James and Kate Munding, co-guiding teacher of Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley co-led this evening exploring the power and importance of like-minded friendship and community especially in these times.
At the beginning of the talk James reads a moving letter written to the community by a 31-year old woman from Australia named Stephanie whose story of sexual assault James shared in his talk from two weeks before entitled: "The Third Precept: Trauma, Respect and Cultural Wake Up".
See:
https://dharmaseed.org/talks/52436/
Arousing and balancing effort can serve as a cause and condition for cultivating wholesome states of mind and gaining freedom from unwholesome states of mind.
All true meditation guides us back to presence, and the mystery that is our source. In this guided meditation we awaken the senses, collect with the breath, and when lost in thought, practice relaxing back into the aliveness and awareness that is always here. We close with a beautiful poem from poet Danna Faulds.
