Right View and the Danger of Fixation

Posted on February 22, 2012 by Shaila

We concluded our six-week series on Right View last night with a talk and discussion on the Dangers of Fixation. Audio recordings will be posted at: http://www.imsb.org/teachings/audioSeries.php.

The experience of right view does not require adherence to a set of beliefs or doctrines; it is not a theoretical position or social position. Right view occurs with a direct insight into the ordinary experiences of mind and matter. What are you experiencing now? Can you see the experience of mind and body clearly—as impermanent, unsatisfactory, and empty phenomena?

Usually we add interpretations and stories to the manifestations of body and mind, constructing elaborate concepts out of the momentary experiences we encounter. But when you mindfully look into the nature of your mind and body, what do you see?

Drop the stories, interpretations and views about your life, and then investigate the conditioned nature of experience. Letting go of the distortions of fixed views and positions will allow Right View to emerge as a clear perception of things as they are.

This radical honesty of mindful attention is liberating.

Posted in Investigating body and mind, Mindfulness Practice | Leave a comment

On detachment

Posted on February 13, 2012 by Shaila

“Detachment describes the ease of a mind not adhering, not fixated, and not identified with the fleeting stream of lived events.”—Shaila Catherine, Wisdom Wide and Deep, page 398.

Often people bring negative associations to the term detachment—thinking it implies cold indifference. However, in the context of meditation practice, detachment refers to a vivid and liberating experience of non-attachment. In yesterday’s day long program on the theme of mindfulness of feeling, we considered the Buddha’s teaching:  ”If he feels a pleasant feeling, he feels it detached. If he feels a painful feeling, he feels it detached…” (Samyutta Nikaya 36:6).

Feelings are to be felt, known, understood fully. We intentionally cultivate mindfulness with feeling. We feel our feelings, but with a mind that is detached from the reactivity of desiring more pleasure, and anger at pain. The Buddha’s teaching does not encourage detaching from feeling, but rather it is an invitation to feel feeling detached.

Posted in Investigating body and mind, Mindfulness Practice, Sutta Study | Leave a comment

Compassion—Service and charity

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Shaila

The following are notes from a recent class on cultivating compassion toward people who occupy a neutral place in our lives.

Genuine compassion extends beyond self-compassion or the protection of our social group; it is the wish that all beings be free from suffering.

Does your heart ever “tremble” or feel moved when you see other beings suffer? Becoming aware of the quivering of the heart that occurs naturally when we are spontaneously “touched,” can draw out our compassion. When compassion pervades our response to suffering, the mind is freed from the tendency to react with cruelty, jealousy, anger, or oppressive behaviors.

Compassion liberates the mind from meanness, creulty, jealousy, and unwholesome states that cause harm, and consequently from the negative kamma that is rooted in unwholesome actions.

Acts of service and charity give us opportunities to show compassion toward people or beings that are relatively neutral to us—beings that we may neither personally love nor hate.

What moves you? How might you take wise action to alleviate the suffering that you are moved by? Discover the power and beauty of service as a part of dharma practice. Let service support your spiritual growth.

Reflection:

Observe and reflect on your response to suffering in the world—social injustice, poverty, conflict, hunger, cruelty, fear, illness, pain.

Cultivate an empathetic response to Continue reading →

Posted in Daily Life Practice, Emotions, Loving Kindness and Compassion | Leave a comment

Sharing notes from a recent class on self-compassion.

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Shaila

It is not only others who hurt; we each also need compassion. Self-compassion is a necessary foundation for any genuine personal development. Are we kind and considerate toward ourselves? Do we consider our long-term benefit rather than merely temporary pleasures? Do we respond in a truly compassionate way to the difficulties that come to us in life?

Do you respond compassionately toward yourself?

—Is your inner talk compassionate?

—Are you kind to yourself when you make an error, fall ill, or fail in a task?

—Do you judge yourself more harshly than you judge friends?

What blocks you from responding compassionately toward yourself?

