In this talk, Melvin Escobar encourages us to meditate on two Koans:"What is your original face?"and"What was your original face before your parents were born?"He offers the perspective on aspects of the 3 Jewels:The Buddha - representing the Oneness of all things;The Dharma - representing the Diversity of all things;The Sangha - where Oneness and Diversity merge in harmony.He reminds us that our authentic self is shaped by all of our past experiences, including the experiences of our ancestors before we were born. ______________ Melvin Escobar is a core teacher at the East Bay Meditation Center, a licensed psychotherapist, and a certified yoga instructor. Melvin has walked the path of service for much of his life, drawing on his experiences as a queer man of color born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. Having encountered the priceless wisdom embodied in Buddhism and Yoga, he continues daily to learn the revolutionary potential of body-centered contemplative practices for personal and social healing. You can read his latest article in Lion’s Roar Magazine “Loving-Kindness: May All Beings Be Happy,” and visit his website www.melvinescobar.com for more information. Support the show______________ To participate live and be notified of upcoming speakers in advance, please Like us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/gaybuddhistfellowship) or visit https://gaybuddhist.org/calendar/ To support our efforts to share these talks with LGBTQIA audiences worldwide, please visit www.GayBuddhist.org.There you can: * Donate * Learn how to participate live * Find our schedule of upcoming speakers * Join our mailing list or discussion forum * Enjoy many hundreds of these recorded talks dating back to 1996 CREDITSAudio Engineer: George HubbardProducer: Tom BrueinMusic/Logo/Artwork: Derek Lassiter