Begins with a 30m meditation and is followed by a Dharma talk. (Group discussion has been omitted)

Begins with a 30m meditation & includes a dharma talk. (Group discussion has been omitted.)

Eve shared her original song with us, "Sand Makes a Pearl".

Includes a 30m meditation & dharma talk. (Group discussion has been omitted).

We begin by remembering the three core methods of training given by the Buddha (wisdom, meditation, and "ethics"), and their interrelationship. We reflect on how ethics has often been marginalized in Western Buddhism (and at times in Asian Buddhism). We then look in depth at the first lay ethical precept, non-harming, first in terms of the core teachings of the Buddha, and its centrality in the earlier Indian traditions of the Vedas. We examine some of the more "outer" dimensions of practicing non-harming, seeing how, with mindfulness and strong intentions, we can bring non-harming into our daily lives, including in our speech and communication. We then look at the more "inner" dimensions of practicing non-harming, looking in particular at how harming ourselves or others typically comes out of our own pain, so that practicing with pain (and the teaching of the Two Arrows) is central. The talk is followed by discussion.

In this guided meditation, connected to the later talk on "Non-Harming," we begin with about 8 minutes of settling and becoming more present, developing more samadhi (concentration). Then there is a period of lovingkindness (metta) practice, including starting where the lovingkindness flows the easiest and then extending the lovingkindness to many other beings. This is followed by mindfulness practice, with guidance on exploring when there are negative or blaming views of self or another. Finally, we close with several reflection questions related to how there is harming of self and/or others at times in our lives.

Once we have a base of simple connection to breath, body, and our immediate senses, we can explore our driven habits of adding a sense of self to these very simple experiences. As stated in the Bahiya Sutta, in the seeing just let there being the seen, with out adding a sense of "you" to what is being seen. We can compare moments of the day where the the mind isn't entangled in concocting a sense of self versus the mind which is adding a very thick sense of self.

Begins with a 30m meditation and is followed by a Dharma talk. (Group discussion has been omitted.)

For those new to directing there mindfulness practice towards the experience of self production, there are a few relatively simple practices to expose and let go of the over concoction of a thicker sense of self to life's present time experiences.

This talk occurs five days after Joanna's death at age 96, and two days after Donald attended a wake for Joanna at her home, saying good-bye to her. Donald first met Joanna Macy in 1977, while still a student. When he moved to Berkeley, California in 1988, he helped start a neighborhood daily meditation group of ten households, including that of Joanna and her husband Fran. So he got to know Joanna and Fran as friends and neighbors. In 1991, he first trained in her approach, later called "The Work That Reconnects" and offered this work in different venues. Over the years, they have stayed friends and colleagues, and sometimes taught together. In this talk, Donald gives a sense of the trajectory of Joanna's life and work, showing photos of Joanna spanning her life-time and interspersing stories of training with Joanna and using her practices and perspectives in his own teaching. He focuses in the second part of the talk on the four aspects of the "spiral" of her teaching: (1) starting with gratitude, (2) honoring our pain for the world, (3) seeing with new eyes, and (4) going forth into the world. We close with a brief account of Joanna's wake from two days before the talk, and a video recording from the wake of group singing about the "Great Turning." The talk is followed by discussion and closing intentions. For the slides shown during the talk, see document 318, below.

We begin with a period of settling, developing greater samadhi or concentration, and then move to mindfulness practice, including giving some attention to noticing moderate or a little greater levels of pleasant or unpleasant feeling-tone. When we notice pleasant or unpleasant feeling-tones, is there any tendency toward grasping or pushing away, in habitual or automatic ways? We then explore gratitude as a practice, simply reflecting on ways that we are grateful, first for aspects of our own lives, and then for aspects of the wider world. This is followed by opening with mindfulness to some difficult or painful aspects of our world, whether close to home or farther away, inspired to see and be with what is painful through wisdom and care. We end with a return to mindfulness practice for a short time. (This guided meditation is related to the talk that follows, honoring the life and work of Joanna Macy.)

The beautiful adventure of curiosity and how if we follow it, we find that everything in our experience is always calling us home to love.

