Day of Mindfulness: October 20, 2012

Dear Friends,

 

Please enjoy having 'nothing to do and nowhere to go' at this Saturday's Day of Mindfulness.  In our sitting and walking meditation, eating, dharma sharing  and mindful movements we will explore this 'nothing to do and nowhere to do.'  

 

Thay [Thich Nhat Hanh] says that:  "the businessless person is someone who doesn't run after enlightenment or grasp at anything, even if that thing is the Buddha.  This person has simply stopped.  She is no longer caught by anything, even theories or teachings....When we learn to stop and be truly alive in the present moment, we are in touch with what's going on in and around us.  We aren't carried away by the past, the future, our thinking, ideas, emotions, and projects...Insight can't be found in sutras, commentaries, or Dharma talks....This is like hoping to find fresh water in dry bones....

The person who has nothing to do is sovereign of herself.  She doesn't have to put on airs or leave any trace behind.  The true person is an active participant, engaged in her environment while remaining unoppressed by it.  Although all phenomena are going through the various appearances of birth, abiding, changing, and dying, the true person doesn't become a victim of sadness, happiness, love, or hate....In doing nothing, in simply stopping, we can live freely and true to ourselves and our liberation will contribute to the liberation of all beings"**

So the practice instructions will be simple: 'breathing in, I know I am breathing in [with nowhere to go] and breathing out I know I am breathing out [with nothing to do.]  And each of us will still have to find our own way: 'nothing to do and nowhere to go' in the middle of the experience of an unpleasant emotion of physical sensation or a daydream, or deep peace, or an agitated mind or a happy mind.  

Dry bones or fresh water?

 

Attend all or part of the Day: instructions are given and beginners are welcome.  Chairs and cushions available.  Please do not wear fragrances.  We eat lunch together in silence, so bring a vegetarian lunch for yourself.  Lunch is around 1:15-2:15pm.]

At the Wellness Center at Riverside Church, 91 Claremont Avenue, Manhattan. [between 120-122nd Streets, one block west of Broadway.]

Schedule [subject to change]

Saturday October 20, 2012

9:45-10am  Arrive.

10-10:45: mindul movements, sitting meditation

10:45-11:00-Walking Meditation

11:00-11:30: Sitting Meditation

11:30-12:00: Walking Meditation, Mindful Movements

12:00-12:30-Sitting Meditation

12:30-1pm-Outdoor Walking [weather permitting]

1:15-2:15-Lunch/Rest

2:30-3pm: Total Relaxation

3:10-3:45--Walking and Sitting Meditation

3:45-4:30-Dharma Sharing/Close

The Day will be led by David Flint and Walter Lyons of the Riverside and Morningstar Sanghas.

Day of Mindfulness Sept 15, 2012

The Appearance of the Morning Star: the Light at the Core of Suffering

Saturday, September 15, 10am-4.30pm, Riverside Church

Dear Friends,

The theme for our Saturday Day of Mindfulness is:  "The Appearance of the Morning Star: the Light at the Core of Suffering." We'll look into the story of Bhikkuni Patacara from chapter 55 of Thich Nhat Hanh's book Old Path, White Clouds.***

Our 'deep looking' will be grounded our practice of conscious breathing and mindfulness, as we practice sitting and walking meditation, enjoy mindful movements and singing, and listen and learn from each other in Dharma Sharing.

Please come for all or part of the Day.  Chairs and cushions available.  Lunch is around 1pm: bring your own vegetarian lunch.  Please do not wear fragrances.

Facilitated by Ishmael Wallace of the Riverside Sangha. 

Where: Riverside Church, Wellness Center, at 91 Claremont Avenune in Manhattan [between 120-122nd St. one block west of Broadway.]

When: Saturday, September 15, 10am-4.30pm.

***Patacara was one of the first Buddhist Nuns, in the time of the Buddha.  Her story is also told in "The First Buddhist Women."

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In our Saturday August 18 Day of Mindfulness we will explore the Parable of The Destitute Son, from the Lotus Sutra, and expressed below in Thich Nhat Hanh's poem "Our True Heritage"

Our True Heritage

The cosmos is filled with precious gems..

I want to offer a handful of them to you this morning.

Each moment you are alive is a gem,

shining through and containing earth and sky,

water and clouds.

It needs you to breathe gently

for the miracles to be displayed.

Suddenly you hear the birds singing,

the pines chanting,

see the flowers blooming,

the blue sky,

the white clouds,

the smile and the marvelous look

of your beloved.

You, the richest person on Earth,

who have been going around begging for a living,

stop being the destitute child.

Come back and claim your heritage.

We should enjoy our happiness

and offer it to everyone.

Cherish this very moment.

Let go of the stream of distress

and embrace life fully in your arms.

[From Call Me By My True Names]

With our mindful breathing and resting in this moment, we enjoy Being Wonderfully Together in sitting and walking meditation, Dharma Sharing, singing, outdoor walking, total relaxation, and more.  Come for all or part of the Day.  No experience necessary.

Saturday August 18, 10:00am --4:30pm.

At Riverside Church, Wellness Center, 91 Claremont Avenue, Manhattan

Chairs and Cushions Available.  

Please do not wear fragrances.

Lunch: 1:00-2;00pm.  Bring your own vegetarian lunch.  We eat in mindfulness and silence.

Facilitated by Ishmael Wallace.