Drawing on references from the Satipatthana Sutta, this talk explores four qualities of mind & heart which the Buddha emphasized as being an essential part of our approach to meditation practice.
Recollecting the Buddha’s awakening, we also sit, firmly, simply. When the forces of thought and feeling come, we sit peacefully, refusing to fight, run away or get involved. Letting it all move through, where is the stillness? Clarity is the mark of awakened ones, knowing exactly what is arising – naming it, sensing it.
Awareness is one of the fundamental properties of mind. The practice of meditation is just bearing witness to what affects mind with a quality of primary openness. Bearing with experience and, rather than referring it to reactions or views or opinions, referring it awareness.
Love is the most basic expression of who we are, and yet it is often obscured by the trance of separation and fear. This talk explores how we habitually armor our hearts, and the training of attention that awakens us to unconditional, all inclusive love. A classic form of the metta (lovingkindness) meditation is part of the talk.
Practicing meditation, we inevitably encounter the wandering mind. Rather than considering this experience to be a "problem", if we explore this phenomenon with mindfulness, we can learn a lot about our minds.
