..续本文上一页death. You can be seen, you can be perceived, you can be touched everywhere, at any time. Your manifestation transcends time and space, because your true nature is the nature of no-birth and no-death, like water. You are not limited to the form and the sight of a wave, because you are water. That is why you have to meditate, in order to throw away the idea that "this body is me, that I am only this body." You have to transcend that; you have to throw away that idea.

　　The second notion is that you were born at a certain point in time, and that you will die and become nothing after that point in time. That notion, that idea, has to be removed too, because your true nature is no-birth and no-death. And the true nature of a flower is also like that, and of a cloud is also like that. This is a very important practice of looking deeply that can help you to liberate yourself from all kinds of anxiety and fear. I think this practice, this insight, can be very helpful to modern psychotherapy, which aims only at restoring a healthy self, that we have lost. But what is meant by "a healthy self

　　" That is the question. True healing and the greatest relief can only be obtained with the insight of no self. That does not mean that you are not there. No self does not mean non-existing.

　　(Bell)

　　Today we will have the opportunity to participate in a formal meal, as seen in monastic life. Please come with us into the meditation hall for the formal meal. The monastics will wear their orange Sanghati robes. We will practice taking the food and walking as in the time of the Buddha, mindfully each step, and you will do the same. The practice is called "one sitting lunch", and the whole time of eating is practice. Mindfulness and concentration are always present. You enjoy every moment of the lunch. During the lunch we eat in such a way that peace, stability and joy are possible. We don”t think of the past or the future or anything. We just focus our attention on the food, and on the community of brothers and sisters around us. Dwelling in the present moment, allowing ourselves to be in the Sangha, and carried by the Sangha, as if the Sangha were a boat. We will profit from the collective energy of the Sangha.

　　If you participate, if you are there with us, please practice mindfulness of breathing, so that you have something to contribute to the Sangha. The collective energy of mindfulness will be strong. There will be a short chanting to offer the food to the Buddha, to the bodhisattvas and also to the living beings. There will be a chant of four lines by a novice monk to share the food with living beings, and during that time we will all practice being mindful, and send our energy of compassion to those living beings in the world who do not have anything to eat. The act of sharing is to water the seed of compassion in every one of us. We will enjoy eating together slowly, peacefully, and it will be very nourishing to our bodies and our souls at the same time. So please join us.

　　(Three bells)

　　(End of Dharma talk)

《Taking Care of our Mental Formations and Perceptions》全文阅读结束。