10 daagse cursus

Basics Of Buddhism: The 10 Perfections

Door Karen Anderson

Wat je zal leren

The Buddha taught 10 qualities of character to help toward both awakening and everyday life. Although this list was developed thousands of years ago, they are particularly relevant in our current environment. By nurturing these 10 qualities we can become more at ease, purposeful, and compassionate to ourselves and others both in challenging times and the rest of the time. We will cover one of the 10 “perfections” each day. The list is: generosity, ethics, renunciation, wisdom, energy, patience, truth, resolve, friendliness, and equanimity. We’re not just interested in each quality in general, but in how they can be cultivated toward both open-heartedness and freedom. In this way, these qualities will guide us along our spiritual path and create harmony in our daily lives.

Karen Anderson

Vail, Colorado, USA

Karen has been teaching yoga in Vail since 1999. She joined a 30-day silent meditation retreat in India on a whim in 2007, and has been in love with the practice ever since. Karen's training in meditation is primarily in the Indo-Tibetan Buddhist tradition. She is empowered and certified to teach meditation in the Southeast Asian Buddhist...

Les 1

Generosity

The first skill that we will explore is that of generosity. Generosity is so powerful because it trains us to let go, freeing us from our attachments. It also gives us the feeling of abundance, as it tells our minds that we have enough. Finally, it connects us to those around us, valuing their wants and needs. In these ways, generosity is a ‘perfection.’ It’s not about being perfect, but rather about cultivating the quality of generosity as a support for both our freedom and our compassion, to improve the quality of our own lives and the lives of those around us.

Les 2

Ethics

Ethics are the foundation of spiritual practice, and they are all about relationships. Rather than thinking of ethical action as rules set by society, we will explore how it both frees us from remorse and negative self-image, and causes others to relax around us while creating harmony in our environment. To understand this more deeply, we will consider the mechanism of karma from a psychological perspective. What makes this exploration interesting is to look at what drives us when we act against our values; this application of mindfulness opens us up to growth and connection.

Les 3

Renunciation

Although it may sound unappealing - like self-denial or asceticism - renunciation is best described as giving up lesser happiness in order to discover a greater one. Our culture has an addictive attraction to material objects and tends to equate pleasure with happiness. While there is nothing wrong with nice things, training in renunciation can show us that there is deeper and more lasting happiness to be found when we are not consumed by our cravings. We find more freedom in how we spend our time, and satisfaction with what we already have. We also find ourselves more available to connect in joy with others.

Les 4

Wisdom

The goal of spiritual practice is to develop the kind of wisdom that helps us to see through the common causes of suffering and to be understanding and skillful in our response to the world. This is much richer than memorizing facts or truths. We begin by learning from others, and then we apply the theory in our own lives to see if it’s true. We develop insight and discernment into our internal world and how we relate to others. This ripens into realization, which transforms our mind into a state of deep clarity and peace, so that we see through the causes of our difficulty and are able to connect deeply with the world.

Les 5

Energy

The thing about transformation is that it only happens through our own effort; nobody can do it for us. This requires sustained effort, it won’t happen if we go all out and then burn out exhausted. We need to put down our need for immediate results and try not to judge our practice on a daily basis. Instead, we can learn to delight in our successes, and gain confidence in our abilities. The trick is to train to try easy- to apply our mind in such a way that it actually feels good. This is the foundation for our spiritual practice and our skills in relationships.

Les 6

Patience

Patience is valuable because it is the antidote to not only restlessness and agitation, but also irritation and anger, all of which leave us at risk to unskillful behavior and unhappiness. It’s essentially training in relaxing, accepting, and forgiving, which will make us kinder and more pleasant to ourselves and to others. We can learn to put down our expectations and judgments to enjoy more of life. We become less reactive and more resilient, which opens the door for us to penetrate the deep truths of being human.

Les 7

Truth

The task of spiritual practice is to become true and authentic, to live a life of truth. The truth carries incredible power. Lies kill social solidarity but truth brings personal freedom and peace because it doesn’t lead to inner conflict. This allows for the perception of deeper truths about our inner world and our connection to all beings. While the process takes courage, the naming of the truth can literally set us free.

