Ep. 183 - Demystifying Mindfulness with Sharon Salzberg & Spring Washam

In this 2022 retreat session, Spring Washam and Sharon Salzberg take a deeper look at mindfulness, the foundation of the Buddhist tradition.

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In this episode, Sharon and Spring hold a discourse on:

• Working directly with our mind
• An opening body scan meditation with Spring
• The practice of Satipatthana and finding freedom through mindfulness
• Finding the end of suffering by examining our own body internally
• The importance of posture in meditation
• Viewing the present moment without distortion
• Our relationship to what is arising
• Toxic happiness and negation of the real
• Being with what is actually happening moment to moment
• Metta as an open, connected, interested quality of the heart
• A closing metta meditation from Sharon
• Recognizing the power of good that moves through us

About Sharon Salzberg:

Sharon Salzberg is a meditation pioneer, world-renowned teacher, and New York Times bestselling author. She is one of the first to bring mindfulness and lovingkindness meditation to mainstream American culture over 45 years ago, inspiring generations of meditation teachers and wellness influencers. Sharon is co-founder of The Insight Meditation Society in Barre, MA, and the author of twelve books, including the New York Times bestseller, 

Real Happiness, now in its second edition, and her seminal work, Lovingkindness.

Her forthcoming release, Real Life: The Journey from Isolation to Openness and Freedom, is set for release in April of 2023 from Flatiron Books. Her podcast, The Metta Hour, has amassed five million downloads and features interviews with thought leaders from the mindfulness movement and beyond.

Learn more about Sharon and order your copy of her new book at www.sharonsalzberg.com

About Spring Washam:

Spring Washam is a well-known teacher, author, and visionary leader based in Oakland, California. She is the author of A Fierce Heart: Finding Strength, Courage and Wisdom in Any Moment and her newest book, The Spirit of Harriet Tubman: Awakening from the Underground. Spring is considered a pioneer in bringing mindfulness-based meditation practices to diverse communities. She is one of the founding teachers at the East Bay Meditation Center, located in downtown Oakland, CA. She has practiced and studied Buddhist philosophy in both the Theravada and Tibetan schools of Buddhism since 1999. She is a member of the teacher’s council at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in northern California where she was trained for over a decade.

In addition to being a teacher, she is also a shamanic practitioner and has studied indigenous healing practices since 2008. She is the founder of Lotus Vine Journeys, a one-of-a-kind organization that blends indigenous healing practices with Buddhist wisdom in South America. Her writings and dharma teachings have appeared in many online journals and publications. She currently teaches meditation retreats and leads workshops, and classes worldwide.

Spring currently teaches meditation retreats and leads workshops, and classes worldwide: springwasham.com and is cohost of her own podcast on Be Here Now Network, The Spirit Underground.

“There is something really important about us being willing to be with what is true, not with what we want, but the real experience. We wake up, there’s heartache, I didn’t want heartache but there it is. Can I be real with that?” – Spring Washam

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