Theme: Rituals
About the Meditation
Meditation session led by Tashi Chodron. The guided meditation begins at 17:21
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 sitting session, and a closing discussion. Chairs will be provided.
Presented in partnership with Sharon Salzberg and the Interdependence Project. This program is supported in part by the Hemera Foundation.
RELATED ARTWORK
Ewers like this one are used for pouring liquid offerings during daily offerings, initiation ceremonies, and other rituals. This ewer could have been part of a monastic setting or a lay household shrine. It is a good example of the exquisite silver metalwork, traditional Tibetan symbols, and aesthetic elements characteristic of ritual items from the region.
The central decorative motif on the belly of the vessel is a gilt dragon surrounded by Buddhism’s Eight Auspicious Symbols, also highlighted in gold. The spout emerges from the mouth of a water monster (makara). The base is in the form of a stylized lotus, similar to bases found on sculptures.
Part of the Rubin’s Tibetan Buddhist Shrine Room installation, this ewer is just one of the many objects located in both public and private shrines. Although it is ornate, it is also a reminder that not all ritual items need to be uncommon or unusual objects a vessel for pouring is also of great importance.
About the Speaker
Tashi Chodronis the assistant manager of Himalayan Cultural Programs at the Rubin Museum of Art. She leads the series Awakening Practice, a Saturday meditation and mindfulness class in the Tibetan Buddhist Shrine Room, and a recurring program on Himalayan Heritage. Chodron leads gallery and university group tours and teaches adult classes at the Rubin. She also trains guides and docents on Himalayan and Tibetan Buddhist art and culture. Chodron is the founder and current director of Voices of Tibet, an organization dedicated to conducting interviews with Tibetan elders to save their stories for future generations and to educate the world about Tibet.