Notes on early Buddhist teachings from the Pali Canon. Written by a student, not a teacher.
Anattā is probably the most misread word in early Buddhism. It doesn't mean you don't exist.
Anattā - not-self - is one of the Buddha's most radical teachings and one of the most misunderstood. It's not a claim that nothing is real. It's a specific argument about what you've been holding onto - and what happens when you look at it closely.
Gain, loss, praise, blame - and the practice of not being shoved by any of them.
The Buddha named eight conditions that keep arriving whether you want them or not - gain, loss, status, disgrace, praise, blame, pleasure, and pain. The practice isn't making them stop. It's noticing when the wind blows and not being blown with it.
Most meditation advice says 'let your thoughts pass.' The Buddha was more precise than that.
The Buddha didn't say distraction is distraction. He named five specific obstacles - nivāraṇa - each with its own flavor and its own antidote. Once you can see which one you're caught in, it starts to loosen.
The First Noble Truth is more precise than you think.
The First Noble Truth isn't 'life is suffering.' The Pali word dukkha means something more specific and more useful. Here's what the earliest texts actually say.