Wednesdays, 7:00 – 8:00pm

NoHo Buddhist Meditation Class

A Compassionate Life: How to be a Bodhisattva, Friend to the World

$10 per class, free for supporting members

This class is offered in-person only

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to be fully invested in life; to live passionately? We may think a truly passionate life requires us to travel far away, move, change our relationships, our job, or other life circumstances. But what if all it required was a shift in attitude and intention? What if all we had to change was out mind?

Within the practice of Buddhist meditation, our role model for living the most meaningful, joyful, and fully engaged life is the Bodhisattva. A Bodhisattva is someone who, out of love and compassion for absolutely everyone, seeks to attain enlightenment, knowing this is the only way they can truly protect their family, friends, and, finally, all living beings, from suffering.

All of us possess the potential for enlightenment. The key to actualizing that potential is to train in the special intention, attitudes, and practices of a Bodhisattva, known as the Six Perfections. Over time we will find ourselves becoming more and more familiar with this beautiful, meaningful approach to life, and our life will become a joyful path to enlightenment. In this series, we’ll spend a few weeks generating the special mindset of a Bodhisattva. Then each week we will focus on – and meditate on – one of the Six Perfections.

March 6: Love, Compassion, and Enlightenment
March 13: The Best Mind with Which to Live
March 20: The Bodhisattva’s Way: Life as a Path to Enlightenment
March 27: Learning to Live Generously
April 3: A Code of Kindness to Live By
April 10: Patient Acceptance: The Key to Being Truly Helpful
April 17: A Life of Joy and Energy
April 24: The Necessity of a Focused Mind
May 1: The Liberating Wisdom of Emptiness

NEXT SERIES

Letting Go of Painful Emotions

In Buddhism, painful emotions are known as ‘delusions’. They are called this precisely because when we’re experiencing them our perceptions are distorted. Under their influence we see things incorrectly and act inappropriately. These deluded minds—eg. anger, anxiety, desirous attachment, jealousy, and deluded pride—are completely unreliable states of mind. Don't trust them! They are guaranteed to create unhappiness for ourself and others. This is why we need to learn skillful methods for recognizing them and letting them go.

In this series we will be meditating on the clarity of the mind and using the wisdom we gain to let go of painful emotions. We will explore some of the key delusions and train in practical methods for skillfully overcoming them. How much happier our life will be if we are no longer held captive by these painful emotions. The more we meditate on the natural clarity of our mind, the more easily we’ll be able to recognize, reduce, and finally abandon them.

We may feel that some situations in life actually require us to become anxious or angry. But, if we check, these emotions don’t help us to effectively navigate life’s challenges; they just hurt. Our life will be better and much more meaningful without them. By becoming more familiar with our naturally clear, peaceful mind, we’ll be able to transform even our greatest difficulties into spiritual opportunities for freedom and growth.

May 8: How Clarity Helps Us to Let Go
May 15: Freedom from Anger
May 22: Letting Go of Painful Uncontrolled Desire
May 29: Rejoicing vs Jealousy
June 5: Confidence vs Insecurity
June 12: Training in the Three Difficulties (So the Living Is Easy…and Meaningful)
June 19: No class
June 26: A Life of Freedom

DETAILS

Please note: The entrance to the Sheen Center is on Elizabeth Street
Our general program classes include Dharma teachings along with guided meditations
These classes are suitable for both beginners and more advanced meditation practitioners
General meditation classes are given as a series, but can also be taken individually
No special clothing is required
No pre-registration is necessary
Chairs are supplied
Everyone welcome!