Joseph Goldstein explores how we can make compassionate responsiveness our default state through the clear dichotomy of skillful and unskillful actions. 

The Satipatthana Sutta is one of the most celebrated and widely studied discourses in the Pāli Canon of Theravada Buddhism. This episode is the 43rd part of an in-depth 46-part lecture series from Joseph Goldstein that delves into every aspect of the Satipatthana Sutta. If you are just now jumping into the Satipatthana Sutta series, listen to Insight Hour Ep. 203 to follow along and get the full experience!

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In this episode’s exploration of the Satipatthana Sutta, Joseph Goldstein discusses:

• The mass madness and destruction caused by cruelty—on both global and personal levels
• How subtle, unnoticed moments of cruelty can live within us without our awareness
• The spiritual and emotional challenge of keeping our hearts open in the face of immense suffering
• Transforming consciousness to make compassion and empathy our natural, default response
• The gift of mindfulness: seeing things as they truly are
• Empathy as a foundational practice and the essential first step toward compassionate action
• Releasing anger by opening ourselves to the suffering behind it
• Two paths of compassion: compassionate action and compassion as a motivation to awaken
• Planting seeds of compassion for the benefit of all beings 
• Naturally flowing compassion from a heart free of ego and self-reference

"The more we practice and grow in our wisdom, the wisdom of understanding selflessness, the more compassion manifests spontaneously—compassion is the activity of emptiness." – Joseph Goldstein

This episode was originally published on Dharmaseed

Grab a copy of the book Joseph references throughout this series, Satipaṭṭhāna: The Direct Path to Realization, HERE

“Our practice is really about the transformation of consciousness in such a way that makes compassionate responsiveness the default setting of our lives. Can we really open in such a way and understand things in such a way that it simply becomes the way we are—it becomes our natural response.” – Joseph Goldstein

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