Practicing mindfulness together with the four Divine Abidings (loving kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity), we develop our ability to bring relief to even the most challenging moments of our lives. We begin by strengthening our habit to increase our mindfulness as stress increases and then apply the Divine Abiding that is most appropriate for a particular situation. The result is a soothing balm and an increased ability to respond more wisely and effectively on any level from the personal to the global.
Discover more from the Dharma Library
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Daily Meditation Recordings, with Martin Aylward – Week of 4 March, 2024
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.
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The Spectrum of Sensuality – Where do I stand?
Recorded :
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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The Gap and The Second Noble Truth
Recorded :
June 7, 2026 There’s a moment before craving takes hold – a gap. In that space, we gradually cultivate choice in how to respond. This talk explores the Second Noble Truth: how reaching and pushing away pulls us from the present, and how the practice of recognizing the gap – whether a split second or something larger –…
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Daily Meditation Recordings, with Jaya Rudgard – Week of November 7, 2022
This week’s theme is A Gentle and Playful Heart”. A week of morning meditations orienting to the qualities of playfulness and gentleness. When we neither meet ourselves or each other with harshness nor take ourselves too seriously, we find a genuine inner strength. Whether we feel we have lots of energy and motivation for practice, or little, exploring these qualities will refresh the heart and mind and support us in meeting the challenges of our week.
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Daily Meditation Recordings, with Ulla Koenig – Week of January 15, 2024
This week’s theme is “Tending to Fire – An Exploration of the Third Noble Truth”. The third of the four noble truths, which the Buddha offered as a framework, invites us to reflect on ways to tend to the inner fires or urges, which we all experience. ‘Nirodha’ is a concept which invites us to explore ways to handle that fire: to contain it, to create safe space around it and not to fuel it further, so that it eventually expires. This week, we explore concepts like ‘freedom of/from/to’ as well as letting go and letting be.
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The Necessity of Trust
Recorded :
May 28, 2023 The qualities of trust, faith, and confidence are essential for mental health, profound spiritual explorations and the depth of relationships. To serve well, trust needs cultivating in conjunction with qualities of discerning wisdom and conscious intention. This session explores how this can be encouraged in both meditation and in our heart’s countless daily actions.
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A Relational Dhamma
Recorded :
October 17, 2021 If humans are intrinsically relational creatures, how do we integrate this understanding with the Buddha’s teachings on suffering and its cessation? Relational suffering and craving? Dependent origination? In this session, we explore the power and necessity of a relational understanding of the Buddha’s teachings. We discuss and practice relational aspects of the path, including the…
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Becoming a Bodhisattva
Recorded :
November 9, 2025 This talk will explore the archetype of the Bodhisattva— a being dedicated to waking up and cultivating wisdom and compassion for the sake of all beings. We will first see how it manifests itself in Buddhist history and teachings, and then tackle important questions: How is it relevant to the suffering in our current times?…
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