https://share.descript.com/view/ra6FVRTKIvu

https://share.descript.com/view/j1yhLm0x714

We're starting a new cycle of teaching on Thursday mornings looking at the six perfection or 'paramitas' in Mahayana Buddhism. These are generosity, discipline, patience, effort, meditation and wisdom. And we'll be spending two weeks on each - plus the introductory teaching which was today. We started by looking at the crucial issue of 'shunyata' and how essential it is to make turn these paramitas into something transcendental. Thich Naht Hanh translates the experience of emptiness as "the insight which takes us to the other shore" - the other shore being enlightenment. You can catch up with the opening practice Experiencing Emptiness (https://www.mind-springs.org/premium-videos?wix-vod-video-id=729d9dfbb36b4ddd9df639cd3a309b81&wix-vod-comp-id=comp-l9svp7fb)- but here is a snippet of the discussion after that practice: https://share.descript.com/view/k1ak8b7Wol9

For the first eight weeks of 2025, we're using Thursdays to explore one of the ground meditation texts of Buddhism, the Satipatthana Sutta. This is the core text from the first collections of the Buddha's teachings (the Pali Canon) which, in its own words, describes how meditation can be the direct path for the 'overcoming of sorrow and lamentation, the end of physical and emotional pain', in other words, the path to Nirvana. It's a long text, and Pali literature is full of extensive repetition. So I'm attaching a variety of translations here. And Bikku Bodhi's translation is the one we will be using most: https://suttacentral.net/mn10/en/nyanamoli-thera?lang=en&reference=none&highlight=false You can download it here: @rachelrawlins also pointed me to this beautiful translation (abbreviated) by Thich Nhat Hanh: https://plumvillage.org/library/sutras/discourse-on-the-four-establishments-of-mindfulness This is Ajahn Thannissaro's translation (from Access to Insight): https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.010.than.html And this is the Jotikka / Dammaninda translation: And here is the link to Ajahn Amaro's discussion of the text: Chapter 1 – General Aspects of the Direct Path (part 1),https://open.spotify.com/episode/5yiD3sHyvUdl955aJ875is?si=94088fe96d3141e3

Greetings of peace, dear Mindspringers! I won't be able to join you lovely people at the Tuesday, July 22nd gathering because I will be in the hospital having a medical procedure. I would be most grateful if you would send me some healing energy and peaceful thoughts. Thank you, warm hugs, and serene blessings to you all!

Here's a snippet from our May Day session today for those who couldn't make it. I was speaking to @Beau Bell's great comment about the role of awareness in the Three Objects practice that we started looking at today.

Just given the members' library a bit of a Spring clean. I realised it was quite hard to navigate, so I've put all the guided meditations at the top with the SEARCH bar just above them, so you can search for subjects (beingfulness) or specific practices (polyvagal tuning) and it will turn up everything with that tag. Check it out here: https://www.mind-springs.org/members-library And please let me know if there's any other improvements that need looking at.