Defensiveness often arises when identity is challenged. When information about ourselves and the world runs counter to the way we view them, hold them, and maybe even cling to them.
How, then, might defensive strategies be seen as a form of active ignorance? And how might we use the arising of defensiveness around selfhood as a mindfulness bell?
I explore these questions and more in this talk offered for the Insight Meditation Center on May 6, 2025.
Usually, craving is mentioned in terms of sensual pleasure, but here the topic is craving for becoming and craving for annihilation.
In this guided meditation, Matthew leads the practitioner through mindfulness of mind as part of Bhikkhu Analayo’s method of Satipatthana practice.
In this guided meditation, Matthew leads the practitioner through mindfulness of feeling tones as part of Bhikkhu Analayo’s method of Satipatthana practice.
In this talk, Matthew offers his perspective on setting intentions, whether big or small, aspirational or momentary. Weaving storytelling from his days in prison with perspectives from the Buddhist tradition, Matthew presents ways to enquire deeply about what we really want from our time here on Earth.
In this talk, Matthew shares the story of Angulimala, the serial killer who collected the fingers of his victims, and his path toward redemption and awakening. Find out why Angulimala is now considered the Buddhist patron saint of pregnancy and childbirth, as well as the unofficial mascot for former criminals.
In this guided meditation, Matthew leads the practitioner through mindfulness of death as part of Bhikkhu Analayo’s method of Satipatthana practice. The meditation begins with establishing embodied mindfulness and then moved int contemplation of death using the elements.