Our potential as humans is vast and deep, and can be intentionally developed. There is a way that we can learn to open to all of our experience with kindness and clarity. As we begin to find this stability of heart and mind, wisdom will emerge.This emergence of wisdom, and strengthening of compassion, are the road to our individual and collective happiness and well-being.
We can train the mind to recognize and rejoice in the happiness of others, experiencing happiness ourselves. But to be able to do this, we need to confront human tendencies to compare ourselves to others, and sometimes strong resistance. This talk discusses the beautiful quality of Mudita (Empathetic Joy), and how we can develop it.
The path to liberation can be walked only with sustained effort. However, effort applied to meditation needs to be skillful in order to bear fruit. This talk discusses the role of Wise Effort (Viriya) in Buddhist practice, and how to recognize common misapplications of energy.
This talk was offered at a month long insight meditation retreat, where most of the day is devoted to sitting and walking practice. The discussion acknowledges and explicitly points out the larger framework within which these meditations are done. It briefly reviews the 4 Noble Truths and the 8 Fold Path, especially focusing on Mundane Wise View and Wise Intention. These place in context, and inform, why and how these practices support the heart/mind in finding release.
This is the initial sitting meditation instruction for a month long retreat. It supports people in settling in, finding the body and its sensations, and identifying a primary object/anchor.
The motivation for practice changes as our initial ideas about what we "get" out of it, meet frustration. As delusion is exposed and let go of, real practice begins.
The idea of cultivation (Bhavana) is the key to Buddhism. This talk relates this concept to the development of the four foundations of mindfulness, especially the first.
Motivations powers dharma practice. Its depth and purity determine what other mental factors and paramis are brought forward in meditation. This talk contrasts what "mainstream" motivations provide, contrasted with a deeper drive to understand.
