Friends,
For the first month of 2025 we’re going to the root of the Buddha’s teaching: the four noble truths.
As many of you know these four – the unsatisfactoriness of unawakened existence, the cause of this unsatisfactoriness or suffering, the possibility of freedom, and how to achieve that freedom – are shared by all Buddhist traditions.
Thus these four aren’t basic but core, meaning that if we truly realize these four, we will awaken. With this in mind we’ll be exploring these four in ways that you can bring into your practice, into your daily lives. This is fruitful material!
We are exploring these four over two weeks, Jan. 2 and Jan. 16. For this upcoming 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 16 sit we’ll explore the solution to suffering, or dukkha: what is freedom from dukkha, and how do we get there?
Last session we explored the first and second noble truths: The first noble truth that unawakened life is unsatisfactory, or dukkha; and the second noble truth describing the cause of that dukkha, which is craving, or in another way, fundamental ignorance.
If you missed it, here’s a recording from Jan. 2.
The third and fourth noble truth are in away even more important, because they offer the way out, freedom from dukkha. The third explores the nature of that freedom – nibanna – while the fourth is step-by-step directions – the noble eightfold path - to take us to that freedom.
The four noble truths are so central to the Buddha’s teachings – in fact among the first things he taught - they seem a good way to start the year. Also people have asked for more core teachings, and it doesn’t get more core than this. And third, Seattle Insight will be exploring the four noble truths over the entirety of 2025, so this is in a small way paralleling that.
The URL for the evening will be new, and please email Steve Wilhelm at stevellen95@comcast.net for it. Don’t use last year’s URL, because it won’t work.
Or, please come in person to the chapel at Northlake Unitarian Universalist Church, 315 3rd Ave S., Kirkland, WA 98033.
Please consider offering dana to Northlake Unitarian Universalist Church, which makes this space available on a dana-only basis, in a very kind and generous way. If you do, please mention you’re from Eastside Insight Meditation.
https://tinyurl.com/NorthlakeUU-Paypal2022
Also you're invited to offer dana to the teacher, with links and addresses below. Many thanks for your generous dana, which will be helping to pay for an upcoming retreat, to help me come back and better offer to all of you.
paypal.me/SteveWilhelm48
Steve Wilhelm
17623 184th Ave. NE
Woodinville, WA 98072
Big bows to the growing numbers of sangha members who have been stepping up to help set up for Thursday evenings. It’s a blessing to do this good work with others, and we have fun before everyone arrives, so please sign up below!
https://docs.google.com/document/d/18OKEUO7ubunOG_q9r8MaBFWXqmWScOm4LIsv8MdnBU8/edit
Looking ahead:
Lyndal Johnson and I will be offering a daylong on Saturday, Jan. 25, entitled “In Spite of it All, Finding Joy in 2025.” We had originally intended to offer this daylong in Kirkland, but due to a number of factors it will be at the Seattle Insight Meditation Society center in Seattle. As some of you know, it’s extremely easy to get from downtown Kirkland to the SIMS center on the 255 bus, which ends on Campus Parkway, just a few minute walk from the SIMS center. And of course, it will also be online. Please get this on your calendar and sign up!
https://seattleinsight.org/event/in-spite-of-it-all-finding-joy-in-2025/
Looking farther ahead, I’ll be offering a six-week meditation course in Kirkland, on six Wednesday evenings at 7 p.m., starting Feb. 5. This series is intended for people new to the practice as well as those already practicing who wish to deepen. Please sign up if you’re interested, and mention it to friends who may benefit. I’m happy to answer any questions.
We will be needing two Eastside volunteers for this series, which is always a warm and interesting exercise in collaboration. Please step forward if you wish to volunteer, and email me at stevellen95@comcast.net
Here’s a link for the series - https://seattleinsight.org/event/eastside-introductory-class-series-feb-2025-2/
Here are a few other fruitful bits:
- Happy to share that the winter 2025 issue of Northwest Dharma News has gone live. You’re very much encouraged to explore this, even subscribe (it’s free), because it’s deeply important for dharma groups to know of each other, to support each other.
- Big thanks for your kind dana donations over the last year. These helped fund pilgrimage to Asia, which I have shared with you and which can be found here in recorded form. Also your dana helped fund a $300 donation to Metta in Action, which supports nuns and women in Myanmar; and $108 to the Tibet Fund, which is helping with relief work after the Jan. 8 earthquakes there.
- If you’re wanting to listen to the suttas, instead of read them, here’s a great resource of audio sutta readings, suggested by Sangha Member Robyn Beckman.
With a bow,
Steve