Secular Buddhism

Domain XIII · Contemplative & religious disciplines · Stephen Batchelor

What it is

Secular Buddhism is a loose modern movement, not a therapy and not a single organisation. It has no founder-owned technique, no trademark, no initiation and no teacher certification in its sources. It reads the early Buddhist discourses (Pāli Canon) as guidance for living this life well, and it…

Format

• The movement has no clinical phases or session counts. Its own structures are these:
• Batchelor's course "After Buddhism and Beyond". It began as a live online course run by Bodhi College in two semesters (February to June 2021), with 24 seminars. Each three-hour session had two 30-minute seminars, Zoom breakout groups and an open discussion, plus study groups and an online forum…

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• Bodhi College courses. Bodhi College was founded by Stephen Batchelor, Christina Feldman, John Peacock and Akincano Weber. It studies the early Buddhist texts alongside mindfulness and meditation. It is not aligned with any Buddhist school and does not ascribe to a particular doctrine or "religion". It offers group-mentoring courses, one- and two-year extended courses, in-person retreats in Europe, distance learning…
• Secular Buddhist Association. The SBA grew from Meissner's podcast The Secular Buddhist (from 2009). Live online meetings began in 2012, and it registered as a non-profit in 2016. It is run by unpaid volunteers. It offers online discussion, meditation, reading and daily-life practice groups. Some secular groups use ritual or chanting and others avoid them.
• What it is. Secular Buddhism is a loose modern movement, not a therapy and not a single organisation. It has no founder-owned technique, no trademark, no initiation and no teacher certification in its sources. It reads the early Buddhist discourses (Pāli Canon) as guidance for living this life well, and it sets aside or leaves open doctrines such as rebirth and karmic results in future lives. Batchelor's first…

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Does it involve any substance, plant preparation, remedy or supplement? Has your doctor or prescriber been told, especially about any medication you take?
• Does it involve intense or unusual breathing? Have you been told about the medical conditions for which that is not advised?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• How do you and the practitioner understand what is happening, in spiritual or cultural terms? Is that a source of comfort, worry, or both?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• a therapist's own bias for or against the movement. Working: the client's independent judgement grows.
• clients hiding symptoms as "part of the path" or out of shame. Working: early reporting and quick adjustment.
• confidentiality breaches; a client caught between teacher and therapist. Working: consistent advice from both.
• the therapist taking sides between secular and heritage Buddhism (be even-handed). Working: a coherent, self-chosen identity.
• blurring the clinical programme with the client's spiritual path. Duplicating practice load (B5). Working: a clear, chosen plan.

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.