The Four Noble Truths of Love
with Susan Piver
April 13, 20, 27, May 4
7:00 – 8:30 p.m. EDT
A MEDITATION PRACTICE GIVES RISE TO COMPASSION, WISDOM, AND CONFIDENCE, ALL OF WHICH MAY SEEM TO DISAPPEAR WHEN WE ENTER INTO, SEEK TO ESTABLISH, OR NEED TO EXIT FROM A RELATIONSHIP.
RELATIONSHIPS PRESENT OUR DEEPEST CHALLENGES ALONG THE SPIRITUAL PATH.
This four-week course will explore it all via talks from Susan, small-group discussion, readings, and at-home contemplations. You will gain insights and learn on-the-spot practices to bring mindfulness off the cushion and into your love life.
We will explore:
- How to bring the fruits of spiritual practice into our love life to deepen affection, passion, and kindness
- How to fall in love without grasping
- How to let go when it is called for
- What Buddhism can offer when it comes to working with the pain of heartbreak
- How to remain open to love
Buddhism is based on Four Noble Truths: Everything changes; grasping creates suffering; there is a way to work with it all; and a path for doing so. Join writer and Buddhist teacher Susan Piver for practice, discussion, and an exploration of how to apply these truths to that greatest of mysteries: love.
CURRICULUM
WEEK ONE: RELAX
Discussion of the first noble truth: Relationships are Uncomfortable
The value of discomfort when falling in love; being in love; losing love; longing for love
How to work with it to keep your heart open
Techniques for what to do when it is too much
How meditation creates a foundation for it all
Group meditation practice and discussion
WEEK TWO: SEE WHERE YOU ARE
Discussion of the second noble truth: Thinking they Should be Comfortable Makes Them Uncomfortable
What is the true power of relationships? (Spoiler alert: it’s not about safety)
What can you actually commit to and what can you ask another to commit to?
Deepening your capacity to stay
The types of problems you can work with and the types you should not work with
Group meditation practice and discussion
WEEK THREE: BE WHERE YOU ARE
Discussion of the third noble truth: Meeting the Discomfort Together is Love
Becoming a spiritual love warrior
Practices for opening and stabilizing your heart
When you are open to this work but your partner is not
Group meditation practice and discussion
WEEK FOUR: THE PATH
Discussion of the fourth noble truth: The 3-Fold Path of Love
The three qualities to cultivate that make love your super power
The sure-fire way to bring more love into your life
Going forward with these teachings and practices
Group meditation practice and discussion
All classes are recorded and those recordings made available for 60 days from the last class date.
Cost: $54 USD
This program is free with an Open Heart Project Sangha membership.
Sign up for a monthly Open Heart Project Sangha membership to take this program for free.
If you sign up for a year, you will also receive two free months, a sweet OHP t-shirt (you will be able to specify the size), and an autographed copy of my latest book, Start Here Now: An Open-Hearted Guide to the Path and Practice of Meditation. In addition, I’ll open my calendar to schedule a 20-minute one-to-one session with you so we can discuss your practice. I would love to hear about your experience. I almost never do private sessions, so if this is of interest, please sign up for a yearly membership by March 14. You can schedule your session any time in the next year.
$270 a year *two months free
Susan Piver is a Buddhist teacher and the New York Times bestselling author of nine books. A student of Buddhism since 1995, she graduated from a Buddhist seminary in 2004 and was authorized to teach meditation in the Shambhala Buddhist lineage in 2005.
She teaches workshops and speaks all over the world on meditation, spirituality, communication styles, relationships and creativity.
In 2011, Piver launched The Open Heart Project, an online meditation community with nearly 20,000 members who practice together and explore ways to bring spiritual values such as kindness, genuineness and fearlessness to everyday life.
Questions? Please email Michele.