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

Please visit our website at audioderma.org.

Okay.

So every now and then I like to ask the question Matthew do you know what you're doing like the whole teaching thing all Darma thing do you know what you're doing. And that sounds like it comes out of like self-doubt or something.

But I'm not really.

it's just that as a teacher the way you talk about dumb gets shaped by forces you cannot clearly see.

You know, just as our lives are shaped by a million unseen forces.

One's Darma is also how one talks about it.

It's also.

And so I just asked the question, you know, what's happening here.

And to answer that, have to consider another question which is something like what's the function

of a darma talk what's the function of a darma talk. And classically from one kind of prominent sutah and the numerical

discourses, the darma should only be taught with the thought of,

I will speak step by step.

Not doing great on that front. I'll speak explaining cause and effect, the sequence of

cause and effect, also a little shaky. Speak out of compassion. Okay, fair enough. Speak without being motivated by material

reward, okay? And speak without disparaging others. Already,

ignore disparaging oneself.

A little shaky. But the truth is I only mercilessly make fun of myself because of love. So what's the function of a darmatoc?

What's the council on how to offer things?

Is a talk meant to be an exchange of information or something else?

In some ways, yeah, this path is about learning the way we learn anything.

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