Kate Munding is co-guiding teacher of IMCB. She has been practicing since 2002 and has done numerous 1-2 month intensive practice periods. Kate is currently in Spirit Rock's Teacher Training program. Kate has also trained approximately 2,000 educators, therapists, and parents in mindful awareness techniques and philosophy in the U.S. and abroad.
She is founder of The Heart-Mind Education Project, a consulting business focused on mindfulness in education.
This is a time of gathering spiritual resources. To gather the wisdom and clarity that exists within. It's a time to tap into knowledge and strength that exists externally. Tonight will be an evening of self-compassion and an opening towards more clarity of how to meet this moment in time. Whether you are feeling energized to meet the greed, hate, and delusion that is so empowered right now, or you feel numb, tired, and defeated, this evening will guide you.
Where do we place our hearts in these times that are so uncertain, so divided, and stressful? What does our practice and this Buddhist path have to offer in terms of guidance and refuge to help us navigate? Tonight's talk will investage both of these questions in a way that is intended to offer a place for the body to ground and the heart to open.
The Buddha's teachings are sometimes misunderstood or described out of context to give the impression that to awaken means that our sense of self must disappear, that our personality becomes flat-lined, and that we become indifferent to the world around us. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Buddha's teachings show us the way to fully embody this life. To be fully awake is to fully live! The Buddha did not teach vacancy; he taught people how to live without clinging. Please join me this evening for a talk that comes from the inspiration and the clarity this path has to offer on how to live in these times without shutting down, giving up, or turning away.
Question and Answer session with closing remarks. Some quiet moments when participant questions were not captured by the sound system, but teachers repeat the questions and then answer.
The word love, as it's used in the English language, is complicated in that it represents not only our capacity for unlimited, unconditional love but also unhealthy attachment and craving. The Buddha was clear about the pitfalls of craving, but he also pointed to the boundless heart, one free from unhealthy attachment, as part of the path of awakening
Understanding what disappointment is and how it arises is to understand the mind-state of desire. This mental hindrance is recognized by the presence of wanting something that isn't actually happening. This longing can be attached to a person, wanting someone to be a certain way they are not. It can be attached to an expectation of getting something or achieving something. It can also be connected to our self, wanting our self to be a certain way that we are not. All of this becomes fertile ground for disappointment and unhappiness. Let's find ways to identify these mind states, learn how to heal them, and move towards more contentment and peace in our lives.
Dharma talk and guided practice. Anxiety is a contraction and therefore a form of suffering. Sometimes anxiety is the appropriate response to a situation, but there are skillful ways to navigate this experience. This talk and practice examines how we can learn to soothe the body and the mind using somatic exercises and our imagination to bring expansiveness to anxiety's contracted state.
What is happiness? We think that when things are going well, happiness is here and everything will be fine. When conditions are unpleasant, we feel we have failed. But the universe is creative in its unfolding, and happiness can come in different ways than we expect.
Dedication of Merit is a ritual found throughout the Buddhist community. This talk explores the deeper meaning and purpose of this practice. Merit is generated every time we sit down and the ritual of dedication reminds to connect outward to the world at large, to humans and the more than human world, in an act of generosity. Instructions for how to dedicate the merit is included, as well as a Q&A at the end.
Impermanence: a cornerstone of dharma teachings and a place to live from and come back to no matter where we are in our practice. Impermanence can bring us into contraction or expansiveness. It ultimately points to our own impermanence, and what we need to wake up to before we die.
Impermanence is a cornerstone of Dharma teachings and a place to live from and come back to no matter where we are in our practice. Impermanence can bring us into contraction or expansiveness. It ultimately points to our own impermanence, and what we need to wake up to before we die.
Stories of the first Buddhist women: Their stories, teachings, and awakening poems are inspirational. They also offer us a tether from what we are doing as a women's Dharma community to an ancient lineage that has been going strong since the time of the Buddha.
Concentration: This dharma talk is the last in a series on the Eight Fold Path. It includes techniques for quieting the mind (shamata), the nature of concentration, and the necessary elements to reach concentrated states in a sustainable way. Also included is a description of the Jhanas (high states of concentration) and the value of experiencing these states to help strengthen faith. Brief Q & A at the end included.
