Our greatest suffering is not realizing who we are. Identified with a sense of separate and deficient self, we forget the basic goodness of our heart and awareness. In this two part series we will explore the practices of presence that support us in awakening from the prison of trance, deepening our empathy and embodying the goodness that is our deepest nature.
Because we live in such a mental culture, we sometimes interpret meditation as getting rid of all thinking. But inquiry and investigation, often aided by language are crucial to Buddhist practice. We look at three practical methods of inquiry, using (1) mindfulness (2) deep listening, and (3) the lens of particular teachings.
When we speak of the healing power of mindfulness, we mean healing the clinging mind. For this, we draw on mindfulness that opens the door to our wisdom and compassion, so we can see the truth clearly with a kind and loving-heart.
Beth Gendler, author of Notes On The Need For Beauty, reflects in dialogue with Donald Rothberg and the Sanga, on the nature of beauty, “cleansing the doors of perception, and the place of beauty in transformative practice.”
A talk for beginners exploring the difficulties we encounter when we practice (the mud) and the joyful benefits we'll discover as we find more and more freedom (the gold).
