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Dharma Talks
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2010-05-26 Relating Wisely with Fear - Part 1 1:24:16
Tara Brach
Relating Wisely with Fear Part 1 and 2 - While fear is essential to survival, it can also strangle our capacity to live fully and awaken spiritually. These two talks explore how fear takes over our lives, and the ways we can train our attention to free ourselves from its grip.
Insight Meditation Community of Washington DC IMCW Wednesday Evening Talks

2010-05-05 Fearless Kindness 49:25
Christina Feldman
Kindness is one of the foundations of awakening enabling us to meet the forces of fear that can distort our lives.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center Women in Meditation

2010-03-24 Fear and Freedom 59:46
Martin Aylward
Gaia House Live and Let Go: Unburdening The Heart

2010-03-02 Embracing Fear, Aggression and Sexuality on the Path to Awakening 49:07
Amma Thanasanti
Shakti Vihara

2010-02-24 Living Aligned with the Heart 1:13:21
Tara Brach
We suffer when our words or actions arise from unconscious wants and fears. This talk explores how we can awaken from the habitual ways we cause harm to ourselves and others, and live from our natural intelligence and tender warmth.
Insight Meditation Community of Washington DC IMCW Wednesday Evening Talks

2010-02-22 Hoping, Fearing, Seeing the Truth 45:27
Susan O'Brien
Insight Meditation Society - Forest Refuge February 2010 at IMS - Forest Refuge

2010-02-11 The Lion's Roar 54:49
James Baraz
In Tibetan teachings the Lion's Roar is the "fearless proclamation that every situation is workable." Being humbled can lead to a profound, wise humility, doubt can lead to strong confidence and vulnerability and can be the path to fearlessness.

James presented another version of this talk at the February 2010 month-long retreat at Spirit Rock.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley IMCB Regular Talks

2010-02-04 The Lion's Roar 57:54
James Baraz
In Tibetan teachings the Lion's Roar is the "fearless proclamation that every situation is workable." Being humbled can lead to a profound, wise humility, doubt can lead to strong confidence and vulnerability can be the path to fearlessness.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center February 2010 Month Long

2010-01-02 Contemplating Death and the Deathless 55:37
Yanai Postelnik
Rather than being a distant or fearful concept, we can use the truth of death as a tonic which can revitalize our lives, and invites a deeper letting go, into that which lies beyond death.
Insight Meditation Society - Retreat Center Resolutions of the Heart: New Year’s Retreat

2009-12-15 Take Heart 32:22
Kittisaro
Balance within practice. A compassionate response. From is emptiness, emptiness is form. The gift of fearlessness. The way of generosity, kindness and integrity.
Dharmagiri

2009-11-28 Trust And Letting Go Into The Unknown 58:54
Sharda Rogell
A talk given on a weekend retreat. With Trust as our main support, we begin to let go of our hopes and fears and drop into the truth of uncertainty. This is the doorway to freedom.
Insight Meditation Society - Retreat Center Living an Awakened Life: Insight Meditation Weekend

2009-11-22 Baptism of Fire 17:47
Ayya Medhanandi
Sometimes it takes an illness or a loss to wake up. The wheel of Dhamma turns us towards the centre point, where all the mind’s movements are stilled so that we can see the truth of suffering. Fear arises but we can observe it ceasing in the light of our inner spiritual work. Gently, patient and aware, with selflessness and noble intent, we persevere.
Toronto Theravada Buddhist Community (TBC)

2009-11-18 Refuge in Loving Presence 1:19:15
Tara Brach
There are times when there is so much fear and reactivity, that the first step in moving toward freedom is to connect with some sense of safety and love. This talk explores how an inner pathway to loving presence can support us in facing and awakening through traumatic wounding.
Insight Meditation Community of Washington DC IMCW Wednesday Evening Talks

2009-11-11 Choosing Presence 1:19:21
Tara Brach
Spiritual awakening is energized by conscious intention. This talk explores how we get waylaid by habitual wants and fears, and the ways we can connect with the power and purity of our deep aspiration for love, truth and freedom.
Insight Meditation Community of Washington DC IMCW Wednesday Evening Talks

2009-10-16 Empty Yourself of Fear 25:03
Ayya Medhanandi
One night, while Malani was dying, we gathered a group of her close friends to meditate with her. Each breath was a struggle yet she stayed aware, serene, composed, and at peace. We listened in silence, breathing freely – but our minds were not free. We knew all is impermanent, that we can die at any time. Yet we carry on as if we have forever. So we try again, everyday, to practise living in awareness. One moment at a time, empty yourself of fear and let go the world. Listen to the silence and wake up – like dear Malani.
Ottawa Buddhist Society

