| |
|
Retreat Dharma Talks
|
|
IMCB Regular Talks
|
| |
|
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
|
|
| |
|
2019-03-21
Humility and Confidence
59:19
|
|
James Baraz
|
|
|
The Buddhist writer Wei Wu Wei says: "True humility is the absence of anyone to be proud." We are often humbled by life. How we handle it can either lead to defeat or profound growth. We will explore how being humbled can deepen our capacity to open to all of our experience and strengthen our confidence and trust as we align ourselves with something greater than ourself.
|
|
2019-03-28
A Unified Theory of Well-Being
64:14
|
|
James Baraz
|
|
|
Though there are many different approaches and styles of practice they all have one common principle that neuroscience corroborates and other spiritual traditions agree on. This talk explores this unifying practice principle and how we can simply and effectively apply it both in formal practice and daily life when we're lost in the prison of our mind.
|
|
2019-04-11
Opening to the abundance of the moment
50:38
|
|
Kate Munding
|
|
|
These sunny days, green hills, and the smell of spring are inspiring this week's talk on opening to the abundance of the moment. I'd like to explore with you how easy it is to get stuck in a rut of "not-enoughness". This could be a feeling of lack within your self or in your relationships with others. It might be how you view your life or society as a whole. How can we open our hearts and minds to see the fullness of life that is available and right in front of us? How can we use the practices of awareness and gratitude to come into a fuller acceptance of how things really are and find peace.
|
|
2019-04-18
Questions from the Sangha
31:14
|
|
Kate Munding
|
|
|
This week I'll be offering a q&a style talk so I can find out what you are exploring within your practice and what topics interest you. It will be interactive and connecting.
|
|
2019-05-02
Internally & Externally - Holding It All
61:49
|
|
James Baraz
|
|
|
On the recent retreat James sat with Ven. Analayo, the monastic started out the last day's teaching saying: “This morning I want to talk about climate change. Though some say this is not an appropriate topic for the Dharma Hall, in my view and in light of the crisis we are facing, there is no more appropriate or necessary topic.” We explore how Dharma principles can help each of us individually hold this unsettling situation as well as why they are the key to us waking up as a species.
|
|
2019-05-16
Patience
49:56
|
|
Kate Munding
|
|
|
Patience in the Buddhist tradition is seen as a quality that becomes polished as we awaken our minds and hearts. The cultivation of patience becomes an art form; fluidly brought into the moment, imbued with flexibility, mindfulness, and Metta (loving-kindness). We need this quality to help us meet our selves, our neighbors, and the world with openness. Patience can help us be more grounded and present when we face that which makes us angry, fearful, or confused.
|
|
2019-05-23
Finding Refuge in Difficult Times
51:01
|
|
Kate Munding
|
|
|
I hope coming to the monastery, sitting together, and listening to the Dharma provides you with a sense of refuge in these times of unsettled political climate, social divide, and global uncertainty. I've been thinking about how the practice can provide a "place" to come back to when we need clarity and balance. Unfortunately, that "place" is not always easily accessed when one is stressed or overwhelmed even though it's in those times we need it the most. I want to address this in the meditation instructions and Dharma talk by emphasizing ways to become more grounded in the present moment and understanding of how to familiarize ourselves with the unwholesome mind states that can spin us into more fear and unrest. When we strengthen our capacity in this way, we find we have more agency to meet personal and global realities that are difficult to face while still cultivating deep happiness, equanimity, and joy in life.
|
|
2019-06-20
Eco Dharma
44:35
|
|
James Baraz
|
|
|
Inspired by EcoDharma: Buddhist Teachings for the Ecological Crisis by David Loy. James shares some perspectives that can give practitioners a sense of how to hold the climate crisis situation skillfully as well as what Dharma teachings have to offer the wider societal conversation at this time.
|
|
2019-06-27
How we can change our relationship with nature through our practice
50:34
|
|
Kate Munding
|
|
|
In preparation for this weekend, the climate emergency, our response to it as Buddhists and as human beings has been on my mind. I will give the talk related to these themes as well as on how we can change our relationship with nature through our practice to better connect with the reality we and our planet are facing. I know James just gave a talk last week on climate change, but I'm guessing this will offer a different approach and voice to this ongoing exploration.
|
|
2019-07-11
Anicca the truth of impermanence
50:09
|
|
Kate Munding
|
|
|
The talk is centered around how to bring wisdom to the truth of impermanence. Anicca (impermanence) is a cornerstone truth of existence and one that we all encounter over and over. How we relate to this truth can make the difference between experiencing this natural law with confusion and aversion or living a life with a heart and mind that is at peace. We'll explore how this truth influences our emotional, physical, and relational lives. We'll also take a look at how miss-understanding this truth can be used as a spiritual bypass and hinder our spiritual development.
|
|
2019-07-18
Not Self
48:54
|
|
Kate Munding
|
|
|
I will continue talking about the three truths of existence, aka The Three Characteristics. Last week we explored the truth of impermanence and what it would be like to fully live from the understanding that all of nature, including us, in constant flux.
This week I'll be talking about the second truth, not-self. This is a concept in Buddhism that is often miss-understood as no-self giving an impression of nihilism. We unpack the truth of not-self, how it fits with this spiritual path, and how it can inspire us in our day-to-day.
|
|
2019-08-08
Dharmas Without Blame
40:52
|
|
James Baraz
|
|
|
With such disorienting events such as mass shootings in the news, how can we find our balance and hold things with equanimity, compassion and a wise dharma perspective. That is the theme for this talk.
|
|
2019-08-15
The Truth of Suffering
56:32
|
|
Kate Munding
|
|
|
This week will conclude my series on the Three Truths of Existence, aka The Three Characteristics. So far we've explored the truth of impermanence and what it would be like to fully live from the understanding that all of nature, including us, is in constant flux. The last time I was there, we explored the second truth, not-self. We unpacked it's meaning and talked about how it fits with this spiritual path, as well as how it can inspire us in our day-to-day.
This week we'll continue the conversation by including the third truth, the truth of suffering. This will be a pointing out teaching to better understand how we feed our cycles of stress, unsatisfactoriness, and unhappiness. We'll also look at how we can untangle and even uproot the habits and patterns in our mind that support such unhappy living and nurture a more wise and peaceful way of being.
|
|
2019-08-22
Tenderness Meditation
36:57
|
|
Kate Munding
|
|
|
The tenderness practice instructions during the meditation is a form of metta and compassion practice. It's one that helps ease the nervous system, hold difficulty and stress with care, and cultivates a kind attitude towards our mindfulness practice.
|
|
|
|
