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In Memoriam: Rick Woudenberg


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Retreat Dharma Talks

Monday and Wednesday Talks

Regular weekly talks given at the lower Spirit Rock meditation hall

Spirit Rock Meditation Center

  
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2024-10-30 Being a Bodhisattva: Connecting Inner and Outer Practice 2 63:48
Donald Rothberg
We begin with a review of last week's talk and exploration, on being a bodhisattva in our times. The theme was inspired by Donald's experience teaching two retreats north of Asheville, NC during Hurricane Helene and being inspired by the response of the retreat center, Southern Dharma, both locally near the center and in Asheville, combining community, inner practices, and helping others. In this session, we look first more at the traditional understanding of the bodhisattva, both in the context of the Buddha's teachings and later Theravada, and then Mahayana. We bring in images of the archetypcal bodhisattvas, Avalokiteshvara, Tara, Kwan Yin, and Manjushri, as well as examples of the vows of bodhisattvas, and an outline of the training of a bodhisattva in the ten paramitas (or "perfections"). We then ask about the nature of a contemporary bodhisattva, pointing to how connecting inner work and helping others can be a corrective to exclusively outer-oriented forms of activism and exclusively inner-oriented forms of Buddhist practice, in the context of a number of systemic crises that are facing us. After then looking at some of the capacities of a contemporary bodhisattva, we invite bodhisattva vows from those attending and hear from many. Discussion follows.
2024-11-06 Post-Election Day Community Gathering 1:59:46
Sylvia Boorstein, Donald Rothberg
We gather for two hours together the morning after Election Day, 2024, in large part to ground what we are experiencing in our practice and in community. We begin with short reflections from Sylvia and Donald, followed by short periods of meditation and then sharing from many of those present at the gathering, with intermittent reflections from Sylvia and Donald. We finish with short talks from Sylvia and Donald and then a reading of the intentions of community members going forward in the next period of time.
2024-11-11 Essential Teachings for Changing Times 1:37:47
Jack Kornfield
2024-11-18 Coming Home to the H.E.A.R.T.H. in “Interesting” Times 1:37:16
Nikki Mirghafori
Using the acronym H.E.A.R.T.H., we’ll explore: Honor Goodness (Internal and External). Embrace Rest, Joy, and Gratitude Awaken Awareness and Embodiment. Release Through Letting Go. Tend Wholesome Habits. Harness Stability for Others.
2024-11-25 Earthworm Practice in the Middle of It All 1:41:22
Ayya Santacitta
2024-11-27 Guided Meditation on Feeling-Tone, the Second Foundation of Mindfulness 40:14
Donald Rothberg
After setting the posture and tuning into intentions, we have a short period of settling, typically through the breath or some other anchor. Then there is guidance to tune into the feeling-tone, especially when there is a "moderate" level pleasant or unpleasant feeling-tone, noticing tendencies to move to wanting/not-wanting or grasping/pushing away--the two forms of reactivity. We can also, when there is reactivity, tune into the pleasant or unpleasant "beneath" the reactivity, finding, for example, some compassion when there is underlying pain. Near the end, we also explore being with all feeling-tones for a very short period of a few minutes.
2024-11-27 Two Ways That Our Practice Can Help with Understanding, and Developing Empathy with, Those with Different Views, after the US Election 63:28
Donald Rothberg
It's important for our teachings and practices to help orient us in relationship to all parts of our lives, including the larger social and political dimensions of our lives. In this session, we explore one core teaching and one central practice that together help us to respond skillfully to differences in political views. The teaching is that of dependent origination, particularly the sequence from contact to grasping. We see how the two forms of reactivity, grasping and pushing away (each potentially manifesting in many ways) result from pleasant and unpleasant feeling-tones, when there is a lack of mindfulness and background habitual tendencies. We can see how the underlying pain, for example, of many working-class people (economic pain; and the pain of feeling disregarded, left behind, and/or not respected), or the pain related to anxiety about changing gender roles, can, especially when manipulated by those in power who provide scapegoats, lead to reactivity. After presenting a model of empathy practice as crucial for bringing our practice to interacting with those with different views, we can also, through such practice, tune in with compassion to the underlying pain, and have a sense of the deep genuine needs, in our examples, for economic well-being, respect, and clarity around gender. We explore all of this in an exercise with the "empathy map," which is followed by discussion. (There were several files shared via screen sharing during the talk. These files can be accessed below and potentially downloaded, by clicking on the "Q" under "Documents," and looking for documents 229, 273, 274, and 275.)
2024-12-02 "Karma: How Intentional Actions Shape Habits, Character, and Destiny" 1:20:08
Nikki Mirghafori
Includes meditation & dharma talk. (Group discussion has been removed).
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