Greetings from Jonathan Foust: 500,000 downloads, The Still, Small Voice Within... Fresh Photos and More
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Welcome!
I am entertaining the illusion that I have a personal relationship with some Bald Eagles. I visit with them most every morning I get out on the river, either a pair who hang together or a younger one who just this year graduated to the white plumage. They humor me. I think. After our pre-sunrise visit I work my way further upriver then cross over to the east so I can float by an island just as the sun is rising. This way I can drift by the shoreline saturated with morning light and recently, Canada Geese nests every 50 feet. The river is churning with life right now: baby geese, baby mergansers, blue herons, egrets, river snakes, otters and the constant traffic of birds up and down the waterway. Above this scene of constant movement the eagles sit and watch. As beautiful as this is, it's clear why they are there. Breakfast! Lunch! Dinner! Snacks! This is the flow of things... We eat and are being eaten. I wish you well in the flow of your life.
Upcoming Events
May 2:
Evening Class at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington Learn More
May 6:
IMCW Spring Retreat (7 days) Learn More
May 9:
Evening Class at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington, Guest Teacher Learn More
May 16:
Evening Class at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington Learn More
May 18:
YLM8 Evening Session Learn More
May 21:
IMCW Meditation Mentor Training Learn More
May 23:
Evening Class at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington Learn More
May 30:
NO CLASS / Memorial Day
500,000 downloads
My good friend Shobhan Richard Faulds once said that his personal mission was to "practice deeply and share freely." I immediately took those words to heart. Monday night at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Arlington is the perfect expression of that phrase. We offer the Monday night class and podcast freely so no one is ever denied access to the teachings. We're just passing 500,000 downloads of my talks and meditations through iTunes. I'm gratified to know they have been helpful for some and I'm equally grateful for the donations and support that help me continue to offer them. Thank you. Some recent talks you might enjoy: I just completed a eight week series on "The Path." Here's the final installment: The Path: Skillful Concentration
What happens when you develop your capacity to concentrate. Last week's talk: "Beyond Sickness, Old Age and Death."
How embracing the Heavenly Messengers can dramatically transform your life. (And a few mildly offensive jokes.)
Fresh Photos
This was a cool month which refrigerated many of the early flowers and held back the usual Spring explosion here. Chlorophyll is starting to have it's way, finally. The month began with early Blue Bells filling the flood plain. Usually the Flox come in after the Bluebells depart, but with the cool weather they appeared simultaneously. Geese begin to pair off. Standing guard over the nest. The long vigil. A view upriver at first light. Close your eyes and you'll be eaten. Life! Pollen!
Five Breaths: April on the River
Here's a short video/slide show guiding you through five slow breaths and featuring some images from the river this month.
The Still, Small Voice Within: Meditation, Focusing and Intuition Training
August 7 -10 (Five nights) Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health I am fascinated by the relationship between mindfulness and intuition and have offered a variation of this program for the last fifteen years or so. Consider this retreat if you'd like to take a deep dive into developing both mindfulness and your capacity to "see clearly' as well as techniques that help you access what I consider to be the most reliable form of intuition: the 'felt sense' of your body. Albert Einstein said, "No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it." To climb out of any rut, resolve problems, or sense your path from a new perspective, you must shift your awareness. This retreat is designed to immerse you in practices that generate such a shift. Vipassana (insight meditation) teaches you to pause and recognize what is present, allowing you to see with increasing clarity into the nature of things. Focusing trains the mind to investigate what arises from the field of direct sensation, offering access to wisdom and compassion. Combined, these two techniques generate a unique in-depth experience of awakened heart and mind. Through practice, talks, presentations, exercises, and discussion, you dive into self-inquiry and develop skills for the rest of your life. Note: This retreat is intensive and may preclude other activities. Much of the retreat is held in social silence. Click the Pic to Learn More.
Latest from the Blog
Beyond Sickness, Old Age and Death
Just How Small is One Moment?
The Path: Skillful Concentration
And Sometimes You Leap
The Inquiry Intensive on April 30th
The Path: Skillfull Awareness
Waking
The Path: Skillful Effort
Greetings from Jonathan Foust: More on the Path, The Question That Can Change Your Life, Fresh Photos and More
Johns Hopkins study on Psilocybin and Long-Term Meditators
My good friends at Johns Hopkins are still accepting applications for this amazing study on the effect of psilocybin and long term meditators. Please check out Roland Griffiths, the lead on this study, in this TedMed talk. If you're interested and qualify, I highly recommend you explore this possibility. I continue to be touched and inspired by both the intellectual rigor as well as the deep compassion of this team. To learn more and to apply for this study: Long-Term Meditator Study
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