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Talk given by Vidyadaka on 2026-10-10.  In this talk, visiting guest Vidyadaka explores peace as a central aim of Buddhist practice and the ultimate goal of human life. Drawing on the Buddha’s teachings, he reflects on how craving, confusion, and our search for security in an impermanent world create suffering and disturb our inner peace. Vidyadaka considers how we can cultivate peace in everyday life by examining our desires, letting go of blame, and practising truthful, kind, helpful, and harmonious speech. He concludes with a beautiful story from the Pali Canon, offering a vivid image of the Buddha and his disciples dwelling in profound peace. 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.  Find out more at:  ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Talk given by Tarapalita on 2026-09-03.  Having cut off his long black hair and exchanged his royal robes for rags, Siddhartha stands at the edge of his father’s land. Before him lies the forest. Behind him, everything he has known. What could move someone to leave behind everything most of us live for? And what might this image mean for our own lives? In this talk, Tarapalita explores the Buddha’s "going forth", from the comforts of the pleasure palace to the unsettling possibilities of the unknown. Going forth is a challenge we meet again and again: to remember what matters and find the courage to live by it. What have you seen to be true that you should not allow yourself to forget? And what would it mean to follow that truth in all its implications? 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.  Find out more at:  ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Talk given by Padmasagara on 2026-09-12.  What are we actually trying to do when we meditate? In this talk, Padmasagara explores the often-unconscious views and assumptions that shape our meditation practice, and why the understanding behind our practice matters just as much as the method itself. The talk concludes with a guided meditation, offering a chance to explore these ideas directly in experience. 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.  Find out more at:  ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Talk given by Tarapalita on 2026-09-05.  What does it actually mean to move towards Enlightenment? In this talk, Tarapalita explores why we need a coherent path of practice, and how the timeless principles of the Dharma take shape in different traditions, cultures and times. Tracing this living thread into the present day, he introduces Triratna’s system of practice and asks what it means to follow the Buddhist path here and now. 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.  Find out more at:  ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Talk given by Padmavajra on 2026-09-26.  Padmavajra, President of Buddhistisches Tor Berlin, explores the Buddhist symbolism of light and the Buddha’s invitation to “make a lamp for yourself”. Moving across early Buddhist teachings, Chan Buddhism and the Vimalakīrti Nirdeśa, he reflects on the inner resources we need for the journey of life: mindfulness, loving-kindness, ethics, wisdom and spiritual friendship. Ultimately, the light of the Dharma is not something to keep for ourselves. As we bring it into everyday life and share it with others, the lamp becomes inexhaustible.   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.  Find out more at:  ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Vortrag von Dharmasara am 2026-09-21.  Padmasambhava ist ein Magier, Dämonenbezwinger und eine der geheimnisvollsten Gestalten des Buddhismus. Doch was bedeuten diese Bilder für unsere eigene Praxis? Dharmasara erkundet Padmasambhava als Symbol radikaler Transformation. Die Dämonen auf dem Pfad werden dabei nicht vernichtet, sondern erkannt, verstanden und in den Dienst des Dharma gestellt. Ein Vortrag über ehrliche spirituelle Praxis, innere Widerstände und die Frage, wie wir alles mit auf den Pfad nehmen können. Hat dir dieser Vortrag gefallen? Dann bist du herzlich eingeladen, uns im Buddhistischen Tor Berlin in Kreuzberg zu besuchen. Meditiere mit uns, höre Dharma-Vorträge und entdecke Kurse, die dich in deiner Praxis im Alltag unterstützen.  Mehr erfährst du hier:   ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Talk given by Tarapalita on 2026-09-19.  What do Buddhists mean when they speak of demons? In this talk, Tarapalita explores Padmasambhava, the great tantric master and "demon tamer", and asks what it might mean to encounter the darker, wilder, and more powerful forces within ourselves and in the world. Rather than simply rejecting or repressing these energies, can we meet them, transform them, and recover something vital through doing so? A talk about Padmasambhava, personal and collective demons, and finding deeper sources of energy for the Dharma life. 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.  Find out more at:  ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Talk given by Sanghadarsini on 2026-08-30.  What do our hands communicate? In this practical and experiential talk, Sanghadarshini explores the symbolism of mudras, Buddhist hand gestures that can express meaning and qualities through the body. She begins by looking at symbolism in general, before guiding us through several mudras and their histories. We explore the earth-touching mudra associated with the Buddha, the Dhyana mudra of meditation, and Tara’s mudra of fearlessness and generosity. Along the way, there is an opportunity to try the mudras ourselves and explore what it feels like to embody these gestures in practice. 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.  