Awake Sydney 2013

In this inspiring teaching Sogyal Rinpoche addresses an audience of young people at Awake Sydney, a unique event created by Rigpa that has also previously been held in Amsterdam. Bringing together mediation and music, Awake aims to make the Buddhist teachings more accessible to younger generations. This teaching took place after a short guided mediation, and in it Sogyal Rinpoche shares the essence of Buddhism. Rinpoche explains how we can develop an attitude of contentment; shows how happiness and suffering depend upon the mind; and finally how the mind is usually turned outwardly, but can turn inwardly and recognize its true nature.

The Essence of Meditation

Amidst the tremendous uncertainty of our lives, we all need to find a way to overcome the difficulties we encounter and so discover the peace of mind, stability and happiness that we need to face the challenges of the world today.

Happiness depends entirely upon our mind and how it perceives, so it is vital to take care of our mind. If we do not want suffering, then we must abandon the harmful actions that are the cause of suffering. And if we want happiness, then we must cultivate the wisdom and positive emotions and actions that are the causes of happiness. Most importantly, we need to understand and transform our mind. The method for realizing the nature of mind is meditation. First, we allow all thoughts and emotions to settle. From this deep peace dawns the clear insight of wisdom that can reveal the nature of reality.