Alan Wallace Live From Phuket!

This morning we had a short but sweet introduction on the mind’s capacity to heal itself and how the traditional sciences can cooperate with the contemplative science, come together, and share their insights. Alan also talks about how sometimes support from the psychopharmaceutical, clinical psychology, and psychiatry branches can be a huge support for contemplative practice. So this morning was about cooperation and synergy!Afterwards we have a 24 minute session of settling the mind and then we wrapped it up on time!The photo is a sunset from a few days ago courtesy of the wonderful (tia) Rosa!

In this podcast, B. Alan Wallace, Ph. D., answers a question involving having a friendly discussion about the relationship between mind and brain (don't we all have those with our friends all the time?) and explains his point of view as well as refutes several typical arguments about the mind being either part of, the same thing, or an emergent property of the brain.I won't say more, listen for yourselves! This will probably clear up any doubts you have about the topic, and his points are rock-solid.(And if you are like me you'll probably take note for the next time you have this argument!)Some quick further reading: http://www.alanwallace.org/Exploration%20of%20Consciousness.pdfYou can tell I liked that photo!

Tonight we had a 5 minute introduction to the practice of Compassion and how to do it properly, as well as a reflection on the effect of Tonglen. Afterwards we go straight to the practice.After the meditation there is a question that a group of people had. The question was about not losing touch with Dharma even though we might get swamped with mundane tasks. I think this applies to many of us.Alan first gives a striking "bad-cop" approach to a part of the question talking about priorities. It makes a lot of sense. Then comes the real question about not separating from Dharma and alan gives a profoundly inspiring response which I believe might be very interesting and motivating to many of us all over the world (as well as the "bad-cop response")I stripped the last part of the podcast but don't worry, I won't make you wait till Sunday! I'll upload it right after this one and it deals with how to approach a conversation about the relationship of mind and brain. A favorite!Guess who took the

Today got quite long for a morning practice, but it was very interesting! Alan immediately got going with a very sharp discussion of the current status of acceptance that cognitive sciences or even just attentional training such as Shamatha have in the scientific materialist view. He draws on several events from his experience with his subtle humor but also with striking clarity and in my opinion, sad truth.I will not try to describe or paraphrase what he said because it would not be very precise, but if you really are not interested then feel free to jump to 20:00!There we start our usual morning meditation which in this case was a great practice of Settling the Mind in its Natural State (a way to directly observe our minds), and after the practice Alan explains the three qualities of a worthy student of Buddhism, and explains that this morning was a preview of the talk that is to come this afternoon. He says that I am partly to blame for what got him going this morning and for this afternoon, and I will adm

We start with a few comments about the term "Loving Kindness" and definitions of love (neodarwinism, scientific materialism, freud, all the goodies) and the shortcomings of looking at human beings as simple animals from the metaphysical point of view. Then we start to observe the attitude of self-centeredness which we frequently have and how it it has different "concentric rings" (which we can extend to include all beings and therefore cure this self-centeredness). After this powerful reflective introduction we have a 24 minute session of practice of Loving Kindness and some Dzogchen bases. After the practice we have a question on Dzogchen and how some forms of it can be dangerous when used incorrectly or without preparation, and lastly we have a very juicy "trailer" of lucid dreaming.Which means I am going to advertize here: If you keep faithfully listening to the podcast we'll eventually come to great lucid dreaming practices! So keep listening and tell all of your friends! Eve

This morning we had a 4 minuteintroduction on achieving Shamatha with breath awareness (and the acquired sign), followed by a classic, old school practice as taught by Buddhaghosa and practiced for millenia. This practice should be at the bottom of the food pyramid!Afterwards Alan explains some tips to slip back into meditation sessions with less transition from our "ordinary" state. Enjoy!This beautiful picture of Kathmandu courtesy of our cheerful phuket Sangha friend Ale!

This podcast is centered around a Loving Kindness practice designed to help develop joy and vision for our Shamatha practice, but it will work for many things. As almost always we start with a very good introduction followed by the 24 minute practice. Afterwards there is a short footnote about the difference between achieving Shamatha (access to the first Dhyāna) and actually achieving the first Dhyāna and what each entails.The podcast ends there because was a question asked, "Alan, how would you like to see the development of Buddhism and Contemplative Science in the West within the next 10-15 years." As you can imagine, I will leave this for the much-loved sunday bonus! If you know Alan, you know that this question deserves its own podcast episode.This picture is of the spirit houses (or san phra phum in Thai) at the entryway to the Mind Centre! The theory behind them is very interesting once again I suggest consulting our great friend, Google!

