Loving-Kindness as Our Core State - Kevin Griffin

Kevin shares concepts from his latest book, "Living Kindness." He speaks about the necessity to make ourselves the first beneficiary of our own loving-kindness (metta) because it's so easy to fall into self-criticism and negativity. He relates the actual feeling of loving-kindness and its relationship to other aspects of practice - it both depends on mindfulness and acts to support insight. Finally, he shares that chasing loving-kindness as a preferred state is another form of grasping. Rather than trying to strengthen our ability to love, we can focus on removing the barriers to our innate capacity to love. It can essentially become just an absence of ill will. Find Kevin's latest book at shambhala.com/living-kindness.html______________ Kevin Griffin is a Buddhist teacher and author of 9 books known for his innovative work connecting dharma and recovery, especially through his 2004 book "One Breath at a Time: Buddhism and the Twelve Steps." He has been a Buddhist practitioner since the 1980s and a teacher for three decades. He reaches a broad range of audiences in dharma centers, wellness centers, and secular mindfulness settings. His latest book is "Living Kindness: Metta Practice for the Whole of Our Lives" published in 2022. To learn more and to see his teaching schedule, visit kevingriffin.net. ______________  To support our efforts to share these talks with LGBTQIA audiences worldwide, please visit https://gaybuddhist.org/There you can:   Donate  Learn how to participate live  Find our schedule of upcoming speakers  Join our mailing list or discussion forum Enjoy over 900 recorded talks dating back to 1995CREDITSAudio Production: George HubbardProducer: Tom BrueinMusic/Logo/Artwork: Derek Lassiter