Mindfulness (Sati): Part 7 of a series on the Eightfold Path, this talk discusses Sati, or mindfulness, as a state of mind and a way of being. The complexity of mindfulness is explored (vedanas, wholesome desire) as well as the ultimate simplicity of remembering our truest self through practice of paying attention, alertness and contact with experience. Q & A at the end is included.
Wise Effort: Part 6 of a series on the Eightfold Path. Wise effort is explained as attuning to what is happening in the present moment, making adjustments based on conditions and balancing our energy so that it expresses the Middle Path - between striving and burnout - to create a sustainable practice. Reference is made to the teachings of Ajahn Chah and ways to develop a continuity of mindfulness in everyday living. Emphasis on softening and trust in the heart practices that balance the habits of the mind.
Wise action and livelihood: Part 5 of a series on the Eightfold Path. This part of the path is based in the concept of Sila (virtue) and is best understood as being in harmony with the truth and the nature of things through the practice of non-harming. Virtue can be seen as an act of generosity (Dana) and when we live a life of non-harming, we produce peace and ease and trust for others.
As a foundation for all Buddhist communities, these teachings focus on the nature of and relief from suffering. Practice is aimed at recognizing suffering. Clinging is complex and related to how we experience pleasant, unpleasant and neutral sensations. Effort and curiosity are needed to untangle this clinging process. Practitioner story and Q&A included.
Grief and the process of mourning can be held as a sacred time that lends towards a greater capacity for compassion and a clearer knowing of what is truly precious in our life?
Navigating the concept of a "new normal" at this point in the pandemic brings us into contact with impermanence. There isn't suffering with change itself, there is suffering in resistance to change and there is friction between our clinging to a rigid sense of self and our world of "should". We can't hide from change. In our practice and in the triple gem of Buddha, dharma and sangha helps us create refuge when it's not easily found.
Equanimity: This practice is explored as the heart's expression of deep wisdom. We don't have to wait to cultivate this practice since it can be experienced at any point and strengthens over time. Getting caught in the weeds of life, equanimity is the mind and heart gaining perspective as an inner voice that is like a wise elder offering advice and caring. This talk explores the hindrances and 8 worldly winds. Q & A included.
This talk explores some questions of an "open heart." Can we bring both into our awareness the question, "is it possible to open further?" Where it is a stretch to feel compassionate and unguarded, is forgiveness needed, is self-care and healing needed? Do we always recognize the easy-open freedom of a heart that is fully available and unhindered? Do we take those states and the people connected to those states for granted?
An appropriate topic for this time of year. Many subthemes fall under this theme, such as how to be mindful of abundance and scarcity, feeling connected with others, and the nourishment of renunciation.
In past weeks I've been pulling inspiration from the Satipatthana Sutta, the foundational teachings on mindfulness. I've been linking them to some of it's underpinning truths of change, impermanence, suffering, and freedom from it. I'd like to continue on this thread for tomorrow's talk and bring in the third foundation, the foundation of the mind.. We'll explore how, when we aren't lost in it, the mind is a fascinating subject for our attention. When we understand our mind more fully, we can more fully understand who we are. We'll use this theme to understand better the truth of self and not-self.
The tenderness practice instructions during the meditation is a form of metta and compassion practice. It's one that helps ease the nervous system, hold difficulty and stress with care, and cultivates a kind attitude towards our mindfulness practice.
This week will conclude my series on the Three Truths of Existence, aka The Three Characteristics. So far we've explored the truth of impermanence and what it would be like to fully live from the understanding that all of nature, including us, is in constant flux. The last time I was there, we explored the second truth, not-self. We unpacked it's meaning and talked about how it fits with this spiritual path, as well as how it can inspire us in our day-to-day.
This week we'll continue the conversation by including the third truth, the truth of suffering. This will be a pointing out teaching to better understand how we feed our cycles of stress, unsatisfactoriness, and unhappiness. We'll also look at how we can untangle and even uproot the habits and patterns in our mind that support such unhappy living and nurture a more wise and peaceful way of being.
