16: Regret
Regret (9.2.26 LIVE)
Regret traces back to an Old French root meaning to long after, to bewail — itself descended from a Proto-Germanic word simply meaning to weep. This session examines what that regret actually is as content, as experience, and what is happening at the level of the brain. Understanding the mechanics of regret doesn't dissolve it — but it opens the gap between the grief, which is real, and the story about it, which is illusory. It is in this gap that one can use attentional tools developed through meditation to reduce unnecessary suffering. What’s more, when reframed, regret can actually be used as a powerful guide and motivational instrument.