2012
Dharma Desktop
The Spirit Rock e-Newsletter just arrived with lots of interesting stuff, including a free, hi-res download of this photo taken at Spirit Rock by Walt Opie….and which makes very cool wallpaper for you computer desktop! (The full image is horizontal and proportioned to fit most computer screens, but it’s cropped here to fit the blog window.) Check it out here (scroll down).
2012
A Taste of Tibet
I went to see Lama Lodru last night at Blue Lotus Dharma Center and enjoyed all the “bells and smells,” as they liked to say in the High Episcopal Church I used to attend. I loved lining up for the Lama’s arrival, the white scarves, the bows, the incense, the cushy platform and the fancy umbrella with the dangling hearts they had set up behind it.
I wish I had taken a photo, but it just didn’t feel right to pull out my iPhone in the middle of all that.
The talk itself was pretty basic. And repetitive. But I liked how he answered people’s questions at the end. Kindly. Reasonable. And with a real sense of trying to help.
Overall: an uplifting evening.
Lama Lodru Rinpoche will be at The Healing Arts Center tonight and tomorrow morning. (info here) If you’re thinking you might like to go…..just do it!
(image from Buddha Tarot by Robert M. Place)
2012
Happy Birthday Metta
Last night we celebrated the One Year Anniversary of Maplewood Metta! This group is very sweet, super friendly, and growing all the time. Join us! We meet every Tuesday, from 6:30 to 7:30 pm, at 2817 Oakland in Maplewood. For more info, click here.
Here’s a sneak peek:
2012
Tranquil Wisdom
St. Louis Insight Meditation Group will host visiting teacher, Venerable Vimalaramsi, on Sunday, July 22, 7-8:45 pm at Big Bend Yoga Center, 88 N. Gore, Webster Groves.
The title of his talk: What Is Meditation?
Ven. Vimalaramsi (Bhante) has practiced meditation for more than 37 years and was ordained a Theravada monk in 1989 in Thailand. In 2005, he founded Dhamma Sukka, a monastery and meditation center in Annapolis, MO, about 2 hours south of St. Louis. There he teaches a style of meditation called Tranquil Wisdom Insight Meditation (TWIM).
By studying the teachings of the Buddha (suttas) directly, Bhante found the elements of the 4 Noble Truths, the 8-Fold Path, and the impersonal process of Dependent Origination to be the core of the teachings. In his studies, he realized that the word sutta meant “thread” and that these threads together create a finely woven cloth. Through this understanding and his own objective experience, the 8-Fold Path began to come alive with full meaning.
This event is open to everyone. Donations collected will benefit the Dhamma Sukha Center.
Please join us for this special evening.
2012
Just W. A. I. T.
I opened the July e-newsletter from Spirit Rock and was delighted to read an interview with Shahara Godfrey, who is a fellow student in the Dedicated Practitioner Program. The topic of the interview is Wise Speech and I love her answer to the question:
“How do you practice Wise Speech?”
Shahara says, “Sylvia Boorstein has this phrase, an acronym, WAIT, for “Why Am I Talking?” I always find it helpful because it is an example of taking the time to decide if I really need to talk right now.”
She continues, “I know because I have a tendency to talk a lot. I will ask myself, ‘Why am I talking or why do I need to say this?’ It really helps me pause and recognize there are other people who may need to speak who have not had the opportunity. I can step back and just WAIT. And it really feels good that I have taken a moment to reflect. And other times upon reflection, I still need to speak, but I have taken the time to figure it out.”
Thanks, Shahara…and Sylvia. I’m going to try it!
(image from “I Told You So,” by Daisy de Villeneuve)
2012
Chinese Lantern Festival
Go see the Chinese Lantern Festival at the Missouri Botanical Garden before it’s all over on August 19!
Here’s a peek at the four-faced Buddha.
And the giant lotus.
And flowering ponds.
And a dragon coming out of blue water.
And flying celestial beings.
And me!
2012
Laughing in the Park
As Suzuki Roshi said:
“What we are doing here is so important, we better not take it too seriously!”
Join us at “Sitting in the Park.” We meet every Saturday morning — weather permitting — in Tower Grove Park, near the Farmers’ Market. 8:30 to 9:00 am.
May all being be happy.
2012
Cha, cha, cha!
The Monday night “Dancing with Life” KM group has decided to start over because we felt that we haven’t been focusing enough on the book (“Dancing with Life,” by Phillip Moffitt). So we’re going back to the beginning–starting with the preface–and each of us will bring a passage we’ve underlined…..something we’ve found helpful, or inspiring, or confusing…and we’ll read it aloud and the group will discuss.
The first thing I underlined was: “…teaching the dharma is the most satisfying activity I have ever done in my life.”
The next was: “Why do you suffer? Is there a purpose to your pain? What about the amount of suffering you experience–is it fair, based on some understandable system of cause and effect, or is it simply arbitrary? Can you affect how much you suffer? If so, how?”
But the one I want to bring to the group is: “….life will move you with the rhythm and in the direction of its own unfolding, irregardless of your best intentions. Life dances and you must dance with it. This is the necessary price and mysterious gift of being incarnate–alive in a body.”
(image from Q-cards by Zolo, inc.)
2012
Join. Peace. Now.
Hey, check out these cool signs Cindy made for the Sitting in the Park! practice sessions held every Saturday morning near the Farmer’s Market in Tower Grove Park. We meet from 8:30 to 9:00 am — weather permitting — from now through October. Look for the Tibetan prayer flags…and these signs!
There’s no dharma talk. Just sitting.
It’s very cool. (Even when it’s hot.)
Join us!
2012
Dharma Seed Friends
The new Dharma Seed KM group met last night for the first time, and as you can see, we’re off to a great start. We sat for 20 minutes (after all the photo-taking was done!), then listened to Tara Brach’s talk on “The Awakened Heart” and had a nice little discussion.
The group had originally planned to meet next at the end of July, but the response has been so positive that we don’t want to wait that long!
So, the next meeting will be on Monday, July 16, 7:00 to 9:00 pm.
The talk next time will be “Poetry & Beauty,” by Jack Kornfield. For more info, contact Jan. Hope to see you there!
