What You Resist, Persists: Working With Aversion

Published: Aug. 6, 2023, 2:59 a.m.

As the Buddha tells us, rejecting, avoiding, or pushing away the reality of the moment - which might be unpleasant - is one of the main ways that we create suffering (or dukkha) not only for ourselves, but also for others.

In the Pali language, this quality of aversion is called dosa. And because it tends to cause so much unnecessary pain and stress in our lives, the teachings urge us to use mindfulness practice to really get to KNOW our dosa, at all levels – from the most minor ways that we resist to the most troubling, or destructive.

In this new talk, Shell explores all the many ways that we can start to notice when we’re in some way resisting what IS, and start to let BE, instead of being so aversive to other people, life itself, and of course, ourselves.

It includes a 10-minute meditation at the end.