What we’re about
The motivation for holding these dialogues is to observe the workings of the self and possible connections to conflict and suffering. We aim to explore together the nature of the self, "What am I?", by looking at the operation of the self in our daily lives. We want to use a leaderless dialogue/inquiry process as a mirror in which we can see our own conditioning and patterns of thought happening in real time. The proposed focus of the dialogue group is not solely on the questions that arise, but also on the thought/emotion/relationship process with which the individual and the group engage the questions. In contrast to debate and discussion, dialogue is not a comparison of opinions or an attempt to convince another of a held conviction. The aim is not problem solving or self-improvement, but observation of the self in action. We encourage avoiding quick responses and listening deeply both to the speaker and to one's own reactions, so that our questions and opinions can appear in a new light. We think dialogue can only work in an atmosphere of affection and openness between the participants. . How it works: A quote or video clip relevant to the dialogue/inquiry into self (from J. Krishnamurti) may be provided as a possible starting point. A period of silence starts the dialogue process. This lasts until someone is moved to start. Then there is a check-in/go-round, with everybody having the chance to speak to what is happening with themselves, possibly in reaction to what they have heard. Then the dialogue proceeds spontaneously.. If too much of the discussion is going on between a few people, someone can ask for a check in to go around and find out what is going on with those not speaking.
