This week’s meditation session is led by Sharon Salzberg and the theme is Beginning Again. The guided meditation begins at 14:20.

This painting depicts peaceful and wrathful deities from the bardo, the transitional space between death and rebirth, as described in the Tibetan Book of the Dead. According to Tibetan tradition, after a person’s death and before their next birth, when consciousness is not connected with the physical body, one may experience visions or hallucinations, like the one pictured above. Metaphorically, the term bardo can describe times when our usual way of life becomes suspended, as during a period of illness or meditation practice. In the bardo, one sees terrifying and peaceful deities, but is expected to not react to them. This is also what we attempt to do when we practice mindfulness. By registering and acknowledging the negative emotions we feel throughout the day, we become more familiar with them and better equipped to address them when they arise. This hard work from our meditation and mindfulness practice allows us to forge new beginnings in the outside world.