Mindfulness Meditation · Emptiness
This week’s meditation session is led by Ethan Nichtern and the theme is Emptiness.
Vajra and Bell; Probably Urga or Dolonor, Mongolia; ca. late 19th century; Silver, metal (Li, five-metal compound); 7 1/8 × 3 in. (Bell)4 × 1 1/8 × 1 1/8 in. (Vajra); Rubin Museum of Art; Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art, Gift of Phillip J. Rudko; C2014.7.4a-b
Paired with a vajra, the tantric bell (known as ghanta in Sanskrit) is one of the most common ritual implements found throughout Himalayan Buddhism and represents wisdom. Functionally, the bell can be used as an offering of sound or a call for protection. Symbolically, the hollowness of the bell’s dome creates a visual representation of emptiness, which Buddhism teaches as fundamental to the nature of all phenomena. It is this specific wisdom of emptiness that is essential in producing enlightenment.
Ethan Nichtern founded the Interdependence Project in 2005. In the summer of 2010 he was empowered by his teacher, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, as a Shastri, a senior teacher in the Shambhala tradition, representing the New York region. Nichtern teaches meditation and Buddhist psychology classes and retreats in New York City and throughout the United States. He is the author of The Road Home: A Contemporary Exploration of the Buddhist Path, the novella/poetry collection Your Emoticons Won’t Save You, and One City: A Declaration of Interdependence.
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