Sati Center for Buddhist Studies

"The Gradual Training" (anupubbasikkhā) refers to a series of practices designed to advance one's spiritual journey. Originally intended as a curriculum for the monks and nuns in the Buddha's sangha, these practices are equally relevant for lay practitioners. Many of these practices will likely be familiar to those who have extensively engaged in any Buddhist tradition.

These practices are mentioned in over 30 suttas, each containing some elements of the Gradual Training. There are thirty elements in total, but no single sutta includes all of them. However, many suttas, particularly those in the long discourses of the Dīgha Nikāya, feature numerous elements of this training.

Anupubbasikkhā is also sometimes translated as "The Graduated Training" because each step progressively advances one's spiritual path.

In this course, Leigh Brasington recounts the story of King Ajātasattu from the Digha Nikāya 2 (the Sāmaññaphala Sutta). The king seeks the Buddha's wisdom on the immediate benefits of leading a spiritual life. In response, the Buddha outlines the ethical conduct, mental development, supernormal powers, and liberating insight that come from developing a spiritual life. Through this dialogue, Leigh dissects several key components of the Buddha's teaching on the Gradual Training, offering in-depth analysis through multiple lectures and Q&A sessions.

The transcripts for this class became the starting point of his most recent book, which is available freely in PDF, ePub, and other formats at https://leighb.com/gt/

Leigh Brasington been practicing meditation since 1985 and is the senior American student of the late Ven. Ayya Khema. Leigh began assisting Ven. Ayya Khemma in 1994, and began teaching retreats on his on in 1997. He is also authorized to teach by Jack Kornfield. Leigh has taught the jhanas, along with multiple insight practices, at well over one hundred residential retreats throughout the United States and Europe. He is the author of the books Right Concentration: A Practical Guide to the Jhanas and Dependent Origination and Emptiness: Streams Of Dependently Arising Processes Interacting.