Focus+Concentrate+Meditate = Sweet Heaven (just the music) February 20, 2021
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Uncategorized.add a comment
Please join me for a 90-minute virtual yoga practice on Zoom today (Saturday, February 20th) at 12:00 PM. Use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. Give yourself extra time to log in if you have not upgraded to Zoom 5.0. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below.
Saturday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify
In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es). If you don’t mind me knowing your donation amount you can also donate to me directly. Donations to Common Ground are tax deductible; class purchases and donations directly to me are not necessarily deductible.)
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Laissez les bons temps rouler on Day 5 (the “missing” posts) February 20, 2021
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Happy Mardi Gras and Happy New Year! Many blessings to those observing Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday!
[This is the post for Tuesday, February 16th, with information relevant to the practice that was cancelled on Wednesday, February 17th. You can request an audio recording of Tuesday’s practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email me at myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.
In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es). Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.
Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.]
“Laissez les bons temps rouler!”
– Louisiana French for “Let the good times roll!”
Today has many names, but for many it is Mardi Gras, French for Fat Tuesday, the end of the Carnival season and the day before the Lenten season in the Western Christian traditions. It is also known as Shrove Tuesday or (especially in the UK) Pancake Tuesday. It is a moveable feast day of indulgence, when people treat themselves to anything and everything – but especially the things they are planning to give up during Lent.
“Shrove” comes from the word “shrive,” meaning “to absolve” and for Christians who are focused on “shriving,” today is a day of self-examination, repentance, and amendments as a way to prepare for the Lent. While people observing Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day may indulge in “fatty foods,” they may do so with an eye on symbolism. Different countries and cultures have different traditional recipes, but the recipes generally include what can be considered symbols of the four pillars of Christianity: eggs for creation; flour as the staff of life or mainstay of the human diet; salt for wholesomeness; and milk for purity. Some churches will make a point of ringing the bells on this day to “call the faithful to confession” – and to remind people to begin frying up the pancakes.
Carnival season begins with Three Kings’ Day (also known as Twelfth Night or Epiphany in some traditions) and ends with the biggest celebration of the seasons, Mardi Gras (not to mention Lundi Gras)! In much of the Americas, Carnival and Mardi Gras are traditionally celebrated with parades, beads, masks and costumes, and parties from sunrise to sunset. Of course, Brazilian Carnival in Rio de Janiero is the largest and most well known Carnival celebration and New Orleans is practically synonymous with Mardi Gras; however, in the mid-80’s, Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in Australia started drawing large numbers of celebrants from around the world.
In New Orleans, it is customary to celebrate with a King Cake, featuring a little plastic baby figurine. The person who finds the baby is promised health and wealth – and is often expected to provide the following year’s King Cake. And while many people toss or “request” beads during the parades, very few people remember that there was a time when the beads were made of glass and the bead colors had special meanings: purple for justice; gold for power; and green for faith.
“… don’t tell no lie! Cause we gonna have fun, y’all, on Mardi Gras! … I’m not gonna tell no lie. We not gonna let Katrina, y’all, turn us ‘round.”
– Theodore “Bo” Dollis, “Big Chief” of The Wild Magnolias opening the song “Brother John Is Gone / Herc-Jolly-John” on Our New Orleans: A Benefit Album
Carnival and Mardi Gras have outlasted gangs, political coups, police strikes, hurricanes, and other natural disasters. This year, while much of New Orleans was shut down, the good times still rolled on – just not in a way that would turn Mardi Gras into a super spreader. Remember, as glutinous as the tradition may appear on the outside, its roots are in something more than the desires of the flesh. Thus, just as has been the case with so many other cultural traditions and religious rituals, the pandemic forced people to figure out how to honor the traditions while maintaining social distancing guidelines.
One New Orleans business owner decided to follow the normal parade route – but in his car and in the early, early morning. Of course, he was blasting New Orleans jazz all the way! Many others tweeted and created virtual events. Then there were the thousands of people who decorated their homes and businesses in the same way they would have decorated their krewe’s floats: They called it “Yardi Gras!”
Today is also the fifth day of the Lunar New Year. For many people celebrating the Lunar New Year, this is the day to go back to work after a four-day holiday. Businesses opening back up are met with great fanfare: parades, music, and fireworks. There’s also the promise of “lucky money,” in red envelopes; which business owners will give to their customers – who will then promptly spend some of the money in the business. This fifth day is particularly auspicious in parts of China where it is recognized as the birthday of the God of Wealth.