This morning we went back to the valuable practice of settling the attention on the rise and fall of the abdomen, a "transitional" practice. The podcast starts with an introduction about struggles, the "casino of samsara," discipline, and counting in breath awareness practice.After the practice, there is a reflection on the reality of suffering.The picture is of our gompa, or teaching hall! It's part of a bunch of pictures that have been uploaded to Alan's facebook today. Here (on the website) is a fancy button in case you want to become a fan! (Or “Like” as they now call it):

We start with a great introduction on the Four Inmeasurables and how they interrelate based on Buddhaghosa and the Tibetan Buddhism perspective, including the "faux facsimiles" or close but very distorted versions of the 4I (yes! I finally found an abbreviation that I will be using from now on) and some commentary on how to remedy the delusion about thinking that we will be the lucky ones in samsara. After finding that Loving Kindness is the cure for that, we go into a great, deep practice to "get real."Afterwards there is some reflection on the practice and a few misc. Q&A.This samsaric picture by Malcolm was taken before the retreat. This will probably be the only beach picture you see from us!

This morning we started the cycle all over again with a delicious soothing practice of Full-Body awareness (or as Alan calls it, "The Infirmary!") He also gives a very brief introduction on why it is worthwhile to go into the infirmary and about "balancing earth and wind" and "balancing earth and sky".The picture (once again by Sara) is of the reclining Buddha at Prathong temple here in Phuket. He went into parinirvana in this position, which shows that sitting isn’t the only position for meditation!

Today we also finished the basic cycle of the Four Inmeasurables with another practice of equanimity.We first get an introduction to the sheer importance of the practices of Four Inmeasurables (and how they not only are tremendously beneficial practices in themselves but also how they are the "golden ground" for cultivating Bodihchitta) and brief instructions for Tonglen. We then proceed to a practice of equanimity with Tonglen mixed in, and end with some good assorted Questions and Answers (Q&A).The picture of this podcast is beautiful Chalong temple here in Phuket! This great photo was kindly provided by Sara.

Today we practiced the last method in the "cycle" of Shamatha methods for this course. It is the final variation of Awareness of Awareness. In this podcast we go straight into the meditation followed by a brief recap of the four Awareness of Awareness practices and a short reminder on the importance of Shamatha.This is today’s sky here at the Mind Centre, perfect for Awareness of Awareness practice!

It’s Sunday (for us!) and here is the bonus I promised! After yesterday's practice on Equanimity, Alan said he had to add a couple of "footnotes" to the question about Nirvana and Rigpa from two days ago. You can expect what follows: 30 minutes that capture you and just keep escalating and escalating into a pure jewel of a lecture. And I say escalating because as we approach the end of the podcast, well... just listen for yourself! I will (humbly) say from my opinion that listening to this is probably one of the best ways you can use 30 minutes of your life.Several of my fellow Phuket Sanga members asked me to make sure that this recording was going to be available in the future, and with very good reason. We love this kind of stuff over here, so as Alan ocassionaly says after these kinds of talks "Hopefully that wasn't a waste of time for you. It certainly wasn't for us!"

This afternoon we started with more cultivation of equanimity, specifically dispelling the "I-It" relationship with ourselves. First we had a great introduction to the concept, a couple of questions arose, and then the meditation (an extremely valuable practice). Afterwards, Alan reflects on some of the incorrect "selling points" of buddhism that are sometimes portrayed in the media and as an effect of this modern (last 50 years) boom in Buddhism and other misconceptions. There was no Q&A, only one very long and simply astonishing lecture which I will upload as a bonus tomorrow! It will really be worth your time.This great photo of our teaching hall Buddha was taken by Malcolm.

In this morning session, we went straight into an Awareness of Awareness meditation with some extra techniques. Short and sweet! This is the third method in our Awareness of Awareness cycle.(You may have to turn up the volume on this one! Sorry!)This photo is also part of the great series from Malcolm!

This afternoon we meditated on the fourth of the 4 Immeasurables: Equanimity. There is a preamble on Equanimity, followed by the meditation and by some reflections of the importance of this practice. Afterwards there is a Q&A with a question about the breath followed by a question which again turned into a goldmine: it started out with "what exactly is the difference between nirvana and rigpa" and evolved into a very deep overview of the path and the final stages just prior to complete enlightenment. In Alan's words, "deep waters." Very interesting topic.This photo of the cloud front was provided by Rosa!

This morning we practiced a slightly different method Awareness of Awareness, or Shamatha without a sign. After the meditation, there is a short section on insomnia and anxiety that can arise when in retreat. It is mostly focused on our situation here in Phuket but I included it because it can be relevant to many around the world, especially if you are doing retreat with us! May it serve you well!By the way, the podcast picture for this episode is part of a Thangka called “The Nine Progressive Stages of Mental Development” (or other names). Google it along with its explanation, it’s very inspiring! You can view the Thangka full size at the podcast website.

One of the things we love about Alan is his ability to answer a single question with a 30 minute reply in which he not only answers the question completely but he explores all of the branches and leaves you deeply inspired. I felt the need to separate this into a separate episode for those who do not have time to listen to everything. I feel the start of the bonus episodes!Alan talks about awareness of awareness (specifically the ability to realize rigpa through this practice), the several buddhist paths, the solid foundations of his teachings, the reasons for Shamatha, and more. This is a “must listen” episode which I hope will leave you as inspired as it did us.