by Nalanda Institute
In January, Nalanda Institute, in collaboration with Wonderstruck, hosted Tatsudo Nicole Baden Roshi at Tibet House US, who gave a dharma talk and meditation on the foundational Buddhist principle of Śūnyatā, or emptiness.
According to Roshi, emptiness is one of the hardest concepts in Buddhism to get a real feeling for—because the way many of us perceive this word is conceptually vastly different from the phenomena it’s meant to represent within Buddhism. Roshi’s talk provides a framework and entry point to begin to unpack and explore the depth of the meaning of this Buddhist concept. She not only explains the philosophical meaning of emptiness—which is rooted in developing an awareness of the interconnected experience of our reality—but also discusses the experiential component of emptiness and how senses, awareness, and aliveness of our physical body are the entry points into being able to taste this profound and important teaching.
The video below is an edited version of the dharma talk Roshi delivered that night. We hope this offering supports your journey of touching into this transformative Buddhist principle of Śūnyatā.