Of course, all this focus on wealth, indulgences, and vices, makes me think about the things we like and the things we don’t like – and how those preferences contribute to our overall experiences of life.
Yoga Sūtra 2.7: sukhānuśayī rāgah
– Affliction that has pleasure as its resting ground is attachment.
Yoga Sūtra 2.8: duhkhānuśayī dveşah
– Affliction that has pain as its resting ground is aversion.
Very early on in our human lives, people start to establish preferences. There are things (and people) we like and things (and people) we don’t like – and we will spend an extraordinary amount of time creating situations and environments full of the things (and people) we like and free of the things (and people) we don’t like. When things are not to our liking we experience suffering that we often attribute to things not being the way we want them. However, according to Eastern philosophies, believing things (or people) can make us happy or miserable is ignorant. Specifically, in the Yoga Philosophy, this is avidyā (“ignorance”) related to the true nature of things, which is a dysfunctional or afflicted thought patterns. Avidyā is seen as the bedrock of four other types of dysfunctional/afflicted thought patterns – two or which are rāga (“attachment” or what we like) and devşa (“aversion” or what we don’t like) and it is these afflictions (kleśāh) which lead to our suffering.
To experience freedom from craving and liberation from avidyā, and the subsequent suffering, Patanjali’s recommendations include abhyāsa (a devoted and uninterrupted “practice” done with trustful surrender devotion) and vairāgya (“non-attachment”). What is always interesting to me is that when you combine abhyāsa and vairāgya with the niyamās (“internal observations”) you end up with a practice that can looks very much like Lent – and even though it looks odd on the outside, celebrating Carnival and Mardi Gras / Pancake Tuesday are all preparation for the observation of Lent.
In the Christian traditions, Lent is a 40-day period (46 when Sundays* are counted) when people actively focus on their spiritual life and connection to God by fasting, praying, and either giving up something – something to which they have a strong attachment (or aversion) – and/or doing something positive. When people give something up they will often donate the money they would have spent on whatever they gave up. The 40-day ritual is a mirror of the days Jesus spent in the desert and is an opportunity for Christian contemplation, discernment, and self-reflection. Like the observation of Passover, the month of Ramadan, and the Baha’i Nineteen-Day Fast, observing Lent falls under the rubric of what Patanjali describes as kriyā yoga (“yoga in action”), the combination of tapah (“heat, austerity, or discipline”), svādhyāya (“self-study”), and īśvarapraņidhāna (“trustful surrender to [God]”).
“Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
– Ceremonial words used on Ash Wednesday (drawn from Genesis 3:19)
“Repent and believe in the Gospel.”
– Ceremonial words used on Ash Wednesday (drawn from The Gospel According to Mark 1:15), Roman Catholic tradition after 1969
The Lenten season officially begins with Ash Wednesday. For many it is a day of fasting and prayer – and it is also the day when people truly begin to get ready for Easter. Many take a moment out of their day to attend Mass or services and receive ashes, which are traditionally made from the previous year’s Palm Sunday fronds. In a ritual that has ties to Judaism and Biblical times, the ashes are a sign of penance and preparation. They are sometimes sprinkled on the crown of the head, but the more common practice in modern times is for a priest or pastor to use the ashes to make the sign of the cross on a person’s forehead. People are not required to wear the mark of the cross throughout the remainder of their day; however, many choose to maintain that link and reminder.
The practice is considered sacramental in the Roman Catholic tradition, but the ashes and receiving the ashes are not sacraments; which means they serve as a symbol and preparation aide for holy sacraments, as well as a reminder of the grace of the sacraments. The fact that receiving ashes is not a sacrament also means that, in the Roman Catholic tradition, anyone (including non-Catholics and those who have been excommunicated by the Church) may receive ashes.
“When I was in college, my Jewish roommates used to tell me what to give up for Lent….
Since then, for over 20 years my friend Rob has phoned me every Ash Wednesday to assign me a Lenten sacrifice. The sacrifices have grown easier over the years since Rob is running out of things for me to give up. For a few years he favored spices. One Lent I was suppose to avoid anything with oregano. It sounded easy until it dawned on me that pizza was out of the question for six weeks. Having another person choose your sacrifice adds an extra dimension to Lent. Since my penance is not within my control, it feels a little more spiritual. As with far more serious struggles in life, like an illness or the loss of a job, things outside our control are the most difficult to deal with. They are, in traditional Christian theology, crosses that eventually need to be accepted, much as Jesus finally accepted his cross.
