Agile Mind Guided Meditation
This is a guided meditation to accompany the next posting on training the mind to be agile and accurate.
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Four Applications For Spiritual Growth
This talk reviewed the progressive steps from initial establishment of stable focus and internal tranquility through to last week’s exploration of how to work with confusion. The new aphorism involves four applications to further spiritual development: cultivating a more integrated series of self-states motivated by lovingkindness and compassion, maintaining an ongoing investigation of emerging self-states, taking corrective action when a previous life experience has produced confusion and disturbance, particularly in relationships, and actively seeking and making best use of those whose studies and practices warrant trust and respect. This was followed by discussion of how these four applications can be developed and maintained.
Here are the notes Peter prepared for this discussion: FOUR WAYS TO TURN POISON INTO MEDICINE
Next week’s discussion will focus on the next aphorism: “In order to take unexpected conditions as the path, immediately join whatever you meet with meditation.” This involves learning how to remember and quickly bring the investigation of emerging self-states into daily life experience.
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Working Through Confusion
During this talk, the Lojong training aphorism “Confusion is to be expected as the result of craving and clinging; use the quiet mind to resolve the confusion.” This was related to the progression from cultivating a quiet, stable state of mind, through the realization that thoughts are fabricated dependent upon prior experience, which may or may not be relevant to current circumstances. The fabricated thoughts are noted as provisional fantasies that can be modified through the practice of vipassana to thoughts and behaviors that are more conditioned by benevolent intention.
Here are the notes prepared for this discussion: WORKING THROUGH CONFUSION
Next week’s topic will focus on the Lojong aphorism: “Four applications to support spiritual growth”.
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Cultivating Self Responsibility
During this talk, Peter reviewed the progressive development this training represents: first establishing stable focused attention informed by benevolent intention, then using vipassana skills to see the transient nature of internal self-states, followed by the practice of tonglen (compassionate transformation of unwholesome self-states to wholesome flows), and the ability to integrate this into self-responsibility, that is, not displacing responsibility for one’s distress on others.
Here are the notes prepared for this talk: CULTIVATING SELF-RESPONSIBILITY
The focus for next week’s discussion will be on skillful ways to resolve confused and conflicted self-states.
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Turning Poison Into Medicine
During this talk, Peter introduced one of the lojong aphorisms, classically stated “When evil fills the world and its inhabitants, change adverse conditions into the path of awakening.” He suggested an alternative: “Be mindful whenever possible so everything provides an opportunity for practice.” The talk provided an opportunity to review the progression of the training: First, establish a regular meditation practice to cultivate stability of focus and relief from the influence of the five hindrances, then to realize during meditation that all thoughts are transient “fantasies”. During regular daily routines, cultivate an attitude of perceiving life’s roles as a “game”, rather than as having certainty. Practice transforming unwholesome self-states into compassionate awareness (the tonglen practice). The current topic involves integrating the training mentioned above sufficiently so that every difficulty encountered becomes an opportunity for liberation from confusion and distress.
Those present during the evening were provided with a copy of the aphorism and invited to write opportunities that come to mind for turning “poison into medicine” in their lives. This provided opportunities to relate the progression described at the outset of the discussion to the incidents reported.
Here are the notes prepared for the presentation: TRANSFORMING ADVERSITY INTO OPPORTUNITY
Next week’s discussion will involve the aphorism “Focus on your responsibility for alleviating suffering; don’t displace it to outside sources.”
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Training The Heartmind
During the second talk about the Tibetan Buddhist training called Lojong, the first 8 training aphorisms were described. Peter reported the classical rendering of the aphorism, then his contemporary understanding of the practice. The core of Lojong training involves the ability to recognize the origination of dissatisfaction and transform the experience into compassionate awareness through the application of Tonglen, another Tibetan word translated as “Sending and Taking”. The ultimate goal of the practice is to bring compassionate intentions to bear during every experience.
Here are the notes prepared for this talk. Due to an oversight, the notes reflect 9 training points; number 8, regarding integrating the slogans into daily life routines, has been added: Training For Realizing Relative Bodhicitta
Next week’s talk will continue exploring the Lojong teachings and will emphasize opportunities to turn obstacles into opportunities for awakening compassion.
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