ABOUT THE MEDITATION
This week’s meditation session is led by Michel Pascal and the theme is: Reawaken.
The guided meditation begins at 25:22.
For centuries Himalayan practitioners have used meditation to quiet the mind, open the heart, calm the nervous system, and increase focus. Now Western scientists, business leaders, and the secular world have embraced meditation as a vital tool for brain health.
Whether you’re a beginner, a dabbler, or a skilled meditator seeking the company of others, join expert teachers in a forty-five-minute weekly program designed to fit into your lunch break. Each session will be inspired by a different work of art from the Rubin Museum’s collection and will include an opening talk, a twenty-minute meditation session, and a closing discussion.
RELATED ARTWORK
These shrine cabinets are also known as dharma displays. They are meant to house deities and usually resemble small temples. Shrine cabinets can be relatively simple in design or ornately carved and painted. This elaborate example was specifically commissioned for the Tibetan Buddhist Shrine Room at the Rubin. It has three niches framed by decorative carvings of foliage. The crown of the cabinet is carved with symbols representing the Three Jewels of the Dharma: Buddha (teacher), Dharma (teachings), and Sangha (the community of practitioners). The crown also contains the Eight Auspicious Symbols of Tibetan Buddhism.
The outer columns of the shrine cabinet feature the elephant, monkey, rabbit, and bird from the tale of the Four Harmonious Friends. Beholding the shrine cabinet is a powerful visual reminder to adhere to the teachings and integrate them into one’s essence.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Michel Pascal, a meditation teacher for 25 years, has led successful programs for prisoners, which help prevent suicides and reduce reoffending. He’s written 20 books on spirituality, including Meditation for Daily Stress: 10 Practices for Immediate Well-being. Known as “The Medicine Voice,” he’s performed at Carnegie Hall and played at the Peace Day Concert in Times Square in September 2023. In December 2023 he presented his methods at the United Nations.
This program is presented in partnership with Sharon Salzberg and teachers from the New York Insight Meditation Center, the Interdependence Project, and Parabola Magazine and supported by the Frederick P. Lenz Foundation for American Buddhism.
