How do we learn to practice with everything in our lives? As parents, we may feel like we aren’t truly on the path of liberation because our lives don’t look like the stereotypical life of a renunciate. But when we open to the profound opportunities for deep and authentic practice that our lives as parents present, we can move beyond this belief and step fully onto the path in the midst of our hectic lives. In the process, we may even discover that there couldn’t be better circumstances for deep and transformative engagement with the Dharma. When parenting becomes practice, the tension between our life as it is – with all its demands and distractions – and our desire for ideal conditions for Dharma practice dissolves. And, in the process, we can bring the benefit of the Dharma to ourselves and those around us during a phase of life when the fruits of contemplative practice are so deeply needed.
The view of parenting as an impediment to practice makes it hard to fully commit to our practice or to our lives. Simultaneously we may feel like we can’t show up as the best parents we could be, because we don’t think our practice is good enough. How can we dissolve this contradiction that keeps us from realizing the potential of our life as it is? We will explore how to recognize the role of a parent the ideal condition to cultivate patience, lovingkindness, resilience, renunciation; all of the perfections of the heart on the path to liberation. This program is intended to reframe the way we think about life as a parent and as a practitioner, and support us in landing in a full embrace of our life and practice as parents on the path. Starting with an opening towards the foundation of our own goodness, we will draw from each other’s stories of challenge and joy to recognize the endless opportunities for practice, and the ways we are already most deeply on the path of awakening through parenting.
Participants are welcome to bring the realities of their life into the program. It's ok if there are interruptions, or children on camera at any point, and it's ok if participants have to step away and miss portions of the program because of the realities of parental life.
