The standard account of Sañjaya being stupid, foolish, dull, and confusing was obviously not true. In what are believed to be Sariputta’s own words, Sañjaya (spelled “Sañcayo” in this instance) was described in this way: “There was a learned mantra-knower who had mastered the three Vedas — a brahmin

Working on this research into Sañjaya every day since my initial discovery has brought a wealth of information about him and his method, which I have decided to share in this blog rather than write a book. The main reason for doing it that way, making it more public and

Before I went any further with adding articles to this blog, I needed to run the thought experiment that Sañjaya lays out in the "Discourse on the Fruits of the Renunciate Life.” It took me about five days and nights (with sleep breaks) to work it through. The complexity

I had just arrived in Dharamshala, India. It was mid-February 2026, and my intention was to spend a couple of months in relative solitude to write my third book on meditation. I had already written a few chapters while I was in Kathmandu, and in South India before that.

Sañjaya’s response to his two main followers leaving him for the Buddha is not a caricature of a confused and stupid sage, as it has been handled by the tradition, but a statement of his self honesty and knowing his limitations. Few teachers, if any, would admit that their

A couple of decades ago, I was in the habit of explaining my approach to meditation to other meditation teachers in the hope that they would understand what I was doing. The most common reply I got was, “Everything is inside the mandala.” They seemed to be saying, “Your approach

The Eel-Wriggler’s name was Sañjaya Belaṭṭhiputta in Pali (Sañjaya Vairatiputra in Sanskrit). Sañjaya means “with victory,” and has the sense of being triumphant. It can also mean “co-victory,” as in a victory that is accomplished together with others, not just by oneself. The historical context for Sañjaya

Sañjaya Belaṭṭhiputta lived during the Buddha’s time. The only records of him exist in the teachings of the Buddha, the Pali Canon, along with scant references to him in the Jain scriptures. At that time, wandering sages would meet each other and exchange ideas, but, for some reason, once