Sometimes old beliefs and patterns picked up in our youth condition our reactions to life’s events. These may include ingrained beliefs that link our self-worth or lovability to success, social standing, or abilities. Are you ever mean to yourself because you don’t feel “good enough” or deserving of kindness?

To cultivate compassion toward yourself, first notice what obstructs the flow of compassion. If you find old conditioning, without judging yourself for falling into the pattern, intentionally rest your attention in the present situation. Open softly and gently to current reality. It may not be as toxic as repeating past patterns.

Try replacing self-judgment with thoughts of self-compassion. Each time that you hear an inner dialog that is self-degrading, replace it with kind words.

May I be free from pain and suffering.

May I be at peace.

I care about my pain.

May I be a peace with myself just as I am.

You may see suffering each and every day, but there is also beauty to witness. Even in dismal conditions, we can connect with the lightness, the space that surrounds even the most oppressive situation—the sun’s warmth, the smell of the ravioli cooking, the song of the wind in the grasses, the kindness of a stranger. Cherishing the simple acts of kindness and present moment contacts can balance the tendency to spiral into depression.

Notes on a Guided Meditation on Self-Compassion:

1.   Select a personal issue to use for the meditation such as loneliness, betrayal, fear, financial insecurity, illness, grief…

2.   Direct a soft caring response toward yourself regarding the selected issue. Feel the heart touch the issue gently. Be willing to acknowledge Continue reading →

Posted in Daily Life Practice, Emotions, Loving Kindness and Compassion | Leave a comment

Reacting to feelings

Posted on January 29, 2012 by Shaila

How are you today? When we greet each other, we often ask, “how are you?” and then share how we are feeling today. For a moment, please tune into the quality of your mind: how are you feeling right now? Let your feelings be just as they are right now—mindfully aware of how they come, go, and change. See what mindfulness may bring to the experience of feelings? It is OK to relax into whatever you are experiencing now.

I wrote in Wisdom Wide and Deep: “The untrained mind reacts to feelings by grasping for more pleasant feelings, pushing away unpleasant encounters, and ignoring neutral events. These reactions quickly develop into patterns of attachment and identification  (Shaila Catherine. Wisdom Wide and Deep, page 297).”

When we instead choose to open and receive the heart and mind just as it is, we might connect with how we really are today—sometimes we’ll be equanimous or happy; sometimes guarded and unsure; sometimes reactive, angry, fearful; and sometimes raw or tender. We don’t need to turn away from feelings to find equanimity. On the contrary, equanimity arises by opening to how we are right now when we are willing to experience feeling without being swept into old patterns of attachment.

 

Posted in Daily Life Practice, Emotions, Mindfulness Practice | 1 Comment

Are Sense Pleasures Suffering?

Posted on January 13, 2012 by Shaila

We often link happiness to the attainment of sensory pleasure; or we expect sensory pleasures to bring happiness. The emphasis on the unsatisfactoriness of conditioned experiences, as taught in the Buddhist tradition can, at first, seem disheartening.  Why equate innocuous and natural pleasures with suffering? Is the Buddhist path life-denying? We had a rousing dialog in a recent sutta study discussion in which we were studying a Buddhist text that emphasized the dangers inherent in the pursuit of sensory pleasures.

Questions were posed: Would the Buddha encourage relaxed nature walks in the forest, stopping to smell the roses, and savoring a good meal with family? Does lingering over the acceptable and natural pleasures of ordinary life only perpetuate attachment and suffering? Is it possible to have “enlightened sex”, or engage in sexuality without perpetuating the attachments that cause repeated suffering? Does savoring sensory experiences and pleasurable moments make people happier? What is the happiness that we seek?

When we look around, we might perceive the unsatisfactory characteristic of things all around us. Even after we have a nice breakfast, unsatisfactoriness is apparent—soon we feel hungry for lunch. We live with the continuous pressure Continue reading →

Posted in Daily Life Practice, Investigating body and mind, Sutta Study, Uncategorized, Working with suffering | 1 Comment

Three Intentions

Posted on January 4, 2012 by Shaila

As we start the new year, it is natural to reflect on intention. The three right intentions that are included in the Noble Eight-Fold Path include 1) the intention of renunciation, 2) the intention of non-ill will, and 3) the intention of non-cruelty. Each of these intentions highlights an attitude that we can cultivate as we enter into any action of body, speech, or mind.

