So many of us struggle with self-hatred and self-judgment. Self-compassion is so deeply needed in these times, and brings together mindfulness, loving kindness practices, and a recognition of our shared humanity. This session explores the cultivation of this core set of practices.
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Transforming the poisons.
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October 4, 2015 Buddha points out the three main ways we get pulled into activity and self-contraction – Greed, Hatred and Delusion – which Martin often translates as Desire, Defense and Distraction. This class explores creative ways of meeting these forces in everyday life, and explores powerful reflections for each of the three.
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Daily Meditation Recordings, with Zohar Lavie – Week of May 30, 2022
This week’s theme is: Bringing the Practice to Life. The Buddha’s teachings emphasise the whole of our lives as a rich ground for exploration and growth. Through meditation, we cultivate skills and ways of relating that can be applied beyond formal meditation. This week we will explore bringing the practice to different areas and aspects of our lives. We will open to taste how this enlivens and rejuvenates our practice, and how it can nurture wellbeing for others and ourselves.
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Surrendering to awareness.
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April 10, 2016 Often in spiritual practice there is the encouragement to observe. From that place of observation we attempt to “be with” what arises. When does that intention get colonized by the ego? Who is it that is “being with”? What is it that is “being with”? What shifts in our practice when we surrender what is…
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Daily Meditation Recordings, with Ulla Koenig – Week of March 29, 2021
This week’s theme is: Re-Enchanting Our Practice. As much as anything else our practice of mindfulness and meditation can become a habit, and either turn dull, or come with a sense of obligation, work, or duty. In this week together, we will explore ways to bring imagination, embodiment, and intimacy to our practice. After all, meditation is as much a craft as an artform – a chance to discover inner landscapes, hidden mysteries and fascinating insights.
As much as anything else our practice of mindfulness and meditation can become a habit and either turn dull or come with a sense of obligation, work or duty. In this week together, we will explore ways to bring imagination, embodiment, and intimacy to our practice. After all, meditation is as much a craft as an art form – a chance to discover inner landscapes, hidden mysteries and fascinating insights.
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Wake up to your Life: Cultivating Courage & Compassion in the Everyday
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March 23, 2025 Awakening to Life means harmonizing our values and our actions. Many of us merely go through the motions, sleepwalking through the hours, without actually feeling alive. Cultivating courage and joy entails slowing down, paying close attention, and practicing being fully engaged with what each moment has to offer. Koshin Sensei will share Zen teachings and…
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Other People Are the Path: Relationships as Practice
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October 21, 2018 In this session, we explore how our relationships are the very path of awakening and how we can show up fully in our interactions with others, especially those we find challenging. People we find difficult can teach us a great deal and we learn ways to practice with these painful relationships to profit from their…
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Who Knows Best?: Exploring the Judging Mind
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July 14, 2024 In this Sunday Sangha session, we will address the common tendencies to judge and compare. Wise discernment is useful, but excessive comparing and compulsive judging can harm relationships, obscure the clarity of perception, and thwart spiritual development. This session includes practical suggestions for calming a harsh inner critic, while encouraging critical and thoughtful inquiry. (Please…
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Awakening Joy: Practice as a Path of Happiness
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January 13, 2019 Joy is both a Factor of Enlightenment and one of the four Divine Abodes. Today, as we are bombarded with news that heightens our fear and sadness about the world, more than ever it’s vital to understand the importance of joy as a central aspect of spiritual practice. We need to remember how to stay…
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