What do we do in meditation?

Is it to give some experience of tranquility and calmness to relieve the stresses of our lives? To give us some form of refuge from all these stresses?

 It can do this but it is much more

It is about changing our experience of our inner states and our engagement with the world into an experience which is much more positive and enriching.

Buddhashanti introduced three primary ways of beginning to do this, 

1.awareness of our moment to moment thoughts and emotions.

2.having a conscious  sense of purpose in our actions and thoughts

3.being aware of the emotional  and ethical direction of our thoughts and actions.

The basis of this is endeavouring to act out of kindness, tolerance and awareness of the consequences of our actions.