A Mind of Goodness or a Mind of Negativity - It’s Up to You! (2017)

Tampa | January 22, 2017

In this talk, Dharma teacher Fred Eppsteiner explains that although we all want to be happy, most of us spend a lot of time using our minds in ways that cause us to suffer. He encourages us to look deeply inward in order to see what kinds of "seeds" we are cultivating, and to ask ourselves whether they will bear positive or negative fruit. To simply try and "fix" our issues and then expect to be happy is not realistic. We must realize what causes afflictive mind-states to arise in the first place. Then we need to stop cultivating them and start cultivating positive mind-states. Fred also makes a connection between the cultivation of negative mind-states in the individual and the greed, anger, and violence that plague our society. If we want our world to be one of peace, where people treat each other as fellow human beings, then this can only come about by cultivating peace and compassion in the minds of individuals.