A discussion about retreat
Venerable Thubten Chodron 
Four Establishments of Mindfulness Retreat 
Feb 9, 2013 This discussion session took place during the Four Establishments of Mindfulness Winter Retreat in 2013. More extensive teachings on the establishments of mindfulness can be found here.
- Examining how perception affects our experience of objects
- Looking at all four of the noble truths to understand the unsatisfactory nature of samsara, what keeps us stuck, as well as the way out
- Learning to see ourselves accurately and giving ourselves credit for our virtuous actions and skills
- Using meditation to digest our experience and bring a calmness to the mind
- Creating the causes for a very different kind of happiness than the temporary pleasures we attain through our attachments
- Increasing our concentration ability, particularly when working with pain
- Cultivating skill in observing thoughts in the mind, feeling in the body, and recognizing how one affects the other
Venerable Thubten Chodron
Venerable Chodron emphasizes the practical application of Buddha’s teachings in our daily lives and is especially skilled at explaining them in ways easily understood and practiced by Westerners. She is well known for her warm, humorous, and lucid teachings. She was ordained as a Buddhist nun in 1977 by Kyabje Ling Rinpoche in Dharamsala, India, and in 1986 she received bhikshuni (full) ordination in Taiwan. Read her full bio.
