In this talk Dave discusses the process of integrating heart practices within the four foundations of mindfulness. Mindfulness practice unites the steadiness of concentration with the immediacy of moment to moment experience. As we learn to collect the body and mind, intuitive wisdom arises. This allows us to open to the truth of each moment’s experience within and around us. Metta (kind-friendliness) meditation practice calls forth the beautiful spiritual emotions within our heart: kindness, compassion, empathetic joy and equanimity. Mindfulness of these qualities strengthens and brings them into fruition. This process guides our thoughts, attitudes and behaviors into the direction of awakening to our full potential.
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Mindfulness of sympathetic joy.
Recorded :
February 14, 2016 Sympathetic Joy (mudita) is one of the four noble qualities recommended by the Buddha on the path of awakening. Such joy arises from appreciating the good fortune of self and others.
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Daily Meditation Recordings, with Zohar Lavie – Week of October 2, 2023
This week’s topic is “Wholehearted Presence”. Meeting experience as it unfolds with presence and interest, we uncover the wellbeing and freedom available to us on the Dharma path. Through this week’s exploration we will open to what supports a wholehearted approach to practice, and understand what is nourished and cultivated when we relate to experience in this way.
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Daily Meditation Recordings, with Miles Kessler – Week of 19 January, 2026
This week’s theme is: The Seven Stages of Purification in Insight Meditation
The Seven Stages of Purification in Insight Meditation is a 5-day exploration of how insight naturally unfolds through practice, as described in the classical Theravāda map of purification. Each day will combine a short teaching with guided meditation, helping practitioners-whether new or experienced-recognize how challenge, insight, clarity, and release arise as part of a single, coherent developmental process. Rather than presenting the stages as goals to attain, this series offers them as an orienting framework: a way to understand what is already happening in your practice, normalize both ease and challenge, and cultivate confidence, patience, and continuity on the path of awakening.
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Genuine Happiness: An Alternative Perspective
Recorded :
July 14, 2019 So much of what we hear and learn about within Dharma practice places an arguably unnecessary emphasis on suffering (dukkha). While the acceptance of suffering (dukkha) is an important and essential aspect of the path, it is by no means the end of the story. In one of the Buddha’s oldest descriptions of what it…
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Daily Meditation Recordings, with Zohar Lavie – Week of February 7, 2022
This week’s theme is: Finding Happiness and Wellbeing on the Path
The understanding of how dukkha is conditioned and constructed lies at the heart of Dharma teachings. Dukkha and wellbeing are in relationship with each other; the abandonment of the causes of dukkha leads to wellbeing. The nourishment of the causes for wellbeing decreases dukkha. During this week we will explore our capacity to uncover and develop wellbeing through our practice, in ways that enrich our lives.
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Living From a Sense of Call and Response
Recorded :
November 26, 2023 Deep listening goes beyond merely using our ears; it encompasses engaging our eyes, hearts, and bodies as well. As practitioners of meditation, we can also learn to listen with mindful awareness. In this session, we will explore how call and response, a musical concept, also applies to meditation and our daily interactions. Join us, and…
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Responding to a World in Crisis with a Strong Heart
Recorded :
March 24, 2024 How do we keep the heart open and strong amidst so much pain and suffering in our world? What does our contemplative practice have to offer in times of upheaval and change? Join author and Dharma teacher Oren Jay Sofer for this session focused on building inner resources to heal our hearts and respond effectively…
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The Appropriate Response
Recorded :
May 8, 2022 When a monk asked the 10th Century Zen master Yunmen, “What are the teachings of a whole lifetime?” Yunmen replied, “An appropriate response.” What is this appropriate response and how do we know we’ve got it right? Beyond linear formulas, Dharma teachings point to a natural intelligence that guides us in a spontaneous responsiveness to life….
Discussion