This week’s Sangha explored Samatha, which, broadly speaking, is the practice of meditation with the intention of developing calm and tranquility. Samatha is one of the key approaches to Samadhi, often translated as “concentration”, but better be thought of “a state of collectedness”.
Margaret skillfully led the session, including a guided meditation by Chas Dicapua, available here: https://dharmaseed.org/teacher/43/talk/61042/
We also listened to excerpts from a talk by Chas, which can be found here: https://dharmaseed.org/teacher/43/talk/61043/
The daily reflections by Chas Dicapua can be found on the Insight Meditation Society YouTube page. We listened to one of these:
(These can all also be found on the IMS page on Facebook)
During the discussion, Denise recommended the following book in connection to the relation between physical tension and mental trauma:
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk
Burlington Buddhist Sangha 