practicing mindfulness in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh
Sunday, January 1
Loretta will facilitate reciting the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings, including some of the ceremonial chanting (Incense Offering, Touching the Earth, Opening Verse, The Heart of Perfect Understanding, The Three Refuges, Closing Verse) in the Plum Village tradition.
Sunday, December 25
Karen will facilitate, including sing-along carols for a Buddha-ful Christmas (courtesy of Laura Hunter)!
Breathing in Breathing out
Remember that the Buddha is also known as ‘The monk who likes to sing.’
--Thich Nhat Hanh
LET IT GO (sung to the tune of Let it Snow)
--Thich Nhat Hanh
LET IT GO (sung to the tune of Let it Snow)
Oh the world can be so frightful
But my breath is so delightful,
We don’t need a place to go, (so)
Let It Go! Let It Go! Let It Go!
We've got to stop global warming
And keep the bees a-swarming
When you crave stuff you should know (you can)
Let It Go! Let It Go! Let It Go!
Sometimes when we get off-course
If we get down about memories past
And we might start to feel remorse (We can)
Listen to a Deer Park podcast!
Even though it’s not a-snowing
Our good seeds we’ll keep a-hoeing
So compassion and love can grow
Let It Go! Let It Go! Let It Go!
BREATHING IN (sung to the tune of Silent Night)
 |
| Blue Cliff Monastery photo by Phap Hai |
Feel the air Go in and out
Now’s the time for relaxing
Nourish your calm abiding
You don’t have to go far
Breathe and be where you are
Breathing in Breathing out
Deep and Slow No need to pout
Smiling lightly is good for your face
It will fill you with cosmic grace
Sangha will let you be
Smile and you will be free
Breathing in Breathing out
Feel the space Slow your pace
We don’t need to grasp and grab
We’ll be content with what we have
We have more than enough
We don’t need more stuff.
DECK THE HILLS WITH WILDFLOWERS (sung to the tune of Deck the Halls)
Deck the hills with wildflowers Fa la la la la la la la la!
Water them until it showers Fa la la la la la la la la!
Native plants they love to live here Fa la la la la la la la la!
Smiling to us they bring us cheer Fa la la la la la la la la!
In the garden we see Phap Hy Fa la la la la la la la la!
Boddhisattva of oak trees Fa la la la la la la la la!
Growing live oaks may take 10 years Fa la la la la la la la la!
When we’re gone they will still be here Fa la la la la la la la la!
Plants are our continuation Fa la la la la la la la la!
Help with Deer Park’s Vegetation Fa la la la la la la la la!
Deer Park Plants, they never complain Fa la la la la la la la la!
They get fulfilled with Dharma Rain Fa la la laaaaa lala laa LAAAAA!
I’M DREAMING OF A RAINY CHRISTMAS (sung to the tune of White Christmas)
I’m dreaming of a rainy Christmas
So all the plants can drink and grow
Where the oak trees glisten
And monkey-flowers listen
To hear Coyote Families howl
I’m dreaming of a rainy Christmas
With every mantra I recite
May your steps be peaceful and light
And your buddha nature shine so bright.
THE EIGHT DAYS OF PRACTICE (sung to the tune of 12 Days of Christmas)
On the first day of practice the Buddha gave to us: the insight of interbeing!
On the second day of practice the Buddha gave to us: two promises, and the insight of interbeing!
Third day: Three precious jewels
Fourth day: Four noble truths
Fifth day: Five –mind—ful--trainings! (slower)
Sixth day: Six paramitas
Seventh day: Seven factors of awakening
Eighth day: Eight Fold path
On the next days of practice the Buddha gave to us: Ten directions, 51 mental formations, 283 monastic precepts, 84,000 dharma doors, 8-fold path, 7 etc…
Sunday, December 18
This week we will have a chance to study and discuss The Discourse on the Eight Realizations of the Great Beings, an ancient Buddhist text recited regularly in Plum Village practice centers all over the world. I’ve been finding it wonderful nourishment and medicine these days.
Hope to see you there,
Pete
Hope to see you there,
Pete
Sunday, December 11
As we near the winter solstice, Heather will share about the Nine Meditations on Death and the Five Remembrances from Thay Phap Hai's Nothing To It.
Sunday, December 4
Loretta will share a Dharma talk by Thay called "Deep Healing by Listening" and will also share Tea Mediation.
