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Meditation begins at 10:41
Hello Wonderful Open Heart Project, Sometimes the best way to deepen practice is to begin at the beginning. The Buddha’s first teaching was the Four Noble Truths. Though I’ve been studying them for decades, I still hear something new every time I return to them. The teachings may be familiar, but my life has changed, and I can hear them... READ MORE
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Meditation begins at 17:59
Hello Wonderful Open Heart Project, One of the most important spiritual practices I know is this: clean up after yourself. Not because you should be more organized or more virtuous. Because every unfinished mess takes your attention. We can clean up physically by caring for the spaces we live in, emotionally by apologizing when we’ve caused harm or addressing what... READ MORE
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Meditation begins at 23:38
Hello Wonderful Open Heart Project, How do you find a teacher? It’s a question I hear often, and the answer is more nuanced than you might think. Every true teacher appears in three ways. There is the outer teacher, the person who offers the teachings. There is the inner teacher, the part of you that recognizes something as true. And... READ MORE
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Meditation starts at 12:49
Hello Wonderful Open Heart Project, It’s no secret that many forces are competing for your attention, especially online. Some are noble and righteous. Some are not. Trying to track it all is…exhausting. The need for boundaries for our hearts and minds has never been more important. We must preserve our energy so that we can continue to care. Meditation helps... READ MORE
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Hello Wonderful Open Heart Project, When I first learned to meditate, I was given an instruction that has stayed with me for more than 30 years: place more attention on the out breath than the in breath. This week my mother entered hospice care. She is 96 and as I prepare to be with her, that simple instruction has taken... READ MORE
Thank you to all who registered for the info session on the 30 Days of Dharma program. If you have any questions, email us. Just for your awareness, we have 2 spots left in this new program. I hope to see you there. Love, Susan
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Meditation practice begins at 8:51
Hello, wonderful Open Heart Project meditator. Before we sit today, I want to share with you a few thoughts about a concept famously associated with Buddhism: emptiness. It’s easy to think this means something like null or devoid of meaning or value. It doesn’t! Have a listen for more on the beauty and power of true emptiness. With love, Susan... READ MORE
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Meditation practice begins at 10:08
Hello, wonderful Open Heart Project meditator. Before we sit today, I want to share with you a teaching called the Four Thoughts that Turn the Mind to the Dharma. In a recent conversation with the wonderful, deeply realized teacher, Lama Sonam Rinpoche, he mentioned numerous times that these teachings, also called the Four Reminders, change everything. Have a listen and... READ MORE
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Meditation practice begins at 6:40
Hello, wonderful Open Heart Project meditator. This week’s email is a chance to meditate together once again. We just moved to a new house and this is my first video from a brand new place. It was exciting to feel connected to you here. Before we sit, I share an experience I had during a recent meditation practice. Instruction was... READ MORE
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Meditation practice begins at 11:46
Hello Wonderful Open Heart Project, There is a great deal happening in the world that can leave us angry, heartbroken, and overwhelmed. Meditation is not about getting rid of those feelings. It is about learning to work with them without hardening our hearts or losing touch with our shared humanity. One of the most important lessons of practice is to... READ MORE
Thank you to all who registered for info session on the Bodhisattva Path and the upcoming retreat at Drala Mountain Center yesterday. I hope to see you on retreat. Love, Susan
Hello, Open Heart Project. Wanted to pop in to let you know I have a new book, Inexplicable Magic: Meditation for Mystics. It came out a few weeks ago and was written to explore meditation practice as a spiritual practice. The book outlines seven principles for keeping your practice in the realm of the spiritual rather than some kind of strategy... READ MORE
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