In this modern world we all lead very busy, stressful lives and never seem to have the time to truly relax. Our mind is always full to the brim with all the things that we need to do, racing from one situation or object to the next. No matter what we do we never seem to find any calm or peace.

It doesn’t seem to matter where we go, what we do, how much money we have or haven’t got, we never seem to find the happiness and contentment we want.

Buddha teaches that this is because we are looking in the wrong place!

Happiness is a state of mind. Therefore we need to look at our own mind in order to find the peace and happiness we are all searching for.

So it is with our problems and suffering. They too are states of mind. These states of mind are caused by delusions, negative states of mind such as anger, attachment, jealousy etc. If we can identify and remove these negative states of mind by replacing them with positive states all our problems will naturally cease.

Meditation is a mind that focuses on a virtuous, positive object and is the main cause to experience inner peace and happiness.

Through meditation we can learn to identify the suffering and difficulties within our own mind and remove them by changing our inner experience and understanding.

In a meditation there must always be an object upon which to focus. Only then can there be any real change in our mind. In our classes you can learn to meditate on such beneficial objects as love, compassion and patience.

All our evening classes start at 7.30pm.

We usually start with a short prayer, called ‘Liberating Prayer’. This prayer is a praise to Buddha Shakyamuni, whose teachings are just as relevent today as they were during his time.

After the prayer we will generally engage in the first meditation to settle and calm our mind. Then after a short talk there will often be a second meditation followed by tea and biscuits. There will always be an opportunity to ask questions.

These talks are very practical and use analogies from our ordinary, everyday life.

Our lunchtime meditation runs for 30 minutes.

These meditations are a great way to relax during a busy working day.

Come to a class and find out for yourself how much meditation can help you.

We hold classes across North Cumbria:

Each class is a drop-in class and stands alone. If you can’t make it one week then you can go to a different venue. Each week the classes in all venues teach the same subject.

Also our autumn term, starting on the week commencing Monday 6th September, will begin with free public talks at all our venues.