INSIGHT
A Joint Newsletter of
the Insight Meditation Society
and
the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies
with schedules and dharma
articles of lasting interest
Spring 1994
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EDITOR: Andy Olendzki MANAGING EDITOR: Mu Soeng Sunim
COPY EDITING: Katherine S. Diehl, Karen Dreste
PRODUCTION ASSISTANCE: Jan Hauben
INSIGHT is a newsletter jointly published by the Insight
Meditation Society and the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies,
which are tax-exempt, nonprofit centers whose purpose is to
foster the practice of vipassana (insight) meditation and to
preserve the essential teachings of Theravada Buddhism. The
goal of the practice is the awakening of wisdom and compassion
through right action and cultivating mindful awareness in all
aspects of life. IMS offers a year-round program of intensive
meditation retreats and various opportunities for volunteer
service. BCBS offers a year-round program of workshops and
seminars in the study of the larger Buddhist tradition within a
contemplative framework so as to build a bridge between study
and practice, between scholarly understanding and meditative
insight.
Copyright 1994 Insight Meditation Society
1230 Pleasant Street
Barre, Massachusetts 01005 USA
Tel: (508) 355-4378
* * *
This electronic edition of INSIGHT
is made available for free distribution via DharmaNet
by arrangement with the publisher.
This electronic edition includes the full text of selected
articles that originally appeared in the printed edition. To
receive a copy of the original printed edition of this issue,
please contact IMS.
Page numbers are not particularly meaningful in electronic
format. Instead, each article is demarcated here by a number
within braces. This allows you to use the Search feature of
your newsreader or file viewer program to "fast forward" to the
section you want to read.
Italicized text is represented by //double slashes//.
Formatted by John Bullitt . I welcome
your comments and suggestions.
DharmaNet International, P.O. Box 4951, Berkeley, CA 94704-4951
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CONTENTS
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{1} INTERVIEW: Christina Feldman
{2} ARTICLE: Shining the Light of Death on Life: Maranasati meditation
(Larry Rosenberg)
{3} SANGHA PAGES
{4} ARTICLE: Exploring New Approaches: The Barre Center for Buddhist
Studies (Andy Olendzki)
{5} ELECTRONIC DHARMA: On-Line at the Study Center: The Electronic
Dharma (John Bullitt)
{6} IMS NEWS
{7} ABOUT IMS
{8} SCHEDULE: IMS 1994 Retreat Schedule
{9} REGISTRATION FORM: IMS Retreat Registrations
{10} BCBS NEWS
{11} ABOUT BCBS
{12} SCHEDULE: BCBS 1994 Course Schedule
{13} REGISTRATION FORM: BCBS Course Registrations
{14} PALI TRANSLATION: A Wish of Loving Kindness
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{1} INTERVIEW
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INSIGHT IS LIBERATING ONLY IF IT IS LIVED
An Interview with Christina Feldman
"How did you first become interested in Buddhist practices?"
I first began my practice in the Tibetan tradition in 1970. By a
strange set of circumstances I ended up in India at 17.. Totally
culture shocked, I sat in a dingy hotel room in old Delhi and wondered
how quickly I could get out of India. An old India hand advised me to
head for the mountains to recover before I fled. Arriving in McLeod
Ganj, the home of the Dalai Lama and a large settlement of Tibetan
refugees, I was stunned by the depth of compassion, sensitivity and
happiness they radiated. It very quickly occurred to me that they
were surely connected with some great skill in living which was a
mystery to me. They were impoverished refugees, exiled from their
homeland and many had endured indescribable hardship in their journey
to safety -- yet they smiled and walked with a remarkable calm and
dignity. After many rebuffs I was accepted as a student by Geshe
Rabten and began to study and practice Tibetan Buddhism. I can only
say I experienced a profound sense of homecoming in the vision the
teaching presented; its universality, its emphasis upon compassion,
ethics and motivation, the unrelenting encouragement to abandon
self-centeredness, greed and ignorance, all made a deep impact on
me. I spent several years living in the mountains practicing. There
was something incredibly special about the simplicity and silence of
the place and the depth of the teachings.
"What brought you to shift from Tibetan practices more
towards vipassana?"
There was a point after several years when I had to travel to New
Delhi for some business. I had been reflecting upon and attempting to
develop compassion for many months and, in the mostly non-challenging
environment I lived in, I felt that I was beginning to feel with a
boundless compassion and friendliness. It very quickly seemed to
disappear when the bus conductor attempted to grab my backside and I
responded by slapping him in the face. At that point it became clear
that there was something of a gap between my ideals and actualities,
and I saw there was a need for me to develop some greater insight into
the nature of my own reactions, conditioning and grasping.
Living in India for a long time, everyone hears about the variety of
teachings that are offered and of course I had heard about vipassana
retreats being offered at Bodhgaya. It was very difficult for me to
take the step of signing up for a vipassana retreat. Unfortunately I
was possessed with all of the less desirable attributes of a convert.
Identifying with the Mahayana path, I had considerable prejudice
towards the Theravada tradition -- this was the lesser vehicle I
viewed with mistrust, if not derision. However, with great
misgivings, I decided to take the plunge.
"What was the vipassana scene like back in the days when you
were in India?"
Vipassana retreats were a little different in India than we often
experience them in the West. One friend describes them as the school
of hard knocks. In my first retreat, I was directed towards a small
patch of concrete, overrun by the occasional rat. The day began at 3am
and ended about 11pm and there was nothing to do but sit and walk. At
times we were directed to sit many hours without moving. It was hard,
but also wonderful; there was nowhere to hide and the immediacy of
the practice was everything I needed. There were very few meetings
with a teacher, and what meetings there were were not intended to be
consoling but simply to instruct me to practice more, let go more,
sleep less and see more clearly.
The simple truths of the teaching were impossible to deny and were
possible to access. I started to do a number of retreats mixed with
returning to the mountains to practice.
"Each year you lead a retreat at IMS for women. How did it get
started? How is it taught differently from other retreats?
What special qualities or perspectives emerge from this
experience?"
I began to teach retreats for women about ten years ago. They
really began out of the wishes of many women who had attended mixed
retreats with me. I had never really given a great deal of thought to
being a woman in this tradition until I went to Thailand, where it was
made clear to me by others that being a woman in meditation frequently
meant being regarded with condescension. In the monastery in Thailand
where I was women were primarily sent to the kitchens, expected to be
devoted and quiescent, almost invisible. This is not true of all
monasteries but is not a rare attitude to be encountered. Teaching in
the West I became aware to what extent the stories and models that
were used in teaching were male stories and models. The silence of
many women in discussion groups and the vitality they expressed in
groups for women were factors in beginning to teach retreats for
women. The format of these retreats differs only slightly from any
other retreat I teach; there is silence and intensive practice. But
there are differences; there's a very tangible atmosphere on women's
retreats which I can only describe as trusting. There is something
remarkably powerful to be in the presence of 100 women who are
dedicated to freedom, integrity and wisdom. I feel honored every time
I teach a women's retreat.
"Have you faced any special challenges or difficulties in being
a woman in the world of Buddhist practice?"
Personally I don't have any difficulty being a woman in the world of
Buddhist practice. This doesn't mean that other people don't have
difficulty with it. Encountering women in positions of authority
challenges some very ancient and often hidden prejudices and
assumptions within some people. But it's a wonderful
challenge--surely this is what the practice is about. I have had a
few bouts and encounters with some more traditional folks. Personally
I am not very impressed by hierarchies or prejudices or authority of
the past. I teach the dharma because I love to share the dharma and
to be together with people who love to be clear.
"Do you have any perspective on the Buddha himself with regard
to women practicing in the sangha?"
Given the cultural condition of the time of the Buddha, he was
remarkably open-minded and inclusive of women, with a little
persuasion. Given the cultural conditions of our contemporary world,
I do feel that the Buddhist tradition does a great disservice to
itself in the lack of respect accorded to women. Buddhist teaching is
a teaching of liberation and I cannot see that there is any
compatibility between liberation and the holding on to prejudice.
"What about the family retreats? Can you speak about teaching
these?"
The family retreats began with the birth of my first child 12
years ago. There are very few models which honor the path of
parenting as an authentic path of deepening in understanding. Most
models we encounter encourage us to depart from our families and
separate our spiritual lives from our family lives. It is a lethal
dichotomy. Being a parent is one long retreat. It asks for
renunciation, surrender, compassion, selflessness, and immense wisdom.
The family retreat honors this. It also provides an opportunity for
children to be exposed to the teachings. The family retreat is noisy
and chaotic, very different from any other retreat, yet something very
important takes place beneath the chaos. For the children it is a time
of planting seeds -- important seeds in the context of a culture that
endlessly encourages them to get more, strive more, be more. It shows
another path. For the parents it is a time of community and
appreciating that the challenges offered by the realities of their
lives are the places they learn to live the dharma.
