"Karen challenged me to write a description of meditation - in 200 words or less! I’ve been studying and practicing Buddhism and meditation for over 30 years now and I find, fortunately, less words are probably best. As for meditation, despite the trend to see it as a way to attain a desired state of mind and body, to reduce stress and become some sort of serene person, these states are actually side effects of the practice. Meditation as a method helps bring forth the inherent clarity or unconfused intelligence of mind that all human beings possess. It is both a means of training the mind in gentleness and precision, as well as a way to uncover the brilliance and sanity that we all have. By practicing meditation one can form a relationship with the wakefulness, clarity and energy in every situation. Through meditation, one may develop a clarity and stability of mind to see the wakeful possibilities in present situations. From the point of view of meditation, the present situation is in fact sacred, without reliance on any religiosity. The sacred ordinary. So it’s not necessary to create a better state. Everything needed is already present and meditation is the tool for recognizing that."
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If you want to take the next step to try meditation, consider a class. Phil will be teaching meditation classes in Denver through the Colorado Free University (for information: www.freeu.com/catalog.html\) this Winter and Spring, one entitled "Secular Enlightenment" and the other, "Sitting Like Buddha." Both will be conducted at the Denver Shambhala Center, at 2305 South Syracuse Way (http://www.shambhaladenver.org/).

He will also be teaching "Living and Dying— the Tibetan Buddhist View of the Equality of Life and Death" starting February 22 and running for six weeks, through Naropa University in Boulder. You can visit their site here.