Southern Dharma Benefit – Mudita: Restoring Faith in our Humanity
DaeJa Napier
August 7 - 9, 2020
Restoring Faith in our Humanity
Faith, like hope, is the feeling of trust and complete confidence in something. Our sense of faith in humanity has become crippled by the current predominance of greed, ill will and delusion we experience in our inner and outer worlds. Even in our noble dedication to practice, inspired by intensions to cultivate the greater good, we may experience bewilderment.
The practice of mudita; sympathetic-joy, weaves hope back into our lives while restoring faith and confidence in our capacity to respond to life’s “ten thousand joys and sorrows’, while maintaining a balanced, engaged presence – with joy as well as sorrow. Mudita warms the heart as it relaxes the cold grip of fear and resentment. It lifts our minds out of darkness, allowing the light of awareness through the cracks of our broken hearts. The Buddha taught that our “greatest good fortune is to hear of the dharma, to practice the dharma and to realize the dharma.” We open to, engage and fulfill this good fortune through the practice of mudita. In compassion and wisdom, the Buddha offered this practice to elevate our minds and hearts to a state of immeasurable gratitude for the good fortune that exists in our lives, and the lives of others.
Participation in this at home retreat is recommended to those who have attended at least one residential retreat.
General schedule: The daily retreat schedule will include group and individual in-home practice times. The retreat begins on Friday evening with meditation and an opening dharma talk offering an overview of the retreat. Saturday will include dharma talks, instructions and an early afternoon movement session on Saturday. On Sunday, as a part of bringing closure to our retreat, we will enjoy time for Q & A to integrate and clarify our experience of mudita.
More details: Everyone will be asked to make a full commitment to practice, with the retreat sangha and during our individual in-home practice periods, As in all vipassana/insight meditation based retreats, awareness while sitting, standing, walking and lying down will be encouraged to provide the ground for our mudita practice. The advantages of an at home retreat include the opportunity to be a part of a more concentrated retreat experience that is carried over and applied during the in-home practice periods. This is very helpful in filling the many gaps between our formal practice, in residential retreats, and a practice that includes more of what is experienced in daily life.
This retreat is being offered as a benefit to Southern Dharma Retreat Center in this time of drastically decreased revenue. While operational costs have decreased by about 20% due to the suspension of residential programs, the Center’s revenue from yogi fees and dana has dropped by over 75%. Toward this end, three pricing options are offered: $70 (subsidized), $130 (base rate), $200 (supporter). Please choose the option that best fits your ability to give in this time.
Click here to view the Preliminary Retreat Schedule
Teacher
DaeJa Napier (she/her) teaches Insight Meditation (Vipassana) with an emphasis…
Learn more about DaeJa Napier