"You have been teaching at IMS almost since its inception.
What changes have you seen over the years?"
The teaching of vipassana is still a relatively new tradition in the
West but in the time I have spent teaching I have seen a process of
maturing taking place. In the early years many yogis were retreat
addicts and there was for many an unhealed gap between their retreat
life and their life in the world. I do feel that over time many
people are appreciating the actuality that insight is only liberating
if it is lived. More attention is given to the realities of applying
compassion and the wisdom of creating sangha. Many yogis come to do
longer retreats, and there is perhaps less of a fascination with the
highs and lows of meditation experiences and a deeper interest in
liberation.
"You might be described as a Western Lay Buddhist Teacher. Any
thoughts about this emerging phenomenon?"
I know for myself coming to Buddhist teaching my interest was
primarily in the experiential and contemplative dimensions of the
teaching and not in the forms, rituals or cultural trappings. Most of
us have been Christians or Jews and I don't feel we're looking for a
new spiritual or religious identity to inhabit. The great gift of
the dharma, I feel, is that it actively discourages us from
identifying with yet another belief system, from becoming a convert or
from becoming a convert or subscribing to someone else's doctrine. I
see this as a gift of freedom. The dharma asks us to question, to
awaken to the truth of our lives and ourselves, to be free. I feel a
profound gratitude for the service the ordained sangha in Buddhism has
provided through keeping the teachings alive. I feel an equally
profound gratitude for all of the lay people in the dharma who breathe
life into the essence of the tradition, the contemplative life that is
committed to liberation.
"How do you see the interface between psychotherapy and
vipassana meditation? What are some of the benefits and
possible dangers of doing both practices?"
I do feel there are some clear parallels between psychotherapy and
vipassana. Both are concerned with healing, with bringing to an end
the conditioning power of the past and with insight. There are also
some points where the two practices diverge, particularly in regard to
the notion of 'self.' There is no doubt that liberation means that
there is not 'someone' there to own it or appropriate it as a personal
description. In deep meditation experience it can be experienced very
directly that all of the images and conclusions we hold about
ourselves, even those with incredibly long histories, can be dissolved
in the light of new understanding. The past is healed through insight
into the present.
The danger of combining the two practices is to attempt to use
meditation as another means of self-improvement or to come to
meditation with the conviction that we have to 'work out' everything.
Meditation teaching emphasizes the need to have clear comprehension
about the contents of our experience, but equally emphasizes that
transformation lies not in rearranging or modifying those contents,
but in the transformation within the consciousness that receives them.
The benefit of having had some therapeutic experience when coming to
meditation experience is that the whole area of inquiry and
investigation is familiar territory and there is already a mature
foundation of insight.
"In your experience, do people tend to stay with vipassana
practice year after year or is it a practice that people are
attracted to for some time and then drift away from to some
other tradition or another discipline?"
I certainly meet people who come to retreats year after year and
feel delighted by their return. One of the greatest attractions of
vipassana is the absence of the esoteric, of graduated paths with lots
of signposts. No one becomes an expert, no one can fail. The
practice begins and ends with being awake. I do feel that this
simplicity strips away the fascination with special forms or
techniques that are somehow going to magically awaken us. I feel that
people more and more understand that their wisdom and awakenings are
born of their own willingness to see and deepen and not because they
have become an 'expert.' I feel a profound joy when I see people
understanding what it means to be a 'light unto themselves.'
"After many years of teaching Western students, do you think we
are actually 'getting it'?"
Yes, Western students do get it. I am repeatedly awed by the depth
of commitment and clarity of insight that Western students express and
embody in their lives.
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{2} ARTICLE
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SHINING THE LIGHT OF DEATH ON LIFE:
//MARANASATI// MEDITATION
by Larry Rosenberg
Adapted from a workshop taught at the Study Center on
November 20, 1993
Meditation on death awareness is one of the oldest practices in all
Buddhist traditions. In the words of the Buddha, "of all the
footprints, that of the elephant is supreme. Similarly, of all
mindfulness meditation, that on death is supreme." The //Tibetan Book
of the Dead// was one of the first and most popular books to attract
the attention of Buddhist practitioners in America in the
nineteen-sixties and seventies. The tremendous popularity of
Vajrayana Buddhism in America has led to a great deal of interest in
bardo states in particular and death meditation in general. Sogyal
Rinpoche's new book //The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying// is but
the latest in a long line of Buddhist books dealing with death and its
related aspects.
According to Edward Conze, the noted historian of Buddhism, "If we
can believe Buddhaghosa (the author of the ancient classic
//Visuddhimagga//), two only among the 40 meditational practices are
always and under all circumstances beneficial -- the development of
friendliness, and the recollection of death. 'As a result of the
recollection of death one reflects on the fact that one is sure to
die, gives up the search for what is unworthy, and steadily increases
one's agitation until one has lost all sluggishness'. This agrees
fairly well with Plato when he says in his Phaidon (64A) that they are
the "true votaries of knowledge" who "practice nothing else but how to
die or meet death." Few things indeed are as salutary to a Buddhist
as to meditate on death, the inevitable sequel of life governed by
craving and ignorance."
There are many forms of //maranasati// (death awareness) that have
had a very prominent place since the time of the Buddha. Our culture
does not encourage us to face death while we are still very much
alive. This culture is inside us, so without knowing you I can
assume, perhaps safely, that there may be some obstacles, some
resistance to taking on a contemplation of this sort. I don't think it
can be put any better than in the "Hollywood wisdom" of Woody Allen,
who in one of his movies says, "It's not that I'm afraid of dying;
it's just that I don't want to be there when it happens!" I would say
that for vipassana yogis it's the opposite: we openly acknowledge our
fear of dying and we //really// want to be there when it happens!
Many of us are not paying much attention to the obvious fact that we
will die; we are trying very hard to have a good time in the midst of
this avoidance.
So why formally contemplate our own death while we are still alive?
Why are we preparing for our own death? Formal meditation can be very
helpful in arousing and letting go of the fears which are latent in
us, especially the fear we all have of dying and with which we may not
be in touch.
Death awareness has been a very important practice for me and I've
done it off and on, sometimes very intensively, over the years. My
first contact with this meditation was in an informal and natural way
almost 30 years ago. I was studying with Badrayana, a teacher from
India. We spent three months together in a small Mexican town,
isolated from everything. One evening, as I was sitting in my room
doing breath awareness practice, he enthusiastically approached me and
said, "Drop everything you're doing and come with me." It turned out
that one of the local workers, while drunk, had fallen into the bay
and had drowned. His dead body had washed up on the beach. For some
religious reasons which were obscure to us, the villagers refused to
touch his body; all they had done was put the body in a box with ice.
They wanted us, as outsiders, to sit with the body until the dead
person's relatives and a priest could come from Mexico City the next
day. So we sat with the body through the night. I couldn't figure
out why it was so important for me to go through this. The teacher was
doing this not as a favor to the villagers but because he felt that an
extraordinary opportunity had dropped into our lap. So the two of us
sat all night with this bloated, blue and festering corpse with a
really bad smell. I went through phases of fear, nausea, resistance,
and tremendous doubt about the necessity of this project. Who was he
anyway? Why was he inflicting this experience on me? He watched me
very carefully and whenever he saw a strong reaction, he'd say, "What
are you experiencing right now?" I would tell him my experience and
he'd say, "O.K. Sit with it." Sound familiar? Be with your breath
and sit with it.
We sat with the corpse until the next morning when a Catholic priest
and the dead person's family took over. Through the night, my teacher
would periodically remind me that I was not exempt from this
lawfulness, that if something appears, it must also disappear, that
this dead body was not some kind of chance occurrence, that it was
something to which we are all subject, that it's the great leveler.
And he would remind me again and again to reflect on this corpse as my
true teacher; to see it as if it were my own body. I finally calmed
down and was able to give full attention to the dead body and my
reactions to it. His deadness became more clear; my own aliveness did
too. Looking back, that experience, though mostly unappealing at the
time, was invaluable. It arouses in me a deep interest in death and
dying in the Buddhist tradition.
In learning more about death awareness meditation, we learn how to
shine the light of death on life. It's not meant to be an exercise in
morbidity or self-pity, or in terrorizing ourselves. In fact one
often feels light, happy and unburdened after directly acknowledging
the truth of our inevitable death. One way in which it is extremely
invaluable is that it flushes out fear. It gives us an opportunity to
work very carefully with fear. Now remember, what we're afraid of is
not really death but our idea of death. And this is one of the things
to learn, that it's a very powerful idea.