2009-10-16 Empty of Fear 28:43
Ayya Medhanandi
A dedication to a member of the community who is in the last stages of life. She struggles with breathing but is composed and at peace with the process. We are reminded how important it is to train the mind while we are able to do so. A talk given at Quaker House, Ottawa.
Ottawa Buddhist Society

2009-09-23 Wise Effort and Spiritual Freedom 51:12
Tara Brach
In the Buddhist tradition, wise effort, or the purposeful dedication of our energy, is an essential part of the spiritual path. While the attitudes of grasping or fear can contract the quality of our effort and create suffering in our lives; when our effort arises from sincerity and wisdom, it creates the conditions for liberation.
Insight Meditation Community of Washington DC IMCW Wednesday Evening Talks

2009-07-30 The Woman at the Well 57:49
James Baraz
Ananda, the Buddha's disciple, while on a mission for the Buddha, requested water to drink from a woman of low cast. The woman protested out of fear that her low caste would contaminate Ananda's holiness; to which Ananada replied, "I ask not for caste but for water." A version of the Buddhist text of this story is available here: http://www.mountainman.com.au/buddha/carus_76.htm
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley IMCB Regular Talks

2009-07-20 Finding Our True Refuge 55:18
Sharda Rogell
As we move through the barrier of judgment and fear, we move from the known to the unknown, and come into a truer relationship with ourselves. Through exploring the meaning of "true safety", we find our only true refuge and protection.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center Metta Retreat

2009-07-18 The Practice of Metta 48:58
Sally Armstrong
Metta, or loving-kindness, is the practice of cultivating a friendly and accepting attitude towards ourselves, our experience and all other beings. As we cultivate this quality through intensive practice, we can find that it can become our default response to life, rather than the conditioned habits of aversion, fear or grasping.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center Metta Retreat

2009-07-07 How Real is the Real World - Asalha Puja 54:33
Ajahn Sucitto
The so-called real world is concocted from our fears, beliefs, obsessions. All of which are changeable and conditioned. There is a real that the Buddha spoke of: he called it the peaceful, the sublime, the unbounded. It’s not located in time and space, but it’s experienceable. Form and function, when appropriately considered and applied, can serve as our vehicle to the real.
Cittaviveka Vassa Retreat

2009-05-26 Compassion 22:19
Shaila Catherine
Compassion, karuna, is the intention of non-cruelty. It is the aspect of loving kindness (metta) that responds wisely to pain, and wishes to alleviate suffering. Compassion training helps us to remain present with pain. There is no need to fear pain, no need to consider pain bad or wrong. A compassionate self-acceptance allows us to remain present and responsive in the face of life's most difficult moments. With compassion we can ask "How can I help?" and stay present to respond.
Insight Meditation South Bay - Silicon Valley Four Brahma Viharas
In collection: Four Brahma Viharas

2009-05-24 Humility As A Spiritual Awakening 59:18
Heather Sundberg
How do we find the place between indulgence and self-mortification, between pride and shame? This talk explores the relationship between humility and the Middle Way, through personal stories, poetry and practical techniques such as working with fear, the hindrances and the RAIN practice.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center Dharma of Recovery

2009-05-19 Loving Kindness 30:02
Shaila Catherine
Loving Kindness, friendliness (metta) is a clear intention and attitude of heart that supports a connected and joyful encounter with life. Metta is not sentimentality; it is not affection or attachment. It is a strong quality of heart that overcomes ill will, hatred, fear, and anger. Loving kindness practice is a way to take responsibility for our own happiness; it is a way to cultivate an attitude to life that supports deep friendship.
Insight Meditation South Bay - Silicon Valley Four Brahma Viharas
In collections: Four Brahma Viharas, The Ten Paramis

2009-05-12 Ten Paramis: Wisdom (2) 65:13
Rodney Smith
The fearlessness of wisdom and the willingness to hold our place on the earth for the learning that comes.
Seattle Insight Meditation Society
In collection: The Ten Paramis

2009-04-04 Batik Buddha 38:54
Ayya Medhanandi
Ayya Medhanandi reflects on the meaning of the different mudras or hand gestures used by the Buddha himself when he gave teachings.  Each represents an important quality for us to practise and develop such as fearlessness or compassion.  You can see these mudras that she describes on the batik cloth that was gifted to the Ottawa Buddhist Society at https://ottawabuddhistsociety.com/about-the-obs/latvian-buddha-batik/
Ottawa Buddhist Society

2009-03-26 Kind Awareness 54:44
James Baraz
This is a three part series of talks on James’ basic meditation instructions: “Receive the moment with a relaxed, interested and kind awareness. What does a kind awareness mean? How can we meet each moment—including moments of fear or physical discomfort—with this attitude? This is a key issue for deepening our practice.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley IMCB Regular Talks

