Greetings! The Tuesday night meditation group will meet tomorrow from 7:30pm to 9:30pm using the Zoom conferencing platform. Dave is scheduled to be this week’s facilitator. ** Please be sure to use the Zoom meeting link noted below. **
There are a couple of events coming up this Saturday, May 11.
On Saturday morning from 9:30am to 11:00am Chris Crotty will lead the in-person meditation and dharma talk at the Center for Mindfulness and Insight Meditation in Wenham:
“Join our socially-distanced vipassanā practice, Dhamma talk, and discussion period at the Center in Wenham on Saturday morning. The practice session begins at 9:30 a.m. and concludes at 11:00 a.m. All are welcome, beginners and experienced practitioners alike.“
Meanwhile, NSIMC’s Ted Jones will lead “A Morning of Insight Meditation” from 10:30am to 1:00pm at Inner Arts New England in Salisbury:
“The science of meditation is by now well established, confirming health benefits that include stress reduction, relaxation, and a calmer mind. Beyond these is a gift with even greater potential: the ability for live a more fulfilling life, with less mental distraction, more present-moment awareness, and a greater appreciation for the interconnectedness of all aspects of our world. This morning retreat is designed as both an introduction to Insight meditation for newcomers and as a “beginner’s mind” refresher course for experienced meditators. It will include the silent practice of both sitting and walking meditation, as well as time for questions and discussion. This program will be offered every month or two as a support for the ongoing meditation practice of returning students.”
And then CIMC will host the day-long hybrid retreat “The Natural Clarity of Awareness” with Tara Mulay from 10:00am to 5:00pm:
“During this daylong retreat, we will explore qualities of attention that refine our mindfulness practice and provide the ground for insight into the truth of the way things are. Inclining our minds towards a deeply restful, allowing attention opens us to joy and ease. Clear perception of moment-to-moment experience unclouds our attention. Letting go of a mistaken sense of ownership of passing experience deepens our understanding of the truth. These capacities of mind are available to all of us, and they are the seeds of awakening.”
For this week’s sharing, I’d like to pass along the link to a fascinating conversation between Joseph Goldstein and 10% Happier’s Dan Harris on “Karma and Past Life, Rebirth & Buddhism” (90 min.):
That’s all for now.… I look forward to to seeing everyone tomorrow evening, and thank you all for your continued presence and practice.
Greetings! The Tuesday night meditation group will meet tomorrow from 7:30pm to 9:30pm using the Zoom conferencing platform. I am scheduled to be this week’s facilitator. ** Please be sure to use the Zoom meeting link noted below. **
There are a couple of events coming up this week, starting on Saturday, May 3, with CIMC’s da-long in-person workshop “Freeing the Judging Mind, Opening to Inner Kindness,” with Madeline Klyne:
“Many of us are all too familiar with the inner critic and the suffering it causes. Its voices include shame, blame, criticism, comparison, and belittlement. The inner judge can taunt us on a daily basis, squeezing our hearts and undermining our well-being. It tells us a story that we are unworthy or inadequate, twisting and altering our relationship with ourselves, others, and with life.
“Our practice invites us to understand this inner critic and learn how to loosen its grip. Instead of fleeing from the painfulness of the judging mind, wanting it to just go away, we mindfully turn towards it, asking, “What can you teach me?” Listening gently, we investigate the truth. With understanding, we can open to inner kindness.
“In this workshop, we will explore the judgmental mind and our inner capacity for discernment and discriminating wisdom. We will learn skillful approaches that allow us to question the inner judge and begin to practice and nurture inner gentleness and tenderness. Getting to know how to release or free the judging mind we open to a heart of kindness and compassion.”
