Mindfulness Meditation Podcast - Mindfulness Meditation with Tracy Cochran 11/06/2025

Episode Date: November 14, 2025

The Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art presents a weekly meditation for beginners and skilled meditators alike. Each episode is inspired by a different work of art from the Museum’s collection and is led by a prominent meditation teacher.The episode begins with an opening talk followed by a 20-minute meditation. In this episode, the guided meditation begins at 13:00.Teacher: Tracy Cochran Theme: Generosity White Tara with Long Life Deities; Tibet; 19th century; pigments on cloth; Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art, gift of the Shelley and Donald Rubin Foundation; F1996.32.5Learn more about the Rubin’s work around the world at rubinmuseum.org.

Welcome to the Mindfulness Meditation podcast presented by the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art, a global museum dedicated to bringing greater awareness and understanding of Himalayan art to people around the world. I'm your host, Tashi Children. Every Thursday, we offer a meditation session at New York Inside Meditation Center that draws inspiration from an artwork from the Rubin's collection. and is led by a prominent meditation teacher. This podcast is a recording of our weekly in-person practice. The description of each episode includes information about the theme for that week's session and an image of the related artwork.

Our Mindfulness Meditation podcast is presented in partnership with Sharon Salzberg and teachers from the New York Inside Meditation Center, the Interdependence Project and Parabola magazine, and supported by the Frederick P. Lenz Foundation for American Buddhism. And now, please enjoy your practice. Good afternoon, everyone, and Tashi DeLake. Welcome. Welcome to the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Arts Mindfulness Meditation Program

here at this beautiful place at New York Inside Meditation Center. I'm Tashi Churdan, Himalayan Programs and Communities. ambassador and I'm delighted to be a host today. The Rubin is a global museum dedicated to Himalayan art and its insights and we're so glad to have all of you join us for this weekly program where we combine art and meditation. Inspired by our collection, we will first take a deep look at the work of art that is chosen by our teacher Tracy Cochran and then we will have a short sit about 15 to 20 minutes for the meditation guided by her. So let's take a look at today's theme and artwork. The artwork for today's session is this beautiful Thanka of White Tara. And this

is referred to as the White Tara Long Life deity. The origin of this is Tibet, dated 19th century mineral pigments on cloth, which is a scroll painting called Thangka. in Tibetan word, and this is about 27.38 into 18.1.4 inches and a painting. The theme for the month of November is generosity. And so Tara is emblematic of generosity. She watches over all ancient beings with compassion and her hand extended in supreme generosity. If you look at her right hand, palm facing up and fingers pointing towards the earth, which is the true generosity flows from awareness, nurturing harmony across the universe. And so as a female Buddha, so she's sometimes referred to as the bodhisattva and also Buddha as well.

And Waitara associates with longevity. She emanates in 21 different forms. Each form associates with certain roles and the Waitara associates with longevity or long life. And in the center, she's sitting in a lotus position on the lotus throne with her left hand holding the stem of the Utpala flower and then the right hand in supreme generosity. So with that, let's bring on our teacher for today.

Our teacher is Tracy Carcran. Tracy had taught meditation and spiritual practice for many years. She's a speaker and author whose most recent book, Presence, The Art of Being at Home in Yourself, was published by Shabala Publications in 2024. Tracy is the founder and leading teacher of the Hudson River Sanga and has taught mindfulness and mindful writing at the New York Inside,

at the Rubin Museum, and many other venues. In addition to serving as the editorial director of the acclaimed spiritual quarterly Parabola magazine. Her writings have appeared in the New York Times, New York Magazine, Psychology Today, the best spiritual writing series, Parabola, and many other publications and anthologies. For more about Tracy, go on tracycockren.org, and Tracy has a book club that she'll be reading from her book presence, and Tracy can share more. Please help me in welcoming Tracy Cochran.

Thank you so much. I'm smiling because I'm happy to be here, and also because I remember that over 30 years ago, His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, came to New York and performed in the college chakra. Do you remember? I was there with my baby. my that and baby, like one year old, 18 years old.

And this beautiful, beautiful ritual went on for days and days and days. And finally, child care broke down at the very end when they did White Tara ceremony for long life of His Holiness and for everybody there. So my baby, they're like, bring the baby. the monks and nuns were like, bring the baby in. Their Twetans are very generous. So she's thrashing back and forth and they kept going, can the baby participate? You know, yogurt involved and all this stuff. And of course, my baby was like having none of it.

