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Karuna Talk"Openness seems to be the only key to healing. And openness means we are willing to acknowledge that we are worthy; we have some kind of ground to relate with whatever is happening to us." Karuna Talk is an e-mail group for sangha members interested in taking illness as the path. The list includes people with chronic illnesses or disabilities, health professionals working with people with chronic health problems, teachers and meditation instructors, and other interested members of the Shambhala sangha. The focus is on the development of programs and support services for our community, for people dealing with issues such as isolation, loss of livelihood, stigmatization, depression, and physical pain. As we age, illness and physical suffering will become major elements in most of our lives. Karuna Talk will explore meaningful ways to include these experiences as teachers and companions, as sources of awakening and compassion, rather than as obstacles and sources of profound unhappiness. The Shambhala Buddhist tradition contains a rich treasury of teachings on how to embrace illness, pain and the challenges of life as expressions of basic goodness and awakened heart. Together, the members of Karuna Talk will examine our own tradition and personal experiences with the path, as well as the teachings and practices from other genuine traditions that compassionately deal with illness and disabilities. How to subscribe If you are interested in this topic and in helping to develop programs for our community, you are welcome to subscribe to Karuna Talk. Before subscribing, please read the Karuna Talk Members' Guidelines by clicking on this link. It is understood that, by becoming a member of Karuna Talk, you agree to hold to the principles contained within the guidelines. Please follow these instructions for subscribing to Karuna Talk: 1. Click on My Shambhala Membership Profile in the left-hand column of this page 2. When asked, enter your Shambhala membership user name and password 3. Check the box next to Karuna Talk 4. Click on Save at the bottom of the page. If you are a member of the Shambhala community, but do not have a web membership for the Shambhala website, click on this link: http://www.shambhala.org/int/register.html . After filling out the questionnaire, a user name and password will be e-mailed to you. You will then be able to subscribe to Karuna Talk, as well as access some other community e-mail groups and on-line services. To make it easier to use Karuna Talk, you might want to add the list's e-mail address to your address book. To do this, go to your address book, click on New Contact, type the name Karuna Talk, and add the e-mail address: karuna-talk2@list.shambhala.org . After subscribing, please introduce yourself to the group. Your introduction might include a brief description of your interest in "taking illness as the path," whether as a person with a chronic illness or disability, as a health professional, as a Shambhala Buddhist teacher or meditation instructor, or as an interested member of our community. If you have a web friendly photo that you would like to include with your introduction, that would be great. Contact For additional information about Karuna Talk, please contact the list administrator, Gordon Burgess, at: gordon@parasamgate.com . 16 May 2004 ALS |