Welcome.
This is a landing page for practitioners in the Friday Lunchtime Meditation practice. Scroll down for resources and session info. Thank you for practicing in this community.
Online Open Meditation at Nalanda Institute
Monday through Friday 1:00–1:45 ET online
All levels are welcome.
Fridays: Collective Compassion with Alexa Owen
On Fridays we focus on the theme of collective compassion, with practices to support strengthened compassion with self and others.
Nalanda Institute Communal Learning Agreements
Click below to register and get the zoom link:
These sessions are run on a donation basis.
The teachers in Lunchtime Meditation program donate their time in service to the teachings and only receive what participants offer through their generosity. You are welcomed to make an offering (suggestion $5-10) to the teacher in class. Please join us even if you aren’t able to make a donation, as your presence is warmly welcome.
What is meditation—and why practice it?
What is meditation?
“Meditation” is a catch-all word for any conscious exercise of attention that builds our mind and brain’s natural powers of well-being, resilience, compassion, and altruism.
Why Meditate? Meditation is a powerful tool to eliminate stress, to heal the body, mind, and brain, and to enhance our personal well-being and positive relationship with the world.
How do I practice mindfulness?
Pay close attention to the flow your breath—inhalation, pause, exhalation, pause—using that flow as a focus to settle and center your whole being. Open your awareness to the spacious clarity which is the essence of your mind, and rest within that. Scan whatever feelings, thoughts, images, and emotions flow through your mind, accepting them just as they are. Rest silently in this clear, calm space as long as you can.
How long and when should I practice?
Practice for as long as you can, 5-20 minutes is usual at the start. Try to find a regular rhythm, from once weekly to daily. Try any windows of time and judge which works best.
Where can I learn more about the basics?
The above information is excerpted from Nalanda Institute’s guide on meditation basics, which you can access here.
Motivation
Motivation is central to meditation practice in some contemplative traditions, including Tibetan Buddhism. It asks the questions, ultimately, why am I doing this practice? How might it bring benefits to all sentient beings?
If your motivation is just for personal reasons right now — for example, to reduce stress or quiet the noise in your mind — that’s ok. That is good. Teacher Pema Chodron has shared about how initial motivations rooted in seeking ease or wakefulness can naturally evolve into deeper insight and compassion. We put our own oxygen masks on first so we can show up safely and consistently for others.
Something I like to think about these days when approaching my meditation practice is a share by author Ocean Vuong on taking off one’s shoes (metaphorically). He shared on this in an interview with Krista Tippett: “I think, even consciously, when I read or give lectures or when I teach, I lower my voice. I want to make my words deliberate. I want to take off the shoes of my voice so that I can enter a place with care so that I can do the work that I need to do.” What might it be like to apply this energy to showing up to the cushion as well?
Dedication of Merit
In Tibetan Buddhism, the dedication of merit is the practice of offering the positive energy (merit) you've accumulated — through meditation practice, ethical actions, compassionate deeds, etc. — for the benefit of all beings, rather than keeping it just for yourself. As a secular practice, it can help reinforce our interconnectedness with all beings and expand our sense of boundless compassion.
Pema Chödrön speaks of this practice in The Places that Scare You, A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times:
“I dedicate the merit of the occasion to all beings. This gesture of universal friendship has been likened to a drop of fresh spring water. If we put it on a rock in the sunshine, it will soon evaporate. If we put it in the ocean, however, it will never be lost. Thus the wish is made that we not keep the teachings to ourselves but to use them to benefit others.”
Is there someone in particular in your life who is struggling right now? Or a group, perhaps? You might experiment with dedicating the merit at the end of your practice for the benefit of that person or group, and then extend it outward in a wish for happiness for all beings.