March 2017 – Sharon Salzberg

Last Updated on January 31, 2017 by Matthew Sockolov

Sharon Salzberg is an incredible teacher known for teaching the Buddhist heart practices. Often when preparing our own dharma talks on metta or generosity we find ourselves turning to Sharon Salzberg’s teachings to guide us. She has written many books including the beautifully and simply written Lovingkindness: The Revolutionary Art of Happiness. This book especially has informed our own meditation practice and teaching.

We chose Sharon as our Person of the Month for March 2017 because of her work making the practices of compassion and friendliness accessible to everyone. She often gives dharma talks or holds retreats dedicated to these topics. As people who are in recovery from addiction we have both found it profoundly helpful to practice compassion and friendliness toward ourselves and others. At first these qualities seemed too flowery and at other times impossible. By listening to Sharon’s teachings we found ourselves able to practice with them because she made them approachable and practical. We love that Sharon teaches from her experience, embraces her difficulties, and never shies away from her own humanity.

Here are some resources we recommend if you are interested in investigating Sharon’s teachings:

www.SharonSalzberg.com – Sharon’s Website
Metta Hour Podcast – Sharon’s podcast with talks and meditations
Insight Meditation Society – Meditation and retreat center where Sharon often teaches
www.YouTube.com – An interview we did with Sharon