Sunday, November 20
Marge and Keith will explore the practices of earth holding, using some of Thay’s poetry and writing about loving the earth. While we know that our beautiful planet is in danger, we will focus on the beauty of our precious home, contemplate the nourishing kindness and compassion of the earth, and walk and sit in peace, solidity, and joy. In Dharma sharing we may also share about ways we express our Interbeing with the earth.
We will spend more time than usual outdoors, so it would be helpful to bring a mat or blanket to sit on and a jacket to keep warm.
We will spend more time than usual outdoors, so it would be helpful to bring a mat or blanket to sit on and a jacket to keep warm.
Sunday, November 13
Dear Friends,
In his post-election love letter this week, Brother Phap Hai from Deer Park wrote:
"What can we do to bring healing to this moment...can we stop running and allow ourselves to be present in this moment, even if it is difficult?"
This week, we will look at how our practice can help us heal individually and collectively. We will have the chance to stop, rest, allow ourselves to be present, and take refuge in community.
Looking forward to being together :)
With love to all,
Stephanie
In his post-election love letter this week, Brother Phap Hai from Deer Park wrote:
"What can we do to bring healing to this moment...can we stop running and allow ourselves to be present in this moment, even if it is difficult?"
This week, we will look at how our practice can help us heal individually and collectively. We will have the chance to stop, rest, allow ourselves to be present, and take refuge in community.
Looking forward to being together :)
With love to all,
Stephanie
Sunday, November 6
Please join us! We will be sharing about the Noble Eightfold Path from Thay Phap Hai's Nothing To It.
Sunday, October 30
Please join us this Sunday where Pete will facilitate the recitation of The Five Mindfulness Trainings.
Sunday, September 25
Dear friends,
Stephanie
This is a happy moment! Once a quarter, we have the joyful opportunity to recite the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings t
Looking forward to being with you, and enjoying the moments between now and then :)
Bowing and smiling,
Stephanie
(who will be facilitating :)
Sunday, September 18
Loretta will share about "Creating Harmony and Happiness" from chapter 3 in Thay's book, Joyfully Together.
Sunday, September 11
Dear Sangha,
Our practice has two fundamental aspects, stopping and looking deeply. When we stop, stop the thinking, speaking, physical activity, and look deeply into the present moment, without relying on words, symbols or ideas, we get in touch with our bodies, our breath, our feelings. We are in the present moment. We experience the world afresh. We can get insight into the nature of our life, that we are alive, that the world is alive and full of wonders, that we inter-are with all beings and with the whole of being. This is enlightenment. This is to be a Buddha, which literally means one who is awake. Our practice offers nothing less than the deep experience of the wholeness of the world, the Interbeing of everything, Nirvana, which is the world unfettered by concepts. It is the realization of our self as the whole cosmos, even the source of the cosmos, the Ultimate Dimension, and the clear experience of all beings as aspects of our true self, our true home. We come together as a Sangha to practice awakening and support the awakening of our fellow Sangha members, awakening the collective consciousness of the Sangha, with the aim of sharing our awakening with the world. We exist at a dramatic moment in the history of life on earth when everything depends on a shared awakening worldwide, shared by all of humanity. We are living at the most thrilling possible of times and we are participants in the movement to awaken humankind and create a thriving planet for all future children, including the non-human children, even the mountains, rivers, and oceans. We are called to greatness at this time and blessed with a beautiful Earth and a beautiful Sangha to practice and transform with, to transform ourselves and all beings. Please join with our Sangha this Sunday as we move more deeply into ourselves and our moment.
Keith
Universal Emptiness of the Heart
True Enlightenment Garden
Our practice has two fundamental aspects, stopping and looking deeply. When we stop, stop the thinking, speaking, physical activity, and look deeply into the present moment, without relying on words, symbols or ideas, we get in touch with our bodies, our breath, our feelings. We are in the present moment. We experience the world afresh. We can get insight into the nature of our life, that we are alive, that the world is alive and full of wonders, that we inter-are with all beings and with the whole of being. This is enlightenment. This is to be a Buddha, which literally means one who is awake. Our practice offers nothing less than the deep experience of the wholeness of the world, the Interbeing of everything, Nirvana, which is the world unfettered by concepts. It is the realization of our self as the whole cosmos, even the source of the cosmos, the Ultimate Dimension, and the clear experience of all beings as aspects of our true self, our true home. We come together as a Sangha to practice awakening and support the awakening of our fellow Sangha members, awakening the collective consciousness of the Sangha, with the aim of sharing our awakening with the world. We exist at a dramatic moment in the history of life on earth when everything depends on a shared awakening worldwide, shared by all of humanity. We are living at the most thrilling possible of times and we are participants in the movement to awaken humankind and create a thriving planet for all future children, including the non-human children, even the mountains, rivers, and oceans. We are called to greatness at this time and blessed with a beautiful Earth and a beautiful Sangha to practice and transform with, to transform ourselves and all beings. Please join with our Sangha this Sunday as we move more deeply into ourselves and our moment.
