk explores how we can bring our existing habits and tendencies into our Buddhist lives, sometimes creating tension and imbalance even as we try to practise sincerely. Taking a small meditative workshop approach, Padmasagara reflects on what Hakuin’s experience might mean for practitioners today and offers practical tools that can help make practice less strained, more alive, and sustainable. To break out of our habitual patterns.

Enjoyed this talk? You are warmly invited to visit Buddhistisches Tor Berlin in Kreuzberg in person. Join us for meditation, Dharma talks, and courses that support practice in everyday life.

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Talk given by Padmasagara on 2025-12-06.

This talk explores the story behind the Karaniya Metta Sutta, one of the Buddha’s earliest and most important teachings on metta, or loving-kindness.

The talk begins with the context in which this teaching was given: a deep and unsettling forest, filled with strange sounds, shadows, and fear. From there, the story turns inward, pointing to the "forest of the heart": the inner landscape where emotions arise, move, and seek expression in our lives.

Reflecting on how easy it is to lose touch with this inner world, the talk asks what it means to really listen to the heart, and how Buddhist practice, and metta in particular, can help us connect more honestly with ourselves, with others, and with the world.

Enjoyed this talk? You are warmly invited to visit Buddhistisches Tor Berlin in Kreuzberg in person. Join us for meditation, Dharma talks, and courses that support practice in everyday life.

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Talk given by Dharmasara on 2025-11-15.

In this talk, Dharmasara explores the role of community and friendship in Buddhist practice and the potential of spiritual life lived together.

Reflecting on his own experience, he describes how an initial search for a teaching gradually opened into a network of friends, teachers, and fellow practitioners, revealing new ways of understanding and deepening relationships.

Looking at the Sigalovada Sutta, the talk explores the six key relationships the Buddha encourages us to honour, and considers why friendship and responsibility within relationships are so central.

Enjoyed this talk? You are warmly invited to visit Buddhistisches Tor Berlin in Kreuzberg in person. Join us for meditation, Dharma talks, and courses that support practice in everyday life.

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Talk given by Dharmasara on 2026-02-07.

In this talk, Dharmasara explores the Buddha’s final days and his Parinirvana, complete Enlightenment beyond birth and death. An event that tells us much about the meaning of Enlightenment, the nature of the mind, and the spirit in which Buddhism is to be practised.

Drawing on three stories from the Mahaparinibbana Sutta, Dharmasara paints a picture of the Buddha’s final teachings, his actions at the age of 80, and the lasting lessons for practitioners in today’s world.

Enjoyed this talk? You are warmly invited to visit Buddhistisches Tor Berlin in Kreuzberg in person. Join us for meditation, Dharma talks, and courses that support practice in everyday life.

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Talk given by Tarapalita on 2025-11-08.

In this talk, Tarapalita explores the Buddha’s teaching in the Meghiya Sutta, a clear and practical teaching on the conditions that support genuine spiritual progress.

The Buddha outlines five key factors that lead to what he calls the heart’s release: regular contact with spiritual friends, a wholehearted commitment to ethics, careful and kind speech, the cultivation of refined and skilful energy (especially in meditation), and deep insight into impermanence and the nature of reality. Together, these conditions shape a life that naturally moves towards freedom rather than clinging.

Enjoyed this talk? You are warmly invited to visit Buddhistisches Tor Berlin in Kreuzberg in person. Join us for meditation, Dharma talks, and courses that support practice in everyday life.

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Talk given by Arthaketu on 2025-11-29.

To become free, it is helpful to have a system to practice within. In this talk, Arthaketu guides us through the Triratna System of Practice/Meditation, designed to support us on the path from the beginning all the way to freedom.

The five stages of the Triratna system are presented in their traditional order: Integration, Positive Emotion, Spiritual Death, Spiritual Rebirth, and Spiritual Receptivity. Particular attention is given to the initial stages: Integration and Positive Emotion, showing how becoming more whole, present, and emotionally balanced lays the groundwork for deeper transformation and freedom.

Enjoyed this talk? You are warmly invited to visit Buddhistisches Tor Berlin in Kreuzberg in person. Join us for meditation, Dharma talks, and courses that support practice in everyday life.

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Talk given by Dharmasara on 2025-11-01.

In this talk, Dharmasara explores the meaning of Sangha, the third jewel of Buddhism, and what it really means to create a genuine spiritual community.

Sangha is not simply the sum of all Buddhists or everyone who comes to a centre. It is a high ideal and a practice in its own right, one that seeks to bring wisdom and compassion into the world through friendship, communication, and shared commitment.

Enjoyed this talk? You are warmly invited to visit Buddhistisches Tor Berlin in Kreuzberg in person. Join us for meditation, Dharma talks, and courses that support practice in everyday life.

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