Find out more at:  ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Talk given by Padmasagara on 2026-08-22.  Bahiya was a spiritual practitioner living on the beach near modern-day Mumbai. One day, he asked himself: “Am I enlightened? Or even on the path towards Enlightenment?” The answer was a resounding "No". He immediately sets out to find the Buddha, travelling thousands of kilometres and refusing to give up when the Buddha initially turns him away. Eventually, he receives a short but profound teaching, and awakens fully. In this talk, Padmasagara explores Bahiya’s story and what it can teach us about spiritual effort, burnout, letting go, and our tendency to add something extra to our direct experience. What kind of effort does awakening really require? 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.  Find out more at:  ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Talk given by Tarapalita on 2026-08-01.  What could you realistically expect to happen over the next 10 to 20 years if you practise the Dharma with sincerity? Drawing on personal experience, this talk explores ten reflections on what may unfold through long term Buddhist practice. Some changes may be fairly predictable: deeper self knowledge and integrity, a growing wish to love and protect others, glimpses into the nature of reality that transform the way we see life, increasing freedom from self obsession, liberation from the weight of a deluded materialist culture, the revitalisation of the mythic at the centre of life, and a happier, more joyful heart and mind. But the path also brings developments that are far less obvious.  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.  Find out more at:  ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Hosted by Padmasagara and stories from mitras Erik, Tania & Britta on 2026-07-25.  We live in an age when it is possible to personalise spirituality, to explore different traditions and to take what works for us from many different sources. So why choose Buddhism? Why call yourself a Buddhist at all? Is the label restrictive, or can committing to a tradition actually help us travel further and go deeper? In this special episode, three speakers, Erik, Tania & Britta, each reflect for 10 minutes on the question: **Why am I a Buddhist?**, on why they have chosen to identify with and practise within the Buddhist tradition. 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.  Find out more at:  ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Talk given by Rijumati and readings by Lalitaratna on 2026-07-19. In a world marked by war, political division, environmental challenges, and uncertainty, how can Buddhism help us respond wisely? In this talk, Rijumati explores whether Buddhism has a political agenda. His answer may be surprising. While Buddhism certainly has a vision for society, its primary focus is not on changing systems alone, but on transforming the minds and hearts of individuals. Lasting change begins with ourselves. The talk contrasts the materialistic and nihilistic view of life with the Buddha's vision of human potential, offering a hopeful perspective on how inner transformation can become a genuine response to the crises facing our world today. 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.  Find out more at:  ​☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de ​🏰 https://rote-burg.de ​📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Talk given by Sanghadarsini on 2026-07-04.  In this talk, Sanghadarsini explores the Four Reminders, a set of reflections from the Tibetan Buddhist tradition that help us stay connected to what truly matters. In the midst of modern life, with its endless distractions, routines, and comforts, it is easy to lose sight of our deeper purpose and fall back into habitual patterns. These reflections invite us to pause, wake up, and consciously choose the direction of our lives. We examine the four traditional reminders: the preciousness of human life, the certainty of impermanence and death, the law of karma and our ability to change the course of our lives through our actions, and the truth of dukkha, recognising that while pain is an unavoidable part of life, suffering is not inevitable. 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.  Find out more at:  ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Talk given by Arthaketu on 2026-06-20.  How do different ways of understanding the spiritual life shape our meditation practice? In this talk, Arthaketu explores the relationship between the Metta Bhavana and the three myths of the spiritual life described by Subhuti: the myth of development, the myth of surrender, and the myth of discovery. What do these three perspectives mean in practice? How might our experience of loving-kindness change when we approach it from the perspective of cultivation, as something that can be received, or as recognising it as already present? 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.  Find out more at:  ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin

Talk given by Simhavara on 2025-01-18.  This talk brings to life the story of Machig Labdrön, an 11th-century Tibetan yogin whose radical clarity unsettled scholars and reshaped Buddhist practice across traditions. Speaking in a language people could immediately understand, she pointed directly to awakening itself, beyond intellectual refinement or doctrinal boundaries. Her story becomes a mirror for practice: how easily we are pulled by the eight worldly winds, and how transformation often begins when we turn towards what feels uncomfortable rather than away from it. 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.  Find out more at:  ☸️ https://buddhistisches-tor-berlin.de  🏰 https://rote-burg.de  📸 https://instagram.com/buddhistischestorberlin