photo credit: Dominik Scythe,
“red bleeding heart flower selective focus photography,” unsplash.com
Monday, September 30, we will meet online.
Dear Friends,
This week we will meet Monday evening, Sept. 30, from 7-8:30PM EDT online, Wednesday morning, Oct. 2, from 7-8AM EDT in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW), and Friday, Oct. 4, 12-1PM EDT online.
Our Monday night sangha will be facilitated by Ellen.
Ellen shares: I am so glad to facilitate this Fourth Mindfulness Training. It brings me back to one of Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay)’s teachings about deep listening, which is something I value but also struggle with.
Thay writes, “The roots of a lasting relationship are mindfulness, deep listening and loving speech” and “In the Lotus Sutra, we are advised to look and listen with the eyes of compassion. Compassionate listening brings about healing. When someone listens to us this way, we feel some relief right away. A good therapist always practices deep, compassionate listening. We have to learn to do the same in order to heal the people we love and restore communication with them." (quotes from How to Love and The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching).
In my morning sit, I often feel the distractions of my "monkey mind," a description of the way that our minds jump from thought to thought. Sometimes I find myself with this "monkey mind" when I am supposed to be listening to someone. Sometimes I am thinking about how to respond instead of focusing on what the other person is saying.
So, this mindfulness training provides an opportunity to think about how we listen— both to ourselves and to others, especially our dear ones. What gets in the way of listening? What helps us be good listeners? How do I hope others will listen to me?
We'll gather together online Monday and I look forward to whatever you are moved to share with the Sangha on this training or whatever else is on your heart.
Ellen