Podcasts about empathetic joy

We can choose to find joy in other's happiness, even when we're not exactly sitting on the beach. Dora Kamau holds a B.A. in Psychology and a B.S. in Psychiatric Nursing. She is a certified Mindfulness Meditation teacher and is working to complete her Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Teacher training this fall. Before joining forces at Headspace, Dora worked as a psychiatric nurse in a women's addictions facility and organized community events for BIPOC women in Vancouver, BC, Canada. You can reach out to Dora on Instagram here! Try the Headspace app free for 30 days here! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mass grief. Mass outrage. Seemingly everywhere. But can we also learn to share in each other's joy? Eve Ekman, Shelly Gable and Amelie, an On Point listener, join Meghna Chakrabarti.

Mass grief. Mass outrage. Seemingly everywhere. But can we also learn to share in each other's joy?

Ayya Dhammadipa leads a 12-minute meditation on empathetic joy, also known as mudita. In this practice, we use joy that is sparked by the joy of other beings to radiate this state of mind, allowing the opportunity to go beyond ourselves and into a much vaster space of joyously relating to the world.This practice is one of the four brahmaviharas, also known as the heavenly dwellings or four immeasurables.Ayya Dhammadīpā is a Buddhist nun and teacher with a unique background: Before becoming a nun, she got an MBA, worked in investment banking, and was a devoted mother. For twenty years, Ayya Dhammadipa studied in the Zen Buddhist tradition, but now practices the earlier Buddhist lineage of Theravada. In the last episode, she talked with me about these interesting turns in her life, where mindfulness fits into a complete path of self-development, how to balance motherhood with practice, and about the joys of giving and receiving which she writes about in her recent book Gifts Greater Than the Oceans, which is available now freely on her website. You can also learn more about her online community and offerings at Dassanaya.org.Episode Webpage - Guided Meditation: Empathetic Joy with Ayya DhammadipaSupport the show (https://www.skepticspath.org/support/)

We often associate empathy only with connecting in understanding of others' sadness or grief. When we give empathy to someone for the positive emotions in their life, that is called empathetic joy! Who do you know who is experiencing something wonderful in their life? How might you hop on board to celebrate their love, joy, and happiness? Building our capacity for empathetic joy is a beautiful gift to give our loved ones, neighbors and friends, and it isn't solely generosity. It fills up our hearts as well. Celebrating you and your joy today and all days!

A talk by Thanissaro Bhikkhu entitled "Empathetic Joy"

This talk was given by Nikki Mirghafori on 2021-03-01 at the Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City, CA. ****** Would you rather watch? A video of this talk is available at https://youtu.be/xBlQ_9zptNg. ****** For more talks like this, visit AudioDharma.org ****** If you have enjoyed this talk, please consider supporting Audio Dharma with a donation at https://www.audiodharma.org/donate/. ****** This talk is licensed by a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License

Have you ever felt unsupported by someone close to you when you've experienced success?Or have you ever felt a tinge of jealousy when someone achieves success or gets what you want? Jealousy and feeling unsupported is a normal part of the human experience. It's calling us to rise up to cultivate empathetic joy.Never heard of it? Well that's what we are dishing about on this episode. You'll learn:How to truly learn how to be happy for others success. How to not take it personal when others can't celebrate our wins. How to tap into the mindset of learning and feeling Inspired by others instead of hating on them.

Welcome back to Soul Tears! This is the show where we talk about those emotional A-ha Moments.  Today we have one of our solo rounds we call a "Mental Wealth Moment". In this short episode, we talk about how to overcome those negative feelings that can surface  when people you know  succeed.   In this short episode, learn how a simple visualization helped me change perspective. Resources Insight Timer - https://insighttimer.com/ Guided Meditation - Manifestation and Empathetic Joy -  By Christina Sian McMahon, Ph.D. Connect with us!----Connect with Sean Bloch◼️Website: www.bluehalofilms.com◼️Instagram:@seanstevebloch◼️Twitter: @seanstevebloch----Subscribe to Podcast◼️ITUNES

Practicing empathetic joy is a simple way to bust through jealousy and keep yourself a vibrational match to all your desires. We discuss why you need to stop being jealous and start getting joyful! And of course Josh decided to start mowing the lawn right outside my window as soon as I started recording, so apologies on the background noise haha. Connect with Kiki Here: Msha.ke/namaslaybabe Instagram.com/namaslaybabe Facebook.com/namaslaybabe Facebook.com/groups/namaslaybabes Pinterest.com/namaslaybabe Anchor.fm/namaslaybabe Interested in NLP? Get certified here: http://www.tdnlp.com/t/NLPP?a=833

Against The Stream is a 501(c)3 non profit American Buddhist lineage founded by Noah Levine, author of Dharma Punx, Against the Stream, Heart of the Revolution and Refuge Recovery.If you feel moved to donate, your donations are welcome.PayPal > $5 Donation > $10 Donation > Other > Monthly Recurring Venmo > @AgainstTheStreamMeditation

