Mindfulness Meditation · Balance
This week’s meditation session is led by Elaine Retholtz and the theme is Balance. The guided meditation begins at 13:35.
Pelden Lhamo Dusolma; Bhutan; 19th century; Pigments on cloth; 24 3/8 × 18 1/2 in. (estimated); Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art, gift of the Shelley and Donald Rubin Foundation; F1996.11.4
This painting was made in Bhutan in the 19th century. The 17th-century Bhutanese Drukpa School Rinpoche, Shabdrung Ngagwang Namgyal who unified Bhutan as a nation state, is portrayed in the top center.
Palden Lhamo, meaning “Glorious Goddess” is the primary female wisdom protector deity of Tibetan Buddhism. Here she is shown in her “smoke-clad” form (Dusolma) riding a white-nosed donkey and surrounded by flames and billowing clouds of smoke.
To her left and right and below her are members of her retinue, which include three mounted ferocious female attendants. Each of these frightening figures holds a skull cup and heart in her hands.
Palden Lhamo is the protector of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Tibet, and Bhutan. Her imposing form reminds us of the importance of striking a balance between wisdom and compassion for the benefit of all beings.
Elaine Retholtz has been studying and practicing the Dharma since 1988. In addition to teaching dharma at New York Insight, she is a certified Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) teacher and a certified MBSR teacher trainer. She is deeply interested in helping students integrate mindfulness into daily life. Elaine is committed to deepening her own understanding of issues of diversity and the way racial conditioning in the United States affects all of us—both as individuals and in relation to the institutions we are a part of, including New York Insight.
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