Mindfulness Meditation · Compassion
This week’s meditation session is led by Sharon Salzberg and the theme is Compassion. The guided meditation begins at 17:19.
Green Tara as Protectress from the Eight Fears; Bhutan; 19th century; Pigments on cloth; 74 1/4 × 39 1/4 × 5/8 in.; Rubin Museum of Art; Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art; C2006.42.12
Tara is one of the most popular female deities in Tibetan culture. She is particularly associated with protecting from a group of calamities known as the Eight Fears. Tara is a meditation deity revered by practitioners of the Tibetan branch of Vajrayana Buddhism to develop certain inner qualities and to understand outer, inner and secret teachings such as compassion, loving-kindness, and emptiness. Tara may more properly be understood as different aspects of the same quality, as bodhisattvas are often considered personifications of Buddhist methods.
Sharon Salzberg, cofounder of the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, has guided meditation retreats worldwide since 1974. Her latest book is Real Change: Mindfulness to Heal Ourselves and the World. 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. Ms. Salzberg has been a regular participant in the Rubin’s many on-stage conversations and regards the Rubin as a supplemental office.
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