The intention of renunciation invites us to be willing to let go of attachments, to release control, to enter into situations without resistance, to practice generosity, and Continue reading →

Posted in Daily Life Practice | 1 Comment

Where do you look for fresh insight?

Posted on December 19, 2011 by Shaila

“Where do you search for fresh insight? Do you turn to classes, books, teachers, or nature? Meditation invites us to look carefully into our own material and mental experience.”—from Shaila Catherine. Wisdom Wide and Deep, page 389

Instead of looking outside of yourself for understanding and insight, sit quietly and look into your own experience of mind and body. What is really happening right now? Meditation can be as simple as seeing your own experience of sitting and breathing with clarity. Settle the mind by observing the in-breath and out-breath. You don’t need to wait until you sit in a formal meditation posture—feel your own breath right now as you are facing this screen. Observe the dynamic changes that occur in sensory contacts such as touching, smelling, and hearing. Are you feeling any touch sensations such as the pressure of the body against the floor, chair, or clothes? Do you hear any sounds or smell any odors?

Fresh insight comes when we are attentive to experience—not lost in concepts about what experiences might mean, but actually present to what is real. I ask myself periodically : What is really happening now? This inquiry pulls me out of any habitual thoughts, and draws my attention to the simple experiences of body and mind. Many times a day we can bring curiosity to our experience by asking ourselves: what is really happening now?

Posted in Breath, Daily Life Practice, Investigating body and mind, Mindfulness Practice | 1 Comment

Returning from a Four Month Retreat

Posted on December 18, 2011 by Shaila

I recently returned from a four month retreat that was lead by the Venerables Pa-Auk Sayadaw and U Jagara in Massachusettes. It was a experiential approach to the Buddha’s teachings that emphasized deep concentration (especially jhana) practice; the careful discernment and analysis of mental factors, cognitive processes, material elements, and causal relationships; and culminated in systematic insight (vipassana) practice. I can’t condense the experience into a simple blog post, but I have written about the meditation methods in my new book, Wisdom Wide and Deep.

As I integrate the retreat learnings into the fabric of my daily life I will try to share more from my retreat in future blog posts. But for now I’ll simply express the gratitude that I feel for having been able to spend four months in retreat. I was able to take the time to deepen my practice because family members, students, and volunteers each contributed their time and energy to ensure that everything ran smoothly at home and at our meditation group in my absence. The administrative team at the Insight Meditation Society, where the retreat was held, ably organized a smooth running retreat. And the teachers tirelessly offered guidance and instructions to realize the profound teachings of the Buddha.

None of us can function alone in this world; our achievements depend upon an intricate network of friends, family, and strangers. As the year winds to an end perhaps you would take a moment to reflect on the network of connections that have supported your achievements this year. Pause to appreciate the people, both known and unknown, who have made it possible for you to do or experience something that you value.

With much gratitude to all!

 

Posted in Meditation, Sangha Practice, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

The Paramis

Posted on June 22, 2011 by Stephen Fulder

Shaila and the IMSB sangha have kindly invited me to be the resident teacher here for a couple of weeks, for which I am both grateful and honoured – both to the individuals and also to the dharma itself, expressed through all of us, which has opened this new door to serve and engage with it.

So here I am again. Visiting this area of the world after a gap of nearly 45 years. And the last time I was here 1966 or 7, it was a time of great creativity and wonder and transformation, and it left an indelible question in my mind which has been with me since that time – the life that I see through my sense doors is not the whole story. It is subject to a subject, constructed by a person and a brain. An hypothesis and no more. So what is beyond? In all the years the question has stayed but the way I ask it has changed radically. It is no more something that I struggle with, a question as such. But it has become a royal road to travel on, – the dharma. Continue reading →

Posted in Daily Life Practice, Guest Writers | 1 Comment