BCIMS Tuesday sitting group

Here's some basic information about the Wednesday Zoom sangha. We don't meet every week: please sign up for the mailing list to get a notification about upcoming dates, at  http:// eepurl .com/gk0D3b . The link to join the meeting is here:  https://zoom.us/j/546755555 You should be able to join this meeting at any time, not just at our specified gathering time. The reason you might want to do that is to use Zoom to test your speakers/headphone, microphone, and webcam. Please do make sure all of your hardware is working correctly before the call starts. You'll need to use either a smartphone or a computer with a microphone and webcam to join the meeting; you can't call in on a phone. The reason for this limit is that when you use a phone it can be hard to unmute yourself; it's easier to monitor who wants to speak if everyone has their webcam on; and if we use break-out groups they work much better with computers instead of phones. We'll start promptly at ...

The following list comes from a group that meets at the East Bay Meditation Center . Shared Agreements MOVE UP/MOVE BACK Encourage full participation by all present. Take note of who is speaking and who is not. If you tend to speak often, consider “moving back” and vice versa. PRACTICE MINDFUL LISTENING Try to avoid planning what you’ll say as you listen to others. Be willing to be surprised, to learn something new. Listen with your whole self. PRACTICE SELF FOCUS Attend to and speak about your own experiences and responses. Do not speak for a whole group or express assumptions about the experience of others. UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN INTENT AND IMPACT Try to understand and acknowledge impact. Denying the impact of something said by focusing on intent is often more destructive than the initial interaction. Good intentions are not enough. Listen and learn from the impact. “TRY IT ON” Be willing to “try on” new ideas, or ways of doing things that might not be ...

Sister Chan Khong, the illustrious Vietnamese nun and colleague of Thich Nhat Hanh, has some practical guidelines for integrating apologies and reconciliation into the fabric of our relationships. Winnie Nazarko has a great dharma talk on Forgiveness . Here 's a summary of some of the literature on forgiveness. Here 's a framework for apologizing well. The NYT has an article on the value of forgiving and some tips to support the process of forgiving. Desmond Tutu has recently published "The book of Forgiving". It contains this helpful model of the process of forgiveness.

“When you fail Don’t be so quick To dust yourself off With pep talks Meant to get you To rise up triumphantly And exclaim I am not giving up! Don’t be triumphant Instead Give up Yes that’s right Give up Not forever But just for now Just for a moment, at least Just Give Up Give it all up You will be tempted To comfort yourself With spiritual concepts Meant to assure you This is all for the best This is all part of a grand plan To cleanse you Purify you Make you triumphant Glorious Heroic No Don’t do this Don’t be a hero But also do not be devoured By shame by self hatred This is just the same game played Backwards No Just give up Just for a moment Just stay low Low to the ground Your false self Shattered Breathe the grass Taste the dew Inhale the soil You failed You broke Life broke Kiss the brokenness And receive Your true self is hidden In the spaces in between” ~Maya Luna

Sharon Salzberg has some thoughts about anxiety. If you use Facebook, check out the BCIMS page ! I post articles, pictures, and quotes there regularly (usually more than once a day but it varies a lot!). Topics are generally meditation related, with a slant towards social justice but covering the range from news about Therevadan monastics to everyday life practice. Most of the teachings are from Therevadan/Insight sources but I do post stuff from other traditions, especially popular teachers like Thich Nhat Hanh and Pema Chodron.

Tan Geoff has a great  essay  on the role of faith in Buddhist practice. Sharon Salzberg wrote a very readable  book  on the subject of faith.