Archive of Talks

This Sunday, Jessica guided our reflections, with a focus on Compassion.  There are many ways of relating to the suffering of others, some skillful, many not so skillful.  Compassion, the second of the Brahma Viharas, is the fullest, most intimate and open-hearted way.  Excerpts from Mark Coleman’s Dharma talk and guided meditation on Compassion anchored… Read more

Payton led this the discussion this past Sunday on the topic of Anxiety, based around a talk by Matthew Brensilver. http://www.dharmaseed.org/teacher/496/talk/24441/ Some other good talks on the topic include a talk by Donald Rothberg and one by Michael Grady. Read more

Today, Michael brought our series on the 12 links of dependent arising to its conclusion, examining the ways in which Craving and Clinging lead almost inevitably to Becoming (taking on a personality style, which we then defend), Birth (inhabiting that style of being so completely that we can’t imagine seeing beyond it), and finally Old Age… Read more

This Sunday, Nancy led our investigation of the Four Great Elements of Nature and their relation to our own fundamental nature, Anatta.  As part of our exploration we spent time quietly and fully taking in the gardens outside the Studio, the wind, the sounds, the earth beneath our feet.   Read more

Michael guided our reflections as we explored Craving and Clinging, the next links in the chain of Dependent Arising.  Here we enter the real thicket of what makes for unsatisfactoriness in life.  The Buddha went well beyond the usual commonplaces here, distinguishing three different kinds of craving, and four distinct types of clinging.  Not only… Read more

This Sunday Joey guided our reflections on the dharma through a guided meditation by Guy Armstrong on expansive awareness and an excerpt from his talk on fear and fearlessness. the guided meditation is about 45 minutes long and can be found at http://www.dharmaseed.org/teacher/79/talk/22397/ and the complete talk on Fear and Fearlessness can be found at http://www.dharmaseed.org/teacher/79/talk/22258/… Read more