Joseph Goldstein discusses the concepts of bodhicitta - the awakened heart, and provides a methodology for freeing ourselves from entanglement and attachment. He compares the clinging mind to ice and the luminous mind to water, emphasizing the impermanence of our mental fabrications. The podcast explores the practice of compassion, the power of mindfulness and empathy, and the importance of daily practice in cultivating love and compassion.
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Quick takeaways
Recognizing the mind's aware nature and letting go of defilements can lead to freedom from suffering.
Compassion can manifest in different ways and does not require grand gestures.
Deep dives
Recognizing the mind's aware nature
The mind's nature is luminous and can be freed from visiting defilements. The recognition of the mind's aware nature is a teaching that makes this possible. The Dalai Lama emphasized that feelings of worthlessness are wrong and not true. Recognizing the mind's aware nature and letting go of defilements can lead to freedom from suffering.
From ice to water: Letting go of self-identification
The mind can be likened to ice or water. When the mind is contracted and identified with thoughts, it is like solid ice. However, when the mind is open and free from self-identification, it becomes like flowing water. Recognizing that the nature of thoughts and emotions is impermanent can help shift from contraction to openness, allowing for the experience of freedom.
Emptiness and compassion: Two sides of the same coin
The experience of emptiness isn't separate from the world of everyday appearances. Emptiness is experienced when the mind is free from grasping and clinging to appearances. Compassion naturally arises from this understanding of selflessness. The practice of compassion involves opening to suffering, both our own and others, and responding with empathy and the motivation to alleviate that suffering.
Cultivating compassion in daily life
Compassion is a verb, requiring mindfulness and a willingness to open to suffering. It involves empathy, the ability to feel and connect with the suffering of others, and the motivation to take action. Compassion can manifest in different ways and does not require grand gestures. Small acts of kindness, learning to let things in, and moving beyond our comfort zones are all opportunities for cultivating compassion in daily life.
Joseph Goldstein continues his discussion of bodhicitta – the awakened heart.
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In this lecture, Joseph:
Reminds us that obstructions and defilements of thought are not intrinsic to the mind
Provides us with a methodology for freeing ourselves from entanglement and attachment
Compares the clinging mind to ice and the luminous mind to water
Recognizes the causal relationship between mindfulness and compassion
Teaches us that how we feel and respond to situations is up to us
Maintains that cultivating compassion is a process that comes with daily practice
“The development of love and compassion is a wide, round curve that can be negotiated only slowly. Not a sharp corner that can be turned all at once. It comes with daily practice.”
This dharma talk from June 12, 2015, was recorded at the Insight Meditation Society and originally published on Dharma Seed.