Online Workshop: Liberating the Ego Loop
29th October 2023
Melt the mechanism that makes you moody!
The Ego habit makes us suffer. Meditation breaks that habit.
So much of our mental anguish and boredom comes from an endless loop of self-regarding thought and emotion. And up on Holy Island this summer, Mindsprings explored a powerful and effective way of breaking through that loop.
Firstly, in meditation we can use phenomena from the field of the body or our senses to 'put a spoke' in the endless cycle of dreary 'selfing'.
And then secondly, we can deepen our awareness of the mechanism that underpins this 'ego-loop' in the first place.
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During this one-day online workshop you will learn:
- what the constituent elements of the ego-loop are
- how the body and the senses can break up the seamless running of the mechanism
- peer deeply into the nature of the cogs that keep the loop spinning
- recognise how freedom from the loop benefits us but especially those around us
What is the Ego Loop?
Since we were little we have been trained to bounce from strong emotions to thoughts and then back again. Over the decades, we've acquired so many ideas about what we feel that the two tumble into a never-ending cycle of thought-emotion-thought-emotion.
The whole practice of mediation is - in some sense - about seeing through this loop-the-loop.
In our work with Beingfulness we come to see our experience more like a field than a thing and this insight allows us to see what is driving the mill wheel of our discontent. It's actually not a thing (and, therefore, not amn unchangeable problem) but rather a sticky fly-wheel of mental formation and embodied emotions.
This structure is what psychologists and Buddhist call our Ego - and the crucial thing is to recognise that it's not a thing but rather a habit.
And with the insight and tools of mediation we can break the habit. And get happy and loving
Pricing
We're pricing this online workshop flexibly as we're aware that for various reasons people are struggling with money at the moment.
So when you click through to the booking page you will see three options:
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Supporters: this is a slightly higher price tag for those of you who might be able to support others who are struggling.
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Baseline: this is the standard cost for the retreat, so pay this if it feels manageable.
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Concession: this is a lower price tag for those who might otherwise struggle to afford the experience.
And, of course, we never want money to stop you from getting the benefit of meditation. So if the concessionary rate is also too much for you right now then please click the right-hand button below and we will find a way to make it happen!
What to expect from a this online workshop
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This is an online workshop using Zoom. It is not an in-person retreat but we like to hold a strong container for the weekend. The zoom link will be sent to you when you register.
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We will begin on Sunday morning at 10 am (all times UK time) with introductions.
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We'll finish at 5 pm on Sunday and have an hour's break for lunch. There will be tea and pee breaks too.
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Alistair will teach and guide practice throughout the weekend. His teaching will be illustrated where necessary with slides.
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There'll be plenty of time to share experiences in break-out groups.
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The teaching and Q&A sessions will be recorded and shared with you after the retreat. (For reasons of confidentiality please don't share beyond the group!
About the teacher
Alistair is a broadcaster, psychotherapist and meditation teacher.
He's worked for the BBC for more than 20 years and works as a UKCP-accredited therapist in East Sussex. Since 2004, he's run Mindsprings, his therapeutic meditation organisation which teaches body-based and Buddhist solutions to many of our everyday problems.
Mindsprings offers popular meditation-based courses on many subjects:
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helping people with anxiety, dissociation, stress.
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working with mental health in the LGBTQ community.
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exploring the growing field of embodiment and somatic practices.
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teaching Buddhist practices for mental health and well-being
Alistair teaches in England, Wales, Scotland, Belgium, Ireland, Sweden, Iceland and the Netherlands.
