Samvega: Being Intimate With Urgency
Whether we found the practice because of singular traumatic events or an ever-present sense of existential dread, a sense of urgency is what likely inspired us to practice in the first place.
because we all can't be monks
Whether we found the practice because of singular traumatic events or an ever-present sense of existential dread, a sense of urgency is what likely inspired us to practice in the first place.
The Buddha also teaches us that we can find refuge in a dangerous world. What does it mean to find safety despite the inevitability of danger? What are the conditions for refuge?
Prison Mindfulness Summit: useful approaches to volunteering in prison, pitfalls that facilitators might encounter in incarcerated settings, and what makes for safe prison sanghas.
One way we can train our hearts is by practicing metta, which is often translated as lovingkindness. The word also carries with it ideas of benevolence, friendliness, and care for others.
If my prison story isn’t in service to something transformative, I am not interested in sharing it. Mine is a path of transformation and of love.
As one breathes in and out with careful attention, one may simply note the varying sensations of breath as soft or hard, wet or dry, cool or warm, and moving or still.
When the mind gets lost in thought, we gently note the distraction as whatever it may be and then return our attention to the sensation of breathing.
My grief was none other than love that I didn’t want to feel. Love that was so great it felt too dangerous to allow out.