Eve Decker's most recent Dharma talks (Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley)

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Integrity (Sila in Pali) and Simplicity (usually translated as 'Renunciation', Nekkhama in Pali) are two practices in Buddhism that can support our journey to peace and freedom. This talk offers an exploration of some of the Buddha's teachings on these practices and the reasoning for their profound value.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) One of the well known Buddhist lists is called the 'Paramis', or Perfections, which represent both qualities that the Buddha cultivated himself and also recommended that we cultivate on the road to freedom. The first one, considered a doorway to the rest, is generosity. This talk is a brief look at the ten Paramis and a deeper dive into the teaching on generosity.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) The topic of this talk is Wise Concentration. What is it (as opposed to regular concentration, and how is it different from mindfulness); why did the Buddha teach it as an essential element on the path to freedom; and how do we practice it.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Wise Effort is the 6th of 8 practices the Buddha offered to help us move toward peace and freedom. It involves understanding, discernment, and choice.This talk looks at this powerful teaching and considers ways to bring it more fully into our lives.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Wise Action and Wise Livelihood are important components to Buddhism: deliberately choosing actions and jobs rooted in non-harming. This talk explores the what, why, and how of these two steps on the Buddhist path.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) The Buddha emphasized Wise Speech as an important part of the path to freedom. This talk takes a look at the what, why and how of Wise Speech.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Thoughts driven by greed, hatred, or delusion lead us farther and farther from both inner and outer peace, and yet they are rampant. How do we work with them when they arise? One way the Buddha taught was to deliberately substitute spinning painful thoughts with thoughts that incline toward peace. These sorts of thoughts are often connected to the Brahma Viharas, "divine abodes" of lovingkindness, compassion, appreciative joy, and equanimity. This talk looks at cultivating these energies and using them pragmatically as substitutes when we are lost in negative thinking.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) Begins with a 30m meditation and is immediately followed by a Dharma talk. (Group discussion has been omitted.)

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Thoughts driven by greed, hatred, or delusion lead us farther and farther from peace, and yet they are rampant. How do we work with them when they arise? In this talk we'll look at some Buddhist teachings that offer a framework for dis-identifying from and working skillfully with thoughts that don't serve us or others.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Equanimity is a quality the Buddha described as essential to awakening. This talk discusses what that means and how do we practice?

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Compassion - turning toward suffering with care and wise responsiveness - is a familiar tenet of Buddhism. Renunciation is also a central teaching. What does that mean for lay practitioners and how does it relate to compassion?

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) The Awakened heart dwells in the present moment and chooses wise response to the unfolding, ever changing, less-predictable-than-we-think experience of now. The Buddha taught four basic qualities of the awakened heart: friendliness, compassion, joy, and equanimity. These qualities frequently overlap, are innate (though sometimes/often not in charge) and can be practiced, strengthened, and uncovered. When we do uncover them we gain access to an ease and wisdom we didn't know we had. We can become our own warmest friend and a refuge for others. Listen to Eve in an exploration of these four qualities of the awakened heart.

(Big Bear Retreat Center) The story of the Buddha's time from royalty to spiritual teacher and his emphasis on wisdom and compassion. The story of Ledi Sayadaw in Burma bringing mindfulness to lay people in response to colonialism.

(Big Bear Retreat Center) Talk begins by bringing in the concept of "backdraft" - how distress can seem temporarily worse when we apply self-compassion. Majority of talk is about the necessity of joy for resilience, and the practices of glimmers, knowing what you love & gratitude

(Big Bear Retreat Center) Our practice begins with lovingkindness phrases, moved to mindfulness, then equanimity and self-compassion

(Big Bear Retreat Center) Description of the components of self-compassion including Buddhist teachings, neuroscience, the 3 components of self-compassion, soothing touch and the self-compassion break

(Big Bear Retreat Center) Description of metta, heart practices, metta sutta from the Buddha. Guided metta phrase practice

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) The Buddha taught transcending (and not identifying with) the thinking mind through present moment awareness. He also taught about using the thinking mind skillfully to incline toward wholesome, well-being inducing states. These two bodies of practice are different but each crucial in their own way, and support each other. This talk looks at working with both mindfulness of the present moment and using imagery (a form of the thinking mind) to skillfully invoke peaceful states.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) The Buddha taught that the two wings of awakening are wisdom and compassion. Compassion is much more than a concept, and it's more than a feeling. It's an understanding, a motivation, and an ever-growing collection of pragmatic responses to distress that we have available internally for ourselves and others.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) Dhama Talk

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) Dharma Talk. (Group discussion has been omitted.)

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) The Buddha's teachings point to the need for clear understanding of our own minds and hearts, along with intention, compassion, and practice. As the adage goes, we must become the ones we seek while we work to change (or even consistently comfort) the world. To do that, we need to know what's going on for us internally and know how to wisely self-soothe when we are experiencing distress. The Buddha taught this, and this teaching is pretty precisely echoed in neuroscience and current psychology, including (but not limited to) Compassion Focused Therapy; Polyvagal Theory; and Internal Family Systems. The Buddha observed reality and neuroscientists are doing the same.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) The Buddha said that "Hatred will never end by hatred, by love alone will it end". He also taught that we can exacerbate our suffering with the stories and beliefs we have going on in our minds. The remedies he shared to cope with suffering fall under the umbrella terms 'wisdom' and 'compassion'. Join Eve for a look at some specific teachings and practices to help us work with painful mental/emotional states.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) Dharma Talk

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) The Buddha's third foundation of mindfulness - mindfulness of mind states - give us directions that allow us to see mental-emotional patterns clearly without negative judgment or identification. This approach to habits we often identify as "self" gives us a very helpful way to work difficult emotions. The motivation that the Buddha stated repeatedly for his teachings and practices was to find direct ways to end suffering. This intention applies as much today as it did in his time almost 2,600 years ago.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) The Buddha's second foundation of mindfulness - vedana in Pali or 'feeling tone' - is a powerful and often under-utilized teaching and practice that can help us work skillfully with difficult emotions. The motivation that the Buddha stated repeatedly for his teachings and practices was to find direct ways to end suffering. This intention applies as much today as it did in his time almost 2,600 years ago.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) Begins with a 30m meditation & includes a dharma talk. (Group discussion has been omitted.)

