(I am a long-time member of Contemplative Outreach and a former member of the Chicago chapter’s volunteer “circle of service.” Here, I discuss the origins of a new form of meditation I’m calling “Mindful Centering.” If you’re interested, I will be teaching Mindful Centering for the first time, starting this Tuesday, January 16. For more […]
Please join me in extending care and a felt current of blessing to all beings through the powerful practice of lovingkindness meditation. This guided meditation is one of my most popular meditations on Insight Timer and I am always delighted by how people respond to it when I share it with them at workshops and […]
This is a difficult time to be a human being. It seems that many of our basic assumptions about life are up for re-evaluation. Is our government to be trusted? Are the police to be trusted? Are my neighbors and fellow citizens sane? What about those distant (or not so distant) family members that voted […]
I’ve given several talks on prayer and meditation this year. And as I prepared for a recent talk I felt that I wanted to add a preface to my remarks. I have been practicing Centering Prayer on and off since the late 1990’s. It is a dear practice to me, but over the years my […]
Mindfulness Saved My Life (Again) It’s a few minutes before 10pm and all the parking spaces in front of my condo are taken. I drive around the block and park two blocks away. Getting out of the car, I dissolve into the quiet evening air. I smile at the stars above and begin walking home. […]
I spent a day with Lama Surya Das last month. He is sharing his new book, “Make Me One with Everything,” and I was impressed by his interest in teaching us “non-practices,” things we are already doing that can be considered practices. He is suggesting we practice mediation with nature, with people, with every opportunity […]
This year, I want to spend more time on what really brings me joy and on projects that are so exciting they terrify me. I’m going to “go for the jugular,” as Natalie Goldberg puts it in her coaching to writers, by pursuing ideas that are so terrifyingly good that I get a simultaneous “I […]
I learned Korean zen meditation in the winter of 1989. I was fascinated by zen, the zen mystique for sure, but also the fresh and powerful language used by the teachers of the zen tradition. There were many awesome things to contemplate, from the sound of one hand clapping to my “original face” before my […]
Winter has come to Chicago. With 20 inches of fresh snow blanketing the city, life has become a little stiller, a little more basic. I am heeding winter’s call to be still and rest, yet below the surface the vital activity that will surface in springtime is still present, if in the background. Some things […]
I learned of Thich Nhat Hanh in the late 80’s. I read Being Peace and gave one of his other books to my sister as a gift. I was impressed by the simplicity, beauty and directness of his message. In Sept 1990, I finished my PhD, then flew to Korea for an 8-week pilgrimage to Buddhist […]