Mindfulness Meditation · Transforming Obstacles
This week’s meditation session is led by Tracy Cochran and the theme is Transforming Obstacles.
Portable Mani Shrine (Tashi Gomang) of the Copper Palace of Padmasambhava; Bhutan; 18th-19th century; painted and gilded wood with sun-dried clay figures; Private Collection; L195.1.1
This portable shrine from Bhutan depicts the palace of Padmasambhava. According to legend, after the Buddhist master Padmsambhava left Tibet, he went to live in his pure land on top of the Copper-Colored Mountain where he still resides today. This shrine was likely carried through Bhutan and used as prop by traveling storytellers who recounted the great achievements of Padmsambhava. Opening up the shrine reveals several different levels filled with elaborate details transforming the seemingly simple structure into something much larger and more complex.
The shrine can be seen as a metaphor for how our obstacles, when examined with mindful attention, can transform into something that can teach us about ourselves and the world, much like the stories of Padmasambhava do.
Tracy Cochran has been a student and teacher of meditation and spiritual practice for decades. She is the founder of the Hudson River Sangha. In addition to offering meditation online, Tracy has taught mindfulness meditation and mindful writing at the Rubin Museum and the New York Insight Meditation Center, as well as in schools, corporations, and other venues worldwide. She is also a writer and the editorial director of Parabola, an acclaimed quarterly magazine that seeks to bring timeless spiritual wisdom to the burning questions of the day.
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