Experiences are preceded by mind, led by mind, and produced by mind If one speaks or acts with an impure mind, suffering follows even as the cartwheel follows the hoof of the ox. Experiences are preceded by mind, led by mind, and produced by mind. If one speaks or acts with a pure mind, happiness follows like a shadow that never departs. the Dhammapada, 1.1 - 1.2 Keep your heart clear and transparent and you will never be bound. A single disturbed thought, though, creates ten thousand distractions. Let myriad things captivate you and you’ll go further and further astray. How painful to see people all wrapped up in themselves. - Ryokan, Japanese Zen poet A Buddha is a human being who awakens to reality and sees the world as it is, free of confusion and bias. Buddhist teachings and practices are simply whatever helps us towards this awakening - developing our qualities of wisdom, compassion and energy to fulfill our highest potential as human beings. Through developing our awareness we become aware of our choice to either remain trapped in the dissatisfaction of greed, hatred and confusion or to grow through contentment, kindness, and insight to the qualities of an awakened mind. The Center offers introductory and continuation courses at various levels which explore the principles of the Buddhist teachings and the practices of applying them in our daily lives. Ethics Not doing anything evil, Undertaking to do what is skilful, And purification of the mind and heart- This is the teaching of the awakened ones. Dhammapada 183 (chapter 8, verse 5) Buddhism speaks of actions in terms of being skilful or unskilful rather than abstractly good or bad. Actions are considered skilful if they are motivated by skilful states of mind and heart such as generosity, love and wisdom or by their opposites, greed, hatred and delusion; and if they are carried out with as much consideration of their consequences as possible. The five precepts are specific trainings that allow us to turn around our behaviour from harmful to helpful in different areas of our life. I undertake the training principle of refraining from harming living beings; with deeds of loving kindness I purify my body, I undertake the training principle of refraining from taking the not-given; with open handed generosity I purify my body, I undertake the training principle of refraining from sexual misconduct; with stillness, simplicity and contentment I purify my body, I undertake the training principle of refraining from false speech; with truthful communication I purify my speech, I undertake the training principle of refraining from taking intoxicants that cloud the mind; with mindfulness clear and radiant I purify my mind.
The best kind of ethics is a mind at peace - Atisa, Meditation Body like the mountain, heart like the ocean, mind like the sky....Dogen Irrigators draw off water, fletchers straighten arrows, carpenters shape wood; the wise tame themselves Dhammapada, 80 Meditation is the cultivation of a healthy, positive mind. We teach two traditional ways of meditation. Although simple to get started with, they take us deeply into a positive transformation of our mind and heart. Mindfulness of breathing is a simple and direct way of developing awareness and calm. With this practice we follow the natural flow of our breath, becoming more and more focused and fully present. This allows us to be more wholeheartedly engaged with life and less distracted and dissipated. The cultivation of loving kindness helps us to deepen our emotional warmth and friendliness towards ourselves and others. Through this practice we learn to open our heart more to the breadth of experience that life offers, becoming less hateful, irritable and closed off. We might pick up a lot from a book, but nothing beats the encouragement of learning and practicing with others. Our classes are open to all who wish to start as beginners or deepen an existing meditation practice. Each class is led by a team of experienced meditators and there are plenty of opportunities for questions and discussion. More about Buddhism | 
