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.
Manuscript Cover of a Perfection of Wisdom (Prajnaparamita); Tibet; 11th century; wood; courtesy of Beata and Michael McCormick
This book cover depicts the goddess Prajnaparamita surrounded by ten buddhas. She is the personification of The Perfection of Wisdom, an important work for the Mahayana Buddhist tradition that spells out the doctrine of emptiness. Though our experience seems to confirm that reality is stable, the doctrine of emptiness states that all phenomena are empty of inherent meaning, nothing exists by itself, and nothing is permanent. Once a being understands the impermanence of all things, they can relinquish attachments and become enlightened.
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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