Dear Friends,
With the understanding and practice of dana there is the experience of selflessness. With diligent practice of dana one becomes aware of habitual tendencies of body speech and mind that obstruct the practice. With this awareness there may be a natural striving to discard those tendencies. This striving inspires the practice of sila, the practice of harmlessness. A life guided by selflessness and harmlessness may begin to reveal one’s attachment to certain ways of acting, speaking and thinking and the expectation that everyone else should act speak and think in the same way. When seeing that, there may be an habitual tendency to become angry with, judge, strike out, punish, or retaliate against any being or oneself that does not behave the right way. The observations of these habitual reactions in the context of dana and sila lay the foundation for the practice of ksanti paramita: patience.
Over the next several weeks these posts and the practices will be focused on ksanti, patience. During the coming week the invitation is to reflect on the experiences of patience in your life. What shows up in the body, emotions and thoughts when reflecting on the word patience? Where is patience easy or challenging to practice? Take some time to practice an open ended inquiry: What is patience?
It would be great to hear your reflections. Please take some time to write them down and send them, even if it’s just a brief phrase. i.e. “What’s here when you contemplate on patience?”
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With these words I pay homage to all buddhas, bodhisattvas, sentient beings, and the totality. May these words not confuse, bring doubt, or harm, but bring ease and warmth and an end to suffering for all being
William
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Practice
Practicing in sangha, even virtually, supports the practice of meditation differently than practicing solitarily. The members of the Sangha of the Pandemic, invite you to practice with us. No experience is required. There is no cost. Everyone is welcome.
We practice on ZOOM:
Mornings
- Mondays – Calm abiding and insight meditation. 6:30 AM Pacific Time
- Tuesdays – Body awareness. 6:30 AM Pacific Time
- Thursdays – Tonglen, 6:30 AM Pacific Time
- Sundays – Brahmavihara. 7 AM Pacific Time
Evenings
- Mondays and Wednesdays: 4:30 PM Pacific Time
ZOOM Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89989680789
Please feel free to reach out with questions or insights. Please also feel free to forward this post and invite others to join the sangha. You may find more reflections, poetry, art at sanghaofthepandemic.org . If you would like to comment or offer feedback and insight you may do so in the comment section on the website or by email to wrgentner@gmail.com
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Check-In
If you have questions about meditation practice, or would like to have a conversation about the practice or anything else, you can check in with William by making an appointment. Go to “Check In Appts.”