The blessings of a strong mettā practice developed on retreat include how we can cultivate wise actions and wise speech when we leave retreat.

Intro to mudita and short guided intro to meditation.

From a base of loving kindness and compassion we can consciously aim our heart's attention into a practice of Forgiveness.

The classic “five hindrances” as applied to formal metta practice. Includes the “near miss” of attached love, and “far neighbor” of aversion.

Inviting a tone of equanimity to the practice of metta.

Extending loving kindness meditation from the primary practice of ourselves and a chosen easiest being, we can open at times to include any dear friend whom also easily come to mind. At this stage of practice we are inclining out mettā practice to rest where mettā is easiest. This would be any beings for whom it is easy to see the good in them, and we easily feel warmth.

What is special about a 9-day Loving Kindness retreat? The form of Buddhist practice helps cultivate positive qualities of friendliness and kindness, it helps purify old habits of defensiveness and hostility, and it help cultivate samadhi (concentration).

Includes meditation, dharama talk & select aspects of group discussion

For the Buddha, practice was understood as involving three trainings, in wisdom, meditation, and ethics (sila). Ethics, typically under-emphasized in much of Western Buddhism, with sometimes clear negative consequences, had as its horizon helping others. The Buddha said: “Wander forth . . . for the welfare of the multitude, for the happiness of the multitude, out of compassion for the world.” The later emphasis on the bodhisattva develops this emphasis further. In this talk, we suggest a contemporary “Eightfold Path” for understanding and responding to the current difficult times in the society and world. It’s outlined in terms of three wisdom guidelines, two meditation guidelines, and three ethics guidelines. The talk is followed by discussion.

We begin with brief instructions for developing samadhi (“placing together” or “concentration”), followed by basic mindfulness instructions and then guidance for working with the feeling-tone of pleasant or unpleasant, when it appears in the moderate range. We are mindful of pleasant or unpleasant and look for grasping or pushing away in some form, guided by core wisdom teachings.

Begins with a 30m meditation and is followed by a Dharma talk. Group discussion has been omitted.

After a brief review of the first two talks in this series, we explore the nature of ethical practice, one of the three core inter-related areas of training for the Buddha, along with training in meditation and in wisdom. We see how ethical practice has often been understood historically as having a social dimension, both in the teachings of the Buddha and later, as in the edicts of King Ashoka. We also explore some of the ways that ethical practice has been marginalized in Western Buddhist practice, with significant consequences. Then we look at the commonality of ethical guidelines in cross-religious context, with Donald telling some personal stories. Finally, we outline several ways to carry out ethical practice and then open up to discussion.

Investigating the mind as object to bring awareness to our habits of mind and how those habits create our perceived reality.

Life lived within the myth of a separate self that has dominion over nature, is to live a life of delusion and self-deception. This distorted mental perception can only be dissolved by the arising of wisdom.

The body is the first door to awakening. When the body is at ease, the mind more easily follows. We begin with intentional, kind attention to the body before turning awareness to an object of focus. Curiosity and investigation of the arisings and passing away of sensation in the body cultivates intimacy with habits of mind and corresponding body sensations.

Begins with a 30m meditation and is followed by a Dharma talk. (Group discussion has been removed.)

We continue our series of meditations and talks exploring the foundations of contemporary Buddhist practice. We begin by reviewing last week's talk on the basic model of Buddhist meditation, identifying three aspects of practice. These three are (1) developing samadhi or concentration; (2) cultivating three modes of liberating insight--into impermanence, dukkha or reactivity, and not-self; and (3) opening to awakened awareness. Then we focus on a crucial, central, and not always developed dimension of contemporary practice, especially for the vast majority of Western Buddhist practitioners who do not live in monastic contexts--bringing practice to everyday life. We identify nine ways of deepening daily life practice (see the attached document, #314). The talk is followed by discussion.

Gullu reviews focused awareness and expands the frame to include feeling tone, hindrances, and thoughts and emotions.

A body scan mediation practice to strengthen the capacity to sense in to various parts of the body and connect with sensation with an added twist of appreciating each part of the body and wishing it well.