Ep. 249 – Mindfulness: The Gateway to Liberation

Unraveling the mystery of who you truly are, Jack reveals mindfulness as the gateway to liberation within the ever-changing river of life. This episode is brought to you by Betterhelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/heartwisdom and get on your way to being your best self. “Mindfulness, in the Buddhist tradition, is said to be the gateway to liberation, the gateway to that which is eternal, to the timeless or the deathless.” – Jack Kornfield In this episode, Jack mindfully explores:Mindfulness as the gateway to liberationThe Buddha’s Eightfold Path and the Middle WaySacred attention, receptivity, and sensitivityThe prayer of Mad Bear, a magical Iroquois medicine manOvercoming worry in the present momentRumi’s transformational poem, The Guest HouseAwareness of breath, body, mind states, feelings, dharma, and the laws of natureUsing mindfulness as a vehicle to discover who we really areEternity, time, timelessness, change, and becoming deathlessWhat it was like when Thich Nhat Hanh visited Spirit RockEntering the “river of life,” humanity’s collective pains, joys, etcDealing with attachment, aversion, grief, and sufferingWorking spiritually with our dreamsStepping out of the bureaucracy of ego, thought, and mindThe freedom of identifying with “the witness”Liberation as both practical and radical “Reality comes out of nothing, exists according to certain patterns, and then disappears. To know this frees us. To not know it, we are bound. This recognition brings us face to face with the mystery.” – Jack Kornfield “To become mindful is to become free, to have the capacity to step out of the rat race, the speed, the complexity and be who we are, be true to our hearts. There comes a great balance and ease with that. In any moment, we stop the war, we stop the conflict, we come back to be as the Buddha sits, as the Buddha walks, as the Buddha speaks, where we are, just present and alive.” – Jack Kornfield This Dharma Talk recorded on 3/1/1992 was originally published on DharmaSeed. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.