The Shurangama Sutra, which points out the foundations of Zen practice, discusses the essential nature of mind as the “primal essence of consciousness that brings forth all conditions.” Implied is the heart-mind (citta) both profoundly intimate with all things while at the same time free and independent of all things. How is it to live this paradox as we move within an unbearable evolutionary crisis polarized between human driven destruction and human inspired renewal?
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Daily Meditation Recordings, with Martin Aylward – Week of Jan 30 – Feb 3, 2023
Daily meditations with Martin Aylward.
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Letting your heart break … open.
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December 13, 2015 Martin looks at current events with an eye on the suffering of refugees, the climate emergency and growing Islamophobia, exploring how we can both empathize with and respond to human suffering, while also cultivating joy, gratitude and ease of heart.
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Our sensitivity is our greatest strength.
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November 20, 2016 Being human is an inevitably vulnerable experience. The challenge lies in being taught that there is something wrong with us for feeling as sensitive and vulnerable as we do, We learn to cover up or numb out our sensitivity.Practice teaches us to turn towards, rather than away, from vulnerability, and allow it to affirm the…
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Lovingkindness in the Little Things
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September 10, 2023 In this session Shaila Catherine explored the practice and purpose of lovingkindness (mettā) meditation. She clarified what mettā is, and what mettā is not. Mettā is more than merely an antidote to apply on occasions when fear and ill will arise. Mettā can become a skillful and liberating way to experience all moments of life.
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When did you stop breathing?
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June 4, 2017 We could say that the Buddha was teaching us to breath again. It’s said that the prince Siddhartha was sitting under a Bodhi tree, practicing the anapanasati (the mindfulness of breathing) when he gained enlightenment and became awake, a Buddha. He was aware of the whole experience of breathing. Through breathing he trained the mind…
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Presence as an Act of Compassion and Love
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April 21, 2024 Mindful presence is the necessary ground of compassion and care. With presence, we courageously enter an intimacy that connects us with ourselves, each other and the world, body, heart and spirit. The beautiful truth is that presence and love can grow and blossom through the practices of meditation and mindful loving awareness. Let’s join together…
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Forgiveness: The Practice of Returning to Love
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September 14, 2025 A heart rooted in compassion longs to uplift and free all beings. Yet holding such a heart is not always easy. We stumble, we protect, we carry wounds. In our time together, we’ll explore forgiveness as an act of self-compassion-a way to meet our own suffering with kindness, and to restore the dignity that pain…
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Sometimes Bodhisattvas need a rest!
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October 22, 2017 The life of a bodhisattva can be tough. There is immense suffering on our planet at this moment in history. It can be joyful work, but it can also be difficult to live a life aligned with values such as serving others with compassion. How can the wisdom of the dharma help? Join Nina La…
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