The Joy that Leads to Enlightenment Exploring 6 Recollections Taught by the Buddha. A guest lecture by Ayya Santussika Tuesday September 3rd, 2019 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm Ayya Santussika was a computer engineer and mother of two before becoming a Theravada Buddhist nun. She began teaching meditation in 1999 and entered monastic life in 2005, [...]
Listening as Spiritual Practice A guest lecture by Daniel Bowling Tuesday September 10th, 2019 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm Daniel Bowling is a staff attorney, mediator, and trainer for the Alternative Dispute Resolution Program, US District Court for Northern California. He practiced law and was Public Defender in Charleston, SC following his graduation from Harvard Law [...]
Practicing with Physical Pain How mindfulness works to helps alleviate suffering associated with chronic pain. A guest lecture by Aishin Leonard Tuesday September 17th, 2019 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm Aishin Leonard is a passionate Buddhist practitioner, mindfulness facilitator and consultant. Her doorway to practice opened in 2009 when she developed a chronic pain condition [...]
Tonight's special guest speaker is Thanissaro Bhikkhu. Topic: Right View Comes First Insight Meditation South Bay offers two weekly meditation groups—Tuesdays evenings we offer an open drop-in sitting group in Mountain View, and Thursdays we offer structured courses in Saratoga. The Tuesday sitting group meets every Tuesday evening for a meditation and Dhamma talk in [...]
Topic: Devotion with Ying Chen The word "devotion" can evoke a wide range of reactions in people's mind. On the Buddha dhamma path, devotion is one of the key qualities to be cultivated. Devotion can evoke multi-dimensional heart, mind, and embodied qualities that are supportive on the path. In this talk, Ying will explore these [...]
Tonight's guest speaker is Jon Joseph. Topic: The Great Koan No: An Invitation to Establish Intimacy With Our World Koans are ancient accounts of exchanges between teachers, students and their surroundings, which have some mysterious power to provide us with an invitation for freedom and transformation. In the Zen tradition, the most fundamental of the [...]
A day of Mindfulness Meditation, Qi Gong, and Crystal Singing Bowls with Shaila Catherine and Tom Leichardt This day-long program will include sitting and walking meditations, guided Qi Gong sessions, and sound healing meditations with crystal singing bowls. By combining these meditative practices we will balance our energy through movement and meditation, and enhance relaxed, clear awareness. Medical Qigong [...]
Power of Patience with Dawn Scott Patience, one of the Ten Paramis (Perfections) has the potential to imbue our daily lives with meaning. It also is the steadying force that propels us along the path of liberation. In this evening will explore the power of patience to free us from reactivity so that we can [...]
Buddha’s Core Teaching A 5-week speaker series exploring the Four Noble Truths. January 7 – February 4, 2020 Finding true happiness. No one wants to suffer, and yet stress is everywhere in our lives. After the Buddha awakened under the Bodhi Tree, the first thing he talked about was how to find true happiness. He [...]
Buddha’s Core Teaching A 5-week speaker series exploring the Four Noble Truths. January 7 – February 4, 2020 Finding true happiness. No one wants to suffer, and yet stress is everywhere in our lives. After the Buddha awakened under the Bodhi Tree, the first thing he talked about was how to find true happiness. He [...]
Buddha’s Core Teaching A 5-week speaker series exploring the Four Noble Truths. January 7 – February 4, 2020 Finding true happiness. No one wants to suffer, and yet stress is everywhere in our lives. After the Buddha awakened under the Bodhi Tree, the first thing he talked about was how to find true happiness. He [...]
Buddha’s Core Teaching A 5-week speaker series exploring the Four Noble Truths. January 7 – February 4, 2020 Finding true happiness. No one wants to suffer, and yet stress is everywhere in our lives. After the Buddha awakened under the Bodhi Tree, the first thing he talked about was how to find true happiness. He [...]
Buddha’s Core Teaching A 5-week speaker series exploring the Four Noble Truths. January 7 – February 4, 2020 Finding true happiness. No one wants to suffer, and yet stress is everywhere in our lives. After the Buddha awakened under the Bodhi Tree, the first thing he talked about was how to find true happiness. He [...]
