The following talk was given at the Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City, California.

Please visit our website at adioderma.org.

So, it was very nice to be meditating here with all of you, sitting here quietly, and my eyes closed,

and then hearing the bell and opening my eyes, kind of just, I was kind of gazing down,

but I could feel the people in the floor around me, just sitting quietly and still.

And I really kind of found that invaluable,

the stillness, the uprightness, the engagement in the practice.

It's rare that we're in a group of this many people, and you can open your eyes and see a group

of people sitting peacefully, quietly, at least on the outside. And that counts for a lot. It's

kind of supportive and inspiring to see. And a number of times in my life, I've been quite inspired by just being in a room,

observing a room of people, sitting and meditating.

And sometimes I see it as a natural wonder.

Probably one of the most dramatic times for me was when I was in Burma,

they segregated for practice point of view,

the housing and the location where men and women meditated.

And so there would be a procession of us men who would walk a single file to go to the men's dining area.

But it took us by the women's meditation hall.

And the women's meditation hall was quite large, much bigger than the men's meditation hall,

and much more majestic.

And it was a large kind of building.

The long, two long sides were just a series of doors, and those doors were always open.

And so you can kind of see it right through the building.

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