Many current Buddhist meditation practices in the West focus on
objects associated with beauty or joy or peace -- something desirable,
attractive. Certainly death is mentioned frequently in teaching. It
is obviously a vital part of the general importance given to the
understanding of //anicca//, impermanence, change, uncertainty.
Reflection on //anicca//, that everything which arises passes away, is
central to wisdom practice. However, it doesn't seem to have been
taken up very often as a subject of formal contemplation in a
systematic and sustained manner. Nine years ago I gave a talk at the
Cambridge Insight Meditation Center on Death Awareness. Towards the
end of the talk someone bolted out of the hall, obviously saturated
with anxiety. This person later told me of the fear aroused by my
remarks. Thich Nhat Hanh advised me to be careful in teaching
//maranasati//, to avoid encouraging people in poor mental and
physical health who are still strongly dominated by desire and
aversion to take up this practice. Perhaps wisely, I pulled back and
shared this practice with very few yogis. The times have changed and
it now seems clear that death awareness meditation is too important
not to be talked about openly.
Let me hint at a few ways in which we can benefit from bringing the
idea of our own death into consciousness. Its full benefit can only
be grasped if we decide to actually set maranasati into motion. To do
so is to shine the light of death on life. Many aspects of how we
live collapse when exposed to this light; others become even more
precious. Let me briefly mention some ways in which the practice of
death awareness has been of personal benefit. It has often brought
fear out into the open--fear of the obviously finite nature of this
physical body. Arousing the fear of death provides us with an
opportunity to use //sati-panna// -- mindfulness with discernment --
skillfully so that wisdom can take some of the potency out of this
very natural source of anxiety. Please remember that what most of us
are afraid of is not really death but our idea of death.
My impression is that there is now much more interest in the
contemplation of death than there was just nine years ago. There has
also been a dramatic increase in a number of sincere and committed
practitioners willing and able to provide support. Naturally, it can
be a great dharma practice. When working with Ajahn Suwat, a Thai
forest monk, on what he referred to as "coming to terms with the true
nature of the body," I already had a deep commitment to five precepts,
years of study and intensive practice, and the support of the sangha;
most important was his loving and deeply equanimous presence in the
face of all my strong emotional reactions to the ideas of my own
death. He had faced his fears and was able to help me face mine.
Nonetheless, I remain cautious. The practices mentioned here are
simply meant to be an introduction. They have been invaluable for
some practitioners in the past. Perhaps they will be of some interest
to some of you as well.
What we are doing here is not attempting to arm ourselves with a new
ideology, a "Buddhist" view of death to replace the discarded
Judeo-Christian notions of an eternal soul or Marxist conclusions of
total annihilation with the death of the body. We are rather more
interested in how the idea of our own death is affecting us right now.
Even when we are terrified (at some level) of dying, we usually put
this inevitability far ahead of us, in some distant future. This is
easier to do when we are younger--"we still have lots of time." We
don't really know very much about our relationship to a profoundly
obvious and fundamental fact--that we could die at any moment. Our
life is literally hanging on by just one breath! We know lots about
our relationship to sex, love, art, anger, food, money, clothes,
politics but not very much about the personal meaning of our dying.
There can be a huge gap between the obvious fact of an unavoidable
death and the degree of reflection devoted to this important subject.
We find many ways to avoid the emotional significance of our own
death. Even Buddhist teachings can be used as a hiding place. The
theory of rebirth can be quite comforting. How deep is your
confidence in it? Does it cover up deep and unexamined terror? I
asked Byok Jo Sunim, one of my Zen teachers in Korea, about what
happens after death. He said that he didn't know. I was disappointed
by his answer. He saw this and simply added, "I haven't died yet!"
He was encouraging me to rely on my direct experience even more than
the doctrine of karma and rebirth. The formal meditation practices
that I would like to introduce you to shortly are actually invitations
to our fear of death to come and visit us -- to present itself in as
vivid and immediate a way as possible. When the fear of our own death
is evoked it is often happening to an image (it can be very subtle) of
a dying that will take place in the future to somebody at that time;
that "somebody" is of course you.
The fear is in regard to a //notion// of you who is going to die
some time later on. This putting death off for a future time without
realizing it can be very subtle. It can still arouse emotions that
are poignant and sorrowful, and thus provide us with a valuable field
of fearful energy to practice with. However, formal death awareness
practices are designed to help us move closer to feelings that are
convincing and which are more nearly approximate to moments of our
//actual// death.
Let us pause briefly: What does your breath feel like right now?
Can you hear sounds? Silence? Smells? The shapes and colors that
make up the room you are in? Any discomfort in the body? What
thoughts, images, and moods are coloring the consciousness right now?
Be as intimate with this moment as you are able to. When it is time
to actually die it will be happening in an ordinary living moment just
like this one. The process of dying will take place NOW. Death
awareness practice can help us more nearly simulate such a moment and
weaken or transcend the power of the fear it may release.
Death awareness is a valuable practice in many other ways. Every
time we engage in some form of maranasati we help ourselves to
acknowledge the impermanent nature of everything. It deepens our
understanding of what it means to be alive. We are all companions in
all old age, sickness and death -- seeing this more clearly can help
us see how precious each one of us is. The obstinate familiarity of
everything that encloses our daily life can break wide open and yield
a new freshness. There is no way to be exempt from death. Those we
love must also die. Really seeing this can enable us to see everyone
more sympathetically. In the words of Thich Nhat Hanh, "Life is
impermanent, but that does not mean that it is not worth living. It
is precisely because of its impermanence that we value life so dearly.
Therefore we must know how to live each moment deeply and use it in a
responsible way. If we are able to live the present moment
completely, we will not feel regret later. We will know how to care
for those who are close to us and how to bring them happiness. When
we accept that all things are impermanent, we will not be
incapacitated by suffering when things decay and die. We can remain
peaceful and content in the face of change, prosperity and decline,
success and failure."
Deepening our understanding of death can radically affect how we
live life. Priorities can change and we may not have as much of an
investment in an imagined future--perhaps less accumulation of things;
perhaps less of an obsession with unattainable security; perhaps less
of a preoccupation with "becoming someone," not so much living for the
"future," because there isn't one. Is it possible to have fulfillment
in this moment? To learn how to die is also to learn how to live.
Death can serve as a "coach," encouraging us to live completely in the
present, with more confidence and less fear. When we shine the light
of death on the yearning for power, fame, and money, they tend to lose
of some of their magnetic pull. In the case of vipassana yogis this
can mean a dramatic strengthening of the commitment to wholeheartedly
engage in practice.
The contemplation of death has helped to take me through the "ups
and downs" of practice -- it can be an effective antidote to periods
of mental dullness. We don't have forever! Whatever our condition,
whatever time and situation we find ourselves in -- ideal for
practice! When I get caught in pettiness or resentment towards
others, remembering to turn towards thoughts of death, usually
restores the mind to balance. In a dharma talk, Ajahn Maha Boowa told
us about a forest monk in Thailand who found himself face to face with
a tiger. He was able to manage his fear, and avoid being attacked, by
reflecting on how he and the tiger were comrades in birth, old age,
sickness and death. His fear was replaced by deep compassion. They
observed each other carefully for a few moments, and the tiger walked
away.
The message of our impending death can of course have a rather
different outcome. An obviously dejected person approached me once
after a talk on maranasati. He was disappointed in himself, wanting
to drop everything for the dharma--but actually preferring sex, drugs
and rock-and-roll! What do we really value? Why were we born?
In brief, without being mindful of death, whatever Dharma
practices you take up will be merely superficial.
-- Yogi Milarepa
* * *
------------------------
Death Awareness Practice
Outline I
------------------------
The Inevitability of Death
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1. Everyone has to die;
2. Our lifespan is decreasing continuously;
3. The amount of time spent during our life to develop the mind
is very small;
The uncertainty of the time of death
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
4. Human life expectancy is uncertain;
5. There are many causes of death;
6. The human body is so fragile;
The fact that only insight into dharma can help us
at the time of death
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
7. Our possessions and enjoyments cannot help;
8. Our loved ones cannot help;
9. Our own body cannot help.
------------------------
Outline II
------------------------
(Charnel Ground Meditations from Mahasatipatthana Sutta)
1. I see my body, dead for a few days, bloated, blue,
festering.
2. I see my dead body infested with worms and flies.
3. I see that all that is left of my body is a skeleton with
some flesh and blood still clinging to it.
4. I further consider my skeletal corpse without any flesh, yet
still spotted with blood and held together with tendons.
5. All that is left of my dead body is a skeleton with no blood
stains, held together by tendons.
