Silent Meditation

Current meeting time(s): Monday through Friday at 8AM, 8:30AM, 12PM, and 12:30PM

Class description:

8AM: Monday through Friday start your day with a silent meditation. There will be two silent meditations sessions. The first one is at 8AM - 8:25AM and the second one is at 8:30AM - 8:55AM. This meditation is great for people with any level of meditation experience. This meditation has no guidance or instruction, it is simply an opportunity to sit quietly with others. Please enter the main hall when you arrive and have a seat anywhere you prefer.

12PM: Monday through Friday from 12PM-1PM join us for a silent meditation. There will be two silent meditations sessions. The first one is at 12PM - 12:25PM and the second one is at 12:30PM - 12:55PM. This meditation is great for people with any level of meditation experience. This meditation has no guidance or instruction, it is simply an opportunity to sit quietly with others. Please enter the main hall when you arrive and have a seat anywhere you prefer.

Zen Buddhism & Meditation

Current meeting time(s): Monday at 7PM (In person AND virtual)

• Join via YouTube Livestream: Click Here

Class description:

Every Monday night we gather in-person as a community to meditate in silence then listen to a brief talk on Zen teachings. There is time for questions and discussion and we close with a transfer of merit. We explore how to apply Zen in our everyday activities and cultivate our awakened mind in modern daily life. We study how to transform our suffering and see the world with a compassionate heart, while realizing the true oneness of one’s life.

The Sixth Ancestor Hui-Neng (638-718), described seated zazen as follows: Externally, to be free of all hindrances and undisturbed in mind regarding any circumstances whether good or bad is called “sitting” (za); internally, to contemplate the immutability of your own Original Nature is called “meditation” (zen). 

“The idea of Zen is to catch life as it flows. There is nothing extraordinary or mysterious about Zen. I raise my hand; I take a book from the other side of the desk; I hear the children playing ball outside my window; I see the clouds blown away beyond the neighboring wood: — in all these I am practicing Zen, I am living Zen. No wordy discussions are necessary, nor any explanation. I do not know why — and there is no need of explaining, but when the sun rises the whole world dances with joy and everybody’s heart is filled with bliss. If Zen is at all conceivable, it must be taken hold of here.”- D.T. Suzuki

Awakening Joy in the Midst of Suffering

Current meeting time(s): Wednesday at 7PM (In person AND virtual), Dates: February 28 - May 1

• Join via YouTube Livestream: Click Here

Class description:

Led by Bettina Heitmann, this 10-week course is based on the Buddha’s teaching on cultivating joy. You may drop in any time during the 10 weeks, it is free and open to all:

1. Developing and increasing wholesome or healthy states of mind—states that lead to genuine happiness. 
2. Noticing the feeling of gladness that accompanies wholesome states. Being present for the uplifting feeling of well-being that accompanies these states
3. Inclining the mind towards joy and well-being. Over time practicing in this way becomes a habit in the mind. 

Joy is an essential aspect of Buddhist practice. It is one of the 7 Factors of Awakening, one of the 4 Brahma Viharas (the heart practices that cultivate loving kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity); it relates to the Third Noble Truth (the end of suffering and the experience of lasting joy and happiness). Joy is also an aspect of the Noble Eightfold Path (The path factor of Right Effort, which includes abandoning unwholesome states of mind and cultivating positive mind states of joy).

Inclining the mind towards joy and well-being gives us the strength to endure these challenging times, when we are witnessing so many conflicts, wars, violence, injustice and hardship in the world. Life in general just seems to become more and more challenging and stressful for all of us. It is really important to balance feelings of hopelessness, grief and despair with feelings of joy, gratitude and well-being. 

When we have doubts about our right to joy in the midst of what can feel like a tsunami of suffering, it helps to know that joy has actually been a tool of survival for so many people who have faced the darkest of times. The Dalai Lama, who was forced into exile and saw his country devastated by hostile forces, and Desmond Tutu, who lived through the darkest years of apartheid in South Africa, wrote a book together called The Book of Joy.  And if you see a video of the two men together, they are not just joyful, they are really playful.  It’s a joy to see them. May they be an inspiration to all of us!

Dharma Bum Basics & Meditation

Current meeting time(s): Thursday at 7PM

Class description:

Dharma Bum Basics and Meditation is a one hour long discussion based class. The first 15 minutes consists of a guided meditation followed by a group discussion about a specific Buddhist subject, typically one of the foundational principles. Seated in one large discussion circle, practitioners have the opportunity to discuss, reflect, apply teachings to their experiences, and share their personal experiences and thoughts on the subject with the group. All are welcome.

Intro to Buddhism & Meditation

Current meeting time(s): Tuesday at 7PM & Saturday at 11AM (In person AND virtual)

• Join via YouTube Livestream: Click Here

Class description:

Join us in-person at the Dharma Bum Temple every Tuesday at 7PM and Saturday at 11AM for a meditation followed by a discussion based on the Four Noble Truths, Eightfold Path, and Six Paramitas. We will also cover basic Buddhist concepts such as Five Precepts, Dependent Origination, Karma and the Bodhisattva Path. There is typically time allotted for a Q&A on Buddhist principles and how they apply to real-world scenarios.

The Heart of Buddhist Practice

Current meeting time: Sunday at 1PM (In person Only)

Class description:

Join us every Sunday at 1pm for a meditation, Dharma Talk and discussion based on various Buddhist topics. Using core Buddhist teachings, learn how to integrate these practices into your daily life. When one explores the heart of Buddhist practice, one begins to find a path to less suffering.

Buddhism may seem complicated at times. So many different cultures, lineages, traditions, languages, rituals, etc. One can often get lost and confused when they begin to explore Buddhism. Ultimately, learning to be kind to yourself and those you encounter is the heart of Buddhist practice. This weekly class will help you learn how to implement some of the basic Buddhist teachings into your life. To learn about Buddhism is one thing, to learn about yourself is another. To learn how to utilize the teachings to make changes in your life is ultimately the heart of this practice.

This class will help motivate and inspire you to make meditation and Buddhist practice a priority. If you just meditate once in a while or learn about Buddhism once in a while, then you may only make changes in your life once in a while. Life passes quickly, let us learn together how to be happy now and suffer less now. No need to wait, let us begin.

You can also join via YouTube Livestream: Click Here 
 

Recovery Sangha

We are happy to host a number of Buddhist Recovery groups to support those who want to integrate Buddhist teachings and practices into a program of recovery. We encourage the use of mindfulness and meditation and are grounded in Buddhist principles of non-harming, compassion & interdependence. Our groups are open to all people who suffer from any addiction or compulsive behavior and are looking for a comprehensive, transformative path to end their suffering. We are open to people of all backgrounds and recovery paths, including but not limited to all 12-Step programs. You need not be Buddhist nor in a 12 Step fellowship to participate and benefit.

We offer the following classes:

1. Recovery Dharma
2. Sunday Recovery Sangha: Buddhist Step Study
3. Eightfold Path Recovery Group
4. 12-Step Zen

To see more in-depth descriptions, dates, and times of our Recovery Sangha meetings: Click Here