2010 January Announcements

2010 January Announcements Dae Yen Sa International Buddhist Temple and Meditation Center Nosana Bul Nosana Bul is the teaching Buddha and is filled with unending compassion, love and wisdom. Contents: 1. Upcoming Events 2. Dharma School Series 3. Buddha Thought 4. Volunteer! 5. Saturday Schedule Reminder 6. Dae Yen Sa Video Upcoming Events Nonviolent Communication Workshop Learn how to live more peacefully and compassionately practicing Right Speech and Right Action. Scheduled for January 18, 2010, 6:30 - 9:30 PM in celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The snow date is January 19, 2010. Teachings presented with guest NVC teacher Joe Brummer! Joe spent years exploring why people commit acts of violence against others. He studied nonviolence, conflict resolution and worked with the Institute for Study and Practice of Nonviolence to bring teaching to schools, and serves on the Community Mediation Center of Rhode Islands Juvenile Restorative Justice Advisory Board. He has recently attended International Intensive Training on Nonviolent Communication. Joe is the Connecticut representative for New England NVC. Visit the link http://www.cnvc.org for more information on the course. In this course you will learn how to: Express yourself in ways that can be heard. Truly hear what others are expressing regardless of the words used. Connect with the universal needs driving all human behavior. Express gratitude without the use of praise and moral judgments. Use language as a tool of connection rather than control. This important course is free to the general public. Please share the information with your friends! The Dharma School Series Chanting & Meditation 7 pm - 7:30 pm Dae Yen Sa Dharma School & Tea 7:30 pm - 8:30 pm We welcome individuals of all paths and understandings to participate in weekly gatherings consisting of meditation, meditative reading and review along with group reflection on Buddhist principles and practices or Dharma. The only requirement is an open mind and open heart. Study Topic for Wednesday 01/06/10: The Dhammapada, Chapter 13 - The World For those with Books please read Chapter 13: The World For those without books please read Chapter 13: The World How do you see the world? Is it full of suffering and pain? Or is filled with regenerative beauty and possibility? How does your vision of the world determine the way in which you live your life? Buddhism teaches that the world paradoxically holds both samsara and nirvana. In fact, the great Saint, Nagarjuna goes as far as saying there is no difference between the two! Now that's a good Koan to meditate with! It's hard to wrap our minds around paradox, but the bottom line teaching is that there are two truths that make up the reality of all phenomena. The first is called relative, or conventional truth. We experience relative truth in the everyday. In this state we perceive phenomena and forms as solid, (the man, the woman, the dog, the mountain). In addition our human mind processes experience in relative terms, that is, by comparing and and contrasting. In this way we define the relative identity of a person or a thing against our own, in order to respond appropriately. This is a natural process that we all do. Absolute truth on the other hand, sees forms as conditional, impermanent, ever-changing (instead of "the man" we have a seeming form of biological parts, with those parts made of tissue, the tissue made up of cells, which are decomposing and regenerating constantly and so on.) With absolute truth we contemplate what we all have in common, that we humans, plants, animal, etc. are not separate at all, but interconnected. We all have watched nature programs on tv, where through stop-motion photography seeds in the earth grow into flowers in seconds. When we sit and contemplate the flower in our backyard garden we experience a flower as it is, still, fragrant beautiful, but can we also perceive that is it in motion? If we could sit still for 3 weeks meditating entirely on the flower we would be like the stop-motion camera, seeing with both relative and absolute eyes. Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh takes it a step further saying, “If you look deeply at the garbage heap with the eye of meditation you can see lettuce, tomatoes and flowers. That is exactly what the gardener sees when he looks at the garbage heap, and that is why he does not throw away his waste materials.”