Sticking with It

People tell me meditation is easy but sticking with it is not. I could say “Just sit” (and I have), but that just annoys. In other words, I haven’t been much of a help. Until recently, that is, when I came up with a pretty simple—and all too obvious— idea: I asked a seasoned meditation teacher to present a teaching on sustaining a meditation practice (“Sticking with It”), and Sharon Salzberg, cofounder of the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, graciously obliged.

Of course, there are those who don’t meditate and simply are not suited to it. In fact, around the world, many—perhaps most—Buddhists do not meditate. But those who want to and struggle with the discipline it requires will find Sharon’s teaching immensely helpful. Identifying the obstacles that come up most frequently in meditation, Sharon not only lays out a strategy for us but also will lead an online video retreat at tricycle.com in April. Together, these two teachings will show you how to begin a sitting practice, if you don’t have one already, and will support your practice if you do. Sharon’s new book, Real Happiness: The Power of Meditation, serves as a basis for the teachings. The book is a 28-day meditation program that will get you started and keep you going. (Sharon will also be leading a 28-day retreat in February and invites you to join her and others—including the Tricycle staff—at sharonsalzberg.com).

Approaching 20 years in print, Tricycle has gone through plenty of changes. Most recently, however, we’ve entered upon a new phase of our development, pairing teachings in print with video retreats online. In response, our readers and online visitors have gathered to form a mutually supportive community of practitioners from multiple traditions. Leading us are some of today’s most beloved teachers: Dr. Reginald (Reggie) Ray; Larry Rosenberg; Bonnie Myotai Treace; Thanissaro Bhikkhu; Elizabeth Mattis-Namgyel; Ken McLeod; Stephen and Martine Batchelor; Gelek Rimpoche; and there are many more to come. Even if you are not a member of the community, you may watch each of these teachers’ introductory teachings at tricycle.com for free. You can learn more about becoming a part of the Tricycle Community here.

As the first Buddhist publication devoted to a post-sectarian approach to the dharma, Tricycle has built a community with you that is diverse and inclusive. Themed “Awake in the World,” our new website invites all of us to receive teachings together in the midst of our busy lives. The support that we offer and that you give in return, we hope, will keep all of us sticking with it.

—James Shaheen, Editor and Publisher