Keith
Universal Emptiness of the Heart
True Enlightenment Garden
Sunday, September 4
Marge will facilitate on The Sutra on Knowing the Better Way to Live Alone. Thay says the essence of the sutra is a poem the Buddha wrote to show us how to practice:
Do not pursue the past.
Do not lose yourself in the future.
The past no longer is.
The future has not yet come.
Looking deeply at life as it is
in the very here and now,
the practitioner dwells
in stability and freedom.
Do not pursue the past.
Do not lose yourself in the future.
The past no longer is.
The future has not yet come.
Looking deeply at life as it is
in the very here and now,
the practitioner dwells
in stability and freedom.
Sunday, August 28
Heather will facilitate the recitation of the Five Mindfulness Trainings,which will include some of the ceremonial chanting (Incense Offering, Opening Verse, The Three Refuges, Closing Verse) in the Plum Village tradition.
Sunday, August 7
This Sunday Pete will share a teaching offered by Thay Phap De on “Perceptions and Letting Go”. We will also sing and offer merit for our dear friend and teacher.
Sunday, July 31
Dear Friends,
Please join us this week as we have the opportunity to look deeply at the Five Mindfulness Trainings, as given to us by our teacher Thich Nhat Hanh in the Plum Village Tradition. We will practice a walking meditation and sitting meditation together as well.
In gratitude,
Tree
Please join us this week as we have the opportunity to look deeply at the Five Mindfulness Trainings, as given to us by our teacher Thich Nhat Hanh in the Plum Village Tradition. We will practice a walking meditation and sitting meditation together as well.
In gratitude,
Tree
Sunday, July 24
Dear friends,
We are living in tumultuous times, and sometimes we might feel overwhelmed or despair when confronted with the violence and intolerance in the world. Luckily, we have a practice (and a sangha!) that we can take refuge in, that can help us transform inner and outer suffering.
Our teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh, says:
"When we recognize the violence that has taken root within us, in the everyday way we think, speak and act, we can wake up and live in a new way. We can make a strong determination to live mindfully, to live in peace. Shining the light of awareness on the roots of violence within our own hearts and thoughts, we can stop the war where it begins, in our minds. Stopping the war in our minds and in our hearts, we will surely know how to stop the war outside."
This Sunday we will look at how to transform the violence within ourselves, and will have the chance to cultivate our compassion, peace, understanding and love through our practices of sitting, walking, and dharma sharing together. What a joy to be able to wake up together!
Bowing and smiling,
Stephanie :)
We are living in tumultuous times, and sometimes we might feel overwhelmed or despair when confronted with the violence and intolerance in the world. Luckily, we have a practice (and a sangha!) that we can take refuge in, that can help us transform inner and outer suffering.
Our teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh, says:
"When we recognize the violence that has taken root within us, in the everyday way we think, speak and act, we can wake up and live in a new way. We can make a strong determination to live mindfully, to live in peace. Shining the light of awareness on the roots of violence within our own hearts and thoughts, we can stop the war where it begins, in our minds. Stopping the war in our minds and in our hearts, we will surely know how to stop the war outside."
This Sunday we will look at how to transform the violence within ourselves, and will have the chance to cultivate our compassion, peace, understanding and love through our practices of sitting, walking, and dharma sharing together. What a joy to be able to wake up together!
Bowing and smiling,
Stephanie :)
Sunday, July 17
Dear Sangha,
This is my first time facilitating since Marge and I returned from the 21 day retreat in Plum Village. Thich Nhat Hanh’s (Thay’s) teaching focuses on understanding and training our mind, and at the retreat I learned some new aspects of Thay’s fundamental teaching. I’ll share with you what was new and exciting for me as I facilitate our deepening our experience of being alive. I look forward to being with you.
Keith
This is my first time facilitating since Marge and I returned from the 21 day retreat in Plum Village. Thich Nhat Hanh’s (Thay’s) teaching focuses on understanding and training our mind, and at the retreat I learned some new aspects of Thay’s fundamental teaching. I’ll share with you what was new and exciting for me as I facilitate our deepening our experience of being alive. I look forward to being with you.
