ABOUT THE MEDITATION
This week’s meditation session is led by Kimberly Brown and the theme is New Beginnings.
The guided meditation begins at 13:27.
For centuries Himalayan practitioners have used meditation to quiet the mind, open the heart, calm the nervous system, and increase focus. Now Western scientists, business leaders, and the secular world have embraced meditation as a vital tool for brain health.
Whether you’re a beginner, a dabbler, or a skilled meditator seeking the company of others, join expert teachers in a 45-minute weekly program designed to fit into your lunch break. Each session is inspired by a different work of art from the Rubin Museum’s collection and includes an opening talk, a 20-minute meditation session, and a closing discussion.
RELATED ARTWORK
Made in the 11th century, this sandstone depiction of the Hindu deity Ganesha has withstood the test of time. His weathered belly and darkened trunk are the result of centuries of devotees reaching out to the deity by hand to invoke his blessings.
Ganesha is perpetually in motion, dancing to the rhythm of drums played by two small figures on his right. He is adorned with a crown and triumphantly bears a cobra in his upper pair of arms. Another snake coils around his chest. With one of his left hands he holds a bowl filled with his favorite ladoo sweets. His other hands hold a battle ax and a tool used by elephant drivers. Everything that he is holding is associated with his role as the remover of obstacles.
As we behold the majesty of Ganesha, let’s reflect on the obstacles in our own lives, and how they can be perceived as opportunities for growth, depending on how we look at them.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Kimberly Brown is a meditation teacher and author. She leads classes and retreats that emphasize the power of compassion and kindness meditation to reconnect us to ourselves and others. Her teachings provide an approachable pathway to personal and collective well-being through effective and modern techniques based on traditional practices. She studies in both the Tibetan and Insight schools of Buddhism and is a certified mindfulness instructor. Her new book, Navigating Grief and Loss: 25 Buddhist Practices to Keep Your Heart Open to Yourself and Others, was published in November 2022, and an updated edition of Steady, Calm, and Brave was released in January 2023. Both are published by Prometheus Books. You can learn more about Kimberly on her website.
This program is presented in partnership with Sharon Salzberg and teachers from the New York Insight Meditation Center, the Interdependence Project, and Parabola Magazine and supported by the Frederick P. Lenz Foundation for American Buddhism.