Alan started by providing us with the flow of context for today’s practice, Great Empathetic Joy. The Four Greats have the even-heartedness of equanimity as their foundation. The false facsimile of equanimity is aloof indifference, which could lead one to aim only for one’s own liberation. So it is Great Compassion that could serve as a remedy to pull us out of indifference, since it opens our eyes and our hearts to the suffering of the world. Then we move on to Great Loving Kindness, where we focus on the positive that is also found in the world. We then move further on to Great Empathetic Joy, and the classical Tibetan liturgy for that starts with the question: Why couldn’t all sentient beings be never parted from sublime happiness devoid of suffering? It is clear that “sublime happiness” cannot mean hedonic pleasure. To feel pleasure or strive only for pleasure even when the world around us is full of suffering would be a totally deluded attitude. But how is it possible to maintain the state of sublime happiness despite viewing all suffering? The only perspective from which this is possible is the perspective of rigpa. To rest in rigpa, sustain this view and remaining totally inactive, but inactive only as a sentient being, while at the same time being totally active in the world, and all your activity being just spontaneously actualized. Well, right now we only have some foretaste of what this would be like… Alan then shares a story about a yogi up in the Himalayas, and explains how we bring that into our situation. This yogi stated that when he attends to the suffering, he first opens his heart to it with empathy, and out of that some vision arises that there is a possibility for freedom. This means you develop a vision about the causes and conditions that are necessary to bring this about, and that’s what your aspiration is rooted in, that you will bring this about. Then you do what is right for now, and out of that comes your well-being. So what can we do to bring it about, what is good for right now? It again boils down to creating a suitable environment, having companions, spiritual guidance… Wait a minute, doesn’t that sound like a contemplative observatory? Guided meditation starts at 46:09 min

Alan started by providing us with the flow of context for today’s practice, Great Empathetic Joy. The Four Greats have the even-heartedness of equanimity as their foundation. The false facsimile of equanimity is aloof indifference, which could lead one to aim only for one’s own liberation. So it is Great Compassion that could serve as a remedy to pull us out of indifference, since it opens our eyes and our hearts to the suffering of the world. Then we move on to Great Loving Kindness, where we focus on the positive that is also found in the world. We then move further on to Great Empathetic Joy, and the classical Tibetan liturgy for that starts with the question: Why couldn’t all sentient beings be never parted from sublime happiness devoid of suffering? It is clear that “sublime happiness” cannot mean hedonic pleasure. To feel pleasure or strive only for pleasure even when the world around us is full of suffering would be a totally deluded attitude. But how is it possible to maintain the state of sublime happiness despite viewing all suffering? The only perspective from which this is possible is the perspective of rigpa. To rest in rigpa, sustain this view and remaining totally inactive, but inactive only as a sentient being, while at the same time being totally active in the world, and all your activity being just spontaneously actualized. Well, right now we only have some foretaste of what this would be like… Alan then shares a story about a yogi up in the Himalayas, and explains how we bring that into our situation. This yogi stated that when he attends to the suffering, he first opens his heart to it with empathy, and out of that some vision arises that there is a possibility for freedom. This means you develop a vision about the causes and conditions that are necessary to bring this about, and that’s what your aspiration is rooted in, that you will bring this about. Then you do what is right for now, and out of that comes your well-being. So what can we do to bring it about, what is good for right now? It again boils down to creating a suitable environment, having companions, spiritual guidance… Wait a minute, doesn’t that sound like a contemplative observatory? Guided meditation starts at 46:09 min

In today’s meditation we took up the topic of empathetic joy again, which is often overlooked when we choose amongst the variety of meditation methods for our sessions. Specifically the kindness that our parents showed to us throughout our lives is something we easily forget, we tend to focus more on the bad things that they did to us. For in-between sessions Alan recommends again to train our prospective memory. On the one hand this regards dream yoga, recognizing during daytime anomalies that we encounter, and remembering to do something, like a state check. Then, when we go to sleep we should remind ourselves to recognize it when we dream. On the other hand, prospective memory can also be trained for empathetic joy, that we remind ourselves during the day to keep our eyes open for others’ happiness and their virtues. We don’t remember things we don’t attend to, so specifically looking out for all the occasions of virtue that we witness, also virtue done by us, will give us more material to recall during our meditation sessions on empathetic joy. Meditation on empathetic joy starts at 05:58 min

In today’s meditation we took up the topic of empathetic joy again, which is often overlooked when we choose amongst the variety of meditation methods for our sessions. Specifically the kindness that our parents showed to us throughout our lives is something we easily forget, we tend to focus more on the bad things that they did to us. For in-between sessions Alan recommends again to train our prospective memory. On the one hand this regards dream yoga, recognizing during daytime anomalies that we encounter, and remembering to do something, like a state check. Then, when we go to sleep we should remind ourselves to recognize it when we dream. On the other hand, prospective memory can also be trained for empathetic joy, that we remind ourselves during the day to keep our eyes open for others’ happiness and their virtues. We don’t remember things we don’t attend to, so specifically looking out for all the occasions of virtue that we witness, also virtue done by us, will give us more material to recall during our meditation sessions on empathetic joy. Meditation on empathetic joy starts at 05:58 min

