Classes

SMILE

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The whole crew is here. You are all showing up, it’s so good to see you.

That is the thing to show up. The other thing, the other thing I have found to get your motivation up is to just find the joy of meditating.

And I’m not talking about any old regular joy, to really allow our practice to progress and to make it sustainable, we have to tap into profound like mind shattering joy.  Enough joy that will shatter what we think of reality, or who the heck we think we are.  

So before I send you off on the rest of your day, or evening, I ‘d like to share with you a meditation called SMILE.

So as you’re arriving. Go ahead and Find your spot. Find a place where you wanna sit. I like to sit in a more traditional crosslegged position, where your hips are a little bit above your knees. Or you could sit in a chair, whatever is most comfortable for you where your spine is stretched out long and strait. 

So when you’re ready you can lower your eyelids and allow your exhales to lengthen (9 sec. pause. And as you are getting comfortable and relaxing, just let a little smile come across your face -a little celebration of the fact you physically arrived and have already done the hardest part -showing up. (5sec) And feeling your motivation, that perhaps this meditation could lead to real joy, to real happiness that   never ends. (7sec)   Consider when you have experienced that happiness    or experienced someone who embodies that pure happiness.

Shows you that it’s really possible.  (10sec.pause).  Allowing the weight of the body to completely rest against the earth. If there is any tension in your hips ore in your muscles, just allowing it to melt organically into the earth.  (6 sec.) And if your seated upright, you can allow your spine to grow a like a half an inch taller. (5sec.)  It’s like simultaneously releasing into the earth while allowing the head and the heart to float upward like a balloon.  It’s’ like you’re sitting about to receive a gift. Attentive with ease. Dignified. Open.   And allowing your breath to move naturally (8sec.)  just breathing effortlessly and easily.   And looking closer at the sensations of the breath wherever they appear strongest.  Increasing the awareness of the physical sensations of the inhale and the exhale, just savoring the little details.  And call to mind a memory a feeling of happiness.  A time when you felt this tremendous happiness, maybe you did something kind for someone or they did something really kind for you.  And just call up the details of that memory. Maybe you can see the fine details on that person’s face or, of the environment that you’re in. Noticing the sensations of happiness that are being generated in your heart space. Maybe it’s a tinging or maybe it’s a warmth  start to really hone in on those physical sensations of happiness there. And using the incredible power of your mind, your ability to imagine and visualize. Begin distilling these sensations from their physical appearances into a brightness a blue white crystalline light glowing at the center of your heart. (4) Watching as that light grows brighter and stronger.  Into a beautiful orb shimmering like a diamond radiating out from your heart.  And watching as this orb of blue white crystalline light expands outward bathing every organ in your chest and abdomen in this beautiful light.  Every cell that it touches just releases some form of sadness, some blockage to happiness. Keep expanding and growing this light outward until your entire body every cell is bathing in this glowing bubble of blue and white light.  You’re just swimming in this viscus bright feeling of happiness.  Call to mind someone who you love    see them wherever they are right now.  Start expanding your orb of light out to reach them.  Watch their face as the light just reaches across their hand across their arm across their whole body.  Watch as you see a little smile just melt across their face.  Watch as they exhale and they let go of something that was troubling them.  And holding them completely in this light emanating from your heart.  Feel them get one step closer to finding the thing that makes them happier than ever before. And seeing this persons face looking them in the eye.  You see them reflecting your own light back at you.  And your light gets even stronger even brighter even more potent.  This incredible tonic of transformation that you wield so brightly just shining as bright as the sun. Feel this source of immeasurable joy and happiness. (6 sec pause). And drawing your awareness deep into the space of your heart one more time   and poof! The light bursts into every direction like a supernova.  And just watching the light as it expands to hold the whole city you live in.  The whole street you live on.  The whole state all the people.   Watching that light expand at the speed of joy.  Sending the light across the whole country, the whole continent, the whole earth, filling every ocean, and covering every mountain in radaniant joyful light. Every dark nook and cranny holding every human, every creature big and small on earth.  And sending that joy out into space out past the moon out past the sun out past the solar system sending that joy even faster out in vast empty space filling the whole Milky Way. Sending joy into the past.  Sending joy into the future  Sending joy past any notion of time and space you currently have just filling the whole universe.  Holding every being in this radient chorus of joy and happiness. (8 sec) May all beings be liberated, may all beings find happiness and it’s causes.  And feeling yourself in the room in where you are sitting, feeling the temperature of the air against your skin. Inhaling this whole visualization back inside of you.  All the galexeys and planets, mountains and the oceans, faces of your loved ones the sweet little text messages and things that make you laugh and smile   that bring you joy.  This immesurable amount of joy is within you always.  In all of it’s forms.  And dedicate the merit of your practice to the place where it can really make a big impact. You can dedicate it to that person you called up or that passion you have. You can dedicate it for the sake of all beings. To replace all the suffering in the world with happiness. (7sec.)  And when you are ready you can deepen your breath and start to open your eyes

