Online: The Power of Seeing Impermanence
with Walt Opie
Thursday, November 18th, 2021 | 7:00pm – 9:00pm ET
Not really expecting an answer, an exasperated student once asked the Soto Zen teacher Shunryu Suzuki Roshi to please reduce Buddhism to just one phrase. The teacher looked at his student and said, “Everything changes.”
According to the early Buddhist teachings found in the suttas, one of the most liberating insights we can have is a direct perception of impermanence (anicca in Pali). This talk will explore how and why this is such a crucial area for us to attune ourselves to in our practice.
It is said that the very purpose of cultivating mindfulness is to enable us to see the impermanent nature of things–their arising and passing away–directly in our own experience. This leads to the liberating understanding that there really is nothing worth clinging to because everything will inevitably change.
The flip side of that understanding is to value things more than ever precisely because it is all so fleeting by its very nature. So hopefully our practice helps us more deeply appreciate each moment because we realize it is really all there is.
Join meditation teacher Walt Opie for an evening discussion on the powerful and transformative Buddhist teachings on impermanence.
Registration:
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Teacher(s)
Walt Opie
Walt Opie was first introduced to insight meditation in 1993 and began sitting retreats in 2005. Currently, his most influential teachers include Bhikkhu Analayo, Joseph Goldstein, Sayadaw U Tejaniya, and Gil Fronsdal. Walt is a graduate of the 2017-2021 IMS Teacher Training Program, as well as Spirit Rock’s Community Dharma Leaders program. He has led sitting groups for people in recovery and served as a volunteer teacher in several California prisons. His website is www.waltopie.com.