Alan talks about the cultivation of empathetic joy, which among the four immeasurables is the one that is often easily overlooked. However, it is extremely important because it’s not simply about being happy, but about cultivating a feeling of a shared joy. Furthermore, it is the antidote for the near enemy of compassion: depression or despair. So when we are cultivating empathetic joy, it is important to note that we are, of course, not deluding ourselves into thinking that all is good. However, as humans have the tendency to focus on the negative, we are merely balancing that out a bit by focusing our attention on the positive in a positive manner. Thus, we change the “What” and the “How”. After the meditation Alan elaborates on our habit of reifying the past. The meditation we just did serves as a good example: How often has it happened that when you do that meditation, you think of the same three or four events? That shows how extremely selective our memory is and how small a portion of our past we actually remember. On top of that, these three events are of course by far not a real representation of what actually happened - they are a story we tell ourselves of what happened, a story that is true only in relation to our cognitive framework in the present. Thus, we have the capacity of reshaping the way our past influences us in the present. These thoughts then lead Alan to talk about the naturalistic approach of Buddhism. This approach is based on observations, observations that any individual can make. Such observation then shows that mental states have as much causal efficacy as physical objects such as rocks, dogs, etc. So the mind is as real as anything else. What might cause confusion, however, is that often scientific materialists nowadays speak of themselves as naturalists, meaning: “Nature is that which is not supernatural; supernatural is that which is not physical.” However, up to this day no scientist has ever been able to show with empirical evidence what the nature of the correlation between subjective experience and neural processes is! Thus, from that point of view all mental states are supernatural. The problem, however, is not that this has not been proven, but that many scientists, journalists etc. act as if it had been proven, which is not empirical. If you look at quantum mechanics which has not been able to make significant progress in interpreting its own findings, you have to acknowledge that at least they are honest about it and admit not knowing what quantum mechanics implies. Whereas in neuroscience many people cover up the hard-problem simply. This is best illustrated by the placebo effect: the name suggests that the placebo is what does the magic, but this is fundamentally wrong, otherwise one could just tweak the brain - but one can’t because it’s faith that does the trick. Alan then calls for action and requests that today’s science, which is largely dominated by wealth, power and prestige, moves beyond that, moves beyond determinism or the theory of pure chance which gives the individual no motivation to act and no moral responsibility for the actions. Meditation starts at 18:54

Alan talks about the cultivation of empathetic joy, which among the four immeasurables is the one that is often easily overlooked. However, it is extremely important because it’s not simply about being happy, but about cultivating a feeling of a shared joy. Furthermore, it is the antidote for the near enemy of compassion: depression or despair. So when we are cultivating empathetic joy, it is important to note that we are, of course, not deluding ourselves into thinking that all is good. However, as humans have the tendency to focus on the negative, we are merely balancing that out a bit by focusing our attention on the positive in a positive manner. Thus, we change the “What” and the “How”. After the meditation Alan elaborates on our habit of reifying the past. The meditation we just did serves as a good example: How often has it happened that when you do that meditation, you think of the same three or four events? That shows how extremely selective our memory is and how small a portion of our past we actually remember. On top of that, these three events are of course by far not a real representation of what actually happened - they are a story we tell ourselves of what happened, a story that is true only in relation to our cognitive framework in the present. Thus, we have the capacity of reshaping the way our past influences us in the present. These thoughts then lead Alan to talk about the naturalistic approach of Buddhism. This approach is based on observations, observations that any individual can make. Such observation then shows that mental states have as much causal efficacy as physical objects such as rocks, dogs, etc. So the mind is as real as anything else. What might cause confusion, however, is that often scientific materialists nowadays speak of themselves as naturalists, meaning: “Nature is that which is not supernatural; supernatural is that which is not physical.” However, up to this day no scientist has ever been able to show with empirical evidence what the nature of the correlation between subjective experience and neural processes is! Thus, from that point of view all mental states are supernatural. The problem, however, is not that this has not been proven, but that many scientists, journalists etc. act as if it had been proven, which is not empirical. If you look at quantum mechanics which has not been able to make significant progress in interpreting its own findings, you have to acknowledge that at least they are honest about it and admit not knowing what quantum mechanics implies. Whereas in neuroscience many people cover up the hard-problem simply. This is best illustrated by the placebo effect: the name suggests that the placebo is what does the magic, but this is fundamentally wrong, otherwise one could just tweak the brain - but one can’t because it’s faith that does the trick. Alan then calls for action and requests that today’s science, which is largely dominated by wealth, power and prestige, moves beyond that, moves beyond determinism or the theory of pure chance which gives the individual no motivation to act and no moral responsibility for the actions. Meditation starts at 18:54

Teaching. Alan continues the series on the 4 greats with great empathetic joy. When you become lucid in a dream, happiness arises from knowing reality as it is. As long as you remain lucid, nothing in the dream can cause suffering. Therefore, the instruction is to stay lucid by not losing the recognition of the dream as a dream. Shamatha helps you sustain lucidity. Vipasyana counters our ingrained tendency to reify everything. When you break through the substrate consciousness to primordial consciousness, the instruction is similar: don’t lose the recognition by sustaining the view of rigpa. There is nothing else to do. Meditation. Great empathetic joy. Let your awareness permeate the space of the body and come to rest in the immediacy of the present moment. In the space before you, visualize Samantabhadra, the personification of your own primordial awareness, deep blue in color and radiating a sapphire light. Take refuge in the primordial buddha Samantabhadra, the dharma of all the buddhas, and the sangha of vidyadharas. Samantabhadra comes to the crown of your head, dissolves into indigo light, flows the your central channel, and reforms at your heart chakra. Your own body, speech, and mind become indivisible with Samantabhadra. Light permeates the space of your body and your empty mind. From this perspective, inquire 1) why couldn’t all sentient beings never be parted from happiness free of suffering? Arouse the aspiration 2) may we never be parted from such well-being. Arouse the intention 3) as long as space remains, as long as time remains, I shall do whatever is needed to bring this about. 4) May I receive blessings from the guru Samantabhadra and all the enlightened ones to carry through. With every in breath, light from all the buddhas flow in from all directions, saturating your being and purifying all negativities. With every out breath, light flows out in all directions, dispelling all negativities and doing whatever is needed to bring all sentient beings to lasting happiness without suffering. Meditation starts at 13:21

