This guided meditation provides an experiential review of the characteristic elements found in the section of the Fourth Foundation of Mindfulness dedicated to contemplating what is regarded as a Buddhist theory of personality. it is intended to supplement the talk of October 18, 2022 titled “Reviewing the Five Aggregates of Clinging”.
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This talk provides a view of a core Buddhist concept that describes how karma is formed that differs from the traditional Theravaden understanding–instead of the terminology of Dependent Origination, a case is made for an alternative rendering, Contingent Provisional Emergence, which includes more contemporary concepts and research regarding the formative drives that create our personality structures. This view complements comments from the previous meeting of August 17, 2022 regarding the Five Aggregates of Clinging, part of the Fourth Foundation of Mindfulness.
Here are the notes prepared for this talk: Understanding Contingent Provisional Emergence
Next week’s talk will begin a review of the Seven Awakening Factors, qualities of attention that significantly develop liberation from distress and confusion in the mind, leading to a transformative understanding regarding our self-state organizations.
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This is a first of a series of talks that review the cetasikas, “Those factors that condition the mind”. There are 52 mind conditioners in Theravada Buddhist doctrine, and this review focuses on the first two subsections, the Universal and Particular cetasikas. The remaining subsections, the Unwholesome and Wholesome cetasikas will be covered in future talks. The benefits of understanding these concepts are realized when they can actually be noted while practicing mindfulness meditation, as they indicate the impersonal and fabricated nature of self-experience.
Here are the notes prepared for this talk: Reviewing Mind Conditioners-Part 1
The focus of the next talk will begin a review of the Unwholesome mind conditioners, which are the primary cause of dukkha, the distress and confusion of life.
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This talk reviews the 14 Unwholesome Cetasikas, categories of mind conditioning functions that create dukkha, the distress and confusion that constitute the “default mode” of one’s personality. The core functions are ignorance regarding karma, desire for pleasurable experience and aversion to unpleasant experience. The talk begins with a quick review of the Universal and Particular Cetasikas (Reviewed during the talk of August 31, 2022), which are considered to be ethically malleable, that is, influenced by either Unwholesome or Wholesome Cetasikas. The Unwholesome Cetasikas are driven by basic instinctual drives that are poorly investigated and poorly regulated without the training supported by the 25 Wholesome Mind Conditioners, especially Mindfulness, which provides relief from dukkha. The Wholesome Mind Conditioners will be reviewed in upcoming talks.
Here are the notes prepared for this talk: Reviewing The Mind Conditioners–Part 2
The focus for the next talk will be on the first 7 of the 25 Wholesome Mind Conditioners.
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Once the mind has settled because the Five Hindrances have been conditionally disabled, the full realization of Awakening becomes possible because of the effect of the Seven Awakening Factors: Mindfulness, Investigation of Mental Phenomena, Energy/Effort/ Persistence, Joy/Engaged Interest, Tranquility, Concentration/Unification and Equanimity/Balance. This talk focuses on a review of the first three of the factors, the coordinated and integrated development of which enables the realization of the remaining four factors. Upcoming talks will review the remaining factors.
Here are the notes prepared for this talk: THE SEVEN FACTORS FOR AWAKENING Part One
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:02:37 — 57.3MB)