6. I see that now all that is left is a collection of scattered
bones. The bones of the feet have gone one way, the bones
of the hand an other. The thigh bones, pelvis, spinal
vertebrae, jaw, teeth and skull have all come apart in
different directions. They are all now just bare bones.
7. All that is left is a collection of bleached bones.
8. A year passes and I see that my dead body is reduced to
being a pile of old bones.
9. These bones decay and become dust; blown apart and scattered
by the wind they cannot even be called bones any more.
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{3} SANGHA PAGES
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Space
~~~~~
The morning's thick and soft white fog
Has lifted into dappled clouds,
Leaving below such tender light
That everything is held within.
There are no edges to this light,
There is no sharpness to this air.
October's contrasts are contained-
Intensity in softness here.
Chartreuse and bright cerise leaves blend --
They do not clash in this pure light,
And brilliant leaves provide a frame
For stubble's quiet harmonies.
Pleasant and harsh can coexist:
Sweet bird songs and a squashed dead frog --
Peaceful lake and gunshots near the shore.
This soft world's huge
And everything has space
To be itself-all held in soft embrace
By stillness and tranquillity
Of mind.
Ruth Nelson
Extinction
~~~~~~~~~~
In time first cause first nature. Clear way open dimension
mind over mind out. Phantom depths phantom surfaces. Dark
out of dark out of light out of dark. Sound inside sound
inside sound. First cause first nature earth to earth all
formless all dream.
Face to face suspended there two bodies unborn undying in space
face to face. Eyes hollow little eerie shapes. Suspended
there two bodies armorless empty free.
Earth to earth unthinkable cognition wishless signless poised
perfection suchness so deep. Measureless trackless bliss upon
bliss little eerie shapes altogether beyond.
First cause first nature utmost spell unthinkable cognition.
Empty free poised perfection bliss upon bliss unborn undying
open dimension mind over mind out. Poised perfection suchness
so deep armorless wishless signless extinction complete.
Mark Katzman
Sangha
~~~~~~
Softly chanting metta
Into the sun-drenched breeze,
I sit by Stillness Pond.
A dragonfly alighting on my knee
Looks quizzically up at me.
I stop my chant; she leaves.
Again I start, and she returns.
Rest easy, Sister, bide a while.
I will stay and chant to you,
Awake perhaps some memory
Long lain fallow in endless time.
May you reclaim your heritage!
Sabbe vinipatika anigha hontu. [*]
Mary Jo Meadow
* [May all destined to suffer be at peace--Ed.]
Coming out of Dreams
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The broken clock ticks
The hands go nowhere
I come out of dreams
Truth illuminates journeys not taken
Like the hands of that clock
I do not move.
Carol Sherman
Letting Go
~~~~~~~~~~
Holding the tail of the tornado
I am whipped about
Gyrating, obsessed,
Orbiting in ever-widening
Spheres of pursuit.
Letting go
Motions cease, teeth unclench
I breathe in-out
My tongue uncurls
My eyes open;
I see the rainbow.
Carol Sherman
The Man Who Moved Animals
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(A tribute to Rev. Cuthbert Juettner)
Small heaps of fur
On the side of the road;
Cats, dogs, coons, possums.
They ate, drank, scurried about
Till the cataclysm --
The thud of steel on flesh.
At the moment life left their bodies,
They were alone.
One man, bald and robed,
Tended to their remains,
Stopping at the side of the road
To move the bodies
And say a small blessing
To send them off with ceremony.
In Montana, they called him
The Man Who Moved Animals.
If I tell you
That he died suddenly
The thud of steel on flesh
His bicycle bent and twisted
His glasses flying off his face
Whirling in the gusts
Of karmic coincidence
The sweetness of his smile
Hovering at the side of the road
Blessing the distraught driver,
You would say
It couldn't be.
Carol Sherman
Compassion
~~~~~~~~~~
I see your sorrow
and all I can offer you
is this intangible thing called
compassion.
But take this flower
and smell its fragrance,
perhaps it will ease your
pain.
Gita Mann
Emptying
~~~~~~~~
Like empty bullet shells washed ashore,
Memories line a deserted beach
Rimming the endless sea of mind.
All their explosive potential spent,
They lie inert, abandoned
Along the dreary, barren coast.
There, washed in salt and whipped by sand,
They rust back into the elemental earth
From which they were first formed.
Mary Jo Meadow
Trade Winds in Nevis
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Whispering like the sea
The mountain breeze
Ruffles the leaves and coralita;
Gusting it rings the chimes
On the gallery
Saws the mahogany tree that
Creeks in the garden.
A dove flies into the branches
The flutter of its wings
Lost in the sound of the wind.
Like the mountain, I sit
Wait for words and thoughts
To blow away;
So I can rise
Free of bone and brain
Part wind,
Transparent
Ringing.
Carol Sherman
Palindrome
~~~~~~~~~~
Leaves fall --
Twinklings of motion
Rustlings of sound --
No leaves, no Fall --
Rustlings of sound,
Twinklings of motion --
Leaves, Fall.
Ruth Nelson
Arriving Home
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am convinced:
To fathom the silence,
the body must confess many
tight secrets.
I am convinced:
to dwell in the angerless place,
we need but empty our hearts
but for the joy we were born with.
I am convinced, now, with certainty:
that these things are possible;
that we were born to fathom,
and dwell in joy.
But these are words,
issuing like tumbleweed across
the desert;
now here and gone.
Go, start now,
your restlessness craves taming
your wounds await the healing sun,
and in a moment,
a happy lapse in your
sleeplessness
you will arrive home.
Joel Bennett
===================================================================
{4} ARTICLE
===================================================================
EXPLORING NEW APPROACHES:
THE BARRE CENTER FOR BUDDHIST STUDIES
by Andy Olendzki
How many ways are there to...how do I put it? Study Buddhism?
Understand the Dharma? Train in the //sasana//? Explore the Buddhist
tradition? Follow the path? Engage in Buddhist Studies? Inquire into
the nature of reality? You see the problem already. There are a lot of
ways of going about doing whatever-you-call-it, and what you call it
makes a significant difference to what you actually wind up doing.
The word "Buddhism" itself, as we are all no doubt aware, is a
modern word. It is an abstract noun created in English to situate a
vast range of phenomena in a Western tradition of intellectual
inquiry. "Study," too, has a specific meaning in the Western academic
community. It refers to a special kind of focused investigation that
tends to take place in classrooms, offices, studies and libraries, the
fruits of which are shared and communicated in books, papers,
articles, lectures and conferences. To "study Buddhism," then, is a
uniquely modern and Western enterprise, one that takes as its object,
for the most part, something ancient and Eastern.
All this, of course, is something quite alien to the 2500 year
Buddhist tradition itself. The teaching of the Buddha was generally
referred to as the //dharma// or //dhamma//, and the closest ancient
word we can find to denote the larger movement set off by this
teaching is the //sasana//, the "religion" or "dispensation" or
"tradition" founded by the Buddha. Training in the //sasana// seems
always to have entailed a good deal of "study," at least to the extent
that a fairly large and complex curriculum needs to be addressed,
memorized, cross-referenced and investigated. This is especially true
for the monks and nuns, who not only had to know the 227 rules of the
monastic order, but who presumably also were expected to have mastered
a prodigious amount of doctrinal material. The Four Noble Truths and
the Eightfold Path were only the beginning. Between aggregates and
elements, body parts and other objects of meditation, powers and
absorptions and perfections, and on and on -- there was a lot to
learn. Even lay-followers had a few things to keep track of besides
the precepts. School children in Sri Lanka today, for example, still
learn the //Dhammapada// by heart.
How divergent are the traditional monastic and the Western academic
ways of going about training or study? At first glance, they can seem
quite similar in some of their more doctrinal inquiries. Both, for
example, have a strong interest in the texts and their interpretation.
A sound knowledge of the canonical languages -- primarily Pali,
Sanskrit, Tibetan and Chinese -- and of the vast literatures composed
in these languages, is a shared area of concentration. Beyond this,
however, the two approaches appear to go significantly separate ways.
For traditional Buddhists, the texts, treatises and commentaries are
only a part of something much greater. The whole point to the
teaching, and presumably of its study, is to bring about freedom from
suffering for oneself and others -- to achieve liberation. Study can
be a very useful tool for dispelling delusions, for inducing right
view, and for augmenting wisdom. But it is only one of several tools,
the others including such things as the practice of meditation,
morality, renunciation and service. Study in isolation of practice, or
study that is not itself a form of practice, is limited and -- many
Buddhists would say -- a somewhat shallow and limited pursuit.