Also getting started this Saturday is the week-long IMS Online retreat “Breaking the Spell of Time,” with Rodney Smith and Narayan Helen Liebenson:
“The spiritual path is directed toward the discovery of and abidance within the fundamental essence of reality, but what are the qualities of this irreducible nature? It is still, motionless, inclusive, and limitless – a universe devoid of time. However, when we look around, we see everything in motion and time-bound, and we see ourselves moving inexorably toward aging and death. How do those two opposite perspectives reconcile? If the destination of the spiritual journey is to abide in the timeless, but we find ourselves bound within time, what is our way forward? The path is to explore what time is, how it is conceptually conceived, and how time and the sense-of-self co-dependently arise. Through those and other forms of inquiry, we discover the stillness that holds all time and motion, yet is beyond both. We then live within the paradox of motion while abiding within that stillness.
“Since this retreat is intended to call into question the conventual way we assume reality to be, we are requesting the prerequisites for this course be 10 years of practice in Insight, Zen, or Chan Meditation including extensive retreat experience.
“The important questions we would ask perspective retreatants are, does this topic invite your curiosity? Are you pulled to uncover the timeless and release the conceptual myths of time? A healthy curiosity grounded in mental stability is indispensable for dismantling consensus reality. We encourage the participant to fully engage the entire retreat.”
For this week’s sharing, I’d like to pass along the link to the 2021 Insight Journal article “Friendship, the Whole of Life Well-lived,” by Jan Surrey and Charles Hallisey:
Greetings! The Tuesday night meditation group will meet tomorrow from 7:30pm to 9:30pm using the Zoom conferencing platform. Dave is scheduled to be this week’s facilitator. ** Please be sure to use the Zoom meeting link noted below. **
Coming up this Saturday, April 27, CIMC’s Narayan Helen Liebenson will offer a hybrid day-long retreat on “The Practice of Relationship as the Path”:
“We can easily see the path of a practitioner as a solo path, each of us individually engaged in the contemplative practices taught by the Buddha. Although these practices are invaluable, we must get up from our cushions on a regular basis and join the world in the most ordinary of ways. When we do, we are in immediate contact with one another in the forms of family, intimate connections, friends, work relationships and people we don’t know. We cannot avoid being in relationship.
“As we know, relationships with others are the source of intense joy and satisfaction as well as great pain and irritability. In either case, we can take relationships as practice and learn from our encounters. We can make relationships into another opportunity for practice, thus awakening into greater wisdom and compassion.
“Some of the themes we will engage in are: Learning how to be present within ourselves while responsive to others; respecting our own needs while respecting the needs of those we are with; and understanding our interconnectedness more deeply.”
For this week’s sharing, I’d like to pass along the link to the Sean Oakes practice guide on “The Seven Factors of Awakening” that Kent brought to the group last week:
Greetings! The Tuesday night meditation group will meet tomorrow from 7:30pm to 9:30pm using the Zoom conferencing platform. Kent is scheduled to be this week’s facilitator. ** Please be sure to use the Zoom meeting link noted below. **
Also taking place on Saturday morning, from 10:30am to 1:00pm NSIMC’s Matthew Daniell will be at Inner Arts New England in Salisbury for “Open Awareness: The Subtle Art of Being Present”:
“In basic mindfulness practice, we can touch some calm through paying attention to our breath and body sensations. The benefits include not getting caught up so much in difficult emotions and thoughts. We often attribute these positive effects to, say, the breath or other objects of mindfulness, and fail to recognize that real transformation comes from the awareness we discover through these practices, and not the practices themselves. In this workshop we will build a foundation of traditional mindfulness practices, and then move into a style of practice where open awareness itself becomes of primary importance. We explore how such an approach can expand the range of what we can hold wisely and kindly in our experience. Finally, we will explore the art of practicing in a way that best serves the quality of our present-moment awareness, whether it be more narrow or wide, in formal practice and in daily life. This workshop is appropriate for new and experienced meditators alike.”
Meanwhile from 10:00am to 5:00pm CIMC will offer a hybrid retreat on “Recognizing Natural Awareness” with Greg Scharf:
“Meditation can be seen as the process of learning to recognize and trust a natural quality of awareness that is available to all of us in any moment, no matter what is happening in our experience.
“This awareness allows us to open to and connect with the truth of each moment. As we gain confidence in the mind’s ability to recognize this natural awareness we begin to release the burden of trying to control, manipulate, or fix experience so that it meets our ideas of the way it should be, and relax into the truth of the way it actually is.
