Sutras on DIY ZEN

The Satipatthana Sutta: The Buddha's Guide to Mindfulness

Sat, 04 Jul 2026 01:14:54 -0800

Mindfulness is everywhere now. Apps, flyers taped above the sink at work, podcasts by guys who view sleep as optimisation. Most of it traces back, some way some how, to the Satipatthana Sutta.

Based on that description, you’d be forgiven for guessing it’s a sutta about productivity. Alas, no.

The Satipatthana Sutta is a major text in the Pali Canon. Sometimes called the Discourse on the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, it lays out a guide to awareness, taking us from the body to the functions of our minds. Along the way, it helps us understand how to, maybe, just maybe, stop suffering.

Key Zen and Buddhist Sutras: A Practical Guide

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 01:14:54 -0800

Sutras are the foundational texts of Buddhism. There are countless sutras and each school of Buddhism has their own preferences. Any list of “key” texts is fraught (hi) but some major texts pop up again and again.

There’s no set order to reading the texts. You can follow your curiosity and get on fine.

A quick note: some of these texts are called suttas, some sutra. Here’s the difference:

Sutta: the Pali version of the word and normally used to refer to texts from the Pali canon and Theravada Buddhism.
Sutra: the Sanskrit version of the word, often used to refer to the texts of Mahayana Buddhism. It means “thread”.

Key Buddhist Sutras

The Four Noble Truths Sutta (Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta)

This is considered to be a record of the historical Buddha’s first sermon. It lays out the Four Noble Truths that form the foundation of Buddhist teaching:

The Anapanasati Sutta: The Buddha's Guide to Breath Meditation

Fri, 12 Jun 2026 01:14:54 -0800

So much writing about breath meditation in the West is simple: watch your breath. Thoughts will come. Notice them, let them go. Return. The Anapanasati Sutta is more than that.

Sometimes called the Breath-Mindfulness Sutta or Mindfulness of Breathing Sutta, this is one of the most detailed meditation guides in the Pali Canon. It presents sixteen steps, arranged across four stages, culminating in the seven factors of awakening.

You watch your breath throughout, of course, but it’s a structured journey from your body to letting go.