After anyone in our community participates in a significant retreat experience, the meeting that follows is dedicated to providing an opportunity for those attending to “think out loud” about her or his experience. It is well-known that much of what is experienced during a retreat is more thoroughly integrated when a person attempts to describe what insights occurred to a well-informed and supportive audience. This recounting might also remind others who were at the retreat of insights that occurred for them, and additionally provide inspiration for others to commit to a residential retreat in the future. Shaila Catherine is a very well respected teacher and author regarding Buddhist psychology and meditation training. Peter, who has been on dozens of long retreats, reports on the powerful impact her Dharma talks had on his practice experience and insights during the retreat. His comments are followed by others, several of whom report this to be their first retreat, who then describe their own insights.
The topic for next week’s talk will review the characteristics of equanimity, which functions to balance the practice of lovingkindness, compassion and sympathetic joy, collectively known as “The Four Divine Abidings”.
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