“Clear seeing and wisdom arise naturally and we see directly for ourselves what leads to well-being and freedom and what leads to suffering, both in our own life and in the world around us. Through this process we begin to live our lives from a place of greater balance, integrity, confidence, and connection.”
Greetings! The Tuesday night meditation group will meet tomorrow from 7:30pm to 9:30pm using the Zoom conferencing platform. Judi is scheduled to be this week’s facilitator. ** Please be sure to use the Zoom meeting link noted below. **
There are a few online events coming up this week, beginning on the evening of Wednesday, April 10, with the third of Sharon Salzberg’s “Fireside Chat” series:
Sharon writes, “During the third session of this series, I will be having a conversation with Tuere Sala. I want to bring alive the feeling we got to create on that stage … inviting Tuere — and more friends in the future — to look at our dharma influences, our meditation experiences, issues of contemporary life, and how we deal with them.”
On Saturday, April 13, Sharon will team up with Atman Smith, Ali Smith, and Andres Gonzalez of the Holistic Life Foundation (HLF) to offer an afternoon program “exploring the depths, capacity, and meaning of love”:
“Love is the most powerful force in the universe. Love is cohesive and attracting, and is not bound by space or time. Learn to get in touch with and share the infinite love inside of you with meditation, yoga, and additional contemplative practices.
“In a world where division and polarization prevail, can love be known not as giving in, but as transformative? If conventionally, love is seen as weakness, can we come to understand it as a powerful force in seeking change?
“How do we find balance in love amidst all of our relationships? How do we love in a way where we feel that we are not being taken advantage of? How do we know when to be compassionate and when tough love is needed? How do we love from our higher selves? How do we unconditionally love ourselves?”
Then on Sunday, April 14, IMS’s Jeanne Corrigal will offer the day-long virtual retreat “Climate Crisis: Engaging from Refuge”:
“In the midst of the unfolding catastrophe, this daylong retreat will invite us into a ceremony of love, grief, and connection. Meditation, ritual, and relational practice will support us in turning together to both our gratitude and pain, with intentions to cultivate resilience and capacity for engagement.”
For this week’s sharing, at Vas B’s suggestion, I’d like to pass along the link to a recent Thanissaro Bhikkhu talk on the “Clinging Aggregates” (18 min.):
That’s all for now.… I look forward to to seeing everyone tomorrow evening, and thank you all for your continued presence and practice.
Greetings! The Tuesday night meditation group will meet tomorrow from 7:30pm to 9:30pm using the Zoom conferencing platform. I am scheduled to be this week’s facilitator. ** Please be sure to use the Zoom meeting link noted below. **
There are a few events coming up this week, beginning on Saturday, April 6.
There are 2 day-long in-person retreats happening “locally” on Saturday, the first being “The Way Things Are — Insight and Equanimity” with Chris Crotty at the Center for Mindfulness and Insight Meditation in Wenham:
“As meditators we gradually increase our ability to meet life with less resistance helping us to see more clearly the ‘truth’, the way things really are. Equanimity, upekkha (Pali) is both a mind state and a skill to be developed, supporting the mind in remaining stable and balanced when faced with both pleasant and unpleasant experiences. In this half or full-day insight meditation retreat CfMIM guiding teacher Chris Crotty will include equanimity teachings as a supportive practice for the development of insight (vipassana) meditation.”
The second of Saturday’s day-long retreats, “Impermanence and the Myth of Control,” will take place at CIMC under the guidance of Chas DiCapua:
“Human beings have been so successful at manipulating the outer world that we tend to think we have more control over our lives, and the world in general, than we actually do. Even if we might acknowledge the limits of our control intellectually, a close examination of how we feel, and act may reveal that we spend a considerable amount of our precious time trying to control what is outside our control.
“We often bring this mistaken belief into our formal meditation practice in one way or another. This creates a dissonant and stressful experience because, in fact, we have very little control over what arises, inwardly or outwardly, in the present moment.
