The following talk was given at the Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City, California.

Please visit our website at audioderma.org. So good day everyone and welcome to the second talk on the characteristics of the Buddha's teachings, the darma.

And the way that the chant that describes these five characteristics begins,

it says,

the well-spoken dama of the Buddha.

And then it goes on and describes it

as being the well-spoken teachings of the Buddha, Dama of the Buddha, is directly

visible, immediate, inviting. immediate inviting inspection,

inspection, onward leading,

and to be personally experienced by the wise.

And the, so these teachings of the Buddha have these five characteristics and I like to think of these five characteristics as being a kind of reverse engineering of the darma of the Buddha's teachings, that somehow

taking all of the Buddha's teachings into account that if we can kind of get back to the basic principles, basic orientation that the

Buddha's teachings are based on. And these are all based on five ways in which we are personally engaged, personally involved with the

darma, with the practice.

That it's not an abstract form of philosophy.

It's not an abstract form of reflection

and thinking about things.

That can be part of certainly a darma life,

but to really be involved with the darma practice,

which is the Buddha, what the Buddha is most interested in,

was pointing people to practice. which is the Buddha, what the Buddha was most interested in

was pointing people to practice,

...