Hi Fellow Travelers–Thanks to the causes and conditions provided by the Covid-19 virus there will no assemblies in our meditation cottage until the circumstances make it safe to assemble in groups. I hope this supports and maybe even expands the outreach of the Orlando Insight Meditation Group, the goal of which is to provide training in mindfulness and lovingkindness meditation and practical applications of the Wisdom found within these concepts that will support us as we go through these trying times.  Last week’s recording was a first attempt at streaming and hopefully the recording of  April 1 will be more effectively posted; the microphone will be muted until the Dharma talk so the meditation will not be interrupted by the sounds of folks entering into the group.

The meeting operates through the Zoom software (OIMG has subscribed for one year at a cost of $150).  The URL for the meeting is:  https://us04web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUuf-2srDMtnERzureO8f2K4iQeRCf-dQ  and the meeting password is 620329.  As I understand how it works, you must preregister at the site the URL in order to participate in the events and registering one time will provide access to all the upcoming meetings, as long as we continue streaming them (Which may become a problem when we resume meeting in the meditation building which has weak reception from the server in my home; hopefully sometime later in the Spring we can safely assemble again in the cottage).  The meetings will be audio only and, once again as I understand the way it works, the meeting can be accessed by smartphone as well as any internet-connected computer system.  The meetings will be recorded and posted on the website as usual.  Please be patient with me as I find my way into the world of internet streaming and hopefully we can all benefit from this crisis.

The topic for the meeting on March 31 will combine a contemplation from the First Foundation of Mindfulness, The Four Elements, which involves using noting sensations of pressure, movement, temperature and liquidity to interrupt the narratives that accompany the hindrances; this interruption creates more stability, clarity and tranquility, which is of great benefit in these trying times.  The talk will focus on how the pandemic relates to the Four Noble Truths and interdependence.  i hope you will participate in the streaming meeting and I wish you well.  Peter