When I was dealing with a long illness, I once complained to an older priest that I didn’t want that particular cross. He said, well it wouldn’t be much of a cross if you wanted it, would it?”
– Father James Martin quoted from the interview “Priest Lets Friend Choose His Sacrifice for Lent” with Melissa Block on NPR’s All Things Considered (2/28/2006)
Tuesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify.
There is no Wednesday playlist this week.
*NOTE: Sundays during Lent are considered anniversaries of Easter and the Resurrection; therefore, they are not counted as days of penance.
### NOTICE THE SPIRIT OF THINGS ###
Laissez les bons temps rouler on Day 5 (just the music) February 16, 2021
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Uncategorized.add a comment
Please join me today (Tuesday, February 16th) at 12 Noon or 7:15 PM for a virtual yoga practice on Zoom, where we will see how the practice “evolves.” Use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. Give yourself extra time to log in if you have not upgraded to Zoom 5.0. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below.
Tuesday’s Noon playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify.
In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es). Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.)
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Being Red (just the music) February 14, 2021
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Please join me for a 65-minute virtual yoga practice on Zoom today (Sunday, February 14th) at 2:30 PM, CST. Use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. Give yourself extra time to log in if you have not upgraded to Zoom 5.0. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below.
Sunday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify
In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es). Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.)
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I See Du (just the music) February 13, 2021
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“Happy New Year!” to all who are celebrating the Lunar New Year!
Please join me for a 90-minute virtual yoga practice on Zoom today (Saturday, February 13th) at 12:00 PM. Use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. Give yourself extra time to log in if you have not upgraded to Zoom 5.0. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below.
Saturday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for the “06032020 How Can We See, Dr. Wiesel” playlist. ]
In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es). If you don’t mind me knowing your donation amount you can also donate to me directly. Donations to Common Ground are tax deductible; class purchases and donations directly to me are not necessarily deductible.)
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Songs for Today’s Adventure (just the music, UPDATED with post link) February 10, 2021
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Uncategorized.add a comment
Please join me today (Wednesday, February 10th) at 4:30 PM or 7:15 PM for a yoga practice on Zoom. Use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. You will need to register for the 7:15 PM class if you have not already done so. Give yourself extra time to log in if you have not upgraded to Zoom 5.0. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below or by emailing myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.
Wednesday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify.
Click here for the blog post related to this practice.
In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es). Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.)
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The Invasion & the Mania that Followed (just the music, UPDATED with post link) February 9, 2021
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Uncategorized.add a comment
Please join me today (Tuesday, February 9th) at 12 Noon or 7:15 PM for a virtual yoga practice on Zoom, where we will see how the practice “evolves.” Use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. Give yourself extra time to log in if you have not upgraded to Zoom 5.0. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below.
Tuesday’s Noon playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify.
Click here for the blog post related to this practice.
In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es). Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.)
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What Happens When We Practice Santosha? (just the music) February 7, 2021
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Uncategorized.add a comment
Please join me for a 65-minute virtual yoga practice on Zoom today (Sunday, February 7th) at 2:30 PM, CST. Use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. Give yourself extra time to log in if you have not upgraded to Zoom 5.0. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below.
Sunday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify.
In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es). Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.)
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Concentrate/Meditate on the Continuum (the Saturday post) February 7, 2021
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Uncategorized.add a comment
[This is the post for Saturday, February 6th. You can request an audio recording of Saturday’s practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email me at myra (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.
In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es). Donations are tax deductible; class purchases are not necessarily deductible.
Check out the “Class Schedules” calendar for upcoming classes.]
“When we first undertake the art of meditation, it is indeed frustrating. Inevitably, as our mind wanders and our body feels the tension it has accumulated and the speed to which it is addicted, we often see how little inner discipline, patience, and compassion we actually have. It doesn’t take much time with a spiritual task to see how scattered and unsteady our attention remains even when we try to direct and focus it. While we usually think of it as “our mind,” if we look honestly, we see the mind follows its own nature, conditions, and laws. Seeing this, we also see that we must gradually discover a wise relationship to the mind that connects it to the body and heart, and steadies and calms our inner life.
The essence of this connecting is the bringing back of our attention again and again to the practice we have chosen.”
