During this talk, April reviews how the cultivation of mindfulness can be understood as an art form that creates a more beautiful self-experience. This is supported by contemporary research regarding how the hemispheres of the brain interact and how meditation training benefits the art of living.
Here are the notes prepared for this talk: The Art and Science of Meditation
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:02:49 — 57.5MB)
During this talk, April describes how important it is to integrate the benefits of formal mindfulness meditation with walking, particularly while outdoors in nature. She shares her own experience and insights that emerge in a variety of settings during normal daily routines from this practice and invites others participating in the meeting to share their insights as well.
Here are the notes prepared for this talk: Stillness in Motion – Google Slides (002)
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:01:55 — 56.7MB)
During this talk, April describes how our inability to investigate and effectively manage our resistance to using mindfulness to beneficially apply the principles and practices from a Buddhist creates suffering, using various quotes from Buddhist teachings. Her review is followed by questions and comments about this topic from those participating in the meeting.
Here are the notes prepared for the talk: What You Resist Persists
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:04:28 — 59.0MB)
Once a month, Peter provides an opportunity during the meeting for those participating to ask questions regarding Buddhist concepts and practices. The questions posed during this meeting focus on the “Four Foundations of Mindfulness Discourse”, for example the “noting” method for cultivating insight, compared to practices that first emphasize the cultivation of high levels of concentration called jhana (jah-nah), before developing insight. He reviews the development and integration of the Seven Awakening Factors, facilitated through whole-body meditation practice. He also describes different approaches to cultivating and making use of concentration and the characteristics of what has been termed “big sky mind” and his way of using relaxed curiosity–letting go with every out-breath with a concentrated mind–to have a deeper understanding of sunnata (soon-yah-tah), translated as emptiness–the absence of a separate, enduring self.
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During this Dharma talk, Peter describes the intersection between empathy and compassion. Empathy is hardwired into our bodies and can be misunderstood and produce regrettable self-states and behaviors when not monitored by mindfulness. He describes how we are all subjected to marketing tactics based on studies of empathy to negatively affect ourselves and others. Skillful investigation and Right Effort can effectively transform empathy to compassion, foremost for oneself, as well as others.
Here are the notes associated with this topic: Empathy and Compassion
A meditation entitled “Guided Empathy Contemplation” preceded this talk, and it is posted in the Guided Meditation page. It is intended to provide training to promote the ability to effectively monitor empathetic responses we experience.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:08:35 — 62.8MB)