We’re grateful to everyone for contributing to our reading study last month on “The Purpose of Work” from the latest Blue Mountain Journal. Your comments were very encouraging and remind us of how much opportunity is present for spiritual growth in each moment and situation. Thank you all so much!
In March, we tried out a Video Study for the first time on the eSatsang, and many of you told us that you wanted to do again. We are happy to oblige! Please see below for more details about video studies.
This month, we’re shifting our focus to Easwaran’s commentary on the Dhammapada, in a talk in which he describes how living for others brings permanent joy and harmony to our lives. He’ll give a number of practical and realistic suggestions to help us catch a glimpse of this joy.
What’s a Video Study?
On BMCM retreats in Tomales we offer video studies as a way for retreatants to connect directly with Easwaran as individuals and as a community. Video studies are similar to the reading studies we’ve done on the eSatsang, during which we read, reflect and share comments and questions on Easwaran’s writings.
In the same way, this month we’ll watch and discuss the video “The Other Shore” in short sections every week. (This is also the same video for June, for those of you following the Video of the Month subscription!) We encourage you to reflect on and summarize Easwaran’s words and then share any impact this has on your practice. This is a really helpful way to put Easwaran’s message together as a community – there is so much packed into each sentence!
The video “The Other Shore” is 25 minutes long. We’ve divided it into four sections so that we can review each part together slowly and with contemplation over the next four weeks. Here are the time-stamp sections we recommend for each week:
Week 1: 0:00 – 5:08 minutes
Week 2: 5:08 – 12:30 minutes
Week 3: 12:31 – 19:05 minutes
Week 4: 19:05 – End
This week, Easwaran provides an introduction into how the Buddha’s Dhammapada shows us a way of life that leads beyond duality, and focuses on contributing to the joy of others. After watching this week’s video excerpt, please share your summary and reflections in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you, and by offering your ideas you’ll inspire others to do so, too! You might share:
an idea or two that really stood out to you – one you’d like to remember
an overall message from Easwaran that resonates with you in some way.