Teaching pt1. Alan continues with the series on the 4 greats with great empathetic joy. Unlike empathetic joy in the Pali canon, great empathetic joy is an aspiration. There’s a similar liturgy. 1) Why couldn’t all sentient beings never be parted from happiness free of suffering? This doesn’t refer to hedonic pleasure but eudaimonia. It also refers to freedom from all three kinds of suffering. 2) May we all never be parted from happiness free of suffering. 3) I shall do it. 4) May I receive blessings from all the enlightened ones to do so. Meditation. Great empathetic joy. Let your awareness illuminate the space of the body and the space of the mind. The human body is imputed upon the appearances within the space of the body, and the human mind upon the appearances within the space of the mind. Yet these appearances are empty of body and mind. Imagine pristine awareness as an orb of light at your heart chakra. Withdraw all appearances into this orb, and reimagine your human form as transparent, radiant light with the nature of Avalokiteshvara. Inquire 1) Why couldn’t all sentient beings never be parted from happiness free of suffering? What would be needed to bring this about? Arouse the aspiration 2) may we all never be parted from happiness free of suffering. Arouse the intention from your pristine awareness 3) I shall do it. 4) May I receive blessings from all the enlightened ones to do so. With every in breath, blessings in the form of light come in from all directions and fill your body. With every out breath, light flows out in all directions, bringing sentient beings to happiness without suffering. Teaching pt2. Try to achieve a smooth transition between meditation sessions and post-meditation sessions. In between sessions, act as an illusory being. This instruction helps withdraw reification of body and mind. Meditation starts at 8:15

Teaching pt1. Alan recounts 2 parables from Karma Chagme’s Naked Awareness. 1) foolish prince who likes horses but develops renunciation and 2) foolish prince who becomes a beggar due to amnesia but rediscovers his true identity. Remain in the castle of your own awareness while beholding the kingdom of your own body. Take satisfaction in awareness resting in its own place. After rumination, take satisfaction in recovering awareness and coming home. Meditation: empathetic joy preceded by shamatha method of choice. 
1) shamatha method of choice. Let awareness come to rest, releasing all grasping and effort. 
2) empathetic joy. Take satisfaction in awareness holding it s own ground—still, relaxed, luminous, content. As you gain experiential insight into your own consciousness, take delight those sowing the seeds for the renaissance of contemplative traditions and a revolution in the mind sciences. Take delight in those identifying the true causes of suffering and pursuing the true causes of happiness. With each out breath, shine light of gratitude and appreciation. Teaching pt2. Who’s there according to the 3 turnings of the wheel of dharma? In the 1st turning, the autonomous agent is not there. In the 2nd turning, there is no sentient being to be found. In the 3rd turning, 1) where you are, there’s buddha mind, rigpa, or dharmakaya, 2) the ultimate nature of your mind and buddha mind is no different, and 3) all sentient beings belong to the same buddha family. We can either adopt and identify with mind and body arisen through karma and mental afflications or buddha mind. We need insight into emptiness of self and the guru in order to practice guru yoga which leads us to buddha mind. Guru yoga isn’t blind faith idolatry. Even in the 1st turning, we are advised to check the guru carefully before viewing him/her as an emissary of the Buddha. Apologies, there has been a cut in the recording at: 57:28 Meditation starts at: 18:45

Teaching pt1. Alan revisits the 3rd of the 4 immeasurables, empathetic joy. One of the early lamrim meditations is recognizing precious human rebirth (or literally, body) imbued with leisure and opportunity. This body—especially the subtle body of prana, chakra, and bindu—is likened to a wish-fulfilling gem. Meditation: empathetic joy preceded by settling body, speech, and mind. 
1) settling body, speech, and mind. Let awareness descend into the space of the body and rest in the empty appearances of the 5 elements. Release grasping onto the body, sensations, and feelings. Release the breath, also empty appearances without owner or inherent nature. Release the mind. Release fully with each out breath, and relax more and more deeply without losing clarity.
2) empathetic joy. Consider what value you place on this lifetime/opportunity with leisure to progress along the path to liberation and awakening. Rejoice in this immense opportunity, and resolve to take its essence for your own and others’ benefit. Turn your attention outwards to others who have found such an opportunity and are taking full advantage. With every out breath, shine light of appreciation, and rejoice in their virtue. Teaching pt2. Times were already degenerate at the time of the Buddha who taught mindfulness of breathing more than any other shamatha practice for those prone to rumination. Breathing out long may be associated with the peaceful. Breathing out short may be associated with the sublime as the pranic system settles. The whole body (of the breath) may be the flow characteristic of the ambrosial dwelling. Once shamatha is achieved, any unwholesome thought is dispelled. In the 19th century, Dudjom Lingpa taught taking appearances and awareness as the path for those whose mind is coarse and nervous system shot. Don’t look for clarity in the mind. Discover clarity by releasing everything that isn’t. Awareness is by nature clear. Just stay at home, and relax in the present moment where it’s real, without losing the flow of knowing. Don’t strive or hope for anything. The present moment and luminosity will rise up to meet you, until awareness is all that remains. There is nothing to achieve, nothing to meditate on. For the substrate consciousness and rigpa, simply release all that obscures that which is already there. Meditation starts at 13:15

