Interview with Ken McLeod, published in Mandala Magazine, June-August 2002. Reprinted with permission. Finding and forming a relationship with a teacher is one of the most difficult aspects of the spiritual path. Many of us fell into teacher-student relationships at the end of the 1960s and in the early 70s. We were fortunate, very fortunate. So … [Read more...] about Wake Up Call: Relationship with the Teacher
Basics
Up Against a Wall? Sources of Unnecessary Confusion
Many problems in meditation practice come from confusion about what we think should happen, what we want to happen, and what actually happens. One way to clear up this confusion is to be clear about the purpose, method, effects and results of meditation practice. The purpose of meditation practice is to cultivate attention. The method is what we do … [Read more...] about Up Against a Wall? Sources of Unnecessary Confusion
Three Questions
“You may have recognized your nature,But unless you are thoroughly familiar with it,You will be like an infant on a battlefield:The enemy ‘thinking’ will run all over you.” — Longchenpa, Buddhist master (1308-1363) Last year I took a short course in rock climbing — hanging from strangely shaped colored knobs bolted to a canted wall while … [Read more...] about Three Questions
Three Trainings
The underlying central aim of all spiritual work is to be present in every moment. This aim may be formulated in different terms in different traditions but it is generally recognized to be both the aim and method of our searching. How do we do this? Well, it's probably better if we do it intelligently. In Buddhism, intelligence is defined as the … [Read more...] about Three Trainings
Pointers, Doors, and Openings
In these notes I want to point out the relationship between the three marks of existence (the pointers), the three doors to freedom, and the three aspects of meditative experience (the openings). The three marks (change, suffering, and non-self) can be viewed as pointers, aspects of our experience that point to three doors of understanding … [Read more...] about Pointers, Doors, and Openings
Meditation: Cultivating Attention
The term "meditation" as it is currently used in English covers a very wide range of activities, guided imagery, guided visualizations, and many practices in Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism and other religious traditions. Within Buddhism itself, there is also a wide variety of methods: simple attention to the breath, contemplation of specific … [Read more...] about Meditation: Cultivating Attention