Mindfulness Meditation · Offering
This week’s meditation session is led by Tracy Cochran and the theme is Offering. The guided meditation begins at 16:41.
Butter Lamp; Tibet; 18th century; Metal, silver; Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art, Gift of Ralph Redford; C2008.27
One of the ubiquitous offerings in Himalayan cultures, butter lamps can be found in virtually at any temple or holy site in the region. Himalayan people use butter lamps as offerings of light to appease the sense of sight for the deities that appear on the altar. The light itself serves as a metaphor for illuminating awareness that dispels the darkness of ignorance, just like meditation practice and the Buddha’s teachings.
Tracy Cochran has taught meditation and spiritual practice for many years. She is a speaker and author whose most recent book, Presence: The Art of Being At Home in Yourself, was published by Shambhala Publications in 2024. Tracy is the founder and leading teacher of the Hudson River Sangha and has taught mindfulness and mindful writing at New York Insight, the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art, and many other venues. In addition to serving as the editorial director of the acclaimed spiritual quarterly Parabola, her writings have appeared in The New York Times, New York Magazine, Psychology Today, The Best Spiritual Writing series, Parabola, and many other publications and anthologies. For more about Tracy, please visit tracycochran.org and parabola.org.
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