Welcome to our January 2026 newsletter.
This month we feature articles by Anne-Laure Brousseau, Ayda Duroux, Ramya Jirasinghe, Ramsey Margolis, and Carmel Shalev. We also ask for your input about this newsletter and encourage a donation to SBN.
Mindfulness-Based Ethical Living (MBEL): Secular Dharma in Practice
The basic notion of MBEL is that mindfulness needs to be integrally connected to an ethic of care. Mindfulness is not just about being present and aware of our experiences in a non-judgmental way but connecting that awareness to words and actions that promote care and compassion for ourselves and others.
Carmel Shalev and Ayda Duroux, the co-facilitators of a new course on MBEL, discuss the content of the course and what participants learned. Click here to read the article.
Anne-Laure Brousseau discusses her experiences as a participant in this course. Click here to read the article.
SBN Needs Your Input and Support
Reader Survey: We want our monthly newsletter to be relevant and useful, and need your input. Click here to take a short survey about Insights: Exploring a Secular Dharma.
Donations to SBN: All SBN offerings are free, but we rely on your financial support to continue to maintain and improve our website, host Zoom meetings, and put out this newsletter. Please consider donating to SBN on a one-time or recurring basis. The Secular Buddhist Network is now a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, and your contributions are tax-deductible in the US. Click here to donate.
Buddhist Coalition for Democracy
Founded in March 2025, the Buddhist Coalition for Democracy (BCD) is a broad-based coalition of Buddhists who share the goal of ensuring democracy's survival in the face of systematic efforts by the Trump administration to take away our rights and cause harm to the most vulnerable among us.
BCD has steadily grown, providing a variety of resources and offerings. In partnership with the Insight Meditation Community of Washington, BCD held a virtual Town Hall on Immigration on November 20. To watch the video of the event, click here.
If you'd like to participate in BCD or receive the group's newsletter, click here.
Books for secular Buddhists
Tuwhiri has been publishing books on early Buddhism, its retrieval, and a secular adaptation to 21st century conditions since 2018. We also make available thought-provoking books that are not obviously dharma books but which serve the ethic of care that is central to the dharma.
We’re all volunteers, and we’re looking for people to join us. Whether you’re in Europe, Africa, the Americas, Asia, Oceania or elsewhere, if you’re interested in bringing the skills and experience you have, or are keen to learn what’s involved in bringing books to readers, do please reach out to us.
For more information go to https://tuwhiri.org/pages/editorial-board
Requisites
In the context of our global ecological crisis, Ramya Jirasinghe's book of poems, Requisites, explores the eight requisites that the Buddha stipulated as the only essential possessions for monastics.
Connect with the Secular Buddhist Network
Looking for a sangha? - To facilitate the development of local sanghas, SBN has established a listing for individuals looking to meet others in their geographical area. Click here.
SBN's Monthly Discussion Group - Meets the third Thursday of each month on Zoom. Click here.
Sunday Morning Meditation Group - Meets every Sunday at 11 am US Eastern Time on Zoom. Click here.
Sunday Evening Practice Circle- A long-time offering of the Secular Buddhist Association, meets the 2nd and 4th Sunday every month, 8:00 p.m. Central Time (9:00 p.m. Eastern). Click here.
SBN Reading Groups- SBN sponsors two reading groups. Book, article, video and podcast selections for both groups focus on topics related to secular Buddhism. Click here.
Exploring Aging from a Secular Buddhist Perspective- Meets the second and last Monday of each month on Zoom. Click here.
Secular Dharma and Political Activism - Meets the first Friday of every month on Zoom. Click here.
Secular Buddhist Zen Pub - Meets every Saturday, 11 am US Eastern Time on Zoom. Click here.
SBN online course on Exploring a Secular Dharma- Click here to learn about the basic ideas and concepts of secular Buddhism through a free online course.
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