Posts Tagged ‘mindfulness’
3/25 Practice Circle: Mindfulness of Feelings
I’ve been reading Beth Ann Mulligan’s The Dharma of Modern Mindfulness, which is impressive for the way she uses anecdotes from her secular MBSR course to illustrate basic Buddhist principles. In that spirit, when Practice Circle meets again this Sunday, March 25, at 6 p.m. Pacific, 8 Central and 9 Eastern, we’ll continue our four-part…
Read MoreWhat is Insight Meditation?
Insight or vipassana meditation is a relatively recent form of Buddhist practice, but one with deep roots back into history. We will discuss its characteristics, its history, and distinguish it from other popular forms of Buddhist meditation. Check out my Patreon page!
Read MoreMindfulness of Mind
Mindfulness of mind is the third of the Four Foundations of Mindfulness. We will look at its importance to ethical thought and action, as well as to locating ourselves along the path. There are lots of important lessons to gain from this practice. Check out my Patreon page!
Read MoreMindfulness of Feelings
The second of the Four Foundations of Mindfulness is mindfulness of feelings. While sometimes it is overlooked, this is perhaps the most important foundation, at least in revealing the causal links that produce our worldly discontent. We will look at these links and at the worldly and unworldly aspects of this practice. Sutta mentioned: Satipaṭṭhāna…
Read MoreThe Dharma of Modern Mindfulness: A Review
One of the most common misunderstandings about MBSR and the other mindfulness-based interventions is that they consist of meditation techniques that have somehow been extracted or divorced from their original context in traditional Buddhism. From this standpoint, critics have referred to mindfulness as “Buddhism lite,” as a simple gimmick to reduce stress and, therefore, a…
Read MoreMindfulness of the Body
Mindfulness of the body is the heart of much contemporary meditation practice. We’ll look at it today with a focus on the original texts, which provide a great array of related practices. We will see ways that the older approach is complex and profound, and at times challenges our contemporary approach to meditation. Sutta: the…
Read More2/25 Practice Circle: Mindfulness of Movement and Breath
Click Here at 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Sunday, February 25th to Join the Live Session. During January and February, Practice Circle will be aligned with the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Online Live program offered by Ted Meissner and Amy Balentine. There may be people from that class joining Practice Circle as an additional opportunity to…
Read MorePractice Circle: Cultivating Compassion
This is to be done by one skilled in aims Who wants to break through To the state of peace: . . . As a mother would risk her life To protect her child, her only child, Even so should one cultivate a limitless heart With regard to all beings. Khuddakapatha 9, trns Thanissaro Bhikkhu…
Read MoreOnline, Together, Meditating, Secular: An Event Announcement from New Zealand!
For those who don’t know, New Zealand has a lively Secular Buddhist community: https://secularbuddhism.org.nz/ http://www.onemindfulbreath.org.nz/ http://abet.nz/ Last month, the prominent Ramsey Margolis announced via his newsletter that he wanted to try to lead a free, online meditation using Zoom similar to SBA US’s Practice Circle. Not only had he gone out of his way to…
Read MorePractice Circle: Trust Emergence
When Practice Circle meets again this Sunday, 7/12/20, at 8 pm Central, we’ll work with a practice called Insight Dialogue. To prepare, I thought I’d share this essay we originally published in 2015. At Practice Circle, we’ll be working with an interactive mindfulness practice developed by Gregory Kramer called Insight Dialogue. In this practice, we…
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