Mindfulness Meditation · Impermanence
This week’s meditation session is led by Sharon Salzberg and the theme is Impermanence. The guided meditation begins at 14:20.
Machik Labdron (1055–1153); Tibet; ca. 16th - 17th century; Stone; 5 1/4 × 3 1/2 × 1 in.; Rubin Museum of Art; Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art; C2003.17.2
One of the most famous female Tibetan practitioners, Machik Labdron stands on her left leg in a dynamic pose, holding a two-sided damaru drum in her right hand and a ghanta bell in her left hand. All schools of Tibetan Buddhism perform her signature practice called chod. In essence, chod involves intense visualizations where practitioners imagine their bodies being chopped up and offered to gods and demons. This practice “cuts through” attachment to the body, ultimately serving to ingrain impermanence in a deep, visceral way.
Sharon Salzberg, Cofounder of the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, has guided meditation retreats worldwide since 1974. Her latest books are Real Life: The Journey from Isolation to Openness and Freedom and Finding Your Way: Meditations, Thoughts, and Wisdom for Living an Authentic Life. 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, Real Change: Mindfulness to Heal Ourselves and the World, 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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