Whatever you think enlightenment is, you are wrong! On attaining realisation it is said the Buddha did not know how to communicate his understanding to others who were still trapped in the conceptual reality of samsara. Then, the five ascetics he had been practicing with came along and asked him for teachings. So the Buddha created a conceptual framework as a pathway towards nononceptuality. This is the distinction between ultimate truth and relative truth as explained by the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, through the inspiration of the Buddha, in the Heart Sutra.

Our spiritual concepts about God, enlightenment, the meaning of our existence, are all pictures of reality that we are creating ourselves. As we progress along the path of liberation our concepts become more refined. They begin to include signposts that point beyond themselves towards the non-conceptual state which they are attempting to capture. When our concepts are sufficiently refined, we are able to go beyond them, to see the ‘original state’ which is completely unfabricated, indescribable and limitless.

The evening will include breathwork and movement exercises for relaxed and present embodiment, and a talk on what Buddhism is and how it can help us, based on the Wisdom of the Heart Sutra.

Location: Quaker Meeting House, 188 Woodhouse Lane, Leeds, LS2 9DX

Time: Tuesday evenings, 7-9pm

Cost £15: Cash on arrival preferred or via Eventbrite

(Concessions available for low earners/students – please email sopa@sopathaye.com for more information)