Teachings from the Gaea Retreat. Part Three
The following talk was given at the Gaea Retreat Center on May 24th 2015.
Welcome to Meditation Group.
My name is Daniel.
The Buddha sat under a tree in the woods, kind of like this. He sat with the intention of attaining Enlightenment and eventually he did.
Let's talk about what meditation is. Meditation is a general term for several religious practices, some different from others. These methods have the same mystical goal. To bring the awareness of the practitioner to a state in which they can come to an experience of 'awakening' or 'enlightenment'.
In Buddhism we are meditating to understand our nature as one with everything. It represents a paradox. I am everything but I am also nothing. That is the fundamental and ultimate teaching of Buddhist practice.
A common mark of different forms of meditation is that the practice concentrates the mind of the practitioner, calming and clarifying it.
Diligent practice of meditation leads to non-dualistic states of mind in which the distinction between subject and object disappears and the practitioner becomes one with 'the absolute'. Time and space are transcended and the practitioner abides in the here and now. If this experience can be followed and integrated into daily life, then Enlightenment can be attained.