TOPIC FOR THE MAY 11, 2022 ZOOM
WE HAVE RESUMED MEETING IN OUR MEDITATION HALL AT 1818 CARRIGAN AVENUE, IN WINTER PARK!! PLEASE WEAR A MASK WHILE IN THE BUILDING, WHICH WILL HAVE OPEN WINDOWS AND ADEQUATE AIR CIRCULATION.
For those who haven’t been to the site, the house is the only one on the block with a sheet metal roof. Park on the street or in the driveway—please be considerate of the neighbor’s property. Prior to the pandemic, we have met there without complaint from the neighbors. Walk to the left of the garage and through the gate in the chain link fence; the cottage in the back yard is where we meet.
We will meditate in silence from 7 to 7:45, then, after a break, the Dharma talk will begin. I will make every effort to Zoom the meeting, but there may be some technical glitches during the process, and the meeting will be recorded and posted as usual.
There will be a small box near the front door for dana, the practice of donating to the teacher out of gratitude for the teaching. The contribution is not required, and the money will be used to maintain the building and pay for the Zoom subscription. There is a lending library of Dharma related books in the cottage that operates on a trust basis.
As I understand how Zoom works, you must preregister at the site Zoom.us, entering the URL : https://us04web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUuf-2srDMtnERzureO8f2K4iQeRCf-dQ and using the password 620329 in order to participate in the events; registering one time will provide access to all the upcoming meetings, as long as we continue streaming them. The meeting can be accessed by smartphone as well as any internet-connected computer system, following the instructions at the Zoom website. The meetings will be recorded and posted on the website as usual.
Following a 45-minute meditation period, this talk will review the Third Noble Truth, liberation from dukkha, the distress and confusion we all must contend with. The topic continues a series of talks reviewing the Four Noble Truths, a key Buddhist teaching. I hope you will participate in-person or through streaming the meeting, and I wish you well. Peter
Reviewing the Third Noble Truth
This talk continues a review of the Four Noble Truths, with a focus on how the mind is liberated from dukkha through dissolving the potency of craving and clinging, the topic of the Second Noble Truth. Various views relevant to the Third Noble Truth are described, such as sunnata, translated as emptiness, and anatta, the absence of an enduring/autonomous self, which is another way to understand sunnata. Different approaches to the experience of Nibbana, the Unconditioned, are reviewed, either through cultivating highly developed levels of concentration called jhanas, or through what is called “dry vipassana”, insight into the nature of craving and clinging and either liberating the mind momentarily, through letting go, or ultimately, through realizing Nibbana. The traditional Theravada understanding that four levels of experiencing Nibbana are required for total liberation is also reviewed.
Here are the notes prepared for this talk: Reviewing the Third Noble Truth
Next week’s talk will begin a step-by-step review of the Fourth Noble Truth, the Noble Eightfold Path.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:01:36 — 56.4MB)