Most people associate Dharma practice with the concept of Wisdom. Here, the idea is that we need to “know” something that we don’t already know. For English thinking minds this can become very problematic and can turn our practice into a cognitive or intellectual endeavor. With the earliest teachings of the Dharma we see that the Buddha outlines two separate paths to liberation. One thru wisdom, the other thru heart. During this practice session we will explore and discuss the implications and process of liberation thru our hearts, emotions and behaviors. As the wisdom path has been primarily developed for the monastic communities over the last almost 3000 years, what does this mean for the rest of us? How can we living in the complexity of modern times develop a meaningful practice that will remove the obstacles to liberation, freedom and genuine happiness? As always, don’t take my word for it, come and see for yourself.
Discover more from the Dharma Library
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Daily Meditation Recordings, with Jaya Rudgard – Week of July 24, 2023
This week’s theme is “Meditations on the Five Great Elements of Nature”. The five elements or energetic properties of nature (earth, water, fire, wind and space) feature frequently in the Buddha’s teaching and are a wonderful support for meditation and insight. This week we will practice with these elements as skilful means for contemplating body and world, and for cultivating the mind.
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Light on the path: pleasure, joy, fulfilment and free-ness.
Recorded :
September 24, 2017 Our founding and guiding teacher Martin Aylward reflects on the importance of being nourished and uplifted by our practice. He looks at the nature of happiness and our sometimes difficult relationship with pleasure; explore opening up to joy, and point to ways in which dharma practice is fulfilling and freeing.
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Finding Forgiveness: Processing the Past to Open the Present
Recorded :
July 2, 2023 The Buddhist path is one of liberation through letting go. But when there’s been disappointment, betrayal, or harm, letting go can seem like a very tall order. Join us as we explore the spectrum of heart qualities on the way to forgiveness, and find a new relationship to the past that brings you more freedom in the…
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Transformation Lives in the Butterfly Garden
Recorded :
March 5, 2023 We are living in a time of change that is evolutionary in its mystery, scope and depth. Emerging values of wellness of the self, Earth and society call us beyond the trance of colonial imprints, into the profound dimensions of embodied and expanded consciousness. It may be that the transformation that this time demands from us could only be met now.
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The beauty of the spontaneous movement of life
Recorded :
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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Frontline Dharma: Exploring how practice can support and nourish us in engaging with challenging times
Recorded :
June 24, 2017 For many of us these are times of deep questioning: How do we respond to the challenges we are facing in our societies and our planet? What can we do? How to engage in ways that are skilful and non-harming and also honour our inner sense of integrity, urgency and care? Zohar offerssome reflections and…
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True Refuge
Recorded :
July 7, 2024 This talk will explore the Three Refuges — Buddha, Dharma and Sangha — as sources of true refuge in difficult times. The teaching of the Refuges is found within all schools of Buddhism and offers clear guidance for responding to our beautiful, aching world with skill and kindness.
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Muditā: Appreciative Joy
Recorded :
November 20, 2022 Of the four traditional heart qualities in Buddhism, appreciative joy – muditā – gets less attention than lovingkindness (mettā), compassion (karuṇā), or equanimity (upekkhā). But the cultivation of sincere joy at the success of another greatly enriches our well-being and happiness. We will explore this powerful form of joy together, as well as what blocks…