“During our time together, we will explore where it is we tend to try and control in our formal practice and how this tendency can be worked with and let go of. Entering into the flow of life we come to enjoy the experience of allowing things to be just as they are.”
Also taking place on Saturday is Spirit Rock’s hybrid program “Not-Self: Not Taking Ourselves Personally,” with Ajahn Karunadhammo from Abhayagiri Monastery:
“Liberation won’t be found in trying to create the perfect personality, because it isn’t the personality that realizes liberation. Using the Buddha’s teachings on Not-Self as a contemplative strategy, rather than a doctrine to believe in, is a way to freedom in the heart/mind.
“This daylong will explore various teachings on Not-Self and how to bring them into present moment experience. The day will include periods of sitting and walking meditation, as well as Dharma reflections and time for Q&A.”
Then on Sunday, April 7, CIMC will host a “Virtual Open House” from 3:00pm to 5:00pm (ET):
“The Virtual Open House will be a time to chat with CIMC staff and community members. It is an opportunity to learn about the CIMC community, practicing at the Center, and the affinity groups and programs we offer.
“The event will begin with a full group introduction to CIMC and our programs from staff members. Then, there will be an opportunity to ask questions, hear from community members, and form connections in break-out groups. Each break-out group will have a CIMC facilitator who will guide the group with prompts.”
And finally on Sunday evening Scott Barry Kaufman will join Sharon Salzberg for an online conversation on “The Journey from Isolation to Openness & Freedom”:
“No one is immune to the different seasons of life. Yet we are often ill-prepared to navigate these natural ups and downs without undue pain and suffering. In her twelfth book, Real Life, New York Times bestselling author Sharon Salzberg contemplates the skills needed to traverse the larger cycles of life, drawing from over 40 years of experience in the Buddhist tradition. Join Sharon and conversation partner, Scott Barry Kaufman, to talk about the themes from the book. Applying contemplative tools, we can learn to live more fearlessly―moving from constriction and isolation to a more spacious place of possibility, creativity, connection, and joy. Embark on the journey to embody a life of curiosity, authenticity, and freedom.”
For this week’s sharing, I’d like to pass along the link to “Monastery: A Buddhist Meditation Community in Australia” a new — and exquisitely produced — documentary about the Buddha Bodhivana Monastery (95 min.):
That’s all for now.… I look forward to to seeing everyone tomorrow evening, and thank you all for your continued presence and practice.
Greetings! The Tuesday night meditation group will meet tomorrow from 7:30pm to 9:30pm using the Zoom conferencing platform. Judi is scheduled to be this week’s facilitator. ** Please be sure to use the Zoom meeting link noted below. **
There are a couple of online events coming up this week, beginning Wednesday, March 27, with IMS’s book club’s review of “The New Saints: From Broken Hearts to Spiritual Warriors” by Lama Rod Owens:
“Saints, spiritual warriors, bodhisattvas, tzaddikim―no matter how they are named in a given tradition, they all share a profound wish to free others from suffering. Saints are not unattainable beings of stained glass or carved stone. ‘Saints are ordinary and human, doing things any person can learn to do,’ teaches Lama Rod Owens. ‘Our era calls for saints who are from this time and place, speak the language of this moment, and integrate both social and spiritual liberation. I believe we all can and must become New Saints.’
“With The New Saints, Lama Rod shares a guidebook for becoming an effective agent of justice, peace, and change. Combining personal stories, traditional teachings, and instructions for contemplative and somatic practices, he shares inspiring resources for self-exploration and wise action. Each chapter reinforces the truth of our interdependency―allowing us to be of service to the collective well-being, access the unseen realms of divine guidance and strength, and call on the support of the countless beings who share our struggles and hopes.”
Then on Thursday, March 28, IMS’s Devon Hase will lead the first half of a 2-part exploration of “How to Be A Lay Practitioner”:
“Speaking to a lay disciple in the Mahanama Sutta, the Buddha suggests six reflections and five qualities that a non-monastic person can cultivate from home.