(Thich Nhat Hanh, True Love: A Practice for Awakening the Heart, (Boston, MA, Shambala Publications, 2006), p. 68. True at times our world can present as a pretty mixed up place. Indeed our inner world can also hold pain and suffering. However, we know that pain and suffering are never fixed, bur ever changing like clouds in the sky. Maybe in 2010 we could look deeply at our world, inside and out, and with the faith of absolute truth, allow seeds of compassion to rise from the mud of our hurts and disappointments and flower into new life. Maybe we could begin to allow the transformation to begin right now in this very moment. What do you say? Namu. Nobody is condemned in Buddhism, for greatness is latent even in the seemingly lowliest, just as lotuses spring from muddy ponds. Invite someone new to experience the warmth of the sangha. Buddha Thought Master and Pupil Says the Master to his pupil: "Do you understand that you don't really exist?" Upon which the pupil replies: "Whom are you telling that?" ---Old Buddhist joke found on the web. Volunteer Requests Assistance with preparation for special events, weekends and teaching nights is always greatly appreciated. This includes assistance in the kitchen, setting up, taking down and any other donation of talent or effort that can assist the temple. You are always greatly appreciated! The temple does have some special requests from time to time as well. Sati Meditation Recently, a small group from Dae Yen Sa enjoyed a field trip to Chuang Yen Temple in Carmel, NY. We participated in a retreat day, where we learned a new form of meditation practice called Sati. In Sati Meditation the practitioner uses mindful movements of the hands to bring about greater awareness.This practice was introduced by Luangpor Teean Jittasubho (1911-1988) of Thailand and taught to us by Dr. Dwight Chien. It is our intention to make Sati meditation sessions available at DaeYen Sa. If any member who participated in our Sati retreat in NY is interested in leading Sati meditation please see Eduardo. For those wishing to experience the Sati retreat day at Chuang Yen, the next session is December 12, 2009. Calling all TV Techies! The temple is seeking a volunteer(s) to help us find or purchase a big screen TV for the Main Temple that we could also connect to a computer. There are so many great teachings and wisdom available in multimedia now that would add to study experiences. In addition the temple is considering offering occasional "movie nights" for families. Maybe our first Movie night could be "MULAN" in honor of dear little Sasha! Of course, we are also seeking donations for the purchase of the TV, or, of a TV itself. Thank you in advance for your kindness in achieving this goal for the benefit of the sangha. Please see Su Yen Sunim to help with this endeavor. Lending Library The East gives us thousands upon thousands of Buddhist sacred texts. And here in the West we have access to many books and articles from teachers like Jack Kornfield, Pema Chodron and other well-known teachers. It is our goal to begin a small lending library of Buddhist texts that would be open to Sangha members. The idea has been approved by Su Yen Sunim and Master, so we'll keep you posted on the logistics. In the meantime consider donating your books of wisdom to the temple. Make it a practice in letting go! Talks and Workshops While we have the Wisdom of the Triple Gem we also recognize the network of members and friends with wisdom to share with Dae Yen Sa. If you, or anyone you know, has an interest in presenting a workshop/lecture/training that is relevant and appropriate to Buddhist principles and practice, please speak with Eduardo. At present, the Temple does not have funds for lecturers. Any presentation would be considered a donation would be very much appreciated. Thank you in advance. SPECIAL MENTION! Nirvana Juice Bar, Torrington One of our Sangha members, Rosie, invites us to visit her juice bar in Downtown Torrington. Rosie offers many wonderful health and energy drinks and foods as well as aromatic incenses and products sangha members would appreciate. In addition Rosie hosts guest lectures and open mike nights. Visit her website for more information and then visit her store for some "chill" time. http://nirvanahealthbar.com/ Nirvana is a healthy, fun and informative place to visit! Saturday Temple Regular Schedule: 9:00 AM to 10:00 AM Yoga 10:00 AM to 10:20 AM Tea Break 10:20 AM to 11:00 AM Silent Meditation 11:00 AM to 11:10 AM Walking Meditation 11:10 AM to 11:30 AM Chanting 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM Korean Vegetarian Lunch The first Saturday of each month, Dae Yen Sa has a retreat day with a revised schedule. Call or contact the temple for the schedule and activities for that day. Tea and Attention Form is emptiness and emptiness is form. 19 Kinsey Road New Hartford, CT 06057 Telephone: (860) 489-3254 Cell: (860) 459-6255 Fax: (860) 489-5760 Donations greatly appreciated! VISIT DAE YEN SA ON FACEBOOK!