Mindfulness Meditation Podcast - Mindfulness Meditation 08/03/16 with Kimberly Brown

Episode Date: August 29, 2016

Every Wednesday, the Rubin Museum of Art presents a meditation session led by a prominent meditation teacher from the New York area. This podcast is a recording of the weekly practice. If you would like to attend in person, please visit our website at RubinMuseum.org/meditation to learn more. We are proud to be partnering with Sharon Salzberg and the teachers from the Interdependence Project. This week’s session is be led by Kimberly Brown focusing on the theme of Recognizing Abundance. To view a related artwork from the Rubin Museum's permanent collection, please visit: rma.cm/1bb

Thank you. join us in person, please visit our website at rhythmmuseum.org. We are proud to be partnering with Sharon Salzberg and the teachers from the Interdependence Project. In the description for each episode, you will find information about the theme for that week's session, including an image of a related artwork chosen from the Rhythm Museum's permanent collection. And now, please enjoy your practice. permanent collection. And now, please enjoy your practice. Kimberly Brown will tell us a little bit more about this concept of recognizing abundance in our own lives.

She has degrees in physics and literature and has trained as a psychodynamic psychotherapist. She worked at a marketing consultancy for more than a decade before she joined the Interdependence Project. A graduate of the first year-long IDP meditation teacher training program, she studies Tibetan and American Buddhism,

and her teachers include Lama Noorla Rinpoche and Sharon Salzberg. Her work and teachings emphasize the ways in which contemplation, wisdom, and ethics are shared among all traditions of awakening. Please welcome back Kimberly Brown. Today we're taking inspiration from the yellow Jambala. And, you know, I saw him upstairs the last time I was here.

And he has a real presence because he's a big sculptor. You can see him in the galleries after. And it's pretty obvious he's a wealthy person, a wealthy Yidam, they say in the Tibetan, which is not exactly deity because they don't live outside of you. They're part of your own So here's this guy. He's well-fed. He has wonderful gold jewelry. He has such luxurious clothing. He has these delicacies in his right hand. And of course, his jewel spouting, it's sometimes translated, also gem-emitting mose okay in his left hand and in in the Buddhist tradition and also in many other cultures to be wealthy one way to recognize that is through someone who's generous right the practice of generosity indicates wealth and of course that makes sense right if you're truly wealthy you can afford to be generous you have more than you need I'm particularly interested in practicing generosity because it kind of goes against a lot of what we're taught and what we feel. And when I say we, I mean as Americans in this time and place.

Our country is the richest nation that has ever existed in the history of the world. And yet many of us feel a tremendous lack, right, not just of material goods, but of time, of good qualities like kindness and joy. There's just a sense like, wow, I don't have that. I don't have enough of that. So we have trouble giving. We can't give. We just don't even feel we have enough. Now, when we look at that mongoose, this jewel-spouting emitting mongoose, he's a symbol of abundance. He has inexhaustible treasures. And this is also, oh, he's also a foe of greed. The mongoose is an enemy of snakes.

Snakes in the stories and mythologies are often guarding treasure. So the mongoose, again, he dispels greed. And he's also a metaphor for our own boundless qualities. We all have a gem-emitting mongoose. It's our heart, and we just need to discover this mongoose because these boundless qualities are immeasurable. Love, kindness, joy, compassion, wisdom. We all have this. We all have tons of it. And somehow, at least in my mind,

my perception of those qualities are maybe they're like a pie. And so I have eight slices or maybe 16 if I want to make them small. And I could give one to you and one to you and some to my mom and my cat but I'm sorry I don't have enough left for this other person right I may not even have enough left for me but that's the wrong metaphor okay the metaphor The metaphor is this, this jewel-emitting mongoose with inexhaustible treasures. So the way we can begin to develop these qualities that each one of us have inside of us, we're born with these qualities just like we're born with the ability to learn language. And we can foster them through our environment and through effort. Mindfulness is a start, right?

And being mindful each time that we are benefiting ourselves and others, right? So this can be something that seems very small that we overlook, right? We're walking down the street and the person next to us stumbles and we make a motion to help them. Acknowledging that that was really beneficial, that that was an expression of our good nature.

That's one. Noticing it in others, right? Every time I ride the subway, I see many kindnesses. So starting to notice that when someone gives another a seat, when someone makes a little room, when someone smiles. Just noticing.

And also noticing when you are being a benefit to yourself, okay? It's 6.30 and you're at work, and you're really stressed out, and you still have a lot to do and you recognize you need to get some rest and take care of yourself okay and acknowledging that that that gesture of kindness to yourself is valuable and worthwhile okay so So mindfulness is one. And another way to do this, to develop these qualities, is to have a gratitude practice. It's so hard to be generous if you don't feel you have enough.

It's not even really possible. But gratitude helps us see what we do have. And we all are very rich. Three things a day. You could write it down. You could text with your friend. You could just say it out loud. And each day, making it a different three items.

