Sympathetic Joy, Mudita in Pali, is the quality of consciousness that happily celebrates the success and happiness of others, regardless of any material or status benefit for oneself.  The cultivation of mudita involves integrating lovingkindness with the in-born capacity we all have for empathy.  This talk reviews the classical understanding of mudita and how contemporary psychological research supports how this awareness is formed in the brain through the practice of mindfulness, investigation of mental phenomena and Right Effort.

Here are the notes prepared for this talk:  Working With Mudita

Next week’s talk will be provided by Lezlie Laws, one of the teachers who is being mentored by Peter.  The topic she reviews will focus on how the core teaching of Buddhism about impermanence affects our contemporary issues of time management.