Use code SUMMERPRACTICE for a 25% discount on all On Demand Courses through August 31.

S.A.L.S.A.: Using Buddhist practice to Respond to “Spicy” Emotions

With Brian Dean Williams recorded on June 9, 2019.

Found our teachings useful? Help us continue our work and support your teachers with a donation. Here’s how.

Life presents plenty of opportunities to react unconsciously, often creating harm for ourselves and others. How might we apply our Buddhist practice to “Spicy” situations and emotions, in order to respond wisely? In this session, Brian will draw on Stephen Batchelor’s work and propose a working acronym of “S.A.L.S.A.” to navigate life’s spiciness and act with integrity.

Listen to the audio version below, or click here to download the mp3.

Discussion

Leave a Reply

Discover more from the Dharma Library

  • Wisdom and Heart Together

    The connection between wisdom (paññā) and the heart qualities, such as goodwill (mettā) and compassion (karunā), can be a delightful discovery in Buddhist practice. The clear, nonjudgmental awareness of wisdom can feel like warmth, inclusion, and safety when fully received. In turn, the truly open heart is free of the distortions of ill will and…

    Read More

  • James Baraz

    Celebrating earth day: calling all Eco-Sattvas.

    With Earth Day here, James reflects on the preciousness and generosity of our wonderful planet, the current situation of climate change and how our Dharma practice can help us transform despair into meaningful and inspiring action.

    Read More

  • Ronya Banks

    Embracing Uncertainty – Practice During Crisis

    “The truth is that you will never be absolutely safe. All things change constantly, even what is most precious. This is the angst of life, the price of being a conscious human being.” – Phillip Moffitt As a spiritual practitioner, you learn to see and accept “uncertainty” as a fact of life – even during…

    Read More

  • Stephen Fulder

    Trust and Faith (Saddha) – The World is Not Against Us

    How can we develop trust, steadiness and inner freedom, qualities which contribute to our well-being and resilience, and help us to help others? Trust (saddha in Pali) is the first of the Five Spiritual Powers, which are Trust, Energy, Mindfulness, Calm, and Wisdom. Trust is the primary means to dissolve and transform our anxieties, fears,…

    Read More

  • Wiebke Pausch

    Daily Meditation Recordings, with Wiebke Pausch – Week of December 4, 2023

    This week’s topic is “Exploring the Art of Radical Rest”. Conditioned and surrounded by a restless culture, we are constantly driven towards self-optimisation and self-improvement. Our practice is often affected by the striving and the effort to become a perfect meditator. We will explore together how to rest in the midst of all that is unfinished and imperfect. When we allow ourselves to rest deeply, experience can unfold naturally and we come into contact with the very essence of being alive. 

    Read More

  • Nirmala Werner

    The 9 Contemplations of Death – Feeling Safe with Impermanence

    In this talk and guided meditation, we turn toward the reality of impermanence with mindfulness and compassion. The Buddhist “Nine Contemplations of Death” invite us to meet our fear and denial with gentleness and honesty, remembering what truly matters. Rather than morbid, this reflection is a doorway into freedom—supporting us to live with integrity, presence,…

    Read More

  • Nathan Glyde

    Daily Meditation Recordings, with Nathan Glyde – Week of 07 July, 2025

    We are delighted to have Nathan Glyde leading our Daily Meditation sessions this week. May they bring depth and ease to your practice.

    This week’s theme is: Caring Resolve

    Relieving suffering is the essential task of Buddha-Dharma, applicable to our inner and outer world. This calls for a spacious intimacy that is neither distant and indifferent, nor enmeshed and overwhelmed. Meeting pain with caring resolve loosens distress into ease, transforms reactivity into response, and liberates the limited heart into boundless connection.

    Our Dharma Library thrives through collective generosity. Your donation helps sustain this offering for our entire community.

    Read More