Like, no, no, no, no. And they were just so generous and welcoming. Like, that's fine. And she's here. That's still a blessing. So I'm thinking, I've been thinking, how can we relate to this beautiful image, a goddess, with seven eyes, three in her face, one here, presumably, and two in her hands, and also her feet. what does it mean to have eyes in your feet in your hands in your third eye and of course walking in the city you have to watch your step you have to have a feeling for where you're going

but the element of compassion also suggests that you be able to have a feeling for what you've been through, and what others have been through their path, their journey, in your hands, what does it mean to have eyes, to have a sense of what you're doing, how you're interacting, their eye, looking into people, and into yourself, your past. So I have a little story and I'm told by the Internet is a true story but I'm taking it with a grain of salt

I'm not mentioning the names but you can, it feels true to me it included pictures and names to very different people took place in Texas and one person young, blonde, thin woman just emanated privilege. The other person, unhoused, middle-aged person of color. So the person number one, this young woman was exiting of Starbucks, a cafe, and saw a person number two, and handed a few dollars.

Put him in his cup. And it was a nice gesture, and on he went, on she went. Until she got home and discovered her engagement ring was missing, worth thousands and thousands of dollars. Until he got home and emptied out his cup, her bowl. And among the dollars he had was this beautiful ring. He went to a poundbroker who offered him $4,000 on the spot. It was worth much more.

But something inside him, he needed that money, he made no mistake. And this person, number one, meant nothing to him. But something inside his eyes, he understood that this was an important ring. to her and that he was a truthful human being and that hadn't been offered to him that was precious ring and he was basically a very good person so he said I'm going to go back tomorrow with the ring

meanwhile she went home and freaked out didn't sleep a wink hurry back the next day and there he was serene waiting and she said excuse me you probably don't remember me

but I dropped some money in your cup and I think I accidentally dropped my engagement ring and he said yes you did and here it is and she was so

taught she gave him a whole bunch of money again using her hands and felt so happy and then when she got home her fiance, they were talking together, and he was like, wait a minute, wait a minute. Was that gesture enough? And suddenly she saw this was a very good being.

This was someone incredibly truthful, and this was someone who was having a tough time. And so they started to go fund me, raised a whole bunch of money, Drew's story, enough so that he could secure an apartment, a used car, and a job. And it is a wonderful story. The heart of it's true. And I believe every detail of it is true, too.

And what I like about it for Tara, White Tara is that idea of seeing with the whole of yourself. Putting yourself in somebody else's shoes. Putting your hands, making a gesture that's really connected to your heart, to your vision. That I'm really interested in connection, not just transaction. And that idea of TARA having all different forms, it's so helpful for us to remember these energies, compassion,

and that skillful giving, seeing with your feet, seeing with your hands, they're inside us. Just like they're inside two people I just described. in that real-life story. And when we hear a story like that, something changes inside. Because we know that kind of seeing, that kind of compassion is possible.

That we can see under the surface of things, inside ourselves, too. So let's sit together and see for ourselves. Remembering before we sit as we adjust that that idea of longevity doesn't just mean living a long time. It means living a full life. And we be all here. All here. Body, heart, and mind.

mind, can we be present for each other and for ourselves? Let's take a comfortable seat and letting your back be as straight as you can comfortably have your back be straight. Let yourself touch the earth. feed on the floor, bottom on the seat. And not what else how it feels to welcome yourself to be here. Not just the good parts, good feelings, good thoughts, but the whole of yourself. parts that might be suffering, tired.

rejected. Notice that there is an awareness here inside you. that can be with everything that's here. Without touching, without fixing, without fixing, just seeing, with kindness, with compassion. Notice how it feels to rest in this awareness how it feels to rest in this awareness that's generous. open, accepting.

How does how it feels to be seen from the inside with gentleness, acceptance, compassion. Thank you. Thank you. And it for you know. find yourself thinking, dreaming, attached to a feeling. That's how it feels to let that be acceptable. And come back again to presence, to the body in this moment. Thank you.

Thank you. Right. Find yourself climbing back up into your head. drop into sensation into buying Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I think how it feels to be seen with kindness.

Complete acceptance. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

When you find yourself Drifting, relax this is natural. And come back, rest in loving awareness. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. That's how it's how it's how it? feels to be seen from the inside with kindness, with compassion. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Now that is how it is how it feels how it feels how it is how it is how it feels to have none of your thoughts or feelings or attitudes be judged, everything accepted, human, worthy of compassion.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Notice how it is how

it feels to be surrounded by compassion, by a compassionate awareness that it sees with patience, generosity. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Just rest. in stillness noticing that stillness isn't silence or absence but softness

acceptance acceptance Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I would have seen. how it feels to let every part, every feeling, be held in compassion. Do not reject. Just rest. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Noticeing how it feels to be really seeing the whole of you. To be accepted with compassion. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Notice how it feels to know you are completely welcome here and loved. Thank you. Thank you so much, Tracy, for that beautiful session. That concludes this week's practice. To support the Rubin and this meditation series, we invite you to become a friend of the Rubin at Rubin Museum.org slash friends. If you are looking for more inspiring content, please check out our other podcasts, Awaken, which uses art to explore the dynamic paths to enlightenment and what it means to wake up.

Available wherever you listen to podcasts. And to learn more about the Ruben Museum's work around the world, visit Ruben Museum. Thank you for listening. Have a mindful day.