“Throughout the Sutta series, we will explore narratives about and discourses by the Buddha, which have been passed down for over 2,500 years, and directly apply them to practice in our modern lives.”
On Saturday, March 30, Spirit Rock’s Amana Brembry Johnson will offer a day-long online workshop on “Feeding the Creative Fire Through Dharma Practice”:
“As we look outward into the world and inward to our own hearts, it becomes apparent that many of us are living in the infancy of our species’ human potential to dream of a world free from suffering. Yet within us all is the living kernel of possibility to imagine and awaken to this new dream. Our world needs fresh eyes, brightened by the innate goodness that resides within us. During this day we will practice silent and guided meditation. Through visual imagery inspired from nature, Dharma talks, wisdom sharing, and journaling, we will nourish our capacity to rewire conditioned perspectives that smother the fire of imagination.”
Then on Sunday, March 31, Tina Rasmussen will offer a daylong online retreat on “Meditation to Develop Concentration and Serenity for a Chaotic World”:
“In concentration and serenity meditation (samatha), we return awareness to one object of meditation to the exclusion of everything else, unifying the mind stream. This process of purifying the mind reveals with heightened clarity the habitual patterns that cause us to suffer. Throughout this practice, a laser-like awareness can develop, potentially leading to profound peace, stillness, joy, as well as the meditative absorptions known as jhānas. Topics we will cover throughout this daylong include: the practice path; the relationship between samatha and vipassanā; and working with striving and hindrances.”
For this week’s sharing, I’d like to pass along the link to the latest video from Christina Feldman’s London Insight Meditation series on the brahmaviharas:
“Practicing Equanimity (Upekkha)” (21 min.):
That’s all for now.… I look forward to to seeing everyone tomorrow evening, and thank you all for your continued presence and practice.
Greetings! The Tuesday night meditation group will meet tomorrow from 7:30pm to 9:30pm using the Zoom conferencing platform. Kent is scheduled to be this week’s facilitator. ** Please be sure to use the Zoom meeting link noted below. **
There are a couple of events coming up this week, beginning Wednesday, March 20, with IMS Online’s evening “Fireside Chat” between Sharon Salzberg and Kamala Masters:
Sharon writes, “Several years ago I sat on a stage with one of my colleagues, Sylvia Boorstein, to have a conversation. Some of the topics we had decided beforehand, many were spontaneous. Even though we were on a stage in front of a crowd, we wanted the atmosphere to be intimate, as though someone was listening in as we were chatting over lunch. The first question Sylvia asked me, totally unexpected, was ‘What do you think of as the most important thing a teacher has ever said to you?’ Because I hadn’t expected it, my unprepared response emerged from deep within, ‘I’d say it was when my teacher Dipa Ma told me to teach meditation. It formed the foundation of the rest of my life.’
“During the second session of this series, I will be having a conversation with Kamala Masters. I want to bring alive the feeling we got to create on that stage … inviting Kamala — and more friends in the future — to look at our dharma influences, our meditation experiences, issues of contemporary life, and how we deal with them.”
The free 5-day Lion’s Roar “Women of Wisdom” online summit gets underway on Thursday, March 21, with a keynote presentation by Trudy Goodman.
“Discover the transformative power of wisdom, resilience, and community at The Women of Wisdom Summit, a groundbreaking online event celebrating the strength and wisdom of women past and present. Over 5 days, immerse yourself in insightful talks, powerful guided practices, and live sessions led by empowered women leaders and visionaries.
“Discover new practices for deep healing, awaken the enlightened feminine within, integrate mindful practices into daily life, and foster kind and strong communities.
“Each session offers insights and practical tools for personal growth and empowerment, for harmonizing body and mind, and for embarking on a path toward collective liberation.
“Join us for this monumental gathering where you’ll be inspired, uplifted, and connected with a global community of women on the path to deeper well-being, fulfillment, and awakening.”
