Know Your Own Mind: The Best of Buddhism and Psychotherapy

The interplay of Buddhism and Western psychology goes back at least a hundred years. The most spiritual of the world’s psychologies and the most psychological of the world’s religions, Buddhism teaches that the cultivation of self-awareness dispels ignorance about the nature of the self. By Freud’s time, much of the intelligentsia was at least marginally familiar with the outlines of Buddhist thought. A religion without a God, where Mind was considered the beginning, middle and end, was naturally of interest to those also drawn to psychoanalysis. In recent times, with mindfulness entering the therapeutic domain, the interplay between the two traditions has grown much more sophisticated. But the underlying psychology of Buddhist thought is still relatively obscure to those drawn to the meditative perspective.

This weekend’s workshop is designed to make Buddhist psychology more accessible. Over the past several decades, Bob Thurman and Mark Epstein have worked together to explain how the two traditions can complement and enhance each other. Topics to be discussed include (but are not limited to) the Buddhist psychology of Abhidharma (the chemistry of the mind), the path of insight, the central concept of emptiness (shunyata) and emptiness as the womb of compassion, the trauma of being alive, and meditation and re-parenting. Meditation instruction will be included.

Schedule

Friday, August 16

• 3 – 8 pm Arrival & Check-in
• 6 – 7 pm Dinner
• 7:30 pm Welcome and Opening Class

Saturday, August 17

• 7 – 8 am Morning Yoga
• 8 – 9 am Breakfast
• 9:30 – 12 pm Morning Class
• 12:30 – 1:30 pm Lunch
• 1:30 – 4 pm Free Time for Spa Treatments, Relaxation, etc.
• 4 – 6 pm Afternoon Class
• 6 – 7 pm Dinner
• 7:30 pm Evening Class

Sunday, August 18

• 7 – 11 am Check-out of Rooms
• 7 – 8 am Morning Yoga
• 8 – 9 am Breakfast
• 9:30 – 12 pm Closing Class
• 12:30 – 1:30 pm Lunch & Departure

*Please note that the schedule is subject to change at any time.