We all carry questions about our lives and how we might find relief from the struggles we encounter throughout our mysterious incarnations. Who are we and how can we come to understand what it truly means to embody our deeper self? The original nature of consciousness itself is luminous, and free. In awakening the heart we uncover this inherently pure awareness.

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Recommendations:

Jack’s Books:

The Wise Heart: A Guide to the Universal Teachings of Buddhist Psychology
A Path with Heart: A Guide Through the Perils and Promises of Spiritual Life
Bringing Home the Dharma: Awakening Right Where You Are
Meditation for Beginners

Episode Outline:

• A Gracious Host – We sometimes feel stuck in our bodies, but if we can open to ourselves and learn to acknowledge how we are actually feeling, pains and all, we begin the process of release
• Dimensions of Liberation – When we quiet the mind enough, we start to gain insights into the deeper truths of our circumstance. Our perspectives are broadened when we can see the greater arc of our lives
• Feel the Roots – “Don’t surrender your loneliness so quickly, let it cut more deeply, let it ferment and season you as few human or divine ingredients can’ – Hafez
• The Awakened Heart – It is through practice that we turn to the heart, opening more and more to the space it holds. It’s a natural process, but is hindered by the distractions of daily life. Meditation is the opportunity to return to this unfolding
• Mindfulness (The Gateway to Liberation) – There is nothing more helpful than mindfulness, however it manifests. See things as they are, and find freedom, no matter what the circumstance
• Dhamma Vicaya – (Investigation) – The Buddha’s enlightenment was good for him, but you have to become the Buddha. Discover for yourself what it means to open to your incarnation.
• Courage to be Present – It’s less about making something happen, and more about being with what already is, Steady the mind, not with struggle but with balance
• Metta (Married to Mindfulness) – Mindfulness lacks heart in the absence of Metta. The qualities of our awakening are found in the merging of mind and heart – Faith is the glue that binds

Photo by Harry Koopman via Flickr. Used under the creative commons license.