Keith
Sunday, July 10
Marge will facilitate and share her reflections from the recent 21 Day Retreat at Plum Village. She will address these questions:
- What inspirations came from the experience of being in Plum Village?
- How do we carry Plum Village into our practice?
- In what way is Thay with us now that he can no longer teach as he used to, and how can we be Thay’s continuation?
Sunday, July 3
Heather will share about The Six Ways to Cross Over to the Other Shore from Thay Phap Hai's book, Nothing to It.
Sunday, June 26
Dear friends,
This Sunday, we will have the opportunity to recite the 14 mindfulness trainings together. We will practice sitting, walking, and dharma sharing as we reflect on the joys and challenges of putting the trainings into practice in our own lives.
Here is some guidance about the trainings from Thich Nhat Hanh's book, Interbeing:
"Mindfulness trainings are practices, not prohibitions. They do not restrict our freedom. They protect us, guarantee our liberty, and prevent us from getting entagled in difficultues and confusion. When we fail, we lift ourselves up and try again to do our best. In fact, we can never succeed one hundred percent. The mindfulness trainings are like the North Star. If we want to travel north, we can use the North Star to guide us, but we never expect to arrive at the North Star" (p. 7).
Looking forward to being with you, and enjoying the moments between now and then :)
With gratitude for your presence and practice,
Stephanie
This Sunday, we will have the opportunity to recite the 14 mindfulness trainings together. We will practice sitting, walking, and dharma sharing as we reflect on the joys and challenges of putting the trainings into practice in our own lives.
Here is some guidance about the trainings from Thich Nhat Hanh's book, Interbeing:
"Mindfulness trainings are practices, not prohibitions. They do not restrict our freedom. They protect us, guarantee our liberty, and prevent us from getting entagled in difficultues and confusion. When we fail, we lift ourselves up and try again to do our best. In fact, we can never succeed one hundred percent. The mindfulness trainings are like the North Star. If we want to travel north, we can use the North Star to guide us, but we never expect to arrive at the North Star" (p. 7).
Looking forward to being with you, and enjoying the moments between now and then :)
With gratitude for your presence and practice,
Stephanie
Sunday, June 5
Heather will share about the Five Trees (the Five Skandhas, the Five Hindrances, and the Five Faculties) from Brother Phap Hai's book, Nothing to It.
Sunday, May 22
Dear Sangha
Barbora and I are so lucky to have you! We are only 2 months away from the time that we will give birth to our first baby, and we want to celebrate this joy with you :) Also, we would be so grateful if we could have your support this Sunday by joining us in having a ceremony to recognize our rite of passage into parenthood. We do not walk alone in this adventure; we walk with our future generations, our blood ancestors, our land ancestors, our spiritual ancestors, our friends, our teachers and of course our lovely Sangha! If you wish to prepare a poem, a few kind words, some advise about parenting from your experience, or simply words of comforting support, we will welcome it all during the ceremony this Sunday :)
-Nick
-Nick
Sunday, May 15
Dear friends,
What a wonderful opportunity we have each week to come together and practice as a sangha! This week I will share on the theme of togetherness from Thay's book Friends on the Path as well as some inspiration I am bringing back from the recent Earth Holder retreat at Deer Park monastery. Looking forward to seeing you Sunday and having the chance to sit, breathe, walk and share in community!
If you would like a little taste of the retreat, you can enjoy this recording of the Earth Holder Sangha Buildling Panel.
Bowing and smiling,
Stephanie :)
What a wonderful opportunity we have each week to come together and practice as a sangha! This week I will share on the theme of togetherness from Thay's book Friends on the Path as well as some inspiration I am bringing back from the recent Earth Holder retreat at Deer Park monastery. Looking forward to seeing you Sunday and having the chance to sit, breathe, walk and share in community!
If you would like a little taste of the retreat, you can enjoy this recording of the Earth Holder Sangha Buildling Panel.
