HOLMES CHAPEL residents have a chance to learn an alternative route to inner peace and happiness.
Andy Priest, a teacher at the Odiyana Kadampa Meditation Centre in Northwich, is giving classes on basic meditation and the practice of Kadampa Buddhism at Holmes Chapel Library.
Starting on Monday, April 15, at 7.30pm, these weekly drop-in classes last about 90 minutes and consist of guided meditations, talks, and discussions, and are suitable for everyone from beginners to experienced meditators.
The purpose is to help people gain personal experience of inner peace, to overcome their daily problems, and to find real happiness in their hearts.
Each class is self-contained, though students are welcome to attend the whole course, if they prefer.
Gen Kelsang Chökyong, who leads teching at the centre, said: “The classes provide an ideal introduction to meditation and Buddhism, and aim to teach effective and practical methods for overcoming problems and increasing happiness in daily life.
“Happiness seems simple and attainable, yet very few people are truly happy. Stress and anxiety are reaching epidemic proportions, and we find it hard to tolerate even the slightest discomfort.
“Happiness is a state of mind, and we can’t achieve it by accumulating possessions, watching TV, or continuously making changes in our life.
“People have tried this approach year after year, generation after generation, and it has never worked. There are more and more depressed people about than ever.
“We engage in actions that we expect to lead to happiness and when they don’t, we just do them again and again and again and are surprised when they don’t make us happy.
“We expect that buying a new car will make us happy. We buy one and feel excited for a few days, but then we’re back in the same position as we were before – needy and discontented - so then we look for something else to buy and the cycle continues.”
The classes will be held at Homles Chapel Library, London Road, from Monday, April 16, up to and including Monday, May 20.
They start at 7.30pm and cost £6 per person, and there's no need to book in advance.
For further details please visit www.meditationincheshire.org or call 07724828131.
Chökyong added: "We can’t rely on external objects for our happiness.
"We need to learn to cultivate happy states of mind for ourselves.”
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