On Saturday, March 23, NSIMC’s Matthew Daniell will be at Inner Arts New England in Salisbury to offer the morning retreat “The Art of Learning to Suffer Well”:
“Suffering, like happiness, is a part of life. The Buddha pointed out that blindly trying to avoid this fact, or to run away from it, is counterproductive. In this retreat we will explore for ourselves how to approach suffering as a natural part of the fullness of being alive. Buddhist awareness and compassion practices can help to accept, embrace, and transform suffering in our lives and in the world. Come and explore for yourself how these practices can not only help us to find some calm and renewal but also provide the foundation and tools to learn how to suffer well, and to experience joy and happiness well too. It all rests in how we are relating to this very moment, here and now, whatever it brings. New and experienced students alike are welcome to attend.”
Also starting on Saturday is CIMC’s weekend hybrid retreat on “Boundless Benevolence” with Narayan Helen Liebenson:
“The Pali word metta is translated as lovingkindness or boundless friendliness. It is a sincere and heartfelt wish for the peace and happiness of ourselves and others. Metta is not a feeling; rather it is an intention that can be practiced and sustained. Each of us has the inherent capacity to strengthen this quality in our own hearts and minds. Through practice, it becomes our dwelling place where we feel ‘at home’, not merely a place we visit on occasion. In cultivating metta, we directly experience a fundamental kindness as the very ground of our being.
“The Buddha taught metta as a specific antidote to fear and anger. It is an invaluable practice in the midst of unexpected changes in life. In times of uncertainty and pain, metta practice helps us to work with habitual patterns such as anxiety and doubt. The fruit of the systematic practice of metta is twofold: steadiness and tranquility which strengthen the mind, and sensitivity and openness which soften the heart.
“This program is an opportunity to explore the theory and definition of metta and to immerse ourselves in an extended engagement with the practice itself. On Saturday, we will practice with ourselves in the morning and with benefactors and ancestors in the afternoon. Sunday morning, we will turn our attention to difficult people, and on Sunday afternoon, to all.”
And finally on Sunday, March 24, Spirit Rock’s Howard Cohn will offer an online afternoon retreat on “Calming the Restless Mind”:
“Everyone wants to be calm and peaceful. Much of our restlessness and agitation stem from an untrained, reactive mind and a lack of clear perception of what’s happening in our mind and body from moment to moment. During this retreat, we will train our hearts and minds to find a calm abiding in the present moment. To accomplish this, we will follow the Buddha’s instructions on the Foundations of Mindfulness—being attentive and sensitive to our bodies and learning to welcome pleasant and unpleasant experiences without clinging or resistance. Together, we will develop the skill of recognizing and relating wisely to moods, emotions, thoughts, and images and not getting so carried away by them.”
For this week’s sharing, I’d like to pass along the links to two more videos from Christina Feldman’s London Insight Meditation series on the brahmaviharas:
Greetings! The Tuesday night meditation group will meet tomorrow from 7:30pm to 9:30pm using the Zoom conferencing platform. Dave is scheduled to be this week’s facilitator. ** Please be sure to use the Zoom meeting link noted below. **
There are a couple of events coming up this Saturday, March 9.
On Saturday morning NSIMC’s Ted Jones will lead “A Morning of Insight Meditation” from 10:30am to 1:00pm ET at Inner Arts New England in Salisbury:
“The science of meditation is by now well established, confirming health benefits that include stress reduction, relaxation, and a calmer mind. Beyond these is a gift with even greater potential: the ability for live a more fulfilling life, with less mental distraction, more present-moment awareness, and a greater appreciation for the interconnectedness of all aspects of our world. This morning retreat is designed as both an introduction to Insight meditation for newcomers and as a ‘beginner’s mind’ refresher course for experienced meditators. It will include the silent practice of both sitting and walking meditation, as well as time for questions and discussion. This program will be offered every month or two as a support for the ongoing meditation practice of returning students.”