Bowing and smiling,
Stephanie :)
Sunday, May 8
Dear Sangha,
Our practice is to come home to ourselves, to our breathing, our bodies, our feelings, our imagination, thoughts, all our mental activities and all that we experience, to release tension and to open to the full spectrum of ourselves and the world we are, and in the process to gain insight and love. In our practice we heal our suffering and open our heart minds so fully that we marry the ultimate dimension and the historical dimension, the realms of the whole and of individual realities and actions, in our consciousness. We become awake to the wholeness we already are. We come together as a Sangha, a community of practitioners, for the synergy of our collective mindfulness and to build a beloved community. This enhances our individual life and collectively we are a powerful force for healing and transformation in the world. Communion, cultivating loving, compassionate, joyful and inclusive heart minds, individual and collective, this is our practice. It is our great good fortune to have a community to do this with. I look forward to practicing with you as I facilitate this Sunday.
Smiling,
Keith
Our practice is to come home to ourselves, to our breathing, our bodies, our feelings, our imagination, thoughts, all our mental activities and all that we experience, to release tension and to open to the full spectrum of ourselves and the world we are, and in the process to gain insight and love. In our practice we heal our suffering and open our heart minds so fully that we marry the ultimate dimension and the historical dimension, the realms of the whole and of individual realities and actions, in our consciousness. We become awake to the wholeness we already are. We come together as a Sangha, a community of practitioners, for the synergy of our collective mindfulness and to build a beloved community. This enhances our individual life and collectively we are a powerful force for healing and transformation in the world. Communion, cultivating loving, compassionate, joyful and inclusive heart minds, individual and collective, this is our practice. It is our great good fortune to have a community to do this with. I look forward to practicing with you as I facilitate this Sunday.
Smiling,
Keith
Sunday, May 1
Tree will facilitate on the Five Remembrances, which the Buddha recommends we recite every day. The Five Remembrances help us make friends with our fear of growing old, getting sick, being abandoned and dying. We will practice a guided meditation on impermanence.
Sunday, April 17
Loretta will be facilitating this Sunday on the topic of "practicing engaged Buddhism as a path to creating an enlightened society."
Sunday, April 10
Dear Sangha,
Our teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh, known as Thay, said there is nothing which causes more suffering than the untrained mind. He said there is nothing which brings more wellbeing and happiness than the well trained mind. Our practice is training our minds to be awake to the fullness of the present moment, to behold the beauty, truth and goodness of the here and now, and to know and transform suffering by being open to it, seeing its causes and taking care of it. We cultivate the mind of love, the mind of enlightenment through mindfulness, concentration and insight, through meditation, which is the exercise of our big mind, primarily through silence. Through our practice we grow a much larger perspective.
In our practice we use thought to point our attention to what is not thought. This is an example of right thinking, the second step of the 8 Fold Noble Path, after Right View.
Right thought is thought which does not distract from the silence
Rather it enhances it
Right thought points to our essential wonderfulness
To the many causes and conditions for our happiness which exist right now
The Buddha taught the businessmen brought to him by his chief lay disciple, Anathapindika, that it is possible to be happy in the here and now because he knew they were too busy to appreciate the present moment.
This Sunday we will practice opening our heart-minds and training ourselves to be here now, savoring reality as a whole, in the present moment. Our practice is to open our hearts and minds to all the wonders of life that are present here and now and discover for ourselves the source of wellbeing, joy and happiness right here and now in ourselves and in the world.
Keith
Our teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh, known as Thay, said there is nothing which causes more suffering than the untrained mind. He said there is nothing which brings more wellbeing and happiness than the well trained mind. Our practice is training our minds to be awake to the fullness of the present moment, to behold the beauty, truth and goodness of the here and now, and to know and transform suffering by being open to it, seeing its causes and taking care of it. We cultivate the mind of love, the mind of enlightenment through mindfulness, concentration and insight, through meditation, which is the exercise of our big mind, primarily through silence. Through our practice we grow a much larger perspective.
In our practice we use thought to point our attention to what is not thought. This is an example of right thinking, the second step of the 8 Fold Noble Path, after Right View.
Right thought is thought which does not distract from the silence
Rather it enhances it
Right thought points to our essential wonderfulness
To the many causes and conditions for our happiness which exist right now
The Buddha taught the businessmen brought to him by his chief lay disciple, Anathapindika, that it is possible to be happy in the here and now because he knew they were too busy to appreciate the present moment.
This Sunday we will practice opening our heart-minds and training ourselves to be here now, savoring reality as a whole, in the present moment. Our practice is to open our hearts and minds to all the wonders of life that are present here and now and discover for ourselves the source of wellbeing, joy and happiness right here and now in ourselves and in the world.
Keith
Sunday, April 3
Karen will share about Right View and the Third of the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings: Freedom of Thought, in the context of cultivating compassion during the 2016 election. She will offer a loving kindness/metta guided meditation.
