Kate Lila Wheeler began teaching meditation in the mid-1980s and continues to practice with teachers in Theravada and Tibetan Buddhist lineages. Writing is an important part of her life; she has recently completed a second novel.
When news of the world is challenging and there is uncertainty for everyone, letting reality in can feel impossible or scary. Yet Buddhist practices are designed to support exactly this, though maybe not all at once. Supported by each other and those who have gone before, bolstered by an innate determination to be free, we practice skills and arts of goodness. Compassionate ethics protects ourselves and others. Meditation turns awareness toward direct experience, open to its textures. Things might start to shift a bit. One practitioner may sense honesty and compassion growing as they admit some limitation. Another might see space for choice where they hadn’t imagined choice was even possible. There are lots of possibilities.
The Buddha’s teachings are often compared to a finger pointing to the moon. Without that finger, we might never lift our gaze and see for ourselves. Tonight’s talk offers encouragement to stay present and awake as a lived experience so that we can lead a more centered, caring, ethical life. As Dharma practitioners, we make efforts to be more present for the experiences in ourselves and others. As we do so we’ll surely hear and see things we didn’t expect or want. Here, the teaching of the five hindrances supports us to shift our gaze yet again, recognize more clearly and respond differently when wisdom and caring are weakened. With these skills, we will know for sure there is no bad habit or difficult situation that cannot be softened and worked with—even liberated.