I will continue talking about the three truths of existence, aka The Three Characteristics. Last week we explored the truth of impermanence and what it would be like to fully live from the understanding that all of nature, including us, in constant flux.
This week I'll be talking about the second truth, not-self. This is a concept in Buddhism that is often miss-understood as no-self giving an impression of nihilism. We unpack the truth of not-self, how it fits with this spiritual path, and how it can inspire us in our day-to-day.
The talk is centered around how to bring wisdom to the truth of impermanence. Anicca (impermanence) is a cornerstone truth of existence and one that we all encounter over and over. How we relate to this truth can make the difference between experiencing this natural law with confusion and aversion or living a life with a heart and mind that is at peace. We'll explore how this truth influences our emotional, physical, and relational lives. We'll also take a look at how miss-understanding this truth can be used as a spiritual bypass and hinder our spiritual development.
In preparation for this weekend, the climate emergency, our response to it as Buddhists and as human beings has been on my mind. I will give the talk related to these themes as well as on how we can change our relationship with nature through our practice to better connect with the reality we and our planet are facing. I know James just gave a talk last week on climate change, but I'm guessing this will offer a different approach and voice to this ongoing exploration.
I hope coming to the monastery, sitting together, and listening to the Dharma provides you with a sense of refuge in these times of unsettled political climate, social divide, and global uncertainty. I've been thinking about how the practice can provide a "place" to come back to when we need clarity and balance. Unfortunately, that "place" is not always easily accessed when one is stressed or overwhelmed even though it's in those times we need it the most. I want to address this in the meditation instructions and Dharma talk by emphasizing ways to become more grounded in the present moment and understanding of how to familiarize ourselves with the unwholesome mind states that can spin us into more fear and unrest. When we strengthen our capacity in this way, we find we have more agency to meet personal and global realities that are difficult to face while still cultivating deep happiness, equanimity, and joy in life.
Patience in the Buddhist tradition is seen as a quality that becomes polished as we awaken our minds and hearts. The cultivation of patience becomes an art form; fluidly brought into the moment, imbued with flexibility, mindfulness, and Metta (loving-kindness). We need this quality to help us meet our selves, our neighbors, and the world with openness. Patience can help us be more grounded and present when we face that which makes us angry, fearful, or confused.
This week I'll be offering a q&a style talk so I can find out what you are exploring within your practice and what topics interest you. It will be interactive and connecting.
These sunny days, green hills, and the smell of spring are inspiring this week's talk on opening to the abundance of the moment. I'd like to explore with you how easy it is to get stuck in a rut of "not-enoughness". This could be a feeling of lack within your self or in your relationships with others. It might be how you view your life or society as a whole. How can we open our hearts and minds to see the fullness of life that is available and right in front of us? How can we use the practices of awareness and gratitude to come into a fuller acceptance of how things really are and find peace.
Restlessness and Worry: what lies at the heart of this anxious hinderance. We'll explore how this classical hinderance destabilizes us and how to reclaim steadiness in our heart and mind. I'll introduce this theme in our guided meditation too so there will be an experiential component to the exploration. It should be a grounding and enjoyable evening.
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/
This is a practice that brings in ease to the mind and body, offering relief from our dukkha while also supporting more mental clarity to see through some of our confusion and aversion.
It can be used for stress, grief, and being overwhelmed. It can also be used to prepare for more concentration and steady mindfulness when the mind or body is a bit stirred up.
It’s an important aspect of our practice to keep in balance. When we bring awareness to this sometimes hidden factor, we can more easily adjust, relax, and support our mind and heart to stay present. This should be an easeful exploration that I look forward to sharing with you.
Parts of this evening will be experiential as a means to get us directly in touch with our heart-based intentions that can help guide us through confusion and distraction and propel us in the direction of freedom in our heart and mind.
Bhikkhu Bodhi, premier translator of the Pali Canon and social activist (founder of Buddhist Global Relief) joins James and Kate Munding. They and the community discuss how to respond wisely and Dharmically when those in power create policies that increase fear and suffering.