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center) Eve shared her original song with us, "Sand Makes a Pearl".

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) An exploration of emotions, and the Buddha's teaching on mindfulness as an antidote for working with them. The motivation that the Buddha stated repeatedly for his teachings and practices was to find direct ways to end suffering. This intention applies as much today as it did in his time almost 2,600 years ago.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) The Four Noble Truths were called "Dependent Origination, telegram-style" by Buddhist teacher Venerable Ayya Khema. Dependent Origination has also been called a 'mysterious rune'! We will take a look at this foundational teaching/insight and see if it has useful application for us in our pursuit of experiencing and offering well-being. The motivation that the Buddha stated repeatedly for his teachings and practices was to find direct ways to end suffering. This intention applies as much today as it did in his time almost 2,600 years ago.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) We will look at the general teaching and then apply it to the distress of anxiety. The foundational motivation that the Buddha stated repeatedly for his teachings and practices was to find direct ways to end suffering. This intention applies as much today as it did in his time almost 2,600 years ago.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Wise Speech. The foundational motivation that the Buddha stated repeatedly for his teachings and practices was to find direct ways to end suffering. This intention applies as much today as it did in his time almost 2,600 years ago.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) The foundational motivation that the Buddha stated repeatedly for his teachings and practices was to find direct ways to end suffering. This intention applies as much today as it did in his time almost 2,600 years ago.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) This talk looks at the first factor in the Buddha's Eightfold Noble Path: Wise Understanding. The foundational motivation that the Buddha stated repeatedly for his teachings and practices was to find direct ways to end suffering. This intention applies as much today as it did in his time almost 2,600 years ago.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Noble Truths 3 and 4 We will continue our exploration of the Four Noble Truths. The foundational motivation that the Buddha stated repeatedly for his teachings and practices was to find direct ways to end suffering. This intention applies as much today as it did in his time almost 2,600 years ago.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) This talk discusses the Four Noble Truths. The foundational motivation that the Buddha stated repeatedly for his teachings and practices was to find direct ways to end suffering. This intention applies as much today as it did in his time almost 2,600 years ago.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) This talk explores the essential energy of Compassion, as illustrated by the Bodhisattva of Compassion, Kuan Yin.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) This talk includes reflections, practice, and a song pointing to the essential practices that support integrity. Known as "sila" in Pali, wise speech, action, and livelihood and the Five Things (precepts) both lead to and express awakening. Let's look at why and how.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Reflections and practices pointing to the important insight into interconnection. The realization of "anatta" - no separate self - is foundational to the Buddhist teachings. It becomes available with mindfulness practice and is a part of both our own awakening and our ability to courageously act on behalf of Earth and her inhabitants.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) This talk presents an exploration of "Wise Intention" - a crucial aspect of the Buddha's map for alleviating suffering.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Called to engage with, and do what we can to alleviate, suffering in the world, it's essential that we include ourselves and our own suffering in our circle of care. If we don't, our own suffering will be added to the larger suffering. Habituating practices and tools for grounding and coming back to presence is wise action born from wise understanding. Thich Nhat Hanh said, "Everyone knows that peace has to begin with oneself, but not many people know how to do it." Our calm is a gift we give. Join Eve in exploring some teachings and practices that help us return to calm, so we can engage as skillfully as possible with life's suffering.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Thich Nhat Hanh, beloved Vietnamese monk and peace activist, coined the term "Engaged Buddhism" when, during the great suffering of the Vietnam war, it no longer felt appropriate to many monastics to stay inside the monastery. There was a need to take action. However, as practitioners directly addressed the suffering, they stayed grounded in and guided from practice. We will be exploring staying connected to and moving from wisdom and compassion as we engage with daily life and the suffering we encounter.

(Spirit Rock Meditation Center)

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) This talk examines some frameworks and practices that can help us return to equanimity (a sense of balance in the midst of things as they are, from which wise response can more easily arise).

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) This talk examines some frameworks and practices that can help us return to equanimity (a sense of balance in the midst of things as they are, from which wise response can more easily arise).

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) This talk examines some frameworks and practices that can help us return to equanimity (a sense of balance in the midst of things as they are, from which wise response can more easily arise).

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley)

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Join Eve for an evening of exploring the Buddha’s teaching on Intention - a powerful and potentially transformative mental energy that precedes action. Live at the Berkeley Buddhist Monastery, 2304 McKinley Ave., Berkeley, and online (Zoom link below). We will also share some songs in remembrance of Alan Senauke, the Abbot of the Berkeley Zen Center who passed away on Sunday December 22. Alan was a great Buddhist teacher, social activist, and singer/songwriter.

(Insight Meditation Community of Berkeley) Join Eve for an exploration of holding all aspects of inner experience with curiosity and kindness. The practice of mindfulness invites us to ‘see things as they really are’ - not as we imagine them to be or wish them to be. This is usually a big challenge, especially in painful areas or the ones we try to avoid. The Buddhist teachings of lovingkindness invite a crucial deepening in our capacity to not only turn toward the difficult, but to begin to embrace whatever is arising in a spirit of benevolence that supports peace and often insight.