Via The Raft //

 

Profile in Peace New Film on Thay's Life & Peace Work Premieres Saturday A Cloud Never Dies, a new documentary about the life of Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay), will hold its world premier Saturday, April 2 on YouTube. Narrated by actor Peter Coyote, the film provides an intimate glimpse into the life of the global spiritual leader, poet, and human rights activist who is revered around the world for his pioneering teachings on mindfulness, global ethics, and peace. It's our deep aspiration that this film will inspire you to commit to the practice of peace in yourself and in your communities.

Watch the Film

VIA Lion’s Roar // Right Action in the Face of Suffering

 

Right Action in the Face of Suffering

As we witness the great suffering of the Russian-Ukraine war, says Dan Zigmond, we have a moral obligation to pay attention. Through mindfulness, he suggests, we can see the world as it really is and take right action.

Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Effort: Abandoning Arisen Unhealthy States

 

RIGHT EFFORT
Abandoning Arisen Unhealthy States

Whatever a person frequently thinks about and ponders, that will become the inclination of their mind. If one frequently thinks about and ponders unhealthy states, one has abandoned healthy states to cultivate unhealthy states, and then one’s mind inclines to unhealthy states. (MN 19) Here a person rouses the will, makes an effort, stirs up energy, exerts the mind, and strives to abandon arisen unhealthy mental states. One abandons the arisen hindrance of doubt. (MN 141)

Reflection

When a thought or emotion arises that is obviously unhelpful or unhealthy, it is natural to make some effort to get rid of it in order not to encourage the damage that such states can do to oneself and others. “Abandoning” involves a particular kind of effort, one that neither encourages nor rejects the unhealthy state. It is not a matter of repressing or pushing away unhealthy states but of letting them simply “flow through” the mind.

Daily Practice

While in some circumstances it can be healthy to doubt, the kind of doubt meant here is that which is debilitating and holds us back from practice and understanding. When doubt as an obstacle arises in your experience, simply let it pass without trying to hold on to it or push it away. You can “abandon” doubt by not letting it get a foothold in your mind but instead watching it arise and pass away, as it will naturally do if you let it.

Tomorrow: Establishing Mindfulness of Feeling and Abiding in the Second Jhāna
One week from today: Developing Unarisen Healthy States

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Questions? Visit the Dhamma Wheel orientation page.

Via Daily Dharma: An Act of Courage

 To forbear is indeed an act of courage and not a symbol of cowardice. It takes great effort and resolution to endure pain and hardship. It requires tremendous confidence to bear insult and disgrace without a hint of retaliation or self-doubt.

Master Hsing Yun, “Don’t Get Mad, Don’t Get Even”

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Listen to this week’s podcasts from the Be Here Now Network

  Ethan Nichtern – The Road Home – Ep. 70 – Ancestor Trouble with Maud Newton
April 01, 2022 Ethan Nichtern and Maud Newton discuss personal and collective origin stories, and how ancestral spirituality can help us heal generational trauma. Maud Newton is...

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Via Tricycle // Acknowledge, Feel, Soften

 

April 2, 2022

Acknowledge, Feel, Soften

 
We often think of mindful presence as a state that can be achieved only when we get all our distracting thoughts and uncomfortable emotions out of the way. 

But as Insight Meditation teacher Gil Fronsdal reminds us, we can cultivate a continuous stream of present-moment awareness even in the midst of distracting thoughts and emotions. 

On the latest episode of the podcast For the Moment, Fronsdal—a Bay Area–based author and teacher in the Soto Zen and Vipassana traditions—offers a three-step practice to acknowledge, feel, and soften toward our felt experience. Listen to the seven-minute guided audio meditation for a short and sweet mindful break that you can carry with you into the rest of your day. 

Tricycle’s For the Moment podcast series offers brief guided meditations from some of our favorite Buddhist teachers, including Mark Epstein, Thanissaro Bhikkhu, and Loch Kelly. You can access the full series on our Soundcloud page.
 

Listen now »

 

For the Moment: Acknowledge, Feel, Soften
With Gil Fronsdal

This seven-minute guided practice from Insight Meditation teacher Gil Fronsdal can help you make peace with your felt experience.

Listen now »