The most common reason for practicing is to end suffering. But that may not be the primary motivation, he says. Sometimes people are practicing for a sense of sacredness or beauty. And sometimes what's the fantasy or the vision of the self that's practicing? That can coexist and some different impulses or motivations take precedence at different times.
In this conversation with meditation teacher and author Rob Burbea we discuss the role of fantasy in meditation, the purpose of what Rob calls the 'Soulmaking Dharma' and some common traps that can obstruct our connection with beauty on the contemplative path.
This was the first conversation I had with Rob (there are two more you can listen to in the Emerge podcast stream). For various reasons I decided not to release it immediately after we recorded it, feeling that the subsequent conversations did a better job of communicating what I wanted to communicate. There were also some nasty recording problems that made it difficult at times for the conversation to be fluid and flowing. In any case this is a lovely coversation and I hope you enjoy! 🙏