MONDAY FRIENDS — AUDIO ARCHIVE

The normal Monday Friends format is a 45-minute guided meditation, followed by sharing and Q&A. This week’s (7.25.22) format, however, was a 45-minute dharma talk, thus diverging from the usual. We did this in order to clarify our understanding of the Four Foundations of Awareness practice, right at the beginning of our Monday Friends weekly meetings. In this way, we can see clearly how our weekly guided meditations support the style of meditation that the Buddha called "the direct path to the end of suffering.” His Holiness the Dalai Lama provided this week’s practice theme, “Nothing Exists As It Appears.” This ties in perfectly with the Four Foundations practice, which guides us to understanding reality as it actually is, not as it appears. This is a deep and often troubling puzzle to the mind which is only natural, as we practice in order to understand our true nature as beyond the limits of the body and the mind. It helps to remember the beautiful old saying: “We aren’t human beings having a spiritual experience, we are spiritual beings having a human experience.” Enjoy!