Dear Friends, In insight meditation, we often practice cultivating four specific qualities of the heart: kindness (a.k.a. metta, loving kindness, goodwill, friendliness), compassion, joy (particularly joy in the joy of others, a.k.a. mudita), and equanimity (having a balanced perspective). In some circles, my fellow practitioners and I have discussed that this list could include a fifth quality: gratitude.… Read More »
Dear Friends, I think many of us come to contemplative practices like meditation and mindfulness from a place of suffering, discontent, pain, grief, disconnection. We are looking for some relief. At least that was true for me. And through practicing, I have found certain deeply ingrained patterns that contribute to painful states, and the body/heart/mind is learning different… Read More »
Dear Friends, So now that we’ve zipped through four weeks of material, and we’re nearing the end of January, I thought we could take a step back and have a big picture of what we’ve been cultivating this month. 1 – What’s your why – setting an intention can help us stay oriented in our practice and life… Read More »
Dear Friends, As we near the end of January (already!), I thought I would share a few ideas how I keep my practice alive day to day… and invite some of your ideas too! One thing many of us may relate to is feeling like there isn’t enough time to sit and practice. That’s where I love this… Read More »
Dear Friends, with great kindness inspired by Gnossienne 2, by Erik Satie the way morning suntouches the sunflower leaf–you may say that’s not kindness,it’s just how it is. exactly.let me love like that Rosemerry Wahtola Trommerhttps://ahundredfallingveils.com/2019/08/26/with-great-kindness/ Somedays, it might feel far away, but kindness is a natural state we can access, and it’s something that we can cultivate… Read More »
Dear Friends, As we move from a single-pointed focus (e.g. on the breathing) to a more open awareness of whatever is arising, the present moment becomes the primary object of attention. Being Present Breathe, relax and feel;take time to slow downthe pace of life. Watch therise and fall of moods, thebirth and death of dreams.Feelings and sensation seemso… Read More »
Dear Friends, There are many ways to practice meditation. Over the course of this month, we have started very with a narrow focus (breath) and have widened the scope of possibilities to invite the inclusion of body sensations, hearing, the flavor (pleasant thru unpleasant), thoughts and emotions. We have also invited some more heartful practices of kindness, compassion,… Read More »
Dear Friends, A friend of mine welcomed a new granddaughter into the world on Saturday. And at the same time, her 95 year-old mother-in-law is in palliative care. This reminds me of a verse in Sarah Slean’s song “Cosmic Ballet“ Sick woman in a sick bed waitingLight fast fading in her eyesSomewhere else, another light is fallingTurning into… Read More »
Dear Friends, I have noticed a particularly sticky thought pattern. It’s the one that says to me, “You’re not good enough. You should be doing more. You always lose your keys – how can you be that disorganized. You’ll never be able to do that thing, so why even try.” And on and on. Mark Coleman wrote a… Read More »
Dear Friends, Based on some of the comments and emails, I’m pretty sure a number of us have noticed a planning, worrying mind is a deeply rooted pattern. …Worry thought in writing this post: “Wait… Is worry a thought or an emotion? I want to continue with the exploration of thoughts… so can I write about worry today?”… Read More »
Dear Friends, Thinking Don’t you wish they would stop, all the thoughtsswirling around in your head, bees in a hive, dancerstapping their way across the stage? I should rake the leavesin the carport, buy Christmas lights. Was there really life on Mars?What will I cook for dinner? I walk up the driveway,put out the garbage bins. I should… Read More »
Dear Friends, “The eyes see; the ears hear; the mind thinks.” I have heard many meditation teachers give a statement similar to the above. In the same way we don’t expect hearing to stop just because we are meditating, we also should not expect thinking to stop. That said, we can learn to relate to the thoughts in… Read More »
Dear Friends, Difficult emotions aren’t easy to deal with some days. It can be hard to respond in a skillful way at times, partly because the rational areas of the brain get “turned off” when we get activated. The amygdala is a part of the brain that is designed to look out for danger and threats, and when… Read More »
Dear Friends, As we sit in meditation and start to observe emotions as they arise and pass, we may start to notice tendencies and trends in what comes up most often and how we relate to them. Pema Chodron describes our usual tendencies when it comes to uncomfortable emotions, and how we can learn from them: Generally speaking,… Read More »
Dear Friends, We’re over halfway through this month of reflection and practice! And maybe you notice times you are discouraged that your practice isn’t going “better,” or you are sure you’re just not getting it, or other stories of self-judgment or shame. The RAIN practice discussed yesterday is one way to work with these kind of thoughts. Jeanne… Read More »