The Western scholar of Buddhism, I think, would also agree that
textual study is only a piece of a much larger picture, but quite a
different picture. The study of Buddhism does include a strong
component of trying to decipher what the Buddha and his followers
through the centuries taught, but it also goes far beyond this to
include whole realms of the human situation covered by such
disciplines as history, sociology, psychology, philosophy,
archaeology, mythology, art, architecture, and many, many others. All
of these can be brought to bear on the Buddhist tradition, but do not
inherently emerge from it. The Western academic tradition, from its
Greek origins, Renaissance rejuvenation and astounding proliferation
in the 19th and 20th centuries, is essentially a study of mankind and
the human condition. From this perspective, the study of Buddhism is
both worthwhile in itself, insofar as it is an exercise in fathoming a
unique human world view, and valuable to the much larger endeavor of
providing data for the disciplines.
But the academic study of any religion comes with its own special
dangers. A common view is that for the study to be truly academic it
must at least suspend belief -- and possibly even disbelieve --
statements of religious truth. Otherwise, it stands to lose the
precious (though perhaps imaginary) perspective of objectivity. When
disciplined intellectual activity is put into the service of the
converted, the argument goes, then we have not the study of religion
but the practice of religion. For many academics, maintaining a clear
distinction between study and practice is crucial.
So here we come to a fundamental divergence. For the Buddhist, study
should be a form of practice if it is to be at all worthwhile; while
for the academic, if study crosses over into practice it becomes
greatly diminished in value. But how clear is this distinction? Must
the two approaches remain forever at odds?
There are a few places in the world that are trying to find a new
approach to the subject, one that draws upon the strengths of each
perspective and attempts to bring them a bit closer together. Whether
or not this can be done remains to be seen. I for one am quite
optimistic.
As a product of the academy, with a degree in Religious Studies and
a specialization in Buddhism, I am basically very sympathetic of the
larger ideal of studying the human situation by drawing on a number of
disciplines and maintaining some academic "objectivity." As the
current director of the Insight Meditation Society and a practitioner
of //vipassana// meditation, I have also come to appreciate the
indispensability of meditation as a tool for Buddhist Studies. And yet
I don't find myself fitting easily or fully into either camp -- I
sometimes find much of what is written in Buddhism scholarship to be
limited, somehow missing the point, and yet also have a lot of trouble
describing myself to anyone as "Buddhist."
Perhaps that is why I feel so comfortable at the Barre Center for
Buddhist Studies. A relatively new institution, the Study Center (as
it is informally called) has emerged from the Insight Meditation
Society and still stays closely associated with this well-established
meditation retreat center. Yet its mission extends well beyond either
just the preservation and propagation of Theravada Buddhism or the
purely academic study of Buddhism. The Barre Center for Buddhist
Studies is trying to form a meaningful bridge between study and
practice, between the communities of scholars and meditators, between
the ancient orthodox tradition and the modern spirit of critical
inquiry.
There is a whole generation today of brilliant scholars who have
more than dabbled in the practice of meditation without losing their
critical faculties. There is also a growing corps of experienced
practitioners who have an eager appetite for learning more about the
tradition that has helped bring so much generosity, compassion and
wisdom to their lives. The Study Center is for both these groups of
people, and for many others who are in the forefront of changing
paradigms that no longer fit into inherited dichotomies. From long-
time meditators who are forming study sessions to meet the interests
of their sitting groups, to therapists and professional care-givers
who use meditation to help their patients out of various difficulties,
to college professors who more and more are including meditation
practice as part of their courses in religion or psychology, to monks
who have been Western-educated or who have left the //sangha// and are
trying to find new ways of serving the //dhamma// in lay life -- the
list goes on and on.
Many people today, like myself, are more interested in learning
about the moon than the finger pointing it out, and yet are not so
bound by tradition to shy away from asking awkward questions or trying
out bold new perspectives. The ancient Buddhist tradition brings to
its subject a deep respect and an appreciation of its profundity and
transformative significance that is often overlooked by some scholars.
The modern academic tradition brings an attitude of critical
examination and comparative perspective that is often lacking in the
more orthodox monastic approaches. The encounter of these two ways of
doing whatever-you-call-it in Barre is exciting and alive with
possibilities.
What I find so exciting is that we do not really know what we are
doing. There is no set plan, no particular way that we expect things
to go. It is all a great experiment, one that relies on the creative
participation of practitioners and scholars alike. If you have ideas,
or if you have any interest in helping us explore this interface
between study and practice, then please give us a call or stop by for
a visit.
===================================================================
{5} ELECTRONIC DHARMA
===================================================================
ONLINE AT THE STUDY CENTER:
THE ELECTRONIC DHARMA
by John Bullitt
Access to Insight, a free on-line information service provided by
the Study Center, is accessible to anyone with a computer and modem.
This computer "bulletin board service" (BBS) puts modern
telecommunications technology in the service of the dhamma, to provide
an electronic forum for the exchange of dhamma-related ideas and
information.
Callers of Access to Insight can keep in contact by electronic mail
("e-mail"). General announcements concerning upcoming events of
interest to the Study Center community are posted on the "bulletin
boards" -- public message areas to which everyone has access. Thanks
to DharmaNet, an international network of Buddhist-oriented electronic
bulletin board services with which we are affiliated, callers may
engage in discussion with like-minded people around the world, on a
wide variety of topics ranging from Ahimsa to Zen.
The BBS offers a wealth of other information of interest to the
Study Center community, including up-to-date course and retreat
schedules for IMS and the Study Center, an on-line edition of the
Insight newsletter, and a directory of sitting groups.
At the heart of Access to Insight is the library of Dhamma files,
all of which are freely available for callers to download onto their
personal computers. Here you will find books from the Buddhist
Publication Society, including a number of its Wheel and Bodhi Leaves
publications; transcriptions of Study Center workshops and
conferences; Dhamma talks by vipassana, Zen, and Tibetan Buddhist
teachers; books by Ajahn Lee, Mu Soeng Sunim, Ajahn Chah, Sister Ayya
Khema, and others; and much, much more. The list of titles grows
weekly, thanks to the efforts of the many volunteers participating in
DharmaNet's ongoing Dharma Book Transcription Project.
Access to Insight operates strictly on a dana basis, supported
entirely through the generosity of volunteers and friends of the Study
Center.
If you have a computer and modem, you can connect with us at (508)
433-5847. For directions on how to get started, send a self-addressed
stamped envelope to the Study Center. If you are already on the
Internet, you can learn more via e-mail by sending a message to
"info@metta.ci.net".
What's New This Spring: A Sampling of Books Now Available On-Line
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Heart Sutra: Ancient Buddhist Wisdom in the Light of Quantum
Reality by Mu Soeng Sunim (Cumberland: Primary Point Press,
1991)
The Mind Like Fire Unbound, by Thanissaro Bhikkhu (Barre: Dhamma
Dana Publications, 1993)
The Practice of Loving Kindness, by Nanamoli Thera (BPS Wheel
Publication #7)
A Human Approach to World Peace, by H.H. the Dalai Lama (Boston:
Wisdom Publications, 1984)
Zazen and Christianity, by Koun Yamada Roshi (from a talk given
at the Sydney Zen Center)
Internet
~~~~~~~~
The BBS is now on the Internet, the backbone of the emerging
"Information Superhighway." Anyone with access to the Internet can
now retrieve any of our books and other information simply by sending
an e-mail message to the BBS. The BBS then sends back a copy of the
file -- automatically. So far this year we have responded to almost
300 such automatic file-requests from six continents.
We offer a small Internet mailing list of our own, which allows
Internet users to keep up to date with Study Center events without
having to dial up the BBS directly, thus saving them a long-distance
phone call.
We are continuing to explore ways to put all this rapidly-evolving
computer and communications technology to good use in supporting the
dhamma. If you have any suggestions or ideas, we'd like to know.
Support
~~~~~~~
Access to Insight is a free service, and we will continue to offer
it for as long as there is support from the community. Dozens of
people have already contributed to this project: volunteers
transcribed many of our on-line books, course schedules, and other
dhamma materials; some are sharing their computer expertise with us;
others have made donations to help offset our expenses (telephone
bills, Internet access fees, software license fees, etc.). It is
truly a communal effort. Anyone who wants to see the possibilities of
this evolving technology brought into the service of the dhamma is
invited to help.
===================================================================
{6} IMS NEWS
===================================================================
A NEW LOOK
~~~~~~~~~~
A sangha member with a lot of experience as a graphic designer, Skip
York of Mill Valley, CA, has come forward and offered to help IMS
develop a new logo and graphic identity for its written and published
materials. We hope over the next several months to start introducing
this new look to our stationery, brochures and eventually to this
newsletter. We thank Skip for his gift of time and talent, and hope
you all will let us know what you think of the changes.