– quoted from “Chapter 5 – Training the Puppy: Mindfulness of Breathing” in A Path with Heart: A Guide Through the Perils and Promises of Spiritual Life by Jack Kornfield
There are certain persistent misconceptions about meditation. One, that it is really easy for some people and that for everyone else it is torture. Two, that if your attention bounces around a lot then you are going to be one of those people who is “bad” at meditation. Three, that by sheer force of will, you can just sit down, “empty your mind, and think about nothing.”
Here’s the reality.
First, if you practice any kind of contemplation or mindfulness for any significant period of time, you are going to have “good days” where you just seem to drop right into the zone and nothing bothers you; and you’re going to have “bad days” where your mind doesn’t seem to be able to stay focused on a single thing for longer than a few seconds. Second, everybody’s mind bounces around a lot – that’s the very definition of cittavŗtti – yet some people are still “good” at meditation. And yes, it’s true, some people’s minds bounce around a lot more than others, frantically jumping from one sensation to another; however, the fact that the mind is in hyper drive doesn’t mean that someone cannot sit still and focus. Third, practicing requires effort, but not necessarily sheer, brute force. Also, while I might not use the phrase “empty your mind and think about nothing,” some people use that as a description of an experience I would describe as pratyāhāra (which is literally defined as “pulling the mind from every direction and in every respect to a focal point”) – so, rather than emptying the mind, one is filling it (infusing it) with a single point of focus.
But, even that’s not quite right.
Like many yoga, meditation, and mindfulness teachers, I often use the words “single-pointed focus” as if it is part of an introductory practice. In reality, however, it’s more of the middle or end of a practice. When we first sit down to focus-concentrate-meditate the mind-body is filled with the logistics of sitting: the body is aligned this way; ok, now the eyes are here and the breath is like this; ok, now I’m focusing on X… but X is a representation of xyz and now my mind is thinking about z… So, I come back to the body, the breath, and X… and all that X means; and now I’m thinking about the fact that I’m sitting here, breathing here, and thinking X… that represents xyz, which reminds me of A… and now I’m thinking about A (or c)…. So, I come back to the body, the breath, and X… and all that X represents – but I’m not thinking about z now, because if I do….I have to start all over again.
That’s the way it goes, that’s the practice. And that doesn’t even include the external distractions like a door closing or people talking in another room, a fly buzzing around, the memory that you might have forgotten to do something, the sleepiness that sometimes creeps in, and/or that part of your body that always seems to itch when you sit still for a few minutes.
But, that’s the practice – at least, that’s the beginning of the practice. When we first begin, we are aware of the object of our focus (and all its different layers), the process that it takes to stay focused, and the fact that we are the entity engaged in the process of focusing on the object that has different layers. For some practitioners this stage of the practice will be just a quick moment, for others it might be their whole sit; but, either way, it’s not “single-pointed,” it’s multi-pointed.
At some point, however, just as Patanjali explains in Yoga Sūtra 1.17, we move from the gross conscious awareness to a more subtle conscious awareness and then into a bliss state – where it feels good and “easy” – and then finally into that stage of I-ness which marks the beginning of absorption. What we find, through the practice is that the absorption that makes the experience truly “single-pointed” is just like “yoga” and just like “svarūpe” (“true nature”): It’s a process as well as a state.
Yoga Sūtra 3.1: deśabandhah cittasya dhāranā
– “Dhāranā is the process of holding, focusing, or fixing the attention of mind onto one object or place.”
Yoga Sūtra 3.2: tatra pratyaya-ikatānatā dhyānam
– “Dhyāna is the repeated continuation, or unbroken flow of thought, toward that one object or place.”
Patanjali’s Yoga Sūtras provides an outline of the process as well as descriptions of the desired states that can be achieved through the practice as well as the less desired obstacles and conditions that may be experienced along the way. The sūtras definitely provide some “shortcuts,” but they are only accessible to those who are willing to fully commit and surrender. For everyone else, achieving that “single-pointed” focusing and harnessing the power of the mind-body requires mastering āsana (“seat” or pose, and therefore the body); then mastering prāņāyāma (“awareness and extension of [breath], and therefore the mind); in order to transcend the gross and subtle levels of conscience awareness of the breath. Once one transcends the gross and subtle levels of conscience awareness, one can experience pratyāhāra (“drawing the senses to a focal point”), which enables one to focus, concentrate, and meditate.
