The Buddha spoke often about the danger of clinging to views and opinions. He recommended we avoid clinging, even to the dharma and to “right view.”
In a world increasingly torn apart by our adherence to differing viewpoints, how do we navigate the tension between knowing and not knowing? Our exploration will draw from the teachings of the Pali Canon, as well as the Zen koan tradition.
This week’s theme is: Gathering in the Goodness. ‘Drop by drop the pot of goodness is filled.’ -Buddha. Gathering in community we become more than the sum of our parts. We are each supported by, and supporting others — meditating alone is far less easy. Just so, in each moment of mindfulness we gather body-heart-mind from distraction into presence and open possibilities for greater and greater well-being; not just for ourselves, but for all beings.
This week’s theme is: Resolve to Unbind the Heart
The word resolve can embody many meanings. This week we will see how much it offers on a Dharma path of awakening. It is made of re & solve: ‘re’ as in ‘really’, fully, with intensity; ’solve’ as in loosen, undo, or dissolve. Such a poetic and insightful combination: to intensely loosen.
The Buddha offered teachings and practices for a path of unbinding. A path of resolve to resolve, of dedication to undoing. For dukkha is a state of high activity and reactivity: a doing of distress. Meditations are practices of skilful and subtle activity that unbuild problematic senses of self and loosen missions of reactivity. An invitation to wake up to life, in life, for life, and there in the midst of it all to resolve: to fully unbind.
We’re delighted to have Zohar Lavie guiding our Daily Meditation sessions this week. May these sessions support and deepen your practice.
This week’s theme is: Steadiness, Clarity and Care in Challenging Times
During this week of practice, we will explore and practice the boundless qualities of compassion and equanimity. Compassion as the heart’s capacity to open and attend to suffering, and equanimity as the heart’s ability to face life in all its aspects with clarity and steadiness.
These two beautiful qualities complement and nourish each other. They support us to meet experience and act within it in beneficial ways, even in difficult times.
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Daily meditations with Martin Aylward.
This week’s topic is “Longing for Belonging; Becoming Intimate with Expansion and Contraction”. Although people are more connected than ever through technology, there seems to be a global trance of “not belonging”. In this week’s sessions we will explore how we separate from our own selves and from others, and above all how we can come home to all our parts and sink back into a sense of belonging.
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How do we live in these times when human action has accelerated species extinction and ecosystem collapse? How do we understand what it means to be human now? On this day we will explore the power of meditation practice to deepen intimacy with our own innate wildness, to reconnect with the unstructured spaces of the…
This week’s topic is “Wide and Deep: an Integrated Practice in Meditation and in Life”. This week at Sangha live, the morning meditations with Martin will draw each day on elements of dharma practice and understanding that can be both cultivated in meditation, and applied in daily activity. We’ll encourage a steady participation in the mornings through the week, and reflect on using the daily themes to explore our habits, beliefs and reactions throughout each day.
This week’s topic is “Generosity at the Heart of One of Life’s Greatest Mysteries”. What meaning does generosity embody when we open our minds to accepting one of life’s greatest realities – that in fact we know and master very little. Let us explore the different ways in which facing our experiences with generosity allows us to let go of our preconceptions and taste all of life’s flavours and feel fully alive.
Discussion