Seven Factors of Awakening With Shaila Catherine, Kim Allen, and Maria Straatmann For the mind that values freedom. February 11 – March 31, 2020 Seven qualities offer an effective framework for cultivating the mind, overcoming the hindrances, and balancing the energetic and calming forces that develop through meditation. When these seven factors are well developed, [...]
Seven Factors of Awakening With Shaila Catherine, Kim Allen, and Maria Straatmann For the mind that values freedom. February 11 – March 31, 2020 Seven qualities offer an effective framework for cultivating the mind, overcoming the hindrances, and balancing the energetic and calming forces that develop through meditation. When these seven factors are well developed, [...]
Seven Factors of Awakening With Shaila Catherine, Kim Allen, and Maria Straatmann For the mind that values freedom. February 11 – March 31, 2020 Seven qualities offer an effective framework for cultivating the mind, overcoming the hindrances, and balancing the energetic and calming forces that develop through meditation. When these seven factors are well developed, [...]
Seven Factors of Awakening With Shaila Catherine, Kim Allen, and Maria Straatmann For the mind that values freedom. February 11 – March 31, 2020 Seven qualities offer an effective framework for cultivating the mind, overcoming the hindrances, and balancing the energetic and calming forces that develop through meditation. When these seven factors are well developed, [...]
The remaining Tuesdays in March are cancelled. We will resume our programs as soon as possible. Please check this website for updates. Seven Factors of Awakening With Shaila Catherine, Kim Allen, and Maria Straatmann For the mind that values freedom. February 11 – March 31, 2020 Seven qualities offer an effective framework for cultivating the [...]
The remaining Tuesdays in March are cancelled. We will resume our programs as soon as possible. Please check this website for updates. Seven Factors of Awakening With Shaila Catherine, Kim Allen, and Maria Straatmann For the mind that values freedom. February 11 – March 31, 2020 Seven qualities offer an effective framework for cultivating the [...]
The remaining Tuesdays in March are cancelled. We will resume our programs as soon as possible. Please check this website for updates. Seven Factors of Awakening With Shaila Catherine, Kim Allen, and Maria Straatmann For the mind that values freedom. February 11 – March 31, 2020 Seven qualities offer an effective framework for cultivating the [...]
Tuesday Online: Nurturing Wisdom With Dawn Neal May 19, 2020 The arising of wisdom is both a condition for and result of balanced, mature, factors of awakening. In this talk, we will explore ways of recognizing and nurturing expressions of wisdom in practice and life. Please join us on Zoom. This event is appropriate for newcomers [...]
Tuesday Online: Shaila Catherine – Let's Sit, Walk, and Meditate Together! An evening of guided meditation practice. With Shaila Catherine May 26, 2020 This event is appropriate for newcomers as well as experienced practitioners. The evening includes silent or guided meditation and teachings. Takes place on Zoom! Join the Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/j/97868581936 Meeting ID: 978 [...]
Ayya Anandabodhi and Matty Weingast will be reading from The First Free Women: Poems of the Early Buddhist Nuns. The evening will begin with a brief reading and guided meditation. Then there will be a period of open discussion interspersed with more readings and Q&A. We invite you to come and hear these poems, inspired [...]
Tuesday Online: Shaila Catherine Theme: Mindfulness Protects Oneself and Others With Shaila Catherine June 9, 2020 Tonight's talk will explore a teaching found in the Samyutta Nikaya, SN 47:19 that illuminates mindfulness practice through the simile of an acrobatic team. Please have the discourse handy during the Zoom meeting. A free download is available here. This [...]
Tuesday Online: On the Wings of the Dharma With Toni Bernhard and Tony Bernhard June 16, 2020 Skillfully navigating our world today will take as much wisdom and compassion as we can bring to our experience. We will explore how these two wings of the dharma can ease our way and the way of others as [...]
Tuesday Online: Training in Opposites With Kim Allen June 23, 2020 The developed mind is flexible and responsive, able to adapt to changing conditions in a wise way. This quality can come about through many different styles of training; this talk focuses on one that could be called “training in opposites.” We deliberately engage contrasting [...]
