I have always enjoyed working with practitioners who are continuing to deepen their practice. In the many long retreats I teach at both IMS and Spirit Rock, I feel free to pass on the deepest pointings I’ve found in the teachings of the Buddha in the Pali Canon. Those are my guiding lights in practice and understanding.
It is fun for me to take the most difficult concepts and put them into accessible language, to unwrap the mystery. So I try to find ways to explore the breadth of concepts like "emptiness" -- to see how the entire path can be explained in terms of this synonym for nibbana. One of my aims is to bring the goal of freedom into the here and now. This way practitioners get a taste of freedom, so they know what they are heading toward on their journey to liberation.
The tools of mindfulness and lovingkindness can be picked up by anyone. They are easy to understand and they bring immediate benefit to our lives. The essence of vipassana is ideally suited to western society, especially to the resonance between our psychological turn of mind and our quest for spiritual understanding.
The right attitude for meditation is one free from greed, aversion and delusion. The talk also defines some key terms in practice: consciousness, mindfulness, awareness, and wisdom.
It is the direct realization of the unconditioned, or nibbana, that is considered enlightenment in the Buddha's teachings. This talk explores how consciousness and awareness can be understood as links in practice to the flavor of the unconditioned.
Metta practice makes the heart more sensitive. This tenderness becomes the avenue for us to discover our deep connectedness to all of life and end a sense of isolation.
The right attitude for meditation is one that is free of greed, aversion and delusion. The talk also explores the functions of mindfulness, attention and wisdom.
This traditional list of the five categories, such as form and consciousness, describes the range of our experience. This talk follows a sutta in viewing the aggregates as an avenue to see emptiness
The four divine abidings show us a way to hold all the joys and sorrows of life. This talk focuses principally on the qualities of loving-kindness, which overcomes isolation and connects us to all of life; and gratitude, as a form of appreciative joy that leads to greater contentment and well-being.
This talk explores the third noble truth, or the end of suffering, also described as Nibbana. Nibbana is seen as a transcendent dimension of our being accessible in any moment. Practices that approach this unconditioned element are described also.
The second noble truth points to craving (tanha) as the origin of suffering. The talk describes three kinds of craving: for sense pleasures, existence and non-existence.
Emotions are expressed through a mood, body sensation, and thoughts. Mindfulness of these aspects is illustrated in the talk for desire, anger, sadness, and fear.
Suffering becomes a noble truth when it is fully understood. Then it is seen as a universal experience that connects us through compassion with all beings.
