Description
About the Classes
Suitable for everyone, these meditation classes offer simple, practical methods to improve the quality of our lives and develop inner peace. These classes focus on using Buddhist understanding to help us solve our daily problems, let go of negative minds and find the lasting happiness we seek.
Each class includes guided meditation, a practical teaching, and an opportunity to ask questions. Although taught as a series, each class is self-contained and can be attended individually.
Upcoming Class Schedule & Topics
Basic Buddhist Meditation – with Todd Ellenberg
“Whenever we practice meditation, whether or not our meditation is clear, we are performing a virtuous mental action that is a cause of our future happiness and peace of mind.” – Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, The Mirror of Dharma With Additions
In this series of classes, we will learn and practice a series of basic Buddhist meditations that form the foundation of the path to enlightenment. In them, we will learn how to look at our life, death, rebirth, and karma in a way that will lead to real inner peace, joy, and protection.
Recommended reading: The Mirror of Dharma With Additions by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. Download here – https://tharpa.com/us/the-mirror-of-dharma-3783.html
June 16 – Introduction: What is Meditation?
June 23 – Appreciating our Spiritual Opportunity: Meditation on the Preciousness of our Human Life
June 30 – Overcoming the Laziness of Attachment: Meditation on Death
July 7 – Focusing our Spiritual Practice: Meditations on the Danger of Lower Rebirth
July 14 – Protection from Suffering: Meditation on Going for Refuge
July 21 – Creating Happiness, Not Suffering: Meditation on Karma
Introduction to Buddhist Meditation: The Four Noble Truths
“You should know sufferings. You should abandon origins. You should attain cessations. You should practice the path.” – Buddha, Sutra of the Four Noble Truths
Everyone knows their own suffering. But there is a world of difference between being impatient with our problems and pain, and learning from them. Buddha’s teachings encourage us to understand that our unpleasant feelings actually come from inside our own mind. Through understanding this, we naturally start to find inner solutions to our inner problems of mental discomfort. By practicing the path of discipline, meditation, and wisdom we gradually have more and more inner peace, until eventually we have deep inner peace all the time. These classes will introduce Buddha’s foundational presentation of The Four Noble Truths for understanding our own problems and applying their solutions.
Recommended reading: The Mirror of Dharma With Additions by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. Download here – https://tharpa.com/us/the-mirror-of-dharma-3783.html
July 28 – Recognizing our Cycles of Suffering: Meditation on Renunciation
Aug 4 – The Inner Origins of Unhappiness: Meditation on our Determination to Recognize, Reduce and Abandon our Self-Grasping
Aug 11 – Discipline, Concentration, and Wisdom: Meditation on our Determination to Engage in the Actual Path to Liberation – with Patrick Davidson
Aug 18 – Permanent Inner Peace is Possible: Meditation on our Determination to Attain True Cessations
Love, Fearlessness, and Enlightenment: Meditations on the Mahayana Buddhist Path
It sometimes feels like the way to protect ourselves and to be happy is to put our self before everyone else. In truth, however, people who only care about themselves are truly miserable. All the happiness there is in this world arises from wishing others to be happy. These classes will introduce the meditations on love, compassion, and the main path to enlightenment.
Recommended reading: The Mirror of Dharma With Additions by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. Download here – https://tharpa.com/us/the-mirror-of-dharma-3783.html
Aug 25 – Developing Selfless Love: Meditation on Cherishing All Living Beings
Sep 1 – Becoming Fearless: Meditation on Universal Compassion
Sep 8 – Realizing our Spiritual Potential: Meditation on the Supreme Good Heart, Bodhichitta
Sep 15 – Living Your Best Life: Meditation on our Determination and Promise to Sincerely Practice the Six Perfections
Sep 22– Purifying Obstructions: Training in Meditation on Emptiness
Sep 29 – Receiving Blessings: Meditation on Relying on our Spiritual Guide
About the Teacher
Todd Ellenberg is a longtime Buddhist meditation practitioner and member of our local Kadampa Center, and is enrolled in our in-depth study program. He has taught many meditation classes at our Center and its branches over the years, and is appreciated for his clear and engaging presentation of Buddhist teachings.
Cancellation Policy
If you cancel more than 24 hours before the start of the class/event we will refund all except 25%. If you cancel within 24 hours before the start of the class/event, no refunds are given. Any non-refunded fees arising from cancellations are donated to the NKT-IKBU International Temples Project.