Tuesday Online: Cultivating Patience With Shaila Catherine June 30, 2020 Shaila Catherine will discuss the importance of patience in our practice. This talk explores benefits, opportunities, and challenges that we experience when cultivating this often under appreciated virtue of patience. This event is appropriate for newcomers as well as experienced practitioners. The evening includes silent [...]
Tuesday Online:The Four Great Efforts With Melissa McKay July 7, 2020 The Buddha's path teaches wise use of energy in life. Wise meaning the energy that will lead to the greatest benefit for ourselves and others and the least amount of suffering. He taught the Four Great Efforts as practical tools and ways of practicing and [...]
Tuesday Online: Shaila Catherine: Wise Attention With Shaila Catherine July 14, 2020 Wise Attention is a mental state that affects both what we choose to attend to and how we attend to it. We cultivate attention that is purposeful and not happenstance. This event is appropriate for newcomers as well as experienced practitioners. The evening includes [...]
Tuesday Online: Healing the Heart: Reconciliation & Metta With Bob Stahl July 21, 2020 As our meditation practice matures, we may see the importance of relinquishing grudges, judgments and resentments through honest reconciliation. Through these practices we may discover the liberating experience of authentic reconciliation that may lead to greater peace and forgiveness. We will [...]
Tuesday Online: Shaila Catherine – Let's Sit, Walk, and Meditate Together! An evening of guided meditation practice. With Shaila Catherine July 28, 2020 This event is appropriate for newcomers as well as experienced practitioners. The evening includes silent or guided meditation and teachings. Takes place on Zoom! Join the Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88266320362?pwd=QWZpb2svQk9xZCtvWTZraXF5WTFKZz09 Meeting ID: 882 6632 [...]
From Scarcity to Generosity: An Exploration of the “Comparing-mind” From Economic and Buddhist Perspectives with special guest speaker, Kelli Schonher August 25, 2020 In this talk, we will compare and contrast economic and Buddhist teachings regarding concepts of prosperity, poverty, wealth, and generosity. Practical steps toward applying these ideas to our relationships with money and [...]
Tuesday Online: Receiving Unskillful Speech with Bridget Rolens September 1, 2020 The Buddha emphasized the importance of speaking wisely as part of the path to attaining liberation from suffering. He also emphasized the importance of being able to be on the receiving end of speech that is false, harmful, poorly timed and harsh, without reacting with [...]
Tuesday Online: Jennifer Dungan—Equanimity in the Face of Global Climate Change with Jennifer Dungan September 8, 2020 Equanimity (or upekkhā) is the fourth brahmavihārā and the tenth pāramī. What does equanimity look like when contemplating the rapid climate change we are experiencing in our lifetimes and for our descendents' lifetimes? Please join us on [...]
Tuesday Online: Hugh Danville—A Gentle Investigation into Fear and Our Practice with Hugh Danville September 15, 2020 Fear is ever present in our psyche. It is the emotion that protects us from the common dangers we face in everyday life; but it can also paralyze us. In our present day life we can find ourselves [...]
Tuesday Online: Kim Allen—Real Wealth with Kim Allen October 20, 2020 What kinds of wealth are most sustainable in times of loss? The Buddha defined five kinds of wealth that are especially appropriate for lay practitioners to develop: Confidence, ethical conduct, learning, generosity, and wisdom. The inclusion of “learning” is interesting and not often emphasized. [...]
Tuesday Online: Maria Straatmann—Confidence, Uncertainty and the Five Aggregates with Maria Straatmann October 27, 2020 In times of uncertainty we tend to reinforce those things that lend themselves to feeling safe and familiar, usually by reaffirming a sense of self that says, “This is right; this is who I am; this is how things should [...]
Tuesday Online Relevance of Renunciation for Practice Today A joint meditation group session bringing together practitioners from Insight Meditation South Bay and Show Me Dharma with Shaila Catherine and Philip Jones Tuesday, November 17, 2020 6:00 – 7:30 PM Pacific Time 8:00 – 9:30 PM Central Time Note that we have changed our usual meeting time to [...]
Registration is now closed. Emptiness in Buddhist Practice An 8-week course led by Shaila Catherine Mondays Online via Zoom December 7, 14, 21, January 4, 11, February 1, 8, 15 4:30 – 6:00 PM Pacific Time Since the County of Santa Clara has been moved into the Purple Tier (Tier One), we will no longer [...]
