Meditation for Daily Life University Christian Church and Dawn Mountain Center for Tibetan Buddhism Claire Villarreal PhD clairedawnmountainorg Benefits of meditation Everyones mind is cluttered ID: 465690
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The Calm and Open Heart:Meditation for Daily Life
University Christian Church and
Dawn Mountain Center for Tibetan Buddhism
Claire Villarreal, PhD
claire@dawnmountain.orgSlide2
Benefits of meditation
Everyone’s mind is cluttered
You can get centered anytime, anywhere
Lots of brain benefits (amygdala, prefrontal cortex, hemisphere synchronization, etc.)
Lots of stress reduction benefits (reduced
cortisol
levels, reduced blood pressure, enhanced immune response, etc.)Slide3
Morning sessionCultivating attention
Mental abilities are like muscles, too: can be strengthened through training
We face a lot of distractions now that are recent developments for humans
Types of attention we’ll practice this morning
Tighter, clear focus on one small area
Larger, more diffuse focus through entire body
Attention co-existing with thoughts
Goal: you leave with tools and motivation to practice on your ownSlide4
Meditation:Making friends with your mind
Cause and effect
Busy lives create busy minds
Quiet time helps your mind settle
Thoughts are not the enemy!
Step one: focus
Step two: insight
Today’s theme: curiosity > judgmentSlide5
Curiosity > Judgment
Self-compassion is today’s theme, even in context of focus and attention, and cultivating curiosity instead of judgment is a huge support for self-compassion.
For more information, see the work of
Brené
Brown (http://brenebrown.com/) and Kristin Neff (http://self-compassion.org/)Slide6
Mindful movement
Chi kung
Yoga
Walking meditation
Labyrinth
Gardening
And so
much more!Slide7
Meditation: come home to center
Spine straight
Body as relaxed as possible
Mind settled in center of abdomen
Options
Focus on inhalation, exhalation, gaps
Count breaths
Visualize light
Opportunity to practice a warm heart toward yourself
Real practice is recognizing when you’re distracted and coming backSlide8
Practices today: recap
Body scan
Mindful movement
Mindfulness of breathing
Guided imagery
Make friends with your mind.
Curiosity > judgmentSlide9
The Calm and Open Heart:Meditation for Daily Life
University Christian Church and
Dawn Mountain Center for Tibetan Buddhism
Claire Villarreal, PhD
claire@dawnmountain.orgSlide10
Making friends with your mind
Cause and effect
Busy lives create busy minds
Quiet time helps your mind settle
Thoughts are not the enemy!
Step one: focus
Step two: kindness
This afternoon’s theme: compassion > judgmentSlide11
Cultivating your warm heart
This afternoon's theme is compassion > judgment
It's easier to toughen up and not feel your own discomfort than to feel fear, anxiety, weakness
But all of those thrive on the half-attention of denial
Real ability to overcome challenges comes from
connection—with
ourselves and with othersSlide12
The open heart
Four boundless states
Loving-kindness: may I and others be well
Compassion: may I and others be free from suffering
Joy: may I rejoice in my own good fortune and that of others
Equanimity: may I engage with pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral with an open heart
“Boundless” means open to all of yourself, working toward being open to everyone
This is true in meditation; in daily life, you draw appropriate boundaries.Slide13
Self-compassion
From self-compassion.org (Dr. Kristin Neff’s site), components of self-compassion:
Self-kindness
Common humanity
Mindfulness
Practices to grow tender heart toward ourselves: words, body scan with light, taking and giving, imagerySlide14
Boundless Compassion
Boundless toward ourselves: any opportunity for judgment is an opportunity for compassion
Boundless toward others: share compassion and kindness with larger circles
"Compassion" does not equal enabling bad behaviorSlide15
Joy
Joy as counter to jealousy
Joy as rejoicing in your good fortune and that of others
Joy as recognizing and permitting our own delightSlide16
Equanimity
Even engagement
Spaciousness of mindSlide17
Takeaways
Making friends with your mind
Compassion > judgment