And I'll give you just a moment to think of three things okay I'll tell you mine mine are I'm glad for this water I'm glad for email and I'm really glad for these sandals this summer okay those? Those are three small things. But this is saying, wow, I have so much. I have a glass of water. Amazing, right? One of the reasons that we want to look at this is to generate these qualities, but also to see clearly. This year, everyone is experiencing a lot of stress and negativity through our contentious election. There's been a lot of ugliness on all spectrums of the political parties. And this is really showing us the negativity bias very clearly. The negativity bias being our habit of only seeing things that seem distressful, wrong, bad. Now, to look at the whole picture is to have a balance,

to see both all these difficult problems we might have and all the good and fabulous things that really are happening, all the kindnesses in our own heart and in others' hearts. And this is very important because we cannot create harmony for ourselves and others unless we have confidence in our ability to do this. So this balance is what will arise through these practices. So we're going to do our meditation now. Before we start, in the summertime, sometimes when I meditate, I feel really tired. So if you are feeling tired today, please keep your eyes open,

and or you are welcome to stand during your meditation today. And while you're sitting, please keep still, but if you're in pain, mindfully adjust your posture. Meditation is itself a balance between effort and relaxation. And right now, just close your eyes, don't meditate. Just allow yourself to be here. Allow yourself to settle in, noticing what's happening for you, your feeling tone, your

quality of mind. And allowing whatever intention or motivation brought you here today that led you to want to meditate in this group. And really appreciating that. Just taking a moment to appreciate that intention, that motivation. And now just taking a moment to recognize all of the beings that have enabled you to be here today. Now, this began before you were born. There were people who helped your pregnant mother, family, friends maybe, medical people.

Strangers gave her a seat. Strangers gave her a seat. And when you were born, there were likely many, many people there supporting you. Again, medical people most likely, probably family, friends, strangers, maybe clergy. People who didn't know you really welcomed you and were excited and wanted you to flourish. And as you were growing up as a child through your youth, many people helped you. They helped you learn to read, to walk. Maybe your family supported you, maybe not. Teachers,

friends, classmates lent you their support, their kindness, they listened, they cared. Perfect strangers returned lost items to you, gave you a seat, thanked you, encouraged you. That continued throughout your youth, it continued into your adulthood, and to this very moment where we are supporting you, and this will continue throughout your life. And now just taking a moment to bring your attention to your feet, feeling your seat, noticing your belly, bringing your attention to the center of your chest and your cheeks and your jaw allowing sound to enter your ears on your skin, feeling your feet on the floor, bringing your attention to the palms of your hands, to your seat, your belly, your heart, noticing your forehead and your cheeks and your jaw

allowing sound to enter your ears feeling air on your skin Bringing your awareness to your feet, to your seat, to your belly, your heart center, gently noticing your forehead and cheeks and jaw, allowing sound to enter your ears, feeling the air on your skin. I'm going to make a Noticing where your attention is. Choosing to move it to your feet. Not thinking about your feet, but allowing yourself to have the felt experience of your

feet. Noticing your seat and bringing your attention to your belly. Noticing how your belly moves when you breathe. Anchoring your attention there. Your breath in your belly. You don't have to make anything happen. Just notice. Thank you. Thank you for watching.. If you're planning or remembering, gently returning to your body, the feeling of your with kindness. Thank you. Gå in. Thank you for watching. Gullu Thank you for watching! If a sound or a plan or a memory has led you away from your breath, coming back, just noticing Nose Thank you for watching! Thank you. Thank you for watching. Gullu Thank you for watching! Moving your attention from your belly and your breath and feeling your feet. Noticing your seat.

Bringing your attention to your heart center, the middle of your chest. And taking a moment to offer yourself loving kindness. May I be safe. May I be happy. May I be healthy. May I live with ease. May I be safe. May I be happy. May I be healthy. May I live with ease. May I be safe. May I be happy. May I be healthy. May I live with ease? Taking a moment to silently offer these phrases to yourself. Thank you for watching. Moving your attention from the phrases, feeling your feet, noticing your seat, putting your attention to your heart center, and offering these phrases to all of us. May we be safe. May we be happy. May we be healthy. May we live with ease. May we be safe. May we be happy. may we be healthy, may we live with ease.

May we be safe, may we be happy, may we be healthy, may we live with ease. I'm taking a moment to offer these phrases to each other, to all of us. Thank you for watching! Gullu In a moment you will hear the bell. Please stay still until you can no longer hear it, at which time, if you'd like, you can join me in offering a bow to yourself as a show of gratitude for your work today. Thank you. Thanks, everyone. Thank you. That concludes this week's practice. If you'd like to attend in person,

please check out our website, rubinmuseum.org slash meditation to learn more. Sessions are free to Rubin Museum members, just one of the many benefits of membership. Thank you for listening. Have a mindful day.