Emptiness in Buddhist Practice—Online An 8-week course led by Shaila Catherine Mondays Online via Zoom December 7, 14, 21, January 4, 11, February 1, 8, 15 4:30 – 6:00 PM Pacific Time Teachings on emptiness point directly to the liberating potential of the Buddhist path. Although this topic may sometimes seem obscure in the context [...]
Tuesday Online: A Householder's Vinaya An evening with Allan Cooper, author of A Householder's Vinaya December 8, 2020 Author Allan Cooper will speak on making lay life one's practice instead of trying to fit practice into lay life. About the book: The Householder’s Vinaya is an accessible step by step ‘how to’ manual for anyone wishing to create [...]
Emptiness in Buddhist Practice—Online An 8-week course led by Shaila Catherine Mondays Online via Zoom December 7, 14, 21, January 4, 11, February 1, 8, 15 4:30 – 6:00 PM Pacific Time Teachings on emptiness point directly to the liberating potential of the Buddhist path. Although this topic may sometimes seem obscure in the context [...]
Tuesday Online—Rodger Kamenetz—The Medicine in Dreams: Healing "Afflictive States of Mind" with Rodger Kamenetz December 15, 2020 This talk will address afflictive states of mind and how they present themselves in images in our dreams. In Natural Dreamwork we do not interpret dreams, we bring them to life. Instead of approaching dreams as riddles to [...]
Emptiness in Buddhist Practice—Online An 8-week course led by Shaila Catherine Mondays Online via Zoom December 7, 14, 21, January 4, 11, February 1, 8, 15 4:30 – 6:00 PM Pacific Time Teachings on emptiness point directly to the liberating potential of the Buddhist path. Although this topic may sometimes seem obscure in the context [...]
Emptiness in Buddhist Practice—Online An 8-week course led by Shaila Catherine Mondays Online via Zoom December 7, 14, 21, January 4, 11, February 1, 8, 15 4:30 – 6:00 PM Pacific Time Teachings on emptiness point directly to the liberating potential of the Buddhist path. Although this topic may sometimes seem obscure in the context [...]
Emptiness in Buddhist Practice—Online An 8-week course led by Shaila Catherine Mondays Online via Zoom December 7, 14, 21, January 4, 11, February 1, 8, 15 4:30 – 6:00 PM Pacific Time Teachings on emptiness point directly to the liberating potential of the Buddhist path. Although this topic may sometimes seem obscure in the context [...]
Tuesday Online—Kim Allen—Speech from the Heart an evening of meditation and teaching with Kim Allen January 19, 2021 From where does speech originate? How does our speech feed back to affect our own heart (in addition to other people)? These are worthy investigations in Buddhist practice. Speech ties back to the three unwholesome roots of [...]
Tuesday Online—When We Meet Suffering: Buddhist Insights from Encounters with Homelessness an evening with Cathy A. Small author of The Man in the Dog Park January 26, 2021 This talk looks at the intersection of practice and life, through the issue of homelessness. Based on her book, The Man in the Dog Park, co-authored with [...]
Emptiness in Buddhist Practice—Online An 8-week course led by Shaila Catherine Mondays Online via Zoom December 7, 14, 21, January 4, 11, February 1, 8, 15 4:30 – 6:00 PM Pacific Time Teachings on emptiness point directly to the liberating potential of the Buddhist path. Although this topic may sometimes seem obscure in the context [...]
Tuesday Online—Robin Boudette—Finding Freedom from Habitual Patterns an evening of meditation and teaching with Robin Boudette February 2, 2021 In the chaos of our everyday lives, we often run on auto-pilot finding ourselves caught in unhealthy habit patterns. In our attempts to help ourselves, we might watch too much news, plan for every possible situation, [...]
Emptiness in Buddhist Practice—Online An 8-week course led by Shaila Catherine Mondays Online via Zoom December 7, 14, 21, January 4, 11, February 1, 8, 15 4:30 – 6:00 PM Pacific Time Teachings on emptiness point directly to the liberating potential of the Buddhist path. Although this topic may sometimes seem obscure in the context [...]
