Mindfulness Meditation · Suffering
This week’s meditation session is led by Sharon Salzberg and the theme is Suffering.
Wheel of Life; Tibet; early 20th century; Pigments on cloth; 65 5/8 × 40 3/4 × 1 1/2 in.; Rubin Museum of Art; Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art; C2004.21.1
The Wheel of Life depicts the six different realms that make up cyclic existence. These realms are divided into three higher realms and three lower realms, with the three higher realms consisting of the realms of the gods, demi-gods, and humans, and the three lower realms being the realms of animals, hungry ghosts, and hell beings.
Each realm has an overriding afflictive emotion that causes suffering. Within the three lower realms hell beings are ruled by anger, hungry ghosts by greed, and animals by stupidity. In the higher realms, gods are ruled by pride, the demi-gods by jealously, and the humans by desire. While Buddhists view these realms as very real, these afflictive emotions can also relate to different mindsets that lead to suffering in our own lives.
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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