Les 8

Resolve

When you get to the end of your life, and you look back, what will make you feel that you lived a life worth living? To live well, we need to look closely at what matters to us and turn our resolve toward this end. This is completely personal, but in order to be a ‘perfection,’ it needs to lead us toward both our own happiness and connectivity to others. Resolve is less like striving and more like devotion to that which we find meaningful and valuable. Without this, our lives will feel empty and we will be dissatisfied.

Les 9

Friendliness

The Buddha said that friendliness is the greatest protection. This is because when we release our animosity and resentment, folks relax around us; friendliness disarms anger. In addition, this attitude releases an endless flow of internal well-being. It is particularly important that we cultivate friendliness toward ourselves, as our internal relationship tends to get projected outward. The draw of friendliness is universal, as we all crave connection. But it can take some work to look at where our capacity for friendliness gets blocked and to gently dissolve our own barriers to happiness and to connection.

Les 10

Equanimity

Equanimity refers to emotional balance and is considered one of the ‘sublime abodes.’ in Buddhist practice. In order to have inner well-being, we need to cultivate the ability to ride the ups and downs of life that we are all subject to - no one is exempt. From this place of centeredness and resilience, we can examine our inner and outer worlds with honesty and clarity, and develop true wisdom. For this reason, equanimity is said to be the ground for freedom and the protector of compassion.

Recente Beoordelingen

4.95

153

Blain

December 4, 2025

My first forrey into Buddhism. What a wonderful course. So eye opening. Thank You!

Scott

November 25, 2025

A very concise yet deep overview of the practice and its results. Many thanks.

Suzen

June 30, 2025

I very much enjoyed your presentation of the 10 Paramis. This came to me at the best time and was so helpful to sit with each morning and find balance and joy especially with all the negative noise swirling about. It deserves more than one listen. Namasté 🙏🏻

Nancy

June 3, 2025

Beautiful introduction to the meaning and personal application of the 10 Paramus. Thank You.

Amanda

May 12, 2025

Very interesting and well presented. A good introduction to Buddhism.

Rob

April 22, 2025

Really enjoyed the insight into Buddhist principles. Now encouraged to discover more. Thank you. Namaste 🙏🏼

Chuck

March 24, 2025

As with all of Karen’s courses, thoughtful and inspiring.

Liliana

March 8, 2025

I found this course extremely helpful. It’s been a great and practical reminder of what is most important to make the best out of life. Thank you !!! I will repeat it all over again .

Peter

February 23, 2025

Excellent overview of key concepts and lovely guided meditations.

Kit

January 1, 2025

Excellent, precise presentation of Buddhist principles.

Judith

November 28, 2024

Excellent review with thoughtful words and deep meditation. I really appreciated this. 🙏🏼

Michaele

October 15, 2024

I loved the pace that the teacher used. She enunciated clearly and she has a pleasant voice. Her teachings were easy to grasp. I will come back to this course again. Thank you.

Serge

August 7, 2024

I enjoyed this course a lot. Everything was nicely put in a coherent, understandable and digestible way. I loved the sound of voice and the enunciation. Thank you!

Evelyn

April 22, 2024

I have been enriched and inspired with the 10 days of learning in this course. Thank you for the teaching. I am grateful to be able to start over with day one again… There is much to ponder. 🌺🌸

Heidi

March 23, 2024

Powerfully insightful yet easy to understand and implement the small changes that add up to make a big difference. Thank you Karen 🙏🏼❤️🧡💛💚💙💜🤍🌈🕉️

Dale

March 18, 2024

I love studying Buddhist concepts and wisdom. It’s wonderful then applying the ideas a bit with our meditation and in our lives. I really enjoyed this program and had a few days that I worked on applying the thoughts to my practice that week and I’ll try to continue working some of these ideas as well as go back through the 10-days in this program...

February 1, 2024

This course was excellent, I really enjoyed it and look forward to further practice. Thank you so much.

Hal

September 13, 2023

Wow. Wonderful course. The words were so carefully chosen that taking it bordered on the mystical, and the meditations fit in well with each topic helping to support the subject matter. Prior to taking the course I had focused on the Four Immeasurables, but the new material I received here gives me much more to ponder. Thank you again for your gift.

Angela

August 26, 2023

Increible, maravilloso, y cerrar con la ecuanimidad, me dio una gran sensación de alivio, aceptación y fluidez con las altas y bajas de la vida, que nos invitan a observar y continuar experimentando el dolor y la alegría, cada día con mayor ecuanimidad. Gracias