Another way to think of this is that once your body is stable and comfortable, your breath deepens. Once you bring awareness to the breath, deepening, prāņāyāma becomes pratyāhāra; pratyāhāra becomes dhāranā; dhāranā becomes dhyāna; and dhyāna becomes samādhi. Sometimes we move through these states in an instant, without really being conscious of the transition and other times it takes a lot of committed practice.
But, before you get it twisted, make sure to notice (and remember) one critical factor: We have all experienced these states – if even for just a moment! Some of us have experienced these states on a mat, on a cushion, on a prayer, rug, on a pew, or even on a mountain trail. Some of us have experienced it with a book, a friend or family member, a lover, or a work project. We have experienced it with music and dance and other forms of art. Sometimes we are very deliberately and very intentionally working towards the experience and other times it is just what the mind does, because it is capable of doing it.
“This meditative state is the highest state of existence. So long as there is desire, no real happiness can come. It is only the contemplative, witness-like study of objects that brings to us real enjoyment and happiness. The animal has its happiness in the senses, the man in his intellect, and the god in spiritual contemplation. It is only to the soul that has attained to this contemplative state that the world really becomes beautiful. To him who desires nothing, and does not mix himself up with them, the manifold changes of nature are one panorama of beauty and sublimity.
These ideas have to be understood in Dhyana, or meditation. We hear a sound. First, there is the external vibration; second, the nerve motion that carries it to the mind; third, the reaction from the mind, along with which flashes the knowledge of the object which was the external cause of these different changes from the ethereal vibrations to the mental reactions. These three are called in Yoga, Shabda (sound), Artha (meaning), and Jnâna (knowledge). In the language of physics and physiology they are called the ethereal vibration, the motion in the nerve and brain, and the mental reaction. Now these, though distinct processes, have become mixed up in such a fashion as to become quite indistinct. In fact, we cannot now perceive any of these, we only perceive their combined effect, what we call the external object. Every act of perception includes these three, and there is no reason why we should not be able to distinguish them.
When, by the previous preparations, it becomes strong and controlled, and has the power of finer perception, the mind should be employed in meditation. This meditation must begin with gross objects and slowly rise to finer and finer, until it becomes objectless. The mind should first be employed in perceiving the external causes of sensations, then the internal motions, and then its own reaction. When it has succeeded in perceiving the external causes of sensations by themselves, the mind will acquire the power of perceiving all fine material existences, all fine bodies and forms. When it can succeed in perceiving the motions inside by themselves, it will gain the control of all mental waves, in itself or in others, even before they have translated themselves into physical energy; and when he will be able to perceive the mental reaction by itself, the Yogi will acquire the knowledge of everything, as every sensible object, and every thought is the result of this reaction. Then will he have seen the very foundations of his mind, and it will be under his perfect control.”
– quoted from “Chapter VII: Dhyana and Samadhi” in The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda, Volume 1, Raja-Yoga by Swami Vivekananda
Saturday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for the “04192020 Noticing Things” playlist.]
You may notice that the playlist is longer than normal – that’s because it’s actually two (2) different playlists. If you are using the music, you get to choose your musical focus.
### NOTICE WHAT YOU NOTICE + BRING AWARENESS TO YOUR AWARENESS ###
Concentrate/Meditate on the Continuum (just the music) February 6, 2021
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in Uncategorized.add a comment
Please join me for a 90-minute virtual yoga practice on Zoom today (Saturday, February 6th) at 12:00 PM. Use the link from the “Class Schedules” calendar if you run into any problems checking into the class. Give yourself extra time to log in if you have not upgraded to Zoom 5.0. You can request an audio recording of this practice via a comment below.
Saturday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for the “04192020 Noticing Things” playlist. ]
You may notice that the playlist is longer than normal – that’s because it’s actually two (2) different playlists. If you are using the music, you get to choose your musical focus.
In the spirit of generosity (“dana”), the Zoom classes, recordings, and blog posts are freely given and freely received. If you are able to support these teachings, please do so as your heart moves you. (NOTE: You can donate even if you are “attending” a practice that is not designated as a “Common Ground Meditation Center” practice, or you can purchase class(es). If you don’t mind me knowing your donation amount you can also donate to me directly. Donations to Common Ground are tax deductible; class purchases and donations directly to me are not necessarily deductible.)
A Joyful Practice 