WEST BATH — “The foundation of all Buddhist practice is the development of an unbiased awareness of what our minds actually do moment after moment. This is called mindfulness meditation,” states a news release from the Dzogchen Meditation Center. And it will be the focus of an upcoming program.
The release continues: “By practicing mindfulness we realize that our minds are rarely still, in fact they are in constant, habitual movement. The constant movement of habitual mind doesn’t follow any rational pattern neither is it related to what is actually happening. The first step on the path is to realize that this habitual, discursive mind, which Buddhists call Ego, actually creates enormous pain for ourselves and others. As we begin to see this more clearly we develop renunciation and the wish to tame our crazy minds for the sake of ourselves and others.
“This class will focus on the problem and its solution as developed by the historical Buddha 2,500 years ago and rediscovered by millions of practitioners since then. We discover that through mindfulness practice or Shamatha as it is known in Sanskrit, our minds can become workable and our lives no longer driven by random habitual thoughts and emotions.”
The class will be Feb. 5 from 9 a.m. to noon at 4 Armstrong Way. For more information, call 443-3842 to register or email nmrc@comcast.net.
The center also hosts regular silent meditation practice every Sunday from 9 a.m.. to noon. A Dharma Discourse Class is held the first Sunday of each month.
Tashi Armstrong is resident teacher at the Dzogchen Meditation Center. He was a disciple of Trungpa Rinpoche and his Vajra Regent Osel Tendzin. He currently studies with Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche in Bodhnath, Nepal.
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