Ken Bradford: Difficult Divine Messengers: Part 2 - Depression & Sadness
3-part series on Difficult Divine Messengers: Anxiety, Depression and Shame as troublesome wake-up calls. March 11, April 1, & May 13. Ending with a Daylong on May 19.
Join us in person at the Center or on Zoom:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/2281834980?pwd=NExJbW5TL21tKzFnQlRvQ2tuajNNdz09
Meeting ID: 228 183 4980
Password: 2656111
Join by Phone: 669-900-9128
Description:
The Buddha spoke of sickness, old age & death as Divine Messengers that inspired him to seek a deeper awakening. These physical wake-up calls are joined by psychological sister emissaries of anxiety, despair & guilt. If we listen properly to what these existential messengers have to say, they have special power to open us to the essential nature of our mind.
But if we identify with these disturbing mindstates, thereby solidifyng a story of me, rather than awakening us, they entrap us in compulsive thinking and negative self-talk. When that happens, divine messengers can turn demonic, as lucid existential anxiety dulls into fear & worry, genuine remorse degrades into self-blame & shame, and the sadness of heartfelt despair devolves into heartless, self-criticizing depression.
3 evening talks & discussions – In-person and Virtual - address each messenger:
March 11, 6:00 to 7:30: Existential anxiety vs. Neurotic worry & fear
April 8, 6:00 to 7:30: Sadness & despair vs. Numbing depression
May 13, 6:00 to 7:30: Genuine guilt vs. Toxic shame
Bio- Ken Bradford is a contemplative yogin, author and Dharma teacher integrating a wide arc of Buddhist, Dzogchen and psychological thought and practice. His heart teachers include Chögyal Namkhai Norbu, Joseph Goldstein, Ruth Denison and Tsoknyi Rinpoche, among others. Formerly, he maintained a psychotherapy practice in the San Francisco Bay area and was Adjunct Professor at John F. Kennedy University and CIIS. His publications include Opening Yourself: The Psychology and Yoga of Self-liberation (2021); The I of the Other: Mindfulness-Based Diagnosis & the Question of Sanity (2013); and Listening from the Heart of Silence: Nondual Wisdom and Psychotherapy, Vol. 2 (2007, with John Prendergast); as well as numerous peer-reviewed articles intertwining psychology and spirituality. Website: www.authenticpresence.net
Teacher Support: All donations for this evening’s session will go Ken - Thank you!
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