Module 6: Foundations of Buddhist Meditation III: The Four Immeasurables · The Buddha’s Path
Session 4 - Empathetic Joy
David Oromith · 84 minutes · recorded October 8, 2024
The session opens with a short settling practice, then the teaching on mudita, empathetic joy: rejoicing in another's happiness rather than only our own. David sets out what gets in its way, comparison, judgment, envy, using Sharon Salzberg's monkey stuck in tar. Questions cover noticing joy in small creatures and unexpected jealousy. In the long guided meditation we extend joy through a joyful friend, a loved one, a stranger and someone difficult, closing with rejoicing in our own good qualities.
Anger and aversion Comparison and self-cherishing Distraction and attention Empathetic joy (mudita) Shamatha (calm abiding) The four immeasurables Vipashyana (insight)