A 6-week guided course of powerful methods to craft a meaningful life

Who do we want to be in today’s world? Do we relate to our body, mind, emotions and  those we share this planet with in ways that support that wish? What attitude do we need and methods can we use to manifest this vision in action? 

Join Mitra Mark Power in this 6-week program which offers methods of reflection, meditation and creative inquiry to spark kindness and wisdom in our personal lives and enabling us to live more fully with meaning and purpose. The course is based on the 6 powerful methods or attitudes which in Buddhism are called paramitas. 

Mitra Mark will draw from buddhist practice as well as visual arts and life coaching exercises. In addition each session will be spiced with a pinch of neuroscience and served with a generous helping of poetry. In this course you will connect with your own experience and together build a  co-learning community. 

What you will learn: 

• To begin a journey, first we have to know where we stand. This is an aspect of self-awareness and also the first step toward living a meaningful life. You’ll be introduced to creative, accessible exercises to build self-awareness. This is the foundation for each of the six powerful ways or actions to craft a meaningful life. .
• You’ll learn to creatively adapt traditional perspectives and practices to address your own needs. For instance, rousing curiosity and an attitude of play when engaging in methods of mindfulness. And, creating an empowering narrative to challenge limiting stories we tell ourselves.
• You’ll develop a personal understanding of these six powerful ways or actions so that they become accessible to you now. The path to mastering these actions is the path of embracing imperfection, with kindness, curiosity, and lots of self-compassion.
  

Register here

Schedule

• • October 12th: Introduction to the six powerful ways. Developing a generous heart.
    • Introduction to the six powerful ways to live a meaningful life: self-awareness and a generous heart. We’ll introduce the learning journey, the practices we’ll rely on, and some of the perspectives we’ll explore. You’ll have some time to reflect and discuss together, and will be given suggestions for further exploration between sessions.
  • October 19th: Building a flexible mindset. The discipline of knowing what helps and what hinders.
    • How to build motivation, strength and flexibility. We’ll explore attitudes and actions that support our motivation to live meaningfully. And, we’ll examine those that work against us, the habits of unawareness. To build the strength of awareness we need a flexible mindset, and to learn how to take mistakes as the essence of learning. 
  • October 26th: Challenging obstacles, the gentle strength of patience.
    • Self-compassion makes every moment meaningful. We’ll identify personal tendencies that block us from being kind, especially to ourselves. Then we’ll create a narrative and a practice to challenge our obstacles, with curiosity, kindness, and art.
  • November 2nd: Cultivate joy. Diligence is a matter of trust, not obligation.
    • Joy on the journey, not only the destination. A meaningful life sounds like a big deal, like something we have to wait for, but it’s in each moment that we make our lives meaningful. We’ll explore exercises that put us in touch with joy, curiosity and kindness in the moment, and that encourage us to continue on!
  • November 9th: Creating space to meditate and reflect. Acceptance as the ground of calmness and clarity.
    • Self-acceptance is the secret ingredient to meditation and reflection. Reflection and meditation are beautiful ways of touching the depth of being human. However, if we approach them as a perfectionist, afraid of “getting it wrong”, we cut ourselves off from the qualities of calm, kindness, and clarity. We’ll play with different approaches to meditation and reflection that give lots of room and permission for us to be exactly who we are. 
  • November 16th: Approaching the truth. 
    • How to know what’s true, and therefore what will support living a meaningful life? What can we rely on to see clearly and reliably, in relation to our experience, and to the world around us? We’ll explore ways of looking and discovering what’s true right now, in the present moment. Then “Truth” becomes more of a pathway than something to believe in, monolithic and unchanging.

  What are the six powerful methods or paramitas? 

  • Method 1: Generosity
    • Generosity, the heart of giving. Generosity is the attitude of wanting to give something of value to ourselves and the world. 
  • Method 2: Moral strength
    • Moral strength, knowing what hurts and what helps our journey of living meaningfully.
  • Method 3: Patience
    • Patience, the strength of loving kindness, which softens the harshness of our own and others judgments and anger.
  • Method 4: Joyful diligence
    • Joyful diligence, the feeling that we’re on a journey of discovery, and trusting our strength and ability to arrive at our destination, moment by moment.
  • Method 5: Meditation
    • Meditation, revealing and trusting the qualities of our heart and mind, calmness, clarity and kindness.
  • Method 6: Wisdom
    • Wisdom that sees what’s true. Beyond inflexible beliefs we discover a fluid source of insight allowing us to illuminate next steps on our journey.

   

• Offering timeless wisdom and boundless compassion

  

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  Offering timeless wisdom and boundless compassion

  Share this event with friends and family!

  Email

  Facebook

  Twitter
  
  
  Offering timeless wisdom and boundless compassion

  Share this event with friends and family!

  Email

  Facebook

  Twitter

  About Mitra Mark Power

  Mitra Mark has studied the Dharma for several decades with great teachers like Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche and Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche. Moreover, both within Nalandabodhi as well as professionally, for many years Mark has worked on the crossroads of dharma and daily life – first working as a chaplain in palliative care, and now as a Life Coach. In Nalandabodhi this path is referred to as the Path of Mindful Activity, which Mark  guides as a member of the Mitra Council after being appointed a teacher (Mitra) in 2005. The term ‘Mitra’ is drawn from the Sanskrit Kalyanamitra and means ‘spiritual friend’. Drawing from his own studies, our own lives and the six powerful actions called paramitas, Mitra Mark will guide us in this program to craft a meaningful life. Learn more about Mitra Mark here.

  About Nalandabodhi

  Nalandabodhi is an international Buddhist community whose mission is “Offering the timeless wisdom and boundless compassion of the Buddha to inspire individuals and create kind communities in today’s world.” Using tools the Buddha offered, we provide a genuine path to a more open, kind, and full life.

  Under the direction of Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, our centers provide open and supportive spaces for engaging in study, meditation, and mindful activity on the journey to discover the full potential of our own mind. To learn more visit nalandabodhi.org

  For questions about this event email help@nalandabodhi.org.

  In case the pricing options are beyond your financial means, you can request a scholarship, CLICK HERE.  Use the password request to access the page.

   

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