Thank you so much for meditating with me it was such a pleasure to share this with you. 

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CALLING THE TEACHER MEDITATION

(With timecode to indicate pauses and timing)

00:00 The main thing is to be comfortable.  0:03 (3/4 sec. pause) 0:04 The most comfortable place in my house is my couch. 0:07 (1 sec. pause) 0:08 And I meditate on the couch. 0:10  And it’s just very comfortable to me. 0:15 (1 sec. pause) 0:16 So, it somewhere where you don’t have to move. 0:19 Sit up strait.  0:22 It’s always great to put some cushions to raise the back of your bottom. 0:29 (2 sec. pause) 0:31 Your hands are comfortable on your legs. 0:36 (4 sec. pause) 0:40 Anyway that is comfortable for you. 0:43 (2 sec. pause) 0:45 Sometimes I will put a small cushion in my lap. 0:50 (4 sec. pause)  0:54 And I like to rest my hands there. 0:57 (4 sec. pause) 1:01 Most important is your back is strait. 1:03 (3 sec. pause) 1:06 Small smile on your face. 1:08 1:11 Don’t crunch up your face, don’t wrinkle, don’t frown. 1:15.-1:19 Kay here we go.1:20-1:23 The mouth should not be too tight.1:25-1:29 The lips should be relaxed. 1:32-1:35 The forehead should be relaxed.1:36-1:40  The eyelids should be relaxed.1:42-1:44 The hands should be relaxed.1:47-1:50 The back is strait 1:52-1:56 the shoulder blades are pushed together and your chest is pushed out a little bit 2:01-2:06 which means that your hands might come back more on your thighs then on your knees. 2:13-1:20 It’s very good for your posture 2:23-2:26 if your lower abdomen (1sec pause) is firm. 2:33-2:36 But not pulled in with effort 2:38-2:42 So how to get that firm abdomen which gives you a strong back. 2:47-2:54 There’s a nice trick, (3 sec. pause) when you breath out,(4sec pause) and you finish your out breath, 3:06-3:11 and consciously try to push out a little more air from your lungs,3:16-3:19 and that will tighten your lower abdomen. 3:22-3:25 and that will make it easier to sit up strait. 3:28-3:33  So let’s start with 10 breaths 3:34-3:37 before we start the first of the 7 steps. 3:40-3:49.

3:49 Very slow exhale. 3:51-3:54 At the end of the exhale press a little more breath out. 3:57-4:03  Don’t worry about the in breath, it will take care of itself. 4:05-4:10 Make sure the lower abdomen is tight -lean slightly at the end of the out breath. 4:17-4:24 Pushing out the last bit of air from your lungs. 4:28-4:32 It will also prevent a build up of prana or lumor-chi? 4:36-4:40 And you won’t feel, you won’t get feelings of nervousness as you meditate. 4:46-4:49 Small smile 4:50-4:54 Eyelids are soft. 4:53-4:57 Let’s do ten long exhales. 4:58- (10 sec pause) 6:08

