Use code SUMMERPRACTICE for a 25% discount on all On Demand Courses through August 31.

Search Sangha Live

Mindfulness of feeling tone (vedana).

With Martine Batchelor recorded on April 12, 2015.

Found our teachings useful? Help us continue our work and support your teachers with a donation. Here’s how.

During this session Martine practices and explores mindfulness of the feeling tones, which is the second foundation of the practice of mindfulness.

First, she guides a meditation on mindfulness of the feeling tones. Afterwards she tries to define feeling tones and how to be mindful of them in our daily life. The Pali term Vedana refers to the affective tone of experience. When we come into contact through one of our six senses with the environment, we experience a pleasant, unpleasant or neither pleasant nor unpleasant feeling tone.

It is important to see that feeling tones are constructed, they are not a given, they do not reside in the object we come in contact with. It is vital to be aware of feeling tones as they arise extremely fast and have a profound impact on our behaviour.

Listen to the audio version below, or click here to download the mp3.

Discussion

Leave a Reply

Discover more from the Dharma Library

  • The dangers of selfie mindfulness.

    Recorded : March 13, 2016

    There is a growing tendency to imply or assume that all suffering is self-created. This is a naïve, even dangerous, view, removed from the middle way. The view ignores the teachings of non-self and the emptiness of self. Does self-inquiry, self-acceptance, self-compassion, self-interest and promotion of the Self promote self-indulgence? Is it any wonder that…

    Read More

  • Shinzen Young

    How to structure your practice in life

    Recorded : March 25, 2018

    Shinzen guides you through his “See, Hear, Feel” focus technique. This technique is designed to be applicable in any life situation — driving a car, having a conversation, working out, puttering around the house…. After that he gives a dharma talk describing a systematic procedure for “monasticizing” daily life. The goal of this program is…

    Read More

  •

    Dharma Practice as Play, or, There is no Path until you Walk It!

    Recorded : September 13, 2020

    In our troubled world dharma practitioners sometimes become earnest. But beings learn and develop through play, and to play we have to be fluid in mind, heart and body. Play fertilizes the human spirit and makes us feel a sense of belonging. Welcome to a session exploring dharma practice as original play and creativity.

    Read More

  • Vimalasara Mason-John

    Emptied Inside Out

    Recorded : May 26, 2019

    Vimalasara takes a look at some of the teachings that point to the insanity in life. Join her in taking a look at form, feelings, perception, mental formation and consciousness, and discovering every day that we can be reminded of the meaninglessness of these mental constructions.

    Read More

  •

    Vesak 2568: The Radical Message of Siddhattha Gotama

    Recorded : May 18, 2025

    On the Theravāda holiday of Vesak, 2568 years after the Buddha’s death, we honor the ancient ascetic named Siddhattha Gotama, whose insights into the nature of suffering and freedom have inspired fierce disciplines, soaring poetry, subtle psychological and philosophical investigations, and social movements for nonviolence, and social justice. We’ll meditate, learn traditional verses celebrating the…

    Read More

  • photo of Martin Aylward smiling

    Daily Meditation Recordings, with Martin Aylward – Week of March 23

    We’re fortunate that Martin Aywlard has generously offered to lead our daily meditation sessions for Europe and the UK. To find out more about Martin, and to view his other contributions to Sangha Live, click here. Monday, March 23 The immediacy of experience Wednesday, March 25 Receptivity and responsiveness Friday, March 27 Real time Tuesday,…

    Read More

  • Lisa Ernst

    How to Recharge Your Practice with a Tried and True Inquiry

    Recorded : October 22, 2023

    Even if you’ve been meditating for years, you probably encounter old patterns that seem impervious to your mindful awareness. Maybe at times these patterns are dormant, but during challenging moments they reappear and perhaps feel intractable. In this session we’ll explore inquiry practices that can help interrupt and disentangle the mind from its habitual “stuck”…

    Read More

  • photo of Martin Aylward smiling

    Daily Meditation Recordings, with Martin Aylward – Week of May 25

    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. Monday, May 25 Appreciation, surrender and generosity Wednesday, May 27 The ten paramis: wisdom and energy Friday, May…

    Read More