April-June 2012

EDUCATION

By Pam Cayton

Creating Compassionate Cultures takes on the challenge of adapting the wisdom and compassion teachings in a pure but practical and accessible manner for parents, householders and those with busy lifestyles. No matter where we are on the planet, there is a great hunger for depth and meaning in our lives.  Bombarded with images of pleasure, this world we now live in so easily leads us skidding along the thin ice of superficiality.

As parents, householders and human beings in this world today, we have a rich opportunity of transforming every moment into a deeply meaningful experience.  Our home, work and life provide a training ground for our mission to attain happiness and contentment.  Making a choice to live more consciously usually requires making conscious changes. Implementing daily practices helps us create new habits, healthy habits that nourish our desire for a more meaningful life lived closer to our values. Begin each day with a mindful reflection and clear intention or commitment for that day, remember it throughout the day. Every thought and sensorial experience changes our brain and leaves imprints on the mind. So one mind-moment at a time, we will be creating more compassionate cultures.

For me personally, my children were amazing teachers. They opened my heart to unconditional love, revealed self-cherishing as suffering, questioned my motives and busted my lack of authenticity and hypocrisies. My children kept me on track and in perpetual retreat, forcing me to practice transforming everyday life into a deeply meaningful training ground for developing wisdom and compassion.

Pam Cayton spent ten years in Nepal studying Asian philosophy and religion and teaching English to Buddhist monks. During this time, Pam also organized courses in Buddhist philosophy and meditation for Western students and co-founded The Himalayan Yogic Institute in Kathmandu, Nepal. In 1988, Pam moved to the United States where she completed her Montessori training at Montessori World Education Institute and the ECE department of Cabrillo College. In 1989, she started Tara Redwood School with the aim of educating the whole child: to convey the joy of learning and also to provide a foundation for the emotional and inner development of each child. The success of Tara Redwood School encouraged Pam to found Creating Compassionate Cultures, and organization dedicated to developing training programs, tools and resources and share them with educators around the world.

Tags: pam cayton, retreat