Then on Saturday afternoon (1:00pm to 5:30pm ET) Spirit Rock’s Dawn Mauricio will offer the online retreat “Mindfulness with Breathing: Doorway to Wisdom”:
“How often do you remember the preciousness of your breath? From the first inhale at birth to the last exhale at death, the breath is our constant companion, and serves as many peoples’ introduction to meditation practice. Simultaneously, as the Ānāpānasti sutta teaches us, it is also the doorway to the depths of Dhamma.
“This daylong retreat will use the Ānāpānasti sutta as a roadmap to steadying the heart and mind, pointing us to freedom. We will explore this foundational teaching through guided meditations, talks, and questions and responses. All levels welcome.”
And finally CIMC’s Narayan Helen Liebenson will offer a daylong (10:00am to 5:00pm ET) hybrid retreat “Releasing Grief, Engaging Compassion”:
“Grief and all of the expressions of grief – sorrow, despair, anguish, distress, etc. – is a natural reaction to loss. Although, because of the law of impermanence, loss is inevitable in the lives of us all, we can relate to our reactions to loss in ways that ease and liberate. We do so by understanding how the teachings of the Buddha and the path of practice can ease our pain and offer a pathway to a deeper understanding of suffering and its release.
“There are four skillful ways to release grief: the practice of non-dwelling, the practice of letting go of ‘me’ and ‘mine’, gratitude practice, and the practice of going into the heart of the pain and experiencing it as it is. Approaching each of these practices from the perspective of compassion –caring for the heart – enlarges our capacity to release the weight of grief that has come from loss, whether current, recent, or long past.”
For this week’s sharing, I’d like to pass along the links to the first three videos from Christina Feldman’s London Insight Meditation series on the brahmaviharas:
“An Introduction to the Brahmaviharas” (8 min.):
“Cultivating the Brahmavihara Qualities in Our Life” (24 min):
“Metta As A Quality of Befriending” (22 min.):
That’s all for now.… I look forward to to seeing everyone tomorrow evening, and thank you all for your continued presence and practice.
Greetings! The Tuesday night meditation group will meet tomorrow from 7:30pm to 9:30pm using the Zoom conferencing platform. Judi is scheduled to be this week’s facilitator. ** Please be sure to use the Zoom meeting link noted below. **
There are a couple of events coming up this week, beginning on Saturday, March 2, with IMS’s online daylong mini retreat “How Dharma Practice is and is Not a Psychotherapy,” with Matthew Brensilver:
“In what ways does dharma practice function as a kind of ‘self-psychotherapy’? In what ways is dharma entirely unlike psychotherapy? During our day together, we’ll explore how the dharma path overlaps with the healing we might find in psychotherapy: it supports self-understanding, uncovers behavioral patterns and transforms how we relate to our past. Unlike traditional psychotherapy, dharma practice relies on states of concentration, letting go, and surrender that point to cultivations beyond typical psychotherapeutic aims.”
Then on Sunday, March 3, Sharon Salzberg will lead the virtual “Sunday Morning Sit” at NYC’s Community Meditaton Center:
“Join Sharon at the Community Meditation Center on the UWS of Manhattan for their Sunday morning virtual class. The Community Meditation Center exists for all who would seek a more joyful and meaningful life. Through the exploration and practice of Buddhist teachings we seek to develop greater mindfulness, compassion, wisdom, and lovingkindness. By gathering together in community we support one another in our efforts to alleviate suffering and distress in ourselves and in the world.”
There is also still time to register for the Center for Mindfulness and Insight Meditation’s upcoming Winter residential retreat, “Wisdom Pure and Simple,” March 7 through March 11 with Chris Crotty:
“Historically retreat has been a cherished and sought after occasion for meditators. For thousands of years nuns and monks have looked forward to annual retreat for its simplicity, the opportunity to put aside everything but the transformative acts of sitting and walking meditation. Today retreat remains one of the most supportive forms of practice, a vital call to action to any meditator to stop and slow down, pause the duties and burdens of daily life, in exchange for the opportunity to see oneself, one’s life, and the whole of the dhamma through fresh eyes. On retreat we pare our activities down to only what is most conducive to seeing clearly and waking up in order that we can live our whole lives more free.”
Kalyana Mitta Sangha 
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