Dharma Insight | Insight Meditation Community of Charlottesville

Teresa Miller gave this dharma talk at IMCC on Jan 16, 2018.

For more information, please visit the Insight Meditation Community of Charlottesville website: imeditation.org

Sharon Beckman-Brindley gave this dharma talk at IMCC on Jan 09, 2018.

"The purpose of life is to be happy." --Dalai Lama

The Buddha developed and then taught about states of happiness: those that are dependent on conditions and those that are not dependent on any conditions at all. The path that he has given us is primarily a path to the latter: a happiness that is completely independent of conditions.

Sometimes, however, when we offer the Buddha's teachings on ultimate awakening, it can appear that we are denigrating "lesser" kinds: the happiness of the simple pleasant: contact with the natural world, with belonging, with a healthy body and a mature and healthy and integrated mind.

This talk will outline how these different kinds of happiness relate to each other. It will also attempt to help practitioners diagnose which "level" of practice might currently be in need of closer attention and practice.

For more information, please visit the Insight Meditation Community of Charlottesville website: imeditation.org

Sharon Beckman-Brindley gave this dharma talk at IMCC on Jan 2, 2018.

“That gladness connected with what is wholesome, I call an equipment of mind for overcoming ill-will and hostility.” --The Buddha

In difficut times we are encouraged to connect with the wholesome. In the words of singer-songwriter and Zen priest Leonard Cohen, we might best focus our energy to "ring the bells that still can ring."

For more information, please visit the Insight Meditation Community of Charlottesville website: imeditation.org

Helen Farrar gave this dharma talk at IMCC on Dec 12, 2017.

Not being clear about how who “our people” have been—and are—can be a source of suffering, confusion, and conflict, subtle and not so subtle, both within and without. How can we open to that spacious field where all are “our people”? This talk will take a look at using our mindfulness practice to explore and hold kindly the life we were born into as a way of opening our minds—and our hearts— to “the other”, and to bringing more spaciousness and peace to ourselves and those around us.

For more information, please visit the Insight Meditation Community of Charlottesville website: imeditation.org

Jeff Fracher gave this dharma talk at IMCC on Dec 5, 2017.

Regret is central to the human experience, both for things we have done and things we have not done. How does the Dharma address the challenge of living with regret? How does excessive regret impede our progress on our spiritual path? The talk will offer a different perspective on living with the regret in our lives.

For more information, please visit the Insight Meditation Community of Charlottesville website: imeditation.org

Sharon Beckman-Brindley gave this dharma talk at IMCC on Nov 28, 2017.

In our ordinary way of looking at things, we usually see ourselves and others through socially constructed perceptions and limited views. These do, indeed, have some practical utility. Nevertheless, if we misunderstand, we can identify with these perceptions and views in ways that can lead to much suffering for ourselves and others. This evening's talk will explore this process and will offer an invitation to soften our attachments to our perceptions and views as we open to a larger mystery.

For more information, please visit: imeditation.org

Sharon Beckman-Brindley gave this dharma talk at IMCC on Nov 21, 2017.

Much of the time, we live, not so much in a real world, but in the filtered world made up of all of the perceptions, interpretations and stories we have learned over a lifetime. The Buddha referred to these as mirages that keep our own and others' suffering in place. Spiritual practice invites us to cultivate qualities of mind and heart that enable us to see with wider and wiser eyes. This talk explores how to do this - even at our holiday dinner tables.

For more information, please visit: imeditation.org

Laura Good gave this dharma talk at IMCC on Nov 7, 2017.

Laura discusses the teaching of the Second Arrow and how to "dodge the dart" with mindfulness.

For more information, please visit: imeditation.org

Jeff Fracher gave this dharma talk at IMCC on Oct 3, 2017.

Though the concept of ego has a specific connotation in the West, it has a very different meaning when referenced in Buddhism. We explore the concept of ego from a Buddhist perspective and discuss the ways in which it can impede our progress on our path. Tools for managing the ego will also be offered.

For more information, please visit: imeditation.org

Susan Stone gave this dharma talk at IMCC on Sep 26, 2017.

Susan Stone reflects on an experience with the negativity bias of the mind and how to work with it compassionately. She will also explore why we often resist needful life changes and why we need to step into them. At talk for all, whether you are new to meditation or a seasoned practitioner.

For more information, please visit: imeditation.org