This meditation is offered as a support to the situation in the Ukraine and the 1-year commemoration of the Atlanta shootings. Incorporating phrases from Soto Zen's Enmei Jukku Kannon Gyo chant resonate in our meditation. It's a chant used to ask for support from the Bodhisattva of Compassion Kannon/Kanzeon.
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.
Hearing awakening poems from those that have traveled this path before us can be an inspirational support for practice. In this talk, poems from the Therigatha, Theragatha and from Matty Weingast are shared.
By practicing with compassion we recognize that caring about suffering is a natural capacity that we all have. In this guided meditation we cultivate compassion for oneself and for others.