2009-03-20 Unencumbered 19:12
Ayya Medhanandi
Fire is our teacher - the fire of pain, the fire of persevering through difficulty and the fire of going beyond what we think we are capable of. For we are greater that we know and our journey is one of learning to trust what is right and true. When the heart’s compassion, wisdom, and generosity mature, there is no space for fear. All the dross of the world melts away in the silence of pure presence. Here is the absolute sanctity of awareness, unencumbered, and joyous in the knowledge of pure love itself.
Ottawa Buddhist Society (Sisters of St. Joseph Convent)

2009-03-19 Ice Melts 28:52
Ayya Medhanandi
Within us is the seed of awakening. And yet we are so blind. Can we free ourselves by seeing through clouds of delusion, greed and hatefulness? Do we have the resolve and patience to begin and the humility and forgiveness to keep going in hard times? Vigilance in ethical practice, unremitting mindfulness, inner stillness, and sharp discernment melt ignorance and purify the mind. Not only that – joyous and aware, we radiate a fearless unequivocal compassion. When the sun rises, darkness disappears. Just so, we emerge from our blindness, at peace with all conditions
Ottawa Buddhist Society

2009-03-18 Fierce Gifts 36:07
Ayya Medhanandi
When life presents fearsome obstacles, be your own spiritual ally and turn those obstacles into windows that open to the depths of the heart. There, cultivating loving-kindness, compassion, radiant joy and the wisdom of discernment, behold the fierce gifts of the Dhamma that defy delusion and rescue us from the mire of every perceived burden.
Ottawa Buddhist Society

2009-03-12 Letting Go 32:45
Amma Thanasanti
Responding appropriately to sila, emotions, and fear of non-being
Insight Meditation Society - Retreat Center The Heart of Wisdom: Monastic Retreat

2009-03-11 Without Anxiety About Imperfection 1:17:06
Tara Brach
The nature of being human is that we get caught in anger and judgment, hurt and fear. This talk explores what it means to be without anxiety towards this universal emotional conditioning as it appears in ourselves and others. Condemning imperfection binds our identity with an imperfect self. As we learn to pause and open to the direct embodied experience of emotions, we discover a space of presence that is filled with compassion and wisdom. Like the ocean, we can include difficult waves of experience and yet remember our inherent vastness, mystery and wholeness.
Insight Meditation Community of Washington DC IMCW Wednesday Evening Talks

2009-02-04 Part 2 - True Refuge In The Face Of Fear 1:19:24
Tara Brach
One understanding of the spiritual path is relating wisely to fear. Our conditioned reaction is to feel aversion to fear and do anything but simply experience it. We discover freedom when instead of reacting, we recognize and open to fear with a kind, committed presence. While fear might or might not remain, with awareness, the suffering of being identified as a fearful self dissolves. In Part I of this talk, we look at how to recognize the physical, mental, emotional and behavioral facets of the body of fear. In Part II we explore a range of pathways for cultivating a healing and freeing presence in the midst of fear.
Insight Meditation Community of Washington DC IMCW Wednesday Evening Talks

2009-01-28 Part 1 - Freedom In The Midst Of Fear 1:11:07
Tara Brach
One understanding of the spiritual path is relating wisely to fear. Our conditioned reaction is to feel aversion to fear and do anything but simply experience it. We discover freedom when instead of reacting, we recognize and open to fear with a kind, committed presence. While fear might or might not remain, with awareness, the suffering of being identified as a fearful self dissolves. In Part I of this talk, we look at how to recognize the physical, mental, emotional and behavioral facets of the body of fear. In Part II we explore a range of pathways for cultivating a healing and freeing presence in the midst of fear.
Insight Meditation Community of Washington DC IMCW Wednesday Evening Talks

2009-01-27 Kuan Yin - Bestower of Fearlessness 38:07
Kittisaro
Turning the state rather than being turned by the state Liberating the orphans of consciousness & being liberated from them Stories of Ajahn Chah – Knowing pain & ‘What About the Rest of Us?’ The man who wanted to hang himself Returning to the Still Bestower of Courage & Fearlessness.
Dharmagiri Original Brightness Retreat

2009-01-21 The Courage To Awaken 1:17:43
Tara Brach
Courage is the greatness of heart that allows us, in the face of fear, to be true to what matters. This talk is a reflection on how we can become increasingly courageous in those parts of our lives where we have held back from living and loving fully.
Insight Meditation Community of Washington DC IMCW Wednesday Evening Talks

