As individuals and societies, we are pulled by both the insecurity of our evolutionary past, and by our awake heart, our capacity for mindfulness and compassion. This talk explores the ways we can listen to and respond to the call of our awake heart, by training ourselves to open to vulnerability (our own and others) and widen the circles of compassion (a favorite from the 2017 archives).

Beginning with the body and breath, then opening up to the experience of hearing, receiving sounds and and any moments of silence

Finding balanced effort as a process of attunement, with an overview of the practice of mindfulness of hearing as a way to train in receptive listening

Short beginning meditation to open the one-day on-line workshop, establishing metta as a resource before settling into mindfulness of the body and breathing

Beginning with the breath, physical sensations and sounds, then opening up to include mental activity

An introduction to working directly with the mind, practicising mindfulness of thinking

We begin with a brief review of the previous week's talk and discussion, in which we explored a number of ways to deepen (1) our formal practice; (2) our informal (daily life) practice; and (3) our service, work, and/or activism as practice. This exploration points to a broadened sense of practice. We then examine in some depth three inter-related foundational areas for deepening practice in all three areas: (1) developing mindfulness of the body; (2) working to transform reactivity (here as a translation of "dukkha"), including as it manifests in challenging or difficult experiences; and (3) pausing and setting intentions. Our discussion particularly goes into being skillful with challenging experiences.