The greatest gift is the
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Retreat Dharma Talks at Cittaviveka

Clearing the Floods - Dealing with Internal and External Overload

This on-line Zoom Retreat focused on clearing sensory and karmic overload and residues that impact the heart. Unresolved history can cause us to continue to frame ourselves and others with unhelpful projections. Clearing these within the interactive heart while staying present gives us confidence that we can move forward with a sense of path, of foundation, and of gratitude.

The daily schedule included sitting, walking and standing meditation, Dhamma teachings, chanting and question & answer sessions. Qigong and recorded Dhamma teachings were also offered to support your practice.

2021-05-30 (6 days) Cittaviveka

  
2021-06-02 Guided Meditation – Be the Seer 8:42
Ajahn Sucitto
Keeping the focus of eye consciousness still and soft, aware of the one who sees. This seer doesn’t speak, it just sees. Notice when mind consciousness begins chattering – nothing to talk about, there’s just the seer.
2021-06-02 Day 4 Q&A1 49:13
Ajahn Sucitto
How to relate to afflictive states; thoughts of unwholesome acts arise in meditation; how can I feel safety in my brown body when there is external racism; is the movement of citta saṇkhāra the same as cetana; feels like body grows bigger while meditating; body cells are asking for more oxygen; how to direct energy to peripheral parts of body; remaining with awareness mind while noticing absence of ‘I’; self-consciousness, fear making a mistake and being judged; affected by family’s trauma like citta is haunted.
2021-06-02 The Power of Love 41:31
Ajahn Sucitto
The power of lovingkindness is it can nourish and fortify the heart so doesn’t get crushed by the floods. This gives us a platform for life where all phenomena, even the most painful and difficult, can be witnessed and held. It’s just kammic forces playing themselves out – don’t get stuck in that.
2021-06-02 Puja – Heart Consciousness 38:41
Ajahn Sucitto
Puja is a time of heart, time to check in and find its basis. Images and resonances of virtue, truth, awakening, integrity provide resource and refreshment, and establish intention for how to engage with the sense world. Align sense consciousness to heart consciousness instead of the other way around.
2021-06-02 Chanting – Puja and Divine Abidings (English) 9:37
Ajahn Sucitto
2021-06-02 Day 4 Q&A2 50:15
Ajahn Sucitto
Shifts of energy and bodily effects: verbal vs. non-verbal insights; distinction between flood (ogha) and outflow (āsava); how to prepare for aging and death; with things that matter when and how to speak up and when to refrain from speech and actions; self and other/regret/family.
2021-06-02 Dependent Arising 5:06
Ajahn Sucitto
Mindstates, feelings, perceptions are moving, shifting – there’s no single coherent entity in that, yet there’s awareness of that. Maintaining simple open presence, bring your body into harmony, bring your heart into harmony, and the view becomes clear: this is dependent arising.
2021-06-02 Day 4 Q&A2 50:15
Ajahn Sucitto
Shifts of energy and bodily effects: verbal vs. non-verbal insights; distinction between flood (ogha) and outflow (āsava); how to prepare for aging and death; with things that matter when and how to speak up and when to refrain from speech and actions; self and other/regret/family.
2021-06-02 Healing, Forgiveness and Blessing 17:17
Ajahn Sucitto
It’s very important to share the heart, share the blessings with all that arises. One should do this regularly. Let go of the image, let go of the person – don’t dismiss it, relate to it, witnessing with sympathy, extending the heart. Lingering in the steady open presence, get familiar with it, feeling it, resting in it.
2021-06-03 Day 5 Q&A1 51:17
Ajahn Sucitto
Bright pure light which comes up in meditation; dealing with trauma from a kammic standpoint; how to practice with back pain and lack of sleep; if there’s no self who puts forth effort into the 4 right efforts; offering of invitation was not received leaving sourness; when feeling arises from words do I just stay with the feeling or inquire about it; a lot of pain in body and sudden urge to cry; mind first allows phenomena to subside and investigates later; transitioning back into kammic realm from a place of presence is challenging too easily losing mindfulness; difference between citta and manas; compulsive tendency around cleanliness; struggle with breath meditation feeling like I’m controlling it.
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