Dissolving attachment in the openness of being. Macclesfield 02.2017

February 4-5th 2017. James Low teaching on "Dissolving attachment in the openness of being" in Macclesfield, UK at the invitation of Kun-Pan Ling Buddhist Centre.

The first few moments were not filmed.

"When we lose touch with the open ground of our being we tend to hang on to habits and objects that give us a sense of who we are. This helps us to survive but in a restricted way. Meditation can give us confidence to relax our grasp on the already vanished past and helps us to work with whatever arises now. This brings freedom in life and clarity at the time of death."
~ James Low

We perceive patterns in the world and assign meaning to objects based on our interpretations and cultural conventions.

0:00 We create the world through our mental interpretations.
11:43 Our experience shapes the existence of things.
32:17 We are always part of the world and our perception is influenced by our concepts.
42:58 The mind is like space, but our attention is usually drawn to specific thoughts and experiences.
1:03:23 Ignorance is the root of our difficulties.
1:14:22 Relying on transient phenomena as a means of gaining security is not a good idea. Stability comes from attending to the mind itself.
1:36:18 "Selfing" is the emergence of patterns in relation to other people.
1:46:32 Our self-formations are multiple and contradictory, and there is no essential contradiction between them.
2:07:42 Nothing in the world has a fixed essence; everything is transitory and constantly changing.
2:18:10 To find our original face, we need to release our fixation on subject and object and be the space where the experience takes place.
2:38:43 Equanimity allows us to see the transience of our mental constructs and the freedom to just be with what comes up.
2:48:36 The meditative approach is to cultivate a calm, clear and open simplicity.
3:08:41 Practice is about tenderness and warmth.
3:19:33 Our conversations are about connectivity and compassion, not truth.
3:39:15 Being open and engaged with others is inseparable from our experience.
3:49:18 The five poisons - desire, aversion, ignorance, pride and jealousy - lead to distorted personal and relational patterns.
4:00:47 Purging desire, anger and pride leads to clarity, sensitivity and appreciation.
4:19:28 Jealousy and possessiveness lead to dangerous results.
4:38:30 Collaboration is key.
4:48:53 The mirror and its reflections are void of self-substance.
5:09:40 Awareness is the quality of relaxed, open, and cool presence.
5:19:51 Emptying and filling: the illusion of identity.
5:39:24 The practice of meditation helps to relax and observe the flow of events.
5:49:08 Connecting with difficult people can lead to growth and self-awareness.
6:09:03 The basis of our being is awareness and everything arises in that awareness.
6:18:56 The practice is to relax at the base of the movement and watch the game and terrain.
6:38:54 The practice of relaxation and openness allows us to experience life's new and fresh moments, leading to a kinder existence and connected.

[wanda]

We are so blessed to receive these profound teachings. Thank you James 🙏🙏xx

[michaelavolovsek]

I’m always so grateful for these teachings. Just amazing, so clear, so beautiful. Thank you !

[lmb]

Marvellously delicious teaching James. Thanks again.

[dagharr]

i believe these are the talks from the waking up app. i have spent much time with these. it's a real pleasure to watch james deliver. thank you mr low for your wisdom, clarity and humor.

[sholomhoffman]

Thanks for posting, great lecture, he is one of the best at explaining buddhist ideas

[louiseadvaita]

Absolutely brilliant teachings - such clarity and wisdom and so relevant to our contemporary lives. Namaste James - really appreciate.

[robdowling]

The most basic, simple experience of meditation reveals to us that the content of our mind is ever shifting and so the idea that we'll get the one true concept, we'll suddenly understand and know, we'll have the golden key that will illuminate the meaning of life, this is probably an illusion

- James Low

[robdowling]

The key issue is not to come to conclusions. Every full stop needs to become a comma. Whenever you sum someone up, whenever you define people, 'they're like that', then you put a wee tail on the full stop, 'for me', 'when I last saw them', 'as far as I can tell'. The world gets much softer doesn't it. Because you've now made your definite statements about that person into something relational

- James Low

[jeng]

I think this is the same talk featured in Sam Harris' Waking Up app, "Everything as it is" by James Low.

[keithwins]

"We become an object amongst objects"
"This is s whole new series of concepts you can use to amuse yourself"
Lovely, thanks

[mariapapadopoulou]

Thank you for these not at all vulgar or british teachings. ❤ not at all greek love and respect and greetings from greece!

[Christoir]

Thank you for your compassion and the help you give me, to enjoy more this very beautiful temporary existence of change. where I forget myself, though seemingly, conceptually, I’m traveling around the sun on a living magic show I which I’m designed to sleep too much through.
Bless you James for your gentle nudges to awake up.
Chris

[robdowling]

The function in the meditation practice is always to relax and allow the movement of events to go without entering into your commentarial self. The ego or our individual consciousness exists as a commentator.; elaborating storylines, judgement, opinions, trying to intervene and organise the flow of experience

- James Low

[robdowling]

Once you see the ground, once you see the openness of being present, what would be the motivation for causing harm

- James low

[Knaeben]

1:57:30 repetition of patterns 2:43:45 self-persecution 3:20:20 ; 4:07:20

[antoinedoinel]

Wow, if separate nations are insane, Tibet must have been the most insane nation on earth, as it was notorious for being Forbidden to all visitors 😂