Freedom In the Midst of Fear – Part II
One understanding of the spiritual path is relating wisely to fear. Our conditioned reaction is to feel aversion to fear and do anything but simply experience it. We discover freedom when instead of reacting, we recognize and open to fear with a kind, committed...
Charla: Parte 2: Refugio en el Miedo
Relacionarse sabiamente con el miedo es una de las formas de entendimiento del camino spiritual. Estamos condicionados a sentir una reacción de aversión hacia el miedo, y hacemos todo lo que podemos para no experimentar el miedo. Si en vez de reaccionar, reconocemos...
Freedom In the Midst of Fear – Part I
One understanding of the spiritual path is relating wisely to fear. Our conditioned reaction is to feel aversion to fear and do anything but simply experience it. We discover freedom when instead of reacting, we recognize and open to fear with a kind, committed...
Charla: Parte 1: Refugio en el Miedo
Relacionarse sabiamente con el miedo es una de las formas de entendimiento del camino spiritual. Estamos condicionados a sentir una reacción de aversión hacia el miedo, y hacemos todo lo que podemos para no experimentar el miedo. Si en vez de reaccionar, reconocemos...
The Undefended Heart – Healing Our World
Our dedication to not pushing anyone–or any part of ourselves–out of our hearts, serves the healing of our world. This talk includes a short guided meditation on opening to our human vulnerability and forgiving another person.
Relaxed Attentiveness
While the heart of meditation is resting in open awareness, our conditioning to be distracted and reactive can keep us on the wheel of suffering. We awaken from trace by developing skillful ways of paying attention that create the environment for natural presence. This natural awareness, while sometimes hidden, is always here: It is our true home.
Thanksgiving – Living the Life Fully: Gratitude & Generosity
While generosity and gratitude are natural capacities, our conditioning to want life different can often keep us from living from a free and open heart. This talk explores three gateways to awakening and expressing love in our daily life.
The Three Characteristics: Part 3 – No Self
At the center of the Buddhist teachings is the understanding that the passing phenomena of this world–sounds, sensations, thoughts, bodies and minds–have no self at the center, no self as owner, and are not happening to a self. In other words, our familiar...
The Three Characteristics: Part 2 – Impermanence
The Buddha taught that when our understanding of impermanence is direct and non-conceptual, it is liberating. By directly opening to the radical impermanence of all experience, including the truth of our own mortality, we discover the natural capacity to let go. With this “mind that clings to no thing” awakens wisdom, authentic spontaneity and a natural cherishing of life.
The Three Characteristics: Part 1 – Unsatisfactoriness
The Buddha described three basic and interrelated insights into nature of reality that are revealed through a clear and deep attention. Called “the three characteristics,” these insights include dukkha (unsatisfactoriness), annicha (impermanence) and annata (selflessness or emptiness). In the first of this three week series of talks, we explore the meaning of dukkha, how we directly recognize the varied expressions of dukkha and it’s gift when met with full presence.
Equanimity in the Face of Conflict
This talk, given on the eve of a presidential debate, explores how we can awaken from the conditioning that turns us against ourselves and others. The guided meditation offers an opportunity to choose a place of conflict and reactivity with others, and discover what...
Inviting Mara to Tea
One of the great archetypal themes in the Buddha’s life is facing Mara, the shadow side of greed, hatred and delusion. Rather than being seduced, fighting or running away, the Buddha simply recognized Mara’s presence and invited him to tea. This talk and...
Soul Retrieval
When we become stressed and reactive, we lose contact with our natural spontaneity, wisdom and openheartedness. This talk investigates the ways we become caught in the stress-trance and the key elements in awakening: pausing and remindfulness. Using the gateway of the...
A Committed Presence
Our conditioning is to feel separate, creating an “other” out there, and often being at war with ourselves. By cultivating a committed presence we awaken beyond this conditioning. This talk includes stories and reflections that identify limiting beliefs and reveal our intrinsic oneness and love.