6:08 Now we’ll start the first of the 7 warm up steps. 6:11-6:16. Invite one of those teachers to come sit with you. 6:19-6:22 Could be any of those teachers we talked about. 6:25-6:30 Very powerful person to Sachem with them. 6:33-6:39 Very powerful for planting good seeds, very powerful for cleaning bad seeds. 6:44 (11 sec. pause) 6:55 And you invite them and they sit in front of you. 6:59-7:01 On the same level. 7:03-7:06 I like to say knee to knee. 7:08-7:14 Need to understand they are not a statue or a painting. 7:18-7:23 It’s a real person in front of me. 7:25-7:29 I can see their chest moving with their breath. 7:32-7:37 I can feel the subtle warmth from their body knee to knee. 7:41-7:48 Good people have a delicate fragrance to them. 7:52-7:57 Like a very subtle jasmine smell. 8:00-8:08 So get this teachers image in front of you its not a painting but a real person. 8:13-8:19 Your eyes are closed (2.5 sec. pause) but their eyes are open. 8:25-8:27 They are looking at you as you meditate (2 sec pause) and they’re very pleased that you are meditating. 8:36-8:42 And just enjoy being with them. 8:44-8:46 We’re going to meditate together. 8:48-9:43 (55 sec pause)  

9:43 The second of the 7 warm up steps (3 sec pause) is to make an offering to your teacher 9:52-9:55 and it just sets the feeling of the meditation as very happy. 10:00-10:06 So imagine any beautiful gift.10:08-10:12 Could be, I think a garden of light coconut. 10:15-10:20 There is a traditional offering to imagine the sky covered with flowers. 10:26-10:31 And make this offering. 10:33-10:37 There’s a very special offering 10:41-10:43 to your teacher (3 sec pause) and that is to bow down to that teacher (4 sec pause) by thinking about some beautiful quality that they have. 10:57-11:01 So I am thinking about Aria Nagargana 11:06-11:08 good humor, funny person (4 sec. pause) extremely brilliant ( 4 sec. pause) and knows how to write beautiful beautiful short things.11:22-11:26 So I just appreciate Nagargana 11:28-11:31 and that’s a high offering.11:33-11:37 You appreciate your own teacher. 11:39-12:25

The third of the 7 preparation steps (4 sec. pause) is to clean away the bad seeds you’ve made in the last 24 hours. 12:38-12:42 So spend a few minutes to open your heart (5 sec. pause) let your teacher look inside (3 sec. pause) and show them the mistakes you’ve made in the last 24 hours. (12:59-13:05) Don’t be shy (2 sec. pause) be completely honest (3 sec. pause) and that kind of willingness to show your teacher your mistakes.13:17-13:22  And to promise them that you’ll try harder today. 13:27-13:30 This kills the old bad seeds 13:32-13:36 and that will make your meditation much sweeter. 13:39-13:48  Personally I like to spend 10 breaths on each of the 7 steps. 13:52-13:59 Sometimes 20 if my mind is kind of busy. 14:05-14:55

Now preparation step number 4.14:57-15:01 We’re gonna’ (3 sec. pause) balance thinking about some of the bad seeds (5 sec. pause) by thinking about some of the good seeds we did. 15:15-15:18 It’s very much human nature (3 sec. pause) to focus on our mistakes (4 sec. pause) and we don’t give equal time to the good things we did. 15:33-15:37 So now 10 relaxed breaths (4 sec. pause) thinking about the sweetest things you did mostly for other people in the last 24 hours. 15:49-15:54 You can include your meditation time as something you are happy about.16:01-16:09 Okay here we go10 breaths. (3 sec. pause)  What are some the sweet things you did in the last 24 hours? 16:18-16:21 For other people. 15:23-17:22 (1:59 sec pause)