A NEW SIZE
~~~~~~~~~~
Entering the mainstream of desktop publishing, the IMS newsletter
has moved to a smaller and more convenient magazine format. We hope
by doing this to ease the production process and keep production costs
down to a minimum. Now that we publish the newsletter jointly with
the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies, its director Mu Soeng Sunim is
able to do most of the production work himself, with continuing
support from Jan Hauben and the Ruby Shoes graphic arts studio in
Watertown, Mass.
NEW BOOKS
~~~~~~~~~
Joseph Goldstein's new book //Insight Meditation: The Practice of
Freedom// has been published by Shambhala and is now available at
most book stores. The DeWitt Lecture Series which Joseph presented at
Harvard Divinity School in January, 1992 are being published this
summer by the Paulist Press as //Transforming the Mind, Healing the
World//. Also, Sharon Salzberg has a new book on //metta// which is
in production and should be out sometime next year. You might want
to keep an eye out for them both.
4th OF JULY WEEKEND RETREAT
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rodney Smith will be joined in his 4th of July weekend retreat by
Narayan Liebenson Grady of the Cambridge Insight Meditation Center,
and not by Carol Wilson as stated in the Fall schedule brochure
included in the IMS newsletter, //Insight//. We apologize for the
misprint.
ADDITIONAL THANKS DUE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In our last issue we told the story of how Sariputta relics have
made their way to Barre. Missing from that story was an important
piece: The relics were offered to IMS on the recommendation of Bob
Ebert, a frequent yogi and long-time sangha member who lives in
Cambridge. Bob was asked by the steward of the relics what dharma
center might be most appropriate to receive the relics, and we are
very thankful to Bob for recommending the Insight Meditation Society.
STAFF DHARMA PROGRAM
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The staff of IMS meets together for an afternoon every other week
for special programs and discussions of dharma-related issues. Recent
months have been particularly enriched by the visits of several guest
speakers. Mel Ash was out recently discussing his book //The Zen of
Recovery// and his experience with the interface of dharma practice
and 12-step programs. John Miller, a psychiatrist and long time
meditator from Worcester, talked with the staff about how yogis can
sometimes get into emotional and psychological difficulties on retreat
and how best to help them when this happens. Joseph Kappel, a long
time bhikkhu with Ajahn Chah in Thailand and Ajahn Sumedho in England,
talked about some of his experiences as a monk and some of the
challenges he has faced in deciding to return to lay life a few years
ago. Together with the two-week staff retreat in January, it has been
a most stimulating winter for the staff.
WANTED: ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Insight Meditation Society is looking for someone who can
oversee and supervise all of the day-to-day operational affairs of the
retreat center. The AD for operations will:
Finances: Be directly responsible (in cooperation with the
executive director) for managing all the routine financial
affairs of the center. A professional accounting consultant is
available as a resource for this responsibility, along with a
part-time bookkeeper and administrative assistant. IMS
currently uses the Peachtree accounting system.
Computers: Play a supportive role (in cooperation with the
staff computer specialist) in coordinating the information
processing needs of the center. IMS currently uses a custom
R-Base system for registrations, mailing lists, etc.
Retreat Management: Play a supportive role (in cooperation
with the registrar and the front office staff) in overseeing
and coordinating the management of meditation retreats,
including troubleshooting and decision-making.
Administration: Work with the executive director, resident
teacher, personnel director, teachers and members of the board
of directors to provide leadership and a center of gravity for
the management of daily affairs.
The position requires a good deal of worldly experience in running a
business, a non-profit organization, or some other similar enterprise.
The ideal candidate will have a sound training and considerable
experience in accounting or bookkeeping (Peachtree experience is a
plus), will be familiar and comfortable with computer systems
(especially R-Base, though it is not necessary to be a programmer),
and will have the ability to coordinate a complex operation
gracefully.
Because of the special challenges of IMS as a community, the
position further requires maturity and balance, excellent
communication skills, good insight and judgment about human nature,
flexibility, compassion and a deep commitment to the dharma and
vipassana practice. The ideal candidate will have a strong personal
practice and some experience living in community.
This is a potentially long-term administrative position offering
food, housing, excellent health benefits, generous vacation and
sitting time off, and a modest but adequate salary. It is a unique
opportunity for right livelihood in a beautiful rural New England
environment with unsurpassed dharma support.
Qualified applicants should send a resume and letter to : Executive
Director, Insight Meditation Society, 1230 Pleasant St., Barre, MA
01005. IMS is an equal opportunity employer.
ANNEX RENOVATION
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Any of you who have done much sitting at IMS over the years are
likely to have stayed in the Annex building, where most of our
retreatant rooms are located, and if so will no doubt find these
images of the Annex quite familiar. Let's face it -- it's a pretty
funky place.
Some people have developed a great affection for the clatter of the
heating pipes, the squeaking of the floors, the whistling wind through
the (closed) windows, and even for the tiny, frigid rooms at the end
of the heating loop. Unfortunately our insurance company, the local
fire chief, town building inspectors and various state regulatory
agencies are not quite as fond of the building as these
whatever-is-arising-is-just-fine old yogis.
The renovation of the Annex is long overdue, and it's past the point
where a little paint and some new carpeting will do the trick.
Starting next January--if all goes well--we plan a pretty thorough
rehabilitation of the Annex. The walls and roof are structurally
sound; and thanks to some badly needed work in the basement last
summer the foundation is sound too. But inside it's a different
story. We need to gut the entire inside of the building and replace
most of the plumbing and heating systems, upgrade the electrical
system, and re-size all the rooms to the building code. (Retreats
will still continue in the main building next year, but will be
significantly smaller and not quite as silent as usual.)
The goal will be to create as many single, soundproofed rooms as
possible, all with a good window, a sink (that works!), individual
heating control, and enough space in most cases to do walking
meditation in one's room. With new wall, ceiling and floor surfaces
the aesthetics will be vastly improved, although the decor will remain
quite austere.
This project will not be financed by course fees--you will not see
the rates go up as a result of the Annex renovation. As with most of
the major projects that have been undertaken at IMS over the last
several years, we hope to fund the entire project with voluntary
donations from the vipassana sangha. Of course, this depends on the
response we get from our continuing Annex fundraising program.
Most fortunately, IMS has recently received the offer of a
substantial matching grant from a New York foundation which makes the
entire project seem achievable. The foundation will match all
donations up to $75,000 which come in before October 31, 1994, and if
we achieve the goal will consider an additional $25,000 matching
grant!! Altogether, therefore, we stand to raise $200,000 from this
program, which is almost half of the total needed for the entire
project. With building funds of nearly $100,000 collected before the
matching challenge, and some additional grant-writing activity this
year, we hope to reach the goal of over $400,000 by January of 1995.
We will report in the fall newsletter how things are going.
Historically, the IMS community of friends and supporters has always
been most generous -- regardless of individual means. In the spirit
of dana, the voluntary giving of gifts that support and further the
dharma, the IMS sangha has so far always ensured that there is a place
in central Massachusetts devoted to the teaching and practice of
insight meditation.
===================================================================
{7} ABOUT IMS
===================================================================
INSIGHT MEDITATION SOCIETY
1230 Pleasant Street
Barre, Massachusetts 01005 USA
Tel: (508) 355-4378
INSIGHT MEDITATION (//vipassana//) is a simple and direct practice
-- the moment-to-moment awareness of the mind/body process through
calm and focused awareness. This practice originates in the Theravada
tradition of the teachings of the Buddha. Learning to observe
experiences from a place of stillness enables one to relate to life
with less fear and clinging. Seeing life as a constantly changing
process, one begins to accept pleasure and pain, fear and joy, and all
aspects of life with increasing equanimity and balance. As insight
deepens, wisdom and compassion arise. Insight meditation is a way of
seeing clearly the totality of one's being and experience. Growth in
clarity brings about penetrating insight into the nature of who we are
and increased peace in our daily lives.
The Insight Meditation Society was founded in 1975 as a nonprofit
organization to provide a place for the intensive practice of insight
meditation. IMS operates a retreat center which is set on 80 wooded
acres in the quiet country of central Massachusetts. It provides a
secluded environment for intensive meditation practice. Complete
silence is maintained at all times except during teacher interviews.
VIPASSANA RETREATS are designed for both beginning and experienced
meditators. Daily instruction in meditation and nightly Dharma talks
are given, and individual or group interviews are arranged with the
teachers at regular intervals. A typical daily schedule starts at 5am
and ends at 10pm. The entire day is spent in silent meditation
practice with alternate periods of sitting and walking meditation. The
combination of this regular schedule, the silence, group support, and
daily instruction combine to provide a beneficial environment for
developing and deepening meditation practice. Meals are vegetarian,
and accommodations are austere, mostly double rooms. Men and women do
not share rooms. Camping is not available. Retreats offered in 1994
are listed on the following pages.