Teaching pt1: Empathetic joy is taking delight in others’ virtues. As the only one of the 4 immeasurables which involves cultivating an emotion, empathetic joy also serves as the antidote to the near enemy of compassion, grief and despair. Given the prevalence of low self-esteem and guilt, it is also useful for many of us to take delight in our own virtues which is considered virtuous in buddhist teachings. Meditation: empathetic joy. Moving along the timeline from childhood to the present day, recall the kindness others have shown you. With each out breath, light emanates gratitude and rejoicing. Moving along the timeline from childhood to the present day, recall the kindness you have shown others and your cultivation of heart and mind. With each breath, light emanates gratitude and rejoicing, filling body and mind. Direct your attention to someone in particular or whoever comes up, and take delight in his/her virtues. With each out breath, light emanates gratitude and rejoicing. Teaching pt2: Discouragement and depression may come in two forms: 1) those which arise from a cause, spike, and fade out or 2) those which you are just bringing to the world. The same goes for gratitude. Over the years, Alan has seen that for people living in the spirit of gratitude, their practice always goes well whereas for people who complain a lot or are just plain grumpy, their practice seldom goes well, regardless of their intelligence or renunciation. As the Dalai Lama said, “It is better to find one fault in yourself than a thousand faults in another.” Why is this so? It is possible for us to fix that one fault in ourselves and that is cause for rejoicing. Meditation starts at 6:56

While attending to sentient beings always think... It's because of you're kindness that i have the opportunity to achieve enlightenment.

May we be a light that inspires others to draw on their own inner resources! Silent meditation not included.

We are invited to ask ourselves a question... How does one integrate vastly deepening bliss, on one hand, with increasingly boundless awareness of all beings' suffering on the other hand...? Meditation starts at 5:22

Maha-Mudita liturgy. Why couldn't all sentient beings never be separated from happiness and its cause's ? May we never be separated from genuine happiness and its causes. I make this resolve that we shall never be separated from happiness and its causes. May the Guru, the enlightened ones bless me that i shall be so enabled. Meditation starts at 25:10 - 49:26

Taking delight in virtue Meditation begins 8:50

Meditations starts at 00:35

Empathetic joy counteracts depression and low self-esteem, and balances the mind. Meditation starts at 11:11

Introduction of the third of the four immeasurables: Empathetic Joy Meditation starts at 07:27

Instruction and meditation on cultivating Empathetic Joy: Calling upon the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and gurus for blessing and remembering that they are not outside of ourselves but within us. Meditation starts at 11:26

Why couldn't we all never be parted from genuine happiness free from suffering? Cultivating Empathetic Joy is not just an emotion but also an aspiration. When we take on the personal commitment, "May I make it so" we go from immeasurable Empathetic Joy to great Empathetic Joy. We place a marker in the future for this commitment that we can't fulfill right now. Alan calls the Four Immeasurables the heartbeat of Bodhicitta - the four great steads that pull the Mahayana chariot with wisdom as the charioteer. Meditation starts at 11:34

Morning talk – Empathetic Joy – Finding commonality with others Meditation (13:12) Taking Joy in others joy – first in conventional joy, then in those creating virtue through their service to others, then in those creating virtue through Samadhi practice and finally taking joy in those creating virtue by practicing wisdom.

We come back to the cultivation of mediate, starting with oneself, but not an immutable self, a dependently arisen self. Alan again comments on our way of evaluating our practice: "Meditation, what have you given me this week?" No, no, no! All that comes up is a maturation of our karma From the lo jong (mind training) teachings: everything that comes up, transmute it into fuel for the path. "This happened. Others see it as poor you. I take it as a lesson to deepen my practice and wisdom." Become the alchemist of your life. From the perspective of rigpa: with deep intuitive faith seeing all experiences arising as coming from Buddhas to help us become enlightened - we can have an ongoing flow of gratitude for this! The one taste of felicity and adversity Meditation starts at 14:21

Alan continues his talk by emphasizing that hedonic pleasure cannot be the sole measure of something good/beneficial. Only through difficulties we encounter with others can we develop the paramitas. Whatever happens is also presenting an opportunity and helps us develop strength of mind in order to digest whatever the world dishes up. Guided meditation (33:08) focusing on the causes of happiness, starting with rejoicing in those who are doing something beneficial, those who are cultivating samadhi, those who are cultivating wisdom, and in one’s own positive factors both inner and outer. Questions (58:13): Q1) The events during the bardo of dying even when experienced cannot be reported upon because the has died. What are possible avenues of collaboration between buddhism and modern science to shed light on such questions?

Alan discusses how to approach one’s shamatha practice in a wise way - not by focusing upon “how it went” but rather on one’s application and effort. One should see that in every moment, no matter how good or bad, one is “accomplishing shamatha”. Turning to empathetic joy (47:47), he urges us to attend to and draw out the goodness in others. He deals with questions (72:26) regarding the notion of attending to thought without grasping, how to induce lucid dreaming, distinctions between vipashanya and shamatha and discusses the Buddhist perspective of Carl Jung’s concept of the collective unconscious.

Uplifted and inspired. If you want to start the week in this way, I recommend this podcast. This afternoon Alan explained one feature in common between the 3 practices of settling the mind in its natural state, awareness of awareness and empathetic joy. In the first one we withdraw the tentacles of identification that say "this is mine, I am such and such...". In the second one we go into the heart of the matter, to the actual experience of being the agent through our "cognoscopy" of withdrawing and releasing the awareness. In the third one we take the innate identification, usually limited to I and mine to make it unlimitedly benevolent by taking delight in all good fortune and virtue, wherever it is. Empathetic joy counteracts depression and low self-esteem, and balances the mind. The meditation (21:22) consisted of taking delight, step by step, from transient good fortune of others to the enlightenment of the awakened ones. Beautiful! Then there were interesting questions (47:00) about the relationship between confidence/arrogance and being humble/having low self-esteem; about the practice of settling the mind in its natural state: where do thoughts go, why do they disappear when being acknowledged, its connection with mindfulness of feelings; and a final question about the influence of the agent in the practice of awareness of awareness. As usual Alan gave juicy and fulfilling answers. Please enjoy!

