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The greatest gift is the
gift of the teachings
 
James Baraz's Dharma Talks
James Baraz
I try to convey that the wisdom and compassion we are looking for is already inside of us. I see practice as learning how to purify our mind and heart so we can hear the Buddha inside. In doing so, we naturally embody the dharma and help awaken that understanding and love in others we meet.
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2021-02-09 Trusting Your Buddha Knowing 59:37
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With so many instructions and ways to practice, how do we know which is the "right one"? Similarly, with all decisions we need to make in our lives, how can we access the wisdom right inside?
Spirit Rock Meditation Center :  February Insight Meditation Retreat: A Retreat for Experienced Students with James Baraz, Sally Armstrong, Kamala Masters, Andrea Fella, Dawn Scott, Bob Stahl, PhD, Louije Kim and Martha "Rasika" Link
2021-02-05 Forgiveness 50:26
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An important support for metta practice is forgiveness that softens the contracted heart that is stuck in aversion or ill will. This guided meditation practice first focuses on forgiveness towards ourselves--our body, mind, and heart--and then opens to both asking and extending forgiveness with others.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center :  February Insight Meditation Retreat: A Retreat for Experienced Students with James Baraz, Sally Armstrong, Kamala Masters, Andrea Fella, Dawn Scott, Bob Stahl, PhD, Louije Kim and Martha "Rasika" Link
2021-02-04 Guided Meditation on Refinement of the Breath 48:10
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This meditation is a support for exploring the subtleties of the breath as an aid to deepening concentration.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center :  February Insight Meditation Retreat: A Retreat for Experienced Students with James Baraz, Sally Armstrong, Kamala Masters, Andrea Fella, Dawn Scott, Bob Stahl, PhD, Louije Kim and Martha "Rasika" Link
2021-02-03 Holding the Judging Mind with Compassion 57:36
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Our mind is habitually judging and comparing ourselves with others or against some unrealistic standard of perfection. Seeing this habit as part of the human experience and not taking it personally is an important part of our practice. We can learn to relate to it with wisdom and compassion that transforms it from being a personal problem to a wise understanding of the selfless nature of experience.
Spirit Rock Meditation Center :  February Insight Meditation Retreat: A Retreat for Experienced Students with James Baraz, Sally Armstrong, Kamala Masters, Andrea Fella, Dawn Scott, Bob Stahl, PhD, Louije Kim and Martha "Rasika" Link
2021-01-28 Anatta and Self-Forgiveness 49:00
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Do you ever give yourself a hard time if you've made an embarrassing mistake or have done something you regret? This talk explores how we can truly forgive ourselves with a thorough understanding of the Buddha's teaching on the selfless nature of who we are, otherwise known as Anatta, the selfless nature of experience.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-12-17 The Choice is Ours: Wise Relationship to Our Experience 49:07
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These days have even more ups and downs than usual. For many it's both a time of sorrow and a time of joy. The mind can easily get caught in the difficulties when it's contracted by stress. But our Dharma practice shows us we have a choice how to wisely relate to our experience.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-12-10 Gregory Kramer on his book “A Whole Life Path" a fresh exploration of the 8-Fold Path. 63:42
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with Gregory Kramer, James Baraz
Many lay Buddhists struggle to carry the benefits of their studies and meditation practice into their twenty-first-century lives. How might our daily experience of both life and the Buddha’s teachings shift if there were no separation between them? Gregory speaks about the realistic and comprehensive vision that arises when we ask this question: If every moment of my life is Path, then what does each path factor need to cover for this to be true in a grounded, practical way?
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-12-03 Three Pillars of Dharma 52:14
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This is a continuation of the theme of the process of purification that leads to awakening. An exploration of what Joseph Goldstein calls "Three Pillars of Dharma." These are three spheres that we can cultivate which lead to supportive conditions for us to practice and then realize the fruits of practice. Includes Eve Decker offers a song on the theme.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-11-19 Transformation is Possible 50:20
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When we start the spiritual journey we see that our mind is filled with unskillful habits of thought, colored by attachment, aversion and confusion. The Buddha described the process of purification that enables us to purify and transform first our outward conduct, then our thoughts and finally our subtle spiritual aspirations. This purification process leads ultimately to full awakening. The talk includes the Buddha's teaching of how this process works through the simile of the "Refinement of Mind."
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-11-12 Across the Great Divide: What the Dharma Can Offer for Healing Our Country 52:09
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However you feel about the outcome, the presidential election has underscored the polarization that currently exists in our country. As long as each side mistrusts and fears the other, we cannot truly have peace and work together to make this a better society. What does the Dharma offer to help heal this divide? How can our practice support us individually and collectively to open our hearts with compassion and bridge the gulf with those who seem so different from us? How can we create better understanding and cut through "othering" so that each of us can contribute to greater healing rather than more divisiveness?
