Bhikkhu Bodhi

Venerable Bhikkhu Bodhi is an American Buddhist monk, president of the Buddhist Association of the United States, and the founder and chair of Buddhist Global Relief, as well as the former editor and president of the Buddhist Publication Society in Kandy, Sri Lanka. His extensive translations of the Pali canon have informed dharma practice in the English-speaking world for decades.

Books

Recent Articles

It’s No Time to Be Neutral

Bhikkhu Bodhi, one of Buddhism’s leading activists and scholars, says there are four steps we need to take to resist Trumpism.

Rescatar un mundo

El ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi nos habla del cambio que transformó su práctica de la bondad amorosa, permitiéndole genuinamente extenderla hacia todos los seres, incluso hacia aquellos que antes consideraba neutros u hostiles.

To Rescue a World

Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi on the shift that transformed his loving-kindness practice, allowing him to truly extend it toward all beings — even those he might have once considered neutral or even hostile.

Noble Truths, Noble Path

Read a brief of the new book of the Buddha’s original teachings from Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi, and an exclusive excerpt courtesy of its publisher, Wisdom Publications.

Los cuatro fundamentos de la atención plena del Buda

Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi desempaca el manual de atención plena original del Buda.

The Buddha’s Four Foundations of Mindfulness

Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi unpacks the Buddha’s original mindfulness manual.

Buddhism, Nonviolence, and the Moral Quandary of Ukraine

How does Buddhism make sense of war? In the abstract, the teachings are straightforward. But according to Bhikkhu Bodhi, if we find ourselves supporting those who are fighting back in Ukraine, then we have to ask some hard questions—and maybe accept some uncomfortable truths.

Abhidhamma Dissects the Mind

The Abhidhamma, says Bhikkhu Bodhi, breaks open how the mind works, what cognition is, and how there can be thoughts without a thinker.

The Whole Path Is Ethics

Only three steps of the Buddha’s noble eightfold path are explicitly about ethics. But look more deeply, says Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi, and you’ll discover that ethics are at the heart of all of them.

From Tragedy Springs Hope: Reflections on the Killing of George Floyd

Fulfilling the aspiration of the Black Lives Matter movement, says Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi, will require extensive changes both in our institutions and our ways of thought.

A Buddhist Perspective on Women’s Liberation

In January, Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi gave this keynote address at a conference on "Buddhism and Women’s Liberation" in Bodhgaya, India.

Stand Against Suffering: A Call to Action by Buddhist Teachers

Thirteen leading Buddhist teachers call on Buddhists and all people of faith to take a stand against policies of the new administration.

Sankharas Therevada Bhikkhu Bodhi Buddhadharma Lion's Roar Buddhism

What are “Conditioned Things” in Buddhism?

Reality may seem solid, says Bhikkhu Bodhi, but it is merely a reflection of unstable, conditioned processes, or sankharas, coming together with no one in charge.

Presidential seal on a podium.

Let’s Stand Up Together

Bhikkhu Bodhi urges Buddhists to be visible advocates of peace, basic sanity, and social justice — causes that, he argues, transcend party politics.

Pain Is My Built-in Buddha

Bhikkhu Bodhi on the stern but eloquent teachings of chronic pain.

What Kind of World Do We Want?

For many of us in the West, Buddhism first appears on the horizon as a path to inner peace offering relief from the tensions of daily living.

A Challenge to Buddhists

Bhikkhu Bodhi looks at how Buddhist practice can be applied to the modern world in a way that provides aid to various problems of the age.