INDIVIDUAL RETREATS: In addition to teacher-led retreat, the center
is open to experienced meditators (except for the month of January)
for individual retreats. IMS and its teachers encourage experienced
students--anyone who has practiced in a teacher-led retreat in the
styles of vipassana offered at IMS -- to use the center for individual
meditation practice as a way of strengthening self-reliance and
increasing the value of meditation in one's life. Individual retreats
require the prior approval of a teacher. IMS offers several forms for
individual retreats:
* Self-Retreat: A self-retreat may consist of any number of days not
to exceed the longest period of teacher-led retreat sat by the
student. During this time, meditators are expected to practice in
silence, observe the five precepts and maintain a continuity of
practice throughout the day. There are at least four group sittings
daily. Students schedule their practice individually during the
remaining hours of the day. Self retreats require the prior consent of
a teacher and can be arranged by contacting the IMS office.
* Long-Term Practice: For those wishing to do long-term meditation
practice of 118 days or more, IMS has available a limited number of
scholarships in the form of a reduced daily rate after the 88th day.
Practice guidelines are similar to those for shorter individual
retreats with an additional emphasis on self-reliance. Long-term
practice requires the prior consent of two teachers. Those interested
should contact the office for an application form and limited
available dates.
* Work Retreats: Work retreats offer an opportunity to integrate
five hours of work each day into the normal silent meditation schedule
at the center. The center occupies a large complex of buildings which
require extensive maintenance and care. We invite skilled,
semi-skilled, and enthusiastic old students to offer their energy to
the center for cleaning, painting and remodeling; landscaping,
gardening and grounds work, and assisting the cooks or administrative
staff. All work retreats are free. Work retreats are for experienced
students only. Contact the office for an application form.
EVENING DISCOURSES: When a course is in progress, anyone is welcome
to attend evening talks, and meditators with vipassana experience are
welcome to attend the group sittings. Some restrictions apply. Please
call the IMS office for the daily schedule.
DANA (generosity) is intrinsic to the 2,500 year old tradition of
Buddha dharma. Going back to the days of the Buddha, the teachings
were considered priceless and thus offered freely.
TEACHER SUPPORT: In keeping with the spirit of dana, IMS teachers do
not receive any payment for leading retreats. Course registration fees
cover only the day-to-day operating costs of the center. Teacher
support is provided by voluntary donations given by students at the
end of each retreat.
FINANCIAL AID: As another expression of dana, the Insight Meditation
Society provides two forms of financial assistance. The Scholarship
Fund allows a limited number of individuals who might not otherwise be
able to attend a retreat for financial reasons to do so. The
Sponsor-A-Yogi-Fund is specifically geared to giving financial
assistance to people with life-threatening illness who cannot
otherwise afford to come and practice. Both funds are dependent on
the generosity of the IMS community. If you are interested in
supporting these important funds, please send your donations for this
purpose to IMS at any time. If you are interested in receiving
financial support from either fund, please contact the office.
STAFF: A volunteer staff of 18, as well as the executive and
associate directors and resident teacher, work in administration,
maintenance, housekeeping, and the kitchen, guiding the day-to-day
operation of the center. Staff life offers a challenging opportunity
to integrate mindfulness with daily activities, and for service to
others. The center depends on dedicated volunteer staff people for its
continued existence. Due to regular turnover, staff positions are
periodically available in all departments. Anyone who has sat at least
one 9-day vipassana retreat is eligible to apply. If you are
interested in a staff position, please contact the IMS office.
SERVE THE DHARMA ON STAFF AT IMS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"If somehow we can practice the spirit of blessing in our work,
the spirit of service, then we can transform what could be a
very ordinary job into something that really carries us along
the great way."
-- Joseph Goldstein
IMS OFFERS: An opportunity to grow in an environment which fosters
mindfulness and metta, time and support for daily sitting, access to
dharma teachers, annual staff retreats, room, board, health insurance,
and $125 monthly stipend.
IMS ASKS: Adherence to the five precepts, commitment to meditation
practice, cultivation of a spirit of service, ability to live and work
harmoniously with others, and at least a one year commitment.
POSITIONS INCLUDE: Cooks, office staff, maintenance staff, grounds
keeper, housekeeper, computer coordinator, administrative assistance.
Openings become available throughout the year.
If you feel it may be the right time in your life for the adventures
of service and community, please call or write to IMS for information/
application.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR GIVING
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Insight Meditation Society depends greatly on donations and
contributions from its community of friends and supporters. If you
care about IMS and would like to help support its valuable work,
please think about making a donation or gift (tax-deductible, of
course). There are a number of ways you can help:
Membership Fund: A direct contribution to each year's operating
costs, memberships help keep the daily rate as low as possible.
IMS Dana Fund: A general contribution to the center, IMS dana
is allocated each year by the Board wherever it is most needed.
Scholarship Fund: This money is given out each year to people
who request financial assistance to sit meditation retreats.
Sponsor-a-yogi Fund: These funds support the meditation
practice of people in chronic pain or with life-threatening
illnesses.
Building Fund: The building fund is used to help with some
badly needed repairs and renovations of the buildings and
grounds.
Annex Fund: Started in 1993, the Annex Fund will be used for a
thorough renovation of the yogi rooms in the Annex building.
You may send your donation for any of these funds to IMS at any
time. Simply indicate the fund/s you wish to support. Also, please
contact the executive director if would consider making a bequest to
IMS as part of your estate planning.
SENIOR DHARMA TEACHERS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ruth Denison studied in Burma in the early 1960s with the meditation
master Sayagi U Ba Khin. She has been teaching since 1973 and is
founder of Dhamma Dena, a desert retreat center in Joshua Tree,
California, and The Center for Buddhism in the West in Germany.
Christina Feldman has been studying and training in the Tibetan,
Mahayana and Theravada traditions since 1970, and teaching meditation
worldwide since 1974. She is co-founder and a guiding teacher of
Gaia House in England, author of Woman Awake! and has co-authored
Stories of the Spirit, Stories of the Heart.
Joseph Goldstein is a co-founder and guiding teacher of IMS. He has
been teaching vipassana and metta retreats worldwide since 1974, and
in 1989 helped establish the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies. He is
the author of The Experience of Insight, and Insight Meditation: The
Practice of Freedom, and co-author of Seeking the Heart of Wisdom.
Jack Kornfield is a co-founder of IMS and Insight Meditation
West/Spirit Rock. He has been teaching vipassana retreats worldwide
since 1975. He is the author of A Path With Heart, co-editor of
Stories of the Spirit, Stories of the Heart, and co-author of Seeking
the Heart of Wisdom.
Michele McDonald-Smith has practiced vipassana meditation since 1975
and continues to study with Sayadaw U Pandita. She has been teaching
at IMS and worldwide since 1982, weaving her interest in relationship,
nature, and poetry into her teaching.
Corrado Pensa teaches vipassana retreats in the U.S., England and
Italy. He is founder of the Association for Mindfulness Meditation in
Rome, a professor of Eastern philosophy at the University of Rome, and
a former psychotherapist.
Larry Rosenberg practiced Zen in Korea and Japan before coming to
vipassana. His approach has been strongly influenced by the forest
tradition of Thailand and the teaching of Thich Nhat Hanh. He is the
resident teacher at Cambridge Insight Meditation Center.
Steven Smith has studied meditation since 1970, training as monk and
lay student with Sayadaw U Pandita since 1982. Founder of Vipassana
Hawaii, he teaches vipassana and metta retreats worldwide. A deep
reverence for nature and the power of myth is reflected in his
teaching.
Christopher Titmuss gives teachings worldwide concerned with spiritual
realization and insight meditation. He is the author of Spirit of
Change, The Profound and the Profane, and Fire Dance and Other Poems.
He is co-founder of Gaia House Trust and lives in Totnes, England.
Carol Wilson has been practicing vipassana meditation since 1971, most
recently with Sayadaw U Pandita. She has been teaching since 1986 in
the U.S., Canada, and Europe.
ASSOCIATE DHARMA TEACHERS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Steve Armstrong has been practicing vipassana meditation since 1975,
both as a layman and as a monk, and leads retreats in the U.S. and
Australia. His primary focus is Buddhist psychology. He was on the
staff and board of directors at IMS for several years.
Anna Douglas, in addition to vipassana, has a background in Zen,
psychology and the arts. Presently she lives in the Bay Area.
Jose Reissig, a former university professor, has taught meditation
at Gaia House, and teaches regularly at IMS.
Sharda Rogell has been involved with meditation and healing since
1975 and currently teaches retreats in Europe, India and the U.S.