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-11-05 Letting Go of Knowing 50:00
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The election and its aftermath has been quite a roller coaster ride. Can we find balance and patience with all feelings that arise while allowing the unfolding to happen in its own time? We explore this theme and offer some practices going through these uncertain times.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-10-29 A Time For Equanimity 60:45
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We are in a unique moment in time for the United States and the world. How can we stay centered and even cultivate equanimity? Is it possible to hold a positive vision without getting caught in extra anxiety about the outcome? Can we allow for things to unfold as they will while having a clear focus of what we want to help create? Equanimity includes surrendering attachment while being inspired by gratitude, awe and possibility.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-10-15 Choosing Earth Pt. 1 with Duane Elgin and Friends 62:34
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The second of two talks with wisdom teacher Duane Elgin and friends sharing Elgin's realistic, sobering but ultimately hopeful vision of where we could be heading the next fifty years. His book Choosing Earth: Humanity's Great Transformation to a Mature Planetary Civilization discusses the possibilities that lie ahead and the vision for how we can use this time to wake up as a species. A brief recap of previous talk with additional comments, Then an exploration of how to hold the unfolding from a psychological and Dharma perspective.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-10-08 "Choosing Earth" with Duane Elgin and Coleen LeDrew Elgin 64:28
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James' special guests are wisdom teacher Duane Elgin (author of the classic Voluntary Simplicity) and his partner, Coleen LeDrew Elgin, share his realistic but hopeful vision of where we could be heading the next fifty years. His new book Choosing Earth: Humanity's Great Transformation to a Mature Planetary Civilization discusses the possibilities that lie ahead and the vision for how we can use this time to wake up as a species.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-10-01 Holding a Positive Vision: Part 3 44:48
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A third in a series of talks on holding a positive vision. We explore some of the principles on mindful engagement presented in Sharon Salzberg's book Real Change: Mindfulness for Ourselves and the World
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-09-24 "Contributing Effectively in Times of Crisis" Part 2 49:55
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This week we will continue with Roger Walsh's essay: "Ten Principles to Know to Contribute Strategically". These principles provide a big-picture context for understanding our current dilemmas, unearthing their deepest roots, and revealing the deepest and most effective responses. This is part of a series of talks on the importance of holding a positive vision even through the storm.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-09-17 "Contributing Effectively in Times of Crisis" Part 1 53:47
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In this time of great chaos and confusion we look at wisdom thinker Roger Walsh's new essay: "Contributing Effectively in Times of Crisis". We start by looking at four crucial questions: 1) What can I do? 2) What do I feel called to contribute? 3) What's the most strategic thing I can do? 4) How can I live my life so as to be an optimal instrument of service? The talk ends with Melanie DeMore singing I'm Sending You Light"
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-09-10 Holding a Positive Vision 53:47
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It seems like an accomplishment just getting through such tumultuous times--wildfires on the West Coast, storms around the country, coronavirus lockdown and the US in daily chaos. It would be understandable to succumb to anxiety and overwhelm. But as the Buddha taught, practice is about overcoming negative thoughts when they arise and cultivating wholesome thoughts and mind-states. We will explore the importance of holding a positive vision even through the storm.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-09-03 The Buddha as a Social Activist. 43:20
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Sometimes the teachings seem to suggest a life of withdrawing from the world. But the Buddha himself was an example of engagement and could even be called a political revolutionary. As we try to sort out how to apply the teachings, (including duties of a good ruler) to contemporary issues, it can help to see his teachings in that light.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-08-27 Keeping Your Heart Open 57:24
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It seems like we're collectively going through an intense initiation in so many ways--the wildfires, the virus, racial injustice, economic collapse and an election fraught with acrimony. The Buddha taught: "Hatred never ceases from hatred. Hatred only ceases from love." How can the teachings support us to skillfully keep our hearts open not only to those suffering but those who, through ignorance, cause suffering as well?
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-08-06 Keep Out the Hate, Let in the Love 46:19
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How can we prevent succumbing to all the negativity around us--messages of fear, hatred or despair from the media or people in our lives? Can we protect ourselves and process the very real issues facing us while letting ourselves still be nourished by the goodness that's around us?
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley
2020-07-17 We Are What we Think 54:12
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The Buddha taught: "We are what we think. With our thoughts we make the world." We will explore mana or "the conceit of I am" and how we construct a sense of self with our mind. Based on how we see ourselves or how we compare with others, mana or the conceit of “I am” is born. This tendency leads to "The Three Conceits: I am superior, I am inferior, I am equal to." If we're not mindful, we then erroneously proceed to make a permanent, solid entity of self. We explore how not seeing this clearly creates suffering and how we can free ourselves of this self-constructed suffering.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley :  IMCB Regular Talks
2020-07-10 How Not to Be a Hot Mess 63:15
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with Craig Hase, Devon Hase, Eve Decker, James Baraz
Devon and Craig Hase join James in sharing about their new book How Not to Be a Hot Mess: A Survival Guide for Modern Life. The book offers a playful exploration of living a life of Integrity based on the teachings of the Buddha. Devon and Craig lead meditation retreats throughout North America and Europe. Devon teaches at the Insight Meditation Society and Spirit Rock. Craig spent six years in a Zen monastery and teaches mindfulness meditation, and dharma full time.
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley :  IMCB Regular Talks
2020-07-03 Applying Early Buddhist Perspective to Contemporary Issues 55:09
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Ven. Bhikkhu Analayo has just written an essay exploring how the early Buddhist perspective shows that diversity work can become an integral part of the Buddhist path of practice. We will explore some of Ven. Analayo's ideas and see how we can apply them in our own practice. We'll also touch a recent article by Bhikkhu Bodhi, another esteemed Buddhist scholar, entitled "From Tragedy to Hope: Reflections on the Killing of George Floyd".
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley :  IMCB Regular Talks
2020-06-18 Racism and White Privilege - Part 3: Working with Guilt and Shame 52:18
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The Buddha spoke of hiri and ottappa (Shame and Dread) as "The Guardians of the World." These are considered two wholesome states as they can prevent us from engaging in unskillful actions. But guilt and shame associated with internalized racism can paralyze us or put up walls of resistance. This is especially true if we take those feelings personally and blame ourselves for the cultural conditioning we're shaped by. How can we work skillfully with those natural and understandable reactions?
Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley :  IMCB Regular Talks

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