Developing a clear understanding of the teachings and learning to fully inhabit the body have been core parts of my Dhamma practice. These areas, as well a strong emphasis on the heart, inform and shape my teaching. The few years I spent training as an Anagarika in the Thai Forest monasteries broadened my understanding of the Buddha's teachings and instilled a profound respect for the Bhikkhu and Bhikkhuni Sangha. All along the way, I've been particularly interested in how other modalities like Nonviolent Communication and Somatics can support our growth in awakening.
Closing Session - part 1. In this short teaching and guided meditation, we explore how to use the meditation instructions in the Simile of the Saw (Kakchupama Sutta, MN. 21) as preparation and cultivation for difficult conversations.
How do hold the teachings on letting go, non-attachment and non-self with the reality of having needs as a human being. What are needs and how do we relate to them with wisdom in a world that is beyond our control, neither suppressing and denying them nor becoming overly fixated or identified with them?
Using attention to identify an unmet need, and to shift to recognizing what matters at the core independent of any situation, time, person, place, or thing.
Right Speech is a key factor in the cultivation of the Noble Eightfold Path, shaping the heart and mind even as the heart-mind shapes our speech. Our intention is the decisive factor in determine the direction and shape of our speech, our heart and our mind.
