We are easily and often exposed to the greed, hatred and delusion that easily directs our own minds, and seems to be running the world. Yet whatever our personal circumstances, there is much we can appreciate and be grateful for. In this session, Martin explores the quality of appreciation – mudita – as a way to gladden the heart and as a doorway to intimacy and peace.
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The Power of Self-Compassion
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June 11, 2023 Most people are more compassionate toward others than themselves when things go wrong. However, burgeoning research shows that self-compassion is good for everybody. Fortunately, it can be learned. How can we seamlessly bring self-compassion into meditation practice and daily life? What are two secrets about self-compassion practice that make all the difference?
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Gladness of the Wholesome: The Buddha’s Teaching on Awakening Joy
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January 15, 2023 The Buddha was known as The Happy One. Though Joy is one of the Seven Factors of Awakening, with so much emphasis on working with suffering, joy can sometimes seem frivolous or unspiritual. His teaching on attending to the ‘Gladness Connected with the Wholesome’ is a key aspect of Wise Effort and developing a loving heart. We will practice and explore together this foundation for awakening joy.
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The beauty of the spontaneous movement of life
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July 23, 2017 Nowadays, for most of us, life is so full, so fast and dispersed in so many directions: jobs, partners, children, family, house, everyday duties, mobile phone, internet, responsibility, stress, tiredness, worries … and when we find a small space, we fill it with hobbies, friends, sports, TV and every other little thing we usually don’t…
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Daily Meditation Recordings, with Zohar Lavie – Week of 01 June, 2026
This week’s theme is: Joy in Practice; gladdening the heart in service of awakening
Joy, gladness and delight are important factors on the path. They arise as fruits of the practice, but they are also skills that can be cultivated and developed. This week, we will reveal, align with and nourish these liberating qualities. Tasting for ourselves their impact on experience, in service to the wellbeing of all beings.
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Daily Meditation Recordings, with Martin Aylward – Week of September 7, 2020
We’re fortunate that Martin Aylward has generously offered to lead our daily meditation sessions for Europe and the UK this week. To find out more about Martin, and view his other recordings on the platform, click here.
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Practicing for the love of it.
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January 17, 2016 Before the session Martin wrote: “A Burmese teacher once told a friend of mine to always enjoy his practice. We love meditation in theory, and we want to grow and transform, and we certainly would like to be liberated from our suffering. And yet! We easily turn meditation into a chore, and feel discouraged by…
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The Concentration Algorithm
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May 4, 2025 Discover a “concentration algorithm” that transforms your practice. Instead of fighting distractions, this approach teaches you to work with them skillfully. When your concentration wavers, notice what captured your attention, then make that distraction your new meditation object. This process reveals two valuable insights: first, that any sensory experience can serve as a meditation anchor…
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The Spectrum of Sensuality – Where do I stand?
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October 13, 2024 The extremes of addiction to sense pleasure and addiction to self-mortification are not the path to happiness. The spectrum of human sensuality spans from pleasure to pain, pleasant to unpleasant, from hedonic excesses to self-harm, encompassing a vast range that is likely different for everyone. What is considered the Middle Way for a monastic might…
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