2008-12-10 Practicing With Fear - part III 58:49
Donald Rothberg
After a review of four guidelines for practicing with fear, we explore more deeply the nature of fear, including many of the more unconscious ways that we carry fear, as well as the biological basis of fear. We also examine the relationship of fear to a sense of self, and of opening into fearlessness.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center Monday and Wednesday Talks

2008-12-03 Practicing With Fear - part II 52:04
Donald Rothberg
We continue to explore the nature of fear and how to practice with fear, with several stories and a deeper look at how fear appears. Fear is not the problem - our unskillful way of reacting to fear with confusion and repetitive negative stories is what we explore and transform.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center Monday and Wednesday Talks

2008-11-17 Beauty, Hope & Fear - part 1 of 2 29:30
Jack Kornfield
A Monday Night class with Jack Kornfield and Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo
Spirit Rock Meditation Center Monday and Wednesday Talks

2008-11-17 Beauty, Hope & Fear - part 2 of 2 61:10
Jack Kornfield
A Monday Night class with Jack Kornfield & Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo
Spirit Rock Meditation Center Monday and Wednesday Talks

2008-11-10 Embracing Fear 41:46
Ajahn Sucitto
Amaravati Monastery November 2008

2008-11-06 The Dharma Practice Of Facing The Crises Of Our Times 1:10:19
Donald Rothberg
The challenges and crises of our times are immense - at the current time, there are economic, political, ethical and ecological crises, among others. To face these crises as practice demands, however, the same qualities demanded by the immensity of awakening -- (1) wisdom expressed as the ability to hold together opposites, (2) a deep listening for our calling, (3) a toolbox of skillful means, (4) a heart to transform difficult emotions, such as anger, fear and sadness, and (5) continual persistence and growing confidence in liberation.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center Path of Engagement #4

2008-11-03 Shoot Me First: Right Intention, Effort & Social Responsibility 1:17:35
Ayya Medhanandi
As we follow the steps of the Eightfold Noble Path, our hatred, greed, and delusion abate. We may yet suffer, but we use our suffering to fathom the meaning of it, see its causes, and see the possibility for ending suffering. The four Noble Truths come alive within. Invariably, our suffering manifests in many forms. It may never ‘end’ but it ceases to be a problem as our fear or aversion to it die. Persevering in this work is the way to make peace with our suffering.
University of British Colombia

2008-10-23 Fear Not 41:50
Mary Grace Orr
Insight Santa Cruz

2008-10-22 Practicing With Fear - part I 58:16
Donald Rothberg
Fear is a very powerful force in our lives- personally, interpersonally and socially. What is fear and how do we work with it? Here we explore the nature of fear and its complex nature as involving intelligence and an urge to action, but also commonly reactivity and delusions. We suggest several main ways of practicing, 1) coming back to balance through antidotes such as metta, beauty and refuges in our deeper values; 2) mindfulness; 3) wisdom and 4) active inquiry and engagement with our own fear.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center

2008-08-27 Listening To Our Life 1:21:28
Tara Brach
Listening in a full and open way allows us to come home to our natural state--awake, vast awareness. In an immediate way, a listening attention dissolves the tangles of fear and craving that obscure our wholeness. This class includes both a talk and guided meditations on deep listening to our inner experience and with others.
Insight Meditation Community of Washington DC IMCW Wednesday Evening Talks

2008-08-13 Let Everything Happen To You 1:16:40
Tara Brach
The ways we try to control our life imprisons us in a contracted, fearful sense of self. Yet when we contemplate letting go of control, there is a sense that we will be endangered, that we will fail, that something will go wrong. This talk explores how, if we have the courage to "let everything happen" we discover a presence that is healing and freeing. As we learn to live from this allowing presence, our actions become naturally wholesome and wise.
Insight Meditation Community of Washington DC IMCW Wednesday Evening Talks

2008-07-13 Metta: Near And Far Enemies 55:13
Guy Armstrong
The near enemy of metta is attached affection, common in romantic love. The far enemy is aversion, which takes many forms, such as resentment and fear. The talk explores these responses and how to work with them in metta practice.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center Metta

2008-07-09 Three Attitudes That Awaken And Free Our Spirit 1:13:12
Tara Brach
Our predicament is intuiting our true nature--love, awareness--and yet regularly contracting into the self-identity conditioned by wants and fears. This talk explores three essential and liberating ways of relating to our human conditioning: forgiving that it arises, interest in what is true, and regarding experience with friendliness and kindness.
Insight Meditation Community of Washington DC IMCW Wednesday Evening Talks

2008-07-08 Working with Emotional Habits 49:15
Martine Batchelor
Looking at pleasant, unpleasant and neutral feeling tones and exploring the emotional habits of fear and anger in the context of awareness meditation.
Gaia House Meditation And Study Retreat

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