Sunday, March 27
Marge, Keith and Pete will co-facilitate Sunday and will lead the recitation of the 14 Mindfulness Trainings. They will also share about the process of becoming members of Thay’s Order of Interbeing (OI) and committing to using the 14 Mindfulness Trainings in daily life. There will be an opportunity to ask questions about deepening one’s practice with the trainings, working with a mentor, being ordained as an OI member, and being a sangha builder.
Sunday, March 20
Dear friends,
This week we have a unique opportunity as dharma teacher Richard Brady facilitates "I have arrived. I am home. Bringing the practice home.”
Richard Brady, “True Dharma Bridge”, co-founded the Washington Mindfulness Community (DC) in 1989 and the Mountains and Rivers Mindfulness Community (VT) in 2008. A retired mathematics teacher, his passion is supporting mindfulness practice in educational settings. Richard became a member of the Order of Interbeing in 1992 and received Lamp Transmission from Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh in 2001 to be a Dharma teacher.
Richard Brady, “True Dharma Bridge”, co-founded the Washington Mindfulness Community (DC) in 1989 and the Mountains and Rivers Mindfulness Community (VT) in 2008. A retired mathematics teacher, his passion is supporting mindfulness practice in educational settings. Richard became a member of the Order of Interbeing in 1992 and received Lamp Transmission from Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh in 2001 to be a Dharma teacher.
Sunday, March 6
This Sunday, Karen and Heather will share about the Four Foundations of Mindfulness from Brother Phap Hai's book, Nothing to It.
Sunday, February 28
Dear Thay, Dear Sangha,
This Sunday, I will be facilitating on the Five Mindfulness Trainings in a different way than usual. There will be a panel of 5 OHS members who will recite the Trainings and will share with us how a particular Training is helping them grow in their practice. If there is enough time, the panel participants will also be available for brief Q & A period (questions and answers period). The panel and I hope you can join us as we continue to bloom as a flower together and bring light, love, and peace to the world.
Bowing in Gratitude,
Loretta
This Sunday, I will be facilitating on the Five Mindfulness Trainings in a different way than usual. There will be a panel of 5 OHS members who will recite the Trainings and will share with us how a particular Training is helping them grow in their practice. If there is enough time, the panel participants will also be available for brief Q & A period (questions and answers period). The panel and I hope you can join us as we continue to bloom as a flower together and bring light, love, and peace to the world.
Bowing in Gratitude,
Loretta
Sunday, February 21
This Sunday, Pete will share "The Discourse on the Eight Realizations of the Great Beings"
Sunday, February 14
Dear Sangha,
This Sunday I would like to finish what I began last month and deepen our exploration of how we integrate the ultimate dimension and the historical dimension in our practice and in our consciousness. A young monk giving a Dharma talk at Deer Park once surprised me by saying “our whole practice comes down to bringing together store consciousness and mind consciousness, which I think says the same thing as integrating the ultimate and historical dimensions of our existence. They are not separate and for us to wake up to this integral reality is what I think enlightenment is. So the goal for this Sunday will be to make this clear for us and enable us to practice with it.
I look forward to our time together.
Keith
I look forward to our time together.
Keith
Sunday, January 10
At 3:30, Loretta and Dmitry are offering a beginner's orientation in the room adjacent to room 323. If there is anyone relatively new to the practice, or to the Plum Village tradition, and has questions such as how to sit, how to deal with distracting thoughts, etc, they will offer some answers. Or if anyone has a friend who is interested in meditation, this could be a good place to jump in.
Keith will facilitate our regular practice from 4-6pm and sends this message:
Keith will facilitate our regular practice from 4-6pm and sends this message:
This Sunday I would like to explore the oneness of the historical dimension and the ultimate dimension, intimacy and ultimacy, the way concentration and liberation are two sides of one coin. I want to explore moving into the experience of the marriage of the infinite and the finite in a single breath and how we maintain this enlightenment as we move through our day, how we practice every minute of our lives, generating joy, happiness, enlightenment with every breath, every step, everything we do. There is no way to transformation. Transformation is the way. I will do my best to facilitate our transforming ourselves in the here and now, and since we are the world, we transform the world when we transform.
Sunday, January 3
This Sunday we will watch a fragment of a Dharma Talk, sing some practice songs and explore how we can come home to ourselves (and stay there) as we start the New Year. There will be an opportunity to share if you have a particular intention or commitment for yourself in the New Year.
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