Donate  |   Contact


The greatest gift is the
gift of the teachings
 
Retreat Dharma Talks

IMCB Regular Talks

Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley

  
2018-06-02 "Mindfullness: Freedom from Bias" 59:15
Oren Jay Sofer
Oren Jay Sofer offered the talk this week at our IMCB Monastery. Oren is a a member of the Spirit Rock Teachers Council, a Nonviolent Communication Trainer, and a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner for healing trauma. He is the founder of Next Step Dharma, and the author of the book, Say What You Mean: A Mindful Approach to Nonviolent Communication.
2018-06-07 "The Teachings of Ajahn Chah" 54:45
James Baraz
This month marks the 100th Anniversary of the birth of Ajahn Chah, one of the most influential Theravadan masters of the 20th Century from the Thai Forest tradition. Ajahn Chah was the primary teacher of Jack Kornfield, Ajahn Sumedho, Ajahn Amaro and other influential teachers. Ajahn Chah's teaching is a major influence on the Dharma as presented at Spirit Rock. This talk offers some reflections his approach to practice at once deep, fierce, down to earth, humorous and wise.
2018-06-14 Loving Goodness 53:37
James Baraz
After seeing the movie "Won't You Be My Neighbor" about Mr. (Fred) Rogers, James offers reflections about how deeply we can be touched and inspired by the good we see in others. That capacity to be touched by and love goodness is, in some sense, the heart of spiritual practice. Something in us loves the truth and is drawn to goodness around us. And it makes us yearn to activate the good inside.
2018-06-28 “Letting Go, Cessation and the Third Noble Truth” (James was on retreat this day so he invited guest speaker Suzie Brown for the talk.) 59:28
James Baraz
Suzie Brown is from Melbourne, Australia. She’s co-founder of the Melbourne Insight Meditation Group and has taught Mindfulness to medical students at Monash University. Suzie has also been a facilitator, trainer and educator for over a decade in the areas of environmental sustainability and organizational strategy.
2018-07-12 "The Concept of the Spiritual Home and the Question of What That Really Means to Each of Us Individually." 40:54
Kate Munding
Is it something deep within, is it a feeling of familiarity and spiritual belonging, or is it a physical place or group of people?
2018-07-19 The Spirit of Play in Dharma: Enjoying Your Meditation Practice: 56:24
Oren Jay Sofer
As a Zen teacher of mine used to say,"Life... very serious joke." Things can get real heavy sometimes - in life, and in contemplative practice. This talk explores the importance of finding some levity and enjoyment in our formal spiritual practice through the lens of play. Enjoy!
2018-07-26 "Staying Present When Life Gets Hard" 54:33
Kate Munding
2018-08-09 "How to Practice When Life is Difficult." 53:17
Kate Munding
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.
2018-08-16 The Conflict Campaign: A Paradoxical Thinking Experiment in Israel. 48:37
James Baraz
James returns from his recent teaching In Europe and Israel. Besides his trip to the West Bank for a glimpse of Palestinian life, he shares a fascinating project: Israelis’ actually changed their attitude about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through a marketing experiment called “The Conflict Campaign” based on paradoxical thinking principles.
____________________________________________________________________

The video clip of the campaign in the talk can be found at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZadiztzLt0
To learn more about “The Fund for Reconciliation Tolerance and Peace” go to:
http://www.frtp-arik-peace.org/
Or, “Like” their Facebook page at:
https://www.facebook.com/fund4rtp

Let others know.
2018-08-23 'The Dharma and Nature' 54:45
James Baraz
One definition of the word Dharma is Natural law. Trees hold a very special place in the Buddha’s teaching.. The Buddha was born under a tree, enlightened under a tree and died under a tree. He told his disciples to find “roots of trees” to sit and meditate. Trees are the perfect environment to practice in the Thai Forest Tradition. Metta practice was taught by the Buddha in response to actions of “Tree spirits”. We’ll explore the special significance of trees and Nature in the Buddha’s teaching.
Creative Commons License