Teaching: Alan introduces the 3rd immeasurable: empathetic joy, defined as taking delight in virtues of oneself and others. While an antidote to grief and general negativity in life, beware of pride which elevates oneself above others. Meditation (31:09): From your early childhood through the present, bring to mind those who have treated you well and enriched your life. Invoke a feeling of gratitude and gladness as you recall others’ virtue. From your early childhood through the present, bring to mind what you have brought to others. Take delight in your own virtue, without slipping into pride. Q&A (55:47): Q1) Are bursts of creativity during meditation nyams? And if so, should we not follow through on them? Q2) During awareness of awareness, can I remind myself with „knowing“ and „aware“? Q3) Can we be in one stage in one method and another stage in another method? Q4) Should we release inner guidance when it comes up? Q5) Is it possible to be at different stages at different times? Q6) In the Vajrayana, one brings the energies into the central channel in order to realize the dharmakaya. What’s the relationship to settling the body, speech, and mind in their natural state? Q7) In settling the mind in its natural state, I felt happy that images were appearing and wanted to manipulate them.

In this session, Alan Wallace guides a meditation on empathetic joy, emphasizing taking delight and joy in both the causes of genuine happiness and the material fruits of this happiness. In his introduction, he also speaks about the importance and meaning of path, and the question of how to develop a deep enough aspiration to clarify this path. The guided meditation begins at 22:45 in the recording. Alan then answers these questions from the group: 1. In the awareness of awareness practice, you asked us questions this morning, such as, "who do you think you are?" Should I be taking these questions into a contemplation on the spot? 2. When we meditate on an object for a while, and then after some time we fall away from it, should we use effort to bring the object back, or instead relax and trust that the object will return on its own? 3. The Bodhisattva's commitment to stay in this world until all beings achieve enlightenment seems like a kamikaze mission… [This question becomes more of a dialogue.] 4. In shamatha, with respect to vipassana, and particularly stream entry, for vipassana to be fully effective, shamatha is required. What does the first jhana bring for more benefit to stream entry, and can stream entry be accomplished without shamatha? 5. At the point of achieving shamatha, what is the heaviness on the head?

This afternoon's guided meditation on the immeasurable of empathetic joy focuses on cultivating the underlying causes of genuine happiness and flourishing. Alan Wallace reminds us that Tsongkhapa said that the easiest and most effective way to empower and energize one's practice is to take delight and satisfaction in it. The guided meditation begins at 12:30 in the recording. After the guided meditation, Alan answers these questions from the group: 1. Can you expand on the concept of collective karma that you mentioned recently? 2. Does Buddhism have a concept of free will, and how does this relate to non-self? 3. When I'm dwelling in the space of the mind, suddenly I remember that I am supposed to exhale and release, and I lose the concept of dwelling in the space of the mind. Then I'll just forget about exhaling anything, and breath and maintain awareness in this space... 4. In the practice of awareness of awareness, is there a difference in the way you release thoughts as compared to the practice of mindfulness of breathing? 5. Can you describe a different way of doing tonglen (sending and receiving) for those who, like myself, have difficulty letting go of (or allowing the incineration of) the suffering that is drawn in on the in-breath? 6. You've used the term "sealing the path" often - what does this mean and how does it relate to stream entry?

This afternoon's teaching is presented by Michelle Seaver, guest teacher and student of Alan Wallace, while Alan is out of town for 24 hours. Alan will return to his regular teaching during the next podcast. Michelle Seaver attended one of the first 100-day shamatha retreats with Alan, continued on in a private 18-month retreat, and is now responsible for bringing mindfulness-based education to the Phuket International Academy School (currently K-8, with plans to be PreK-12). The guided meditation is on the practice of empathetic joy, the first phase, focusing on the effusion of empathetic joy and gratitude, first for oneself, and then out to others. The guided meditation begins at 0:38 in the recording. Michelle then answers this question: During the mindfulness of breathing practice, I find it easy to maintain a balance of relaxation, stability, and vividness. However, during the practices of settling the mind and awareness of awareness, I find it easy to be distracted and lose by balance. How should I work with this challenge?

In this afternoon session, Alan Wallace guides us in a 24-minute meditation on mudita, or empathetic joy, from the perspective of mudita as an aspiration that all sentient beings never be parted from happiness free of suffering. During the following question and answer, Alan addresses these questions: 1. I wonder why the monks at the dharma center where I teach a version of shamatha do not come to my teachings. 2. How has the Shamatha Project study been received by the scientific community? 3. Where to from here, now that the Shamatha Project is over? 4. What is the definition of sentient beings?

Alan Wallace guides a 24-minute meditation on mudita, or empathetic joy, focusing first on oneself, then spreading outwards to others. During the following question and answer period, Alan answers these questions: 1. During shamatha, do we target the kind of focused attention that doesn't notice outside sensations such as sound, tactile sensations, etc.? 2. How do I know the difference between foreground and background when I am primarily attending to the breath, my attention is with the breath, and at the same time some other thought or feeling arises? 3. Is it okay to generate mental images while practicing in order to become familiar and mindful of these arisings? 4. Where is the place for labeling such as "thinking", "planning", "hearing" etc.? 5. Lama Yeshe says that reincarnation happens between a few moments and seven weeks after one's death. What say you? 6. If one is single pointedly focusing on tactile sensations while eating, can taste fade away? 7. How does one best practice awareness of awareness while in the supine position?

