NOWmindfulness

08/06/2026

www.nowmindfulness.org/musings/spacious-knowing-compassionate

One more post on the nature of mind.  And then we’ll move on to the fourth foundation of mindfulness - mindfulness of the dharmas which translates to mindfulness of the way things are.  After all, the path is not just understanding nature of mind.  It’s knowing what to do

04/05/2026

April is a month of renewal, rebirth.  I always thought Carl Sandburg also called it the cruelest month as the Union soldiers, moving up through Maryland to Gettysburg, left their jackets and blankets on fenceposts to escape the sweltering heat only to shiver in the freezing temper

13/04/2026

Deep gratitude to the group for holding the space for mindful practice for each other during my absence. Mindfulness groups like this are strengthened by the generosity, commitment, and practice of its participants.  Mindfulness and meditation are not spectator sports!!! Retreats are alwa

30/03/2026

This week we move on to the mind-blowing mindfulness of mind.  As we began to take a closer look at feeling tone, identifying a positive feeling tone, a negative feeling tone, a neutral feeling tone, we might have given some thought to feeling tones that originate in the mind.  Rem

16/03/2026

There are a few other things to say about feeling tones.   First, it may help to remember that feeling tones are not emotions like anger, joy, fear, grief.  Those emotions are not specifically singled out in Buddhism but fall under the heading of the Third Foundation of Mindfulnes

09/03/2026

This week we move to the critically important second foundation of mindfulness - mindfulness of feeling tone or  Vedana  in Pali.   Feeling tone is our very first response/reaction to a contact through our 6 sense doors.  Remember the B

02/03/2026

Was it only a week ago that a blizzard shut down the East Coast?  And now our fearless leaders have involved us in a war in the Middle East. We’ve been exploring the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, a teaching we looked at last fall and now have returned to for a deeper look.  Why

16/02/2026

People come to meditation and the Buddha’s teachings for a number of reasons.  Many of them involve suffering. A recent death, some disruption,  illness - one’s own or that of a close family member or friend.  And the overarching desire is for peace, for a sense of calm an

09/02/2026

In this first foundational teaching of the Buddha called The Four Foundations or Establishments of Mindfulness, the first of these is Mindfulness of the Body.  The body’s centrality in our meditation practice is evidenced by mindfulness of breathing which is almost universally taug

02/02/2026

Today is Ground Hog’s Day.  And maybe the proverbial ground hog came out and saw his shadow.  He or she could.  It’s certainly sunny enough.  The question is whether his or her burrow is still buried under mountains of snow.   An NPR discussion likened i