James Wood Teachings

The Joy of Negation

James — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 00:34:34 +0000

Awakening is the recognition of transcendent Value that easily surpasses anything the world has to offer. This would seem attractive to people who long for Satisfaction more than anything else. The problem is that the supreme Value of awakening is arrived at through a process of negation.

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Embodiment

James — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 17:11:12 +0000

From a talk given by James in 2006

Q: What does it mean to see the body as a form of dependent arising?

James: It means to see the body consciously. It means to see the body as dependent on consciousness for its existence as opposed to an independently existing entity, a thing in itself.

To see this, you have to get really deep and really quiet. You witness the sensation in your body. What is the body but a field of sensation, in a way? Consider thought, feeling, and sensation. Have you ever had a tight place in your …

The Practicality of the World

James — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 22:55:47 +0000

Is the world practical? Well, in itself, it’s just a meaningless birth-death machine, a cosmic meat grinder — or at least an extremely peculiar form of abstract art that we don’t know what to do with, like a bizarre Rube Goldberg device that endlessly cycles back on itself. But seen as a way to wake up, it is practical. It is the means to wake up. We must use it to get to the other side, as it were, then it makes sense — and only then.

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Last Talk in Tucson

James — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 17:31:32 +0000

Hello All,

Tonight is my last talk in Tucson, at least for the foreseeable future. I have enjoyed our time together and look forward to perhaps seeing you in other places, as I will be traveling more regularly. Please stay tuned for updates on future events. If you are interested in attending a talk in Tucson, tonight is your last opportunity to do so, at least for a while. For more information about talks, please visit the Talks page.

Blessings,
James

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Audio: Freedom Is Like a Bell Ringing

James — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 19:35:50 +0000

Saying you want to be free is like saying you want a bell to ring. And yet, the tighter we hold on to it, the less it rings. It’s not allowed to freely be, so it has a limited range of possibility. It’s even kind of ugly or pedestrian. Dead, like something you can’t feel. Like when you get an injection of lidocaine. Numb. Dead. Shut down. Less alive, less happy. Maybe even less sad, in a way. Like someone who’s drugged, who has a limited range, not allowed to feel, not allowed to express. So we have to let …

Talk on U of A Campus Tonight

James — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 19:04:14 +0000

For those of you who live in Tucson, James will be giving a talk at the Little Chapel of All Nations on the U of A campus tonight from 7:00-9:00 PM. The Chapel is small, intimate space that we have just started using; come check it out! For details on the location, please see this post.

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No Thought Matches Reality

James — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 23:00:43 +0000

No thought matches Reality.
If you attach to a thought, it hurts, because you are leaving Reality in that moment.
It hurts to leave Reality, like leaving home.
In this case, however, it is your true Home of homes you are leaving.

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New Tucson Talk Schedule and Location

James — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 23:40:52 +0000

Regular talks in Tucson will now be given the first and third Tuesdays of each month, 7:00-9:00 PM, on the University of Arizona campus at 1401 East 1st Street in the Little Chapel of All Nations (McCormick Building). The next talk will be on Tuesday, September 7th. Please see the calendar for details.

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