In an entire episode of guided practice, JoAnna Hardy leads listeners deeper into the sensations of the body.
This dharma talk was recorded at Insight Meditation Society – Retreat Center and originally published on Dharmaseed.org.
“As we move throughout the day today, really paying attention to something as simple as standing, something as simple as sitting, something as simple as your weight shifting so that you can walk, know it.” – JoAnna Hardy
In this episode, JoAnna guides listeners towards:
- Stabilizing the mind and slowing down
- Paying attention to the sensations of our bodies
- Noticing the things our bodies come into contact with
- Recognizing pain, being with it, and redirecting our attention if necessary
- Understanding our choice in how we have experiences
- A walking meditation practice
- Remaining connected to the bodies we inhabit
“So we have some options here. We can get to know the sensations. Again, in this flesh suit of muscle and bone, we can get to know the sensations. What do those sensations feel like without the mind telling us what they feel like? What are the sensations of pain in our body? Tingling, prickly pressure, tension, being curious to knowing it. One of the options can be that we redirect our attention somewhere else in the body.” – JoAnna Hardy
About JoAnna Hardy:
JoAnna Hardy is an insight meditation (Vipassanā) practitioner and teacher; she is on faculty at the University of Southern California, a meditation trainer at Apple Fitness+, a founding member of the Meditation Coalition, a teacher’s council member at Spirit Rock Meditation Center, a visiting retreat teacher at Insight Meditation Society, and a collaborator on many online meditation Apps and programs.
Her greatest passion is to teach meditation in communities that are dedicated to seeing the truth of how racism, gender inequality and oppression go hand in hand with the compassionate action teachings in Buddhism and related perspectives to social and racial justice.