Awakening Joy with James Baraz
May 13–15, 2011
The Buddha was called “the Happy One” and told his followers to aim for the highest happiness. Often, however, there is so much emphasis on coming to terms with suffering that his message about the importance of joy and well-being as a central aspect of spiritual practice is lost. This retreat will focus on the Buddhadharma as a path of happiness. We will learn practical tools that incline the mind towards joy through silent meditation as well as experiential processes. Topics include formal meditation practice done in the context of developing happiness, classical teachings that can be applied to develop true well-being, embracing suffering as a path to joy, the importance of learning to love ourselves and how to access that, and Mudita: sympathetic joy and how to practice it.
James Baraz has been teaching since 1978 and is a founding teacher of Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, California. He leads retreats, workshops and classes around the U.S. and abroad. He also has led an online Awakening Joy course since 2003. He is the co-author of Awakening Joy: 10 Steps That Will Put You on the Road to Real Happiness.