Alan begins this session with an inspirational story about one of his foremost teachers, Geshe Rabten. This humble lama, who had completed years of scholarly work and consultation studies with the Dalai Lama, found true contentment in life as he meditated under a simple rock shelf. His dedication to this single pointed purpose demonstrates a shining example of loving-kindness as a practice. “Dharma”, Alan says, ”is Bodhicitta. We must meditate on it, cultivate it, and then allow it to flow through us.” This is the dance between the Four Immeasurables and Shamatha practice. Their integration will facilitate us on our path to liberation: “Shamatha is in the service of the Four Immeasurables.”

In the Theravada context, cultivating Empathetic Joy (Mudita) is cultivating an emotion. There is so much to take delight in! This will add yeast to life regardless of one’s world view. When we get away from the retreat center we can really practice!In the Mahayana context, the practice is cultivating an aspiration, not an emotion. “Why couldn’t we all be free from suffering, why not?” If we don’t terminate after death, the Mahayana prayer takes on greater relevance. Only from the perspective of rigpa does the prayer take on significance: “I shall see that we all never become separated from happiness”. Alan uses the term, “sacred tension” to define the balance between the wish to be of service and the wish to attend to one’s own enlightenment.The question and answer time included: Are the lamas lying when they say they have no realizations? Is it better to be vegetarian? Alan shared some personal stories about the lovable qualities of some of his teachers.

Alan reviews for us the process of cultivating empathetic joy. It is possible to find many rewards in this practice as he explores the unfolding of empathetic joy in its three flavors: Attending to the kindness shown to us by others, taking delight in one’s own virtue, and creating an aspiration for happiness for all sentient beings. You will especially enjoying listening to Alan’s own personal story of the way he discovered dharma near the end of the question and answer session.

Strong mental afflictions catch our attention. We do not notice good deeds as much as bad. This is especially true of the media. We need to make a conscious effort to have an antenna up for joy. In a single meditation session we can take delight in doing the practice well. Even if our mind wanders, we can bring it back joyfully.The meditation includes the Mahayana prayer: May we all never be parted from genuine happiness and the causes of happiness. Why couldn’t we? May we never be parted from genuine happiness and well-being. May I make it so! May my own spiritual mentors bless me so I may be enabled to help others to achieve genuine happiness!The questions and answers dealt with the “cascading waterfall” of thoughts listed in the Stages of Shamatha and practical suggestions for using insight to improve the practice.

The third Immeasurable attends to actuality; it is not an aspiration like the first two: Loving-Kindness and Compassion. Empathetic Joy is rejoicing in the well-being of others. Isn’t that extraordinary…? Choosing to feel right! First, you sweep through your life and reflect on the kindness you received. You rejoice in their virtue. You delight in what brings meaning to life. Then you can raise the question how can I repay the kindness that I have received from the world? Then you can think of using your abilities, or ask the question and let the creativity of your substrate consciousness emerge, or try deep form your Buddha Nature. Alan then answers questions related to the Shamata Project and practical issues like how to deal with your eyes during meditation.

This afternoon we look at Empathetic Joy – the aspiration for all beings to never be parted from happiness and its causes – and explore what this means from a wisdom perspective. Ultimately we look at it from the perspective of ‘Path,’ and what it means for one’s life to become Dharma. Following the meditation, Alan answers questions related to the practices of settling the mind in its natural state and awareness of awareness, as well as some very practical guidance related to the practice of lucid dreamless sleep. This mudita really is a cultivation of emotion. (It s joy. … Taking delight in others’ joys successes)

At first glance, Equanimity seems anticlimactic after Loving Kindness, Compassion and Empathetic Joy. In fact, Equanimity is the culmination of the Four Immeasurables. It is an emotional state of balance…deep composure. When the Dalai Lama was asked, “What is our most primary impulse?” He answered CARING. Caring is the root of Loving Kindness & Compassion. The meditation guides us to shift places with others to realize that we all equally want to be well and happy, free from suffering and the causes of suffering. The question and answer period dealt with questions about the Awareness of Awareness meditation instructions from the morning session.

Alan leads a guided meditation on Empathetic Joy, the third of the Four Immeasurables. This is the practice of rejoicing in our and others’ happiness, kindness, and virtuous actions. This practice counteracts the self-centered attitude of “I win!” Instead, we feel joy due to the existence of all the good in the world. A question and answer session follows the meditation. Alan gives practical advice on meditation practice. A technical discussion is given on the integration of Shamatha and Bodhicitta practices with Mahamudra and Dzogchen. A conspiracy is revealed between musicians and elevator manufacturers to hide the true nature of our minds. Alan tells us what to expect from eight weeks of practice. The session ends with a motivational talk on how the path of Shamatha stops the spin cycle of Samsara.

This afternoon Alan started giving a brilliant lecture about the third of the Four Immeasurables, empathetic joy, which means taking delight from other’s joys, fortunes and virtues. He addressed that nowadays more than ever we should practice on this immeasurable, knowing that around 90% of the news we read on the web are bad news and recalling one of his favorite phrases from William James: “At the moment what we are attending to is reality”, then we should focus and take delight from all the bandwidth of people having joys, fortune and those, independent of beliefs or religions, who are devoting their lives bringing happiness to others. We continued with a marvelous meditation, practicing the above, and finally ended with Q&A, one of them regarding to the practice of Shamatha settling the mind in its natural state, two questions about the practice of awareness of awareness and one last question about Buddha Nature. Enjoy it!!

