Insight Dialogue is a way of bringing the tranquility and insight
attained in meditation directly into your interactions with other
people. It's a practice that involves interacting with a partner in a
retreat setting or on your own, as a way of accessing a profound kind of
insight. Then, you take that insight on into the grind of everyday human
interactions. Gregory Kramer has been teaching the practice (which he
originated) for more than a decade in retreats around the world. It's
something strikingly new in the world of Buddhist practice--yet it's
completely grounded in traditional Buddhist teaching.
Kramer begins with a detailed presentation of the central Buddhist
teaching of the Four Noble Truths seen through an interpersonal lens.
Because dukkha (suffering or unsatisfactoriness) is often most
forcefully felt in our relations with others, interpersonal
relationships are a wonderfully useful place to practice. He breaks the
Noble Truths down into component parts to observe how they manifest
particularly in relationship to others, using examples from his own life
and practice, as well as from his students'. He then goes on to present
the practice as it's taught in his workshops and retreats. There are a
few basic steps to the practice, deceptively simple to describe: (1)
pause, (2) relax, (3) open, (4) trust emergence, (5) listen deeply, and
(6) speak the truth.
The sequence begins following a period of meditation, and includes
periods of speaking, listening, and mutual silence. Kramer includes
numerous examples of people's experience with the practice from his
retreats, and shows how the insight gained from the techniques can be
brought into real life. More than just testimonials for how well the
practice "works," the personal stories demonstrate the problems that
arise, the different routes the practice can follow, and the sometimes
surprising insights that are gained.
To learn more about the author, Gregory Kramer, go to www.metta.org.