Now we’re ready for the 5th of the 7 preparation steps.17:26-17:31 And in our mind we ask our teacher to continue teaching us. (5 sec. pause) Remember that the teacher’s teaching can come to us in many ways.17:45-17:51 Oh sure sometimes we get a video talking about the steps to the path.17:56-18:01 Maybe we read a scripture. (4 sec. pause) Maybe we go to listen to a teacher in person. (6 sec. pause)  But negative things also teach us a lot (5 sec. pause) that challenges and disappointments in our life they often teach us more than the successes. 18:27-18:34 So here in this 5th step it can be a kind of surrender. (4 sec. pause) Oh teacher please teach me.18:48-18:50. Let good teachings come to me. (5 sec. pause) And let difficult teachings come to me. 18:59-19:02 And I will have courage (2 sec pause) I will be strong. 19:07-19:09 And I will also learn from the difficult parts of my life. 19:12-19:16 So I trust you. (2 sec. pause) Send me sweet Dharma teachings.19:23-19:28 But Please also send me difficult teachings problems in my life. (8 sec. pause) Like very challenging viruses. 19:43-19:47 And I will do my best to be a better person from these challenges. (10 sec. pause) Then when difficult situations come to you remember you asked your teacher to send them. 20:06-20:16 And don’t get discouraged and don’t get off balance. (4sec. pause) Use them to become stronger. 20:25-20:29 When difficult times come to you, use them as reasons to serve more people. (8 sec. pause) This virus is an excellent time for Buddhists. (4 sec. pause) This is a great opportunity to show other people what is a Buddhist. 20:56-21:01 The more dangerous life is. (3 sec. pause) The more financial trouble we have. (3 sec. pause) The more doubts and fears that people have. (4 sec. pause) A real Buddhist person steps up, this is their time to show how much they can help people. 21:25-21:36 (11 sec. pause) If a Buddhist person has a face mask and other person does not have a face mask (5 sec. pause) the Buddhist person happily gives the face mask to the other person. (6 sec. pause) And we’re happy we had the chance to do it. 21:56-22:58. (1:02 pause).

22:58 A sixth preparation step (4 sec. pause) is to ask this teacher to stay in our life. (5 sec. pause) Ask them not to leave our life. 23:15-23:23:18 The karma the good seeds to have a teacher (3 sec. pause) they are perhaps the most rare seeds in the world. 23:29-23:34 And may I always plant those seeds to have you in my life. (4 sec. pause) Please stay in my life. 23:45-24:32.

24:32 The 7th step in a meditation (4 sec. pause) the last one (2 sec. pause) it comes after the actual meditation. 24:43-24:47 So you do these 6 steps that we just did. (4 sec. pause) Then you do your actual meditation which might be one of the steps at the top. 24:59-25:04 Like a death meditation (3 sec. pause) or an emptiness meditation (4 sec. pause) or a tonglen giving and taking meditation. 25:18-25:21 Or exchanging myself and others. (4 sec. pause) And then after you finish the meditation (4 sec. pause) you think about all the good seed you’ve planted by doing the meditation. (5 sec. pause) And then you very consciously put them in the bank. 25:42-25:46 When you dedicate any good seed to another person’s happiness (6 sec. pause) then that seed is protected and it will always stay with you. 25:58-26:03 So paradoxically, you keep the seed by giving it away. (9 sec. pause) So the 7th step of meditation (4 sec. pause) after your main meditation is competed (4 sec. pause) then imagine that you are sharing the good seeds you’ve planted by meditating 26:35-26:40 and you are sending them out to all the people in this world. (5 sec. pause)  Start with people who are in the same room. 26:50-26:54 Then share those good seeds with other people in your neighborhood. 26:58-27:03 Then send the seed to all the people in your city. (5 sec. pause) Then share them with everyone in your country 27:13-27:16 Then share them with everyone in this planet. (4 sec. pause)  And then send them out to outer space to share with all the people living in other worlds. 27:27-27:31 There’s a tradition to do this sharing (3 sec. pause) of our good seeds of our meditation (5 sec. pause) by imagining those seeds as a golden light 27:46-27:51 and that at the end of our meditation (4 sec. pause) we will take at least 3 very very slow deep exhales (5 sec. pause) and we will send those good seeds out (3 sec. pause) to share them with other people (2 sec. pause) as a beautiful golden light. 28:14-28:18 Okay let’s do it together. 28:20-28:59 (39 sec. pause) Slowly open your eyes. (3 sec. pause) Take a good stretch. (3 sec. pause) Thank you…29:07

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This is a transcription with time code - By Geshe Michael Roach