The story Alan narrates at the very start of this episode comes because there was a dog outside the teaching hall, and as we were coming in for the lecture he would try to get in between our legs, or at least just stick his head in. He clearly looked very determined and excited to learn about Mudita, and it was hard to get Alan inside the teaching hall sans-dog. Moving to the actual lecture, Alan explains today's practice, in which we cultivate empathetic joy towards others both in terms of hedonic pleasure and then of genuine happiness. Alan gives several examples of each, and notes, also with great examples, that we can learn to use the mind just like we learn to drive a vehicle. It can go from our worst enemy to our best friend. After the fairly silent practice [again, if you want more verbose practices refer to the beginning of the podcast series], we went into very interesting questions. The first ones were by Enrique, based on The Vajra Essence and returning to yesterday's point on achieving Shamatha through the union of Shamatha and Vipassana. Alan talks about close Vipassana-style insights that can arise through the Shamatha practice of Settling the Mind, and quotes another mysterious (you'll see why) passage from (possibly) the Vajra Essence.In the last half of the session, we have a very meaningful question about how to distinguish between true love (or loving kindness) and attachment, and the relationship that grief from loss has to attachment. Alan starts by talking about the delicate and difficult act of throwing out attachment while retaining love, and we learn the origins of the phrase "throwing out the baby with the bathwater." Who said we only learn Dharma? Alan also covers the examination of a relationship both from the coarse and subtle levels, and the delicate interplay and entanglement of feelings, highlighting the toxicity of attachment even in happy relationships, and proposing a "reality check."He also integrates a question from Tsapel, and shows how to cultivate Loving Kindness both from the monastic perspective and within ordinary society. We reflect that if you were "incomplete" and your relationship with "your other half" makes you "complete" then you are bound to suffer, and end on the importance of recognizing the difference between genuine Loving Kindness (or Love) and attachment and not mistake one for the other.Enjoy these very profound reflections. This quite artistic photo from Malcolm shows our friends and silent (or sometimes not so silent) fellow sentient beings :) I had to include them in the podcast before sending out more sky photos!

This afternoon the meditation was 100% silent. Even the introduction lasts around 20 seconds!I cut out the 24 minutes of silence in order to make this a smaller download. You can click pause and do your own Empathetic Joy meditation! For reference, go to the previous podcasts. After the meditation we had a power outage which cut out a chunk of a very interesting question. The power came on and off a few times, and I cut the long parts when the power was out (and thus we had no recording). Among the questions covered in this podcast are: Not fusing mental events with the referent (Alan gave a VERY clear answer, very useful for those practicing Settling the Mind[ ]...), some clarification about the acquired sign in Breath Awareness (and more on this air-element symbol), and then a long question about many aspects of Shamatha, both practical, historic, and theoric, and finally from that question arose Alan's description of his proposal: A Buddhism Renaissance, coming back to the core teachings and not simply "riding the wave" of tradition and losing touch with the true wisdom.

Alan starts this afternoon by detailing some of the possible "side effects" that could happen during intense practice of Shamatha, in the sense that when we are trying to make our mind so focused an unified, it can sometimes become quite small. He also talks about how sometimes we keep hurting ourselves with our own memories of unpleasant events (making them real again) even dozens or hundreds of times after the original event. The Empathetic Joy practice we do afterwards is a remedy to both of the above condition.After the bright and uplifting practice, Alan adds some footnotes from this morning, focusing on Galileo and making a very interesting and sharply plausible hypothesis as to why the start of probing into the mind in the west took 300 years. We then continue yesterday's question of death and continuity of conciousness in the period between lifes (bardo), relating it to dream yoga. We have two more very brief questions afterwards and end with two minutes to spare!This photo (by Malcolm) is of our Buddha statue in the teaching hall, happy to see us undertaking this long overdue adventure into the mind with such a wise and ideal guide (to his left, not in the picture)!

Today's practice was focused on taking delight both towards being of benefit in the world outwards but also of going into meditation and being apparently useless for a while, because it's a cultivation with which you can become immensely useful afterwards. There is a great introduction on this point, and after the practice we had some great, fluid assorted Q&A with answers from the crowd. The questions vary from how to balance quality and quantity in meditation and some sprinkles of dream yoga near the end.Another great local photo from Sara's collection!

This afternoon was great. We started with an overview of four immeasurables as an extrordinarly wise system of emotional regulation, and although that sounds utilitarian (since the qualities of loving kindness, compassion, empathetic joy, and equanimity are some of the most noble virtues to develop), they can be excellent for emotional balance.Alan then talks about how to develop motivation, inspiration, enthusiasm, lightness, and hopefulness towards the practice, which is directly linked to the meditation we do afterwards.After the session, we had some assorted Q&As on great subjects, including great tips and practices for maintaining the object of mindfulness between sessions and "seasoning" the day with the four immeasurables. There are also some great explanations on the 10 non-virtues and one of the great "path overviews" and bigger picture discussions that we know and love.This photo is of Master Luang Phor Cham in the Chalong Temple of Phuket (another great one by Sara!)

This afternoon we went straight into a practice of empathetic joy, followed by a reflection on guilt, remorse, and how empathetic joy (mudita) can affect our deeds. Afterwards there is just a short Q&A section because a large part of it was extracted for the next episode of the podcast. The picture is of yesterday's beautiful sunset right outside the teaching hall!

This afternoon lecture was about one very important but often overlooked aspect of the four immeasurables: Empathetic Joy. It starts with a very precise, relevant, and bright introduction about the guilt, self-loathing, and low self esteem that plagues modernity and the west. Afterwards there is a 24 minute meditation on equanimity, focused mainly on the Phuket retreatants but relevant anywhere in the world. To finish, there is a long Q&A session with many practical questions that have come up during the personal meditations.This full moon picture was also provided by Malcolm!