Theme: Offering
About the Meditation
Meditation session led by Sharon Salzberg.
The guided meditation begins at 14:27.
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 forty-five-minute weekly program designed to fit into your lunch break. Each session will be inspired by a different work of art from the Rubin Museum’s collection and will include an opening talk, a twenty-minute meditation session, and a closing discussion.
This program is supported with thanks to our presenting partners Sharon Salzberg, the Interdependence Project and Parabola Magazine.
Related Artwork
This offering bowl is a part of a set of similar bowls used for ceremonial purposes and carved with symbols of good fortune. Together they form the seven offerings. The first bowl contains pure water for drinking and rinsing the mouth, and the second bowl contains water for washing the feet. The third bowl contains fresh flowers, representing the custom of presenting guests with a flower garland or hair adornment. Incense is contained in the fourth bowl. The fifth bowl holds an oil or butter lamp to represent the illumination of wisdom, while the sixth bowl contains rosewater or perfumed water for refreshing the face. The seventh bowl contains delicious food for honored guests, usually a red or white conical offering cake made from roasted barley flour, dyes, and butter.
About the Speaker
Sharon Salzberg, cofounder of the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, has guided meditation retreats worldwide since 1974. Sharon’s latest book is Real Love: The Art of Mindful Connection. She is a weekly columnist for On Being, a regular contributor to the Huffington Post, and the author of several other books including the New York Times bestseller Real Happiness: The Power of Meditation, Faith: Trusting Your Own Deepest Experience, and Lovingkindness: The Revolutionary Art of Happiness. Sharon has been a regular participant in many onstage conversations at the Rubin.