The Four Noble Truths And The Holidays December 11 2019

This is the last talk of 2019 as Peter begins his year-end two-week self retreat December 13.  During the talk, Peter described the early context of Christmas and the season associated with the Winter Solstice, the shortest and often among the coldest days of the year in the northern hemisphere–a time of reflection, companionship and renewal.  This intention has been significantly altered by American consumerism and this has inspired Peter to dedicate this period of time towards the gift of meditation in an attempt to create a contemporary effort towards renewal.  Participants were invited to contemplate interactions with others and the festivities that occur through the lens of the Four Noble Truths as an effort to cultivate more clarity regarding the potential of the season for kindness, compassion, generosity and tolerance.  This was followed by general discussion about the current status of the holiday season and what those at the meeting might do to integrate mindfulness into their experience.

Here are the notes prepared for this talk: Four Noble Truths And The Holidays

The next talk will be on Wednesday January 8, as the first Wednesday is New Year’s day; there is likely to be an opportunity to sit together on that evening, but there will not be a talk.  The focus of the January 8th talk will be on the insights derived from the just finished retreat.

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