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FACE TO FACE | EASTERN HORIZON 43

was able to experience the non-separation of all of what safety and relaxation feel like. It is relatively
life. It was as if sense consciousness was arising in a easy for them to ask for help and to soothe themselves
larger field of consciousness. While experiencing that when they are upset. However, when a child grows up
pervasive consciousness, the Bodhisattva vow took on insecurely attached to their caregivers, they often do
a different meaning. As an individual consciousness the not know what safety and relaxation feel like, don’t feel
impact one can have is important, yet limited. When like they belong. It is a lot harder to focus and instead
we experience the larger consciousness so much more of access to their goodness, they feel inadequate,
is included. The brilliance of the Theravada teachings unworthy or bad. While attachment formation isn’t
is that it offers clear pathways to both understand and innate or hard wired, it is hard to shift. In addition, one’s
release suffering we experience from wanting pain to attachment formation impacts your health, the way you
go away, from wanting pleasure to stay, from resisting think about yourself, your relationships and how you
change, and from the challenges we experience being view the world. Furthermore, it impacts if you are able
alive in a world where it takes a lot of effort to have a to make good use of meditation and to realize some of
roof over one’s head and food to eat. The more that we the freedoms of meditation.
release these kinds of suffering ourselves, the more that
we are able to understand and act in ways that support My project is to create a meditation based attachment
the release of suffering for others. There is nothing repair program to help people repair the attachment
about supporting others to realize the end of suffering wounding they have.
that is inconsistent with what the Buddha taught.
If you are interested in reading more, please read these
Can you tell us more about your current project, and two articles:
how our readers can get in touch with you? 1. https://awakeningtruth.org/blog/attachment-

disturbances
Thank you for asking about something that I feel a lot 2. https://awakeningtruth.org/blog/attachment-
of conviction about! In my years of meditation, I have disturbance-for-meditators-part-two
discovered that certain kinds of suffering, in the form
of different kinds of trauma don’t shift readily with Here is my website: https://awakeningtruth.org/ if you
would like to stay in contact. EH
classical forms of meditation. While there are many
different kinds of trauma, my project is based upon
repairing developmental trauma.

First, let me begin with the word attachment. In
Buddhist language, we see attachment as something we
want to reduce or get rid of. It is good to let go of our
attachment to anger, unwholesome desire and unskilful
views. This kind of attachment is the source of suffering.
Yet from a psychological perspective, attachment
has a different meaning. It means the bond between
caregiver and child. A healthy and secure attachment
to one’s caregivers is critical for healthy physical and
emotional development. A securely attached child
receives adequate support, safety, attunement to their
feelings, encouragement, and delight in their essence.
A securely attached child grows up feeling seen, valued,
able to express who they are. When children grow
up securely attached to their caregivers, they know