Emptiness in Buddhist Practice—Online An 8-week course led by Shaila Catherine Mondays Online via Zoom December 7, 14, 21, January 4, 11, February 1, 8, 15 4:30 – 6:00 PM Pacific Time Teachings on emptiness point directly to the liberating potential of the Buddhist path. Although this topic may sometimes seem obscure in the context [...]
Tuesday Online—Ying Chen—Living a Dharma Life an evening of meditation and teaching with Ying Chen February 16, 2021 How does your dharma life look like? Does it look like a fixed schedule where you meditate at a fixed time each day, or does it look like some retreat vacation where you get a temporary recharge [...]
Tuesday Online—Dawn Scott—Biological Imperatives for Freedom an evening meditation and teaching with Dawn Scott March 2, 2021 At times, the aspirations of the biological imperative for freedom and the reactivity of the biological imperative to avoid pain can feel as if they are at cross-purposes. However, when we have an honest encounter with our reactivity [...]
Tuesday Online—Guy Armstrong—Deepening in Emptiness an evening with Guy Armstrong author of Emptiness: A Practical Guide for Meditators March 23, 2021 NOTE: This date has been changed! Emptiness has been one of the most important themes in Buddhist teachings since their very beginning. This evening we will explore how the realization of emptiness unfolds in [...]
Tuesday Online—Bhikkhu U Jagara—Life, Death, and the Process of Creation an evening of meditation and teaching with Bhikkhu U Jagara April 13, 2021 Our practice is about understanding our life—and to understand life, we must also understand death. Life and death function together in a process of constant creation. How can we best know the [...]
Tuesday Online—Mark Nunberg—Relating Wisely to this Sensual World an evening of meditation and teaching with Mark Nunberg April 20, 2021 The Buddha's teachings encourage us to cultivate an intimate ongoing mindful presence, a deep respect for cause and effect, and a profound equanimity as we live our sensual embodied lives. The Buddha asks us to [...]
Tuesday Online—Heather Sundberg The Relationship Between Emptiness and Suchness in Practice an evening of meditation and teaching with Heather Sundberg May 4, 2021 When we understand that direct experience is not solid/not separate, we can embrace experience in its changing conditionality with the heart of compassion and inclusion born of non-clinging. This is the inter-weaving of [...]
Tuesday Online—Lila Kate Wheeler—Practical Dharma an evening of meditation and teaching with Lila Kate Wheeler May 11, 2021 The Buddha’s teachings are often compared to a finger pointing to the moon. Without that finger, we might never lift our gaze and see for ourselves. Tonight’s talk offers encouragement to stay present and awake as a [...]
Tuesday Online—Diana Winston—The Spectrum of Awareness Practices an evening of meditation and teaching with Diana Winston June 29, 2021 Many people practice mindfulness in a focused way—attending to their breathing, and returning to their breath when their attention has wandered. But there are actually many different ways to practice with awareness. In this retreat, we [...]
Tuesday Online—Kim Allen TOPIC: The Gladness Pentad: Beauty at the Heart of the Path —an evening of meditation and teaching with Kim Allen Kim will speak about the "gladness pentad" that appears in a number of suttas that describe the path: gladness, joy, tranquility, happiness and concentration. Please join us on Zoom. This event is appropriate [...]
Monday In-Person—Ajahn Brahmāli Is your meditation stagnating? Here's why. an evening with Ajahn Brahmāli Join us to welcome Ajahn Brahmāli as our special monastic guest from Australia for an evening of meditation and teaching Join us In-Person or Online! To join the event via zoom, please register click on this link. To join in-person, see instructions and [...]
Monday via Zoom—Ajahn Brahmāli Is your meditation stagnating? Here's why. an evening with Ajahn Brahmāli Join us to welcome Ajahn Brahmāli as our special monastic guest from Australia for an evening of meditation and teaching Join us either In-Person or Online! This is where you sign up to attend online. You will be sent the [...]
A meditation program with Bhikkhu Sambodhi Topic: The Five Spiritual Powers: How to grow the essential faculties of the mind in harmony with one's "nature" and in balance with each other. The program will include sitting and walking meditation, and meditation instructions. This half-day program is appropriate for new and experienced meditators. Reserve your spot! [...]