Rodney Smith has been practicing vipassana for 18 years and spent 4
years as a Buddhist monk in Asia. He has been teaching meditation for
the last 10 years and is currently the director of the Hospice of
Seattle.
IMS RESIDENT TEACHER
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Marcia Rose has been studying and practicing Buddhist meditation and
related disciplines for many years, and has been resident teacher at
IMS since 1991.
===================================================================
{8} SCHEDULE
===================================================================
1994 IMS RETREAT SCHEDULE
Registrations for retreats are taken only by mail or in person. We
cannot accept any registrations by phone or fax. Course costs are
listed in the main portion of this brochure. We request that you
pre-pay the full retreat cost if possible, as this significantly
reduces the time required to process your registration. However, the
minimum deposit required with your application is listed in the table
below. After the receipt of your deposit, a confirmation letter will
be mailed to you with information on travel details and what you need
to bring.
Deposits are refundable, minus a processing fee, if we receive
notification of a change or cancellation before the opening day of the
retreat. Transfers made before a retreat's first deadline will incur
no fee. Transfers made after the first deadline, and all
cancellations, will have processing fee applied.
These fees are outlined in the table. For most retreats, the first
deadline occurs two weeks before the retreat begins, with the final
deadline one week before. The Three Month and New Year's retreats
have special deadline dates due to their popularity and the time
needed to arrange attendance at them. Cancellations or changes made
after a first deadline incur higher fees.
For many years now our retreats have filled and have had waiting
lists of those unable to get in. Please cancel as early as possible
so that others who may be waiting can have sufficient time to arrange
their participation.
Participants are expected to attend the entire retreat. Any
exceptions should be discussed with the office staff and confirmed in
writing in advance. Such partial retreats will be charged at full
retreat cost, except for the Three Month retreat (special obligations
apply to the Three Month partials.) Except in cases of emergency,
pre-arrangement, or teacher recommendation, refunds will not be
available after a retreat starts (exceptions may be made during the
first ten days of the Three Month retreat.) We have adopted these
policies to allow the greatest number of people to have the
opportunity to participate in retreats. We appreciate your
understanding.
Participation in retreats or use of facilities is always at IMS
discretion. IMS reserves the right to end retreats for individuals.
INSIGHT MEDITATION SOCIETY 1994
RETREAT SCHEDULE
IMS, 1230 Pleasant Street, Barre, MA 01005-9701
Tel: (508) 355-4378
Telephone Hours: Monday-Saturday, 10am - 12noon; 3pm - 5:30pm
May 20-30 METTA RETREAT (10 days) SM1 $280 (Steven Smith, Michele
McDonald-Smith, Carol Wilson, Kamala Masters). Metta is the Pali word
for friendship or loving-kindness. Classically it is taught as a
practice along with meditations cultivating compassion, rejoicing in
the happiness of others (sympathetic joy), and equanimity. They are
practiced to develop concentration, fearlessness, happiness, and a
loving heart. This course is devoted to cultivating these qualities.
May 30-June 10 VIPASSANA RETREAT (11 days) SM2 $305 (Steven Smith,
Michele McDonald-Smith, Steve Armstrong, Kamala Masters). This retreat
emphasizes the intensive continuity of mindfulness, along with some
daily practice of metta (loving kindness) meditation. The teaching is
in the basic style of Mahasi Sayadaw, refining the tools of mental
noting, slow movement, and precise, open awareness as a way of
deepening the wisdom and compassion within us.
May 20-June 10 METTA & VIPASSANA RETREATS (21 days) SM3 $555
June 14-19 MEN'S COURSE (5 days) MEN $155 (Steven Smith and Steve
Armstrong). This traditional vipassana retreat will combine silent
sitting with careful examination and thoughtful dialogue of
significant issues in men's lives. Suitable for new and experienced
students.
June 23-27 YOUNG ADULTS COURSE (4 days) YA $130 (Steven Smith). This
retreat is specifically for teenagers. It will offer beginning
meditation instruction, 1/2 hour sitting and walking periods,
discussions, stories, and free time. The aim is to allow young people
to discover, develop, and value their natural spirituality with a
tremendous amount of support. Extensive supervision will be provided.
July 1-4 4TH OF JULY WEEKEND -- THE HEART IN VIPASSANA MEDITATION (3
days) 4TH $120 (Rodney Smith and Narayan Liebenson Grady). This
weekend course will center on the ways of the heart, and how awareness
brings us in touch with the joys and sorrows of living with
ever-increasing sensitivity, stability and love.
July 8-17 VIPASSANA RETREAT (For Experienced Students) (9 days) LR4
$255 (Larry Rosenberg and Corrado Pensa). Anapana-sati -- Buddha's
teaching on the full awareness of breathing -- will be the frame of
reference for this retreat. Conscious breathing will be practiced to
develop and nourish both serenity (samatha) and liberating insight
(vipassana). In addition to formal sitting and walking meditation, we
will learn to keep the breath in mind throughout the day enabling us
to stay awake in the midst of all ordinary activities. Retreatants
are required to have sat at least one 9-day retreat at IMS, or a
comparable vipassana retreat situation elsewhere.
July 22-31 VIPASSANA RETREAT (9 days) CF1 $255 (Christina Feldman and
Anna Douglas). An opportunity to develop calmness, wisdom and
compassion in a supportive environment. Emphasis is placed upon
developing sensitivity, attention and awareness in sitting and walking
meditation to foster our innate gifts of inner listening, balance and
understanding. Silence, meditation, instruction and evening talks are
integral parts of this retreat.
August 4-9 FAMILY COURSE (5 days) FAM Adult $155, Child $50
(Christina Feldman). This course explores integrating meditation and
family life. In a less formal atmosphere, a full program of sittings,
discussions, family meditations, and talks is offered. Child care is
shared cooperatively through a rotation system with parents and
volunteers. Each family unit pays an additional $25 for professional
child care coordination. Please specify names, year of birth, and sex
of all children on your registration.
Aug 12-21 INSIGHT MEDITATION AND INQUIRY (9 days) CT2 $255
(Christopher Titmuss, Sharda Rogell and Jose Reissig). The emphasis of
this retreat is similar to the April 22 retreat. (See above)
Sept 2-5 LABOR DAY WEEKEND (3 days) RD1 $120
Sept 2-11 VIPASSANA RETREAT (9 days) RD2 $255
(Ruth Denison). This retreat fosters awareness and correct
understanding of life's process in ourselves and others. The focus of
the practice is on opening the heart, discovering oneself, and
developing insight into the reality of the mind and body. Retreat
activities include sound and body movement meditations, and the
development of mindfulness in the day-to-day activities of our lives.
This retreat is somewhat different from other IMS retreats, and
includes sustained and on-going verbal teacher instruction throughout
the day.
Sept 21-Dec 17 THREE MONTH RETREAT (87 days) 3MO $2,200
Sept 21-Nov 3 PARTIAL #1 (6 Weeks) PART1 $1,150
Nov 3-Dec 17 PARTIAL #2 (6 Weeks) PART2 $1,150 (Joseph Goldstein,
Carol Wilson, Steven Smith, Michele McDonald-Smith and Steve
Armstrong).The three month course is a special time for practice.
Because of its extended length and the continuity of guidance, it is a
rare opportunity to deepen the powers of concentration, wisdom and
compassion. The teaching is in the style of Mahasi Sayadaw, refining
the skillful means of mental noting, slow movement and precise, open
awareness. Prerequisite is one 9-day retreat with an IMS teacher or
special permission.
Dec 28-Jan 6 NEW YEAR'S RETREAT (9 days) NY $255 (Jack Kornfield and
Rodney Smith). The New Year is traditionally a time for listening to
the heart and taking stock of our lives from the deepest wisdom
within. This retreat offers a systematic training in mindfulness of
breath, body, feelings, and mind. Emphasis is placed on incorporating
a spirit and training of loving kindness into all aspects of the
practice, developing our capacity for clarity and compassion in each
moment. Please note the special cancellation deadlines for this
retreat.
===================================================================
{9} REGISTRATION FORM: IMS Retreats
===================================================================
If you are taking an IMS Course, please fill out this form. Please
print clearly. Please photocopy this form if you will be registering
for more than one course at IMS.
Name___________________________________________
Phone ( ) ___________________
Address__________________________________________________________
City_______________State_____________________Country__________________
Zip__________
_
Check box /_/ if this is a new address.
Old address______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
_
/_/ I have been to IMS before.
_
/_/ I have not been to IMS before.
Retreat experience___________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
Year of Birth_________ Female/Male________ Do you snore?_________
Physical disabilities or special needs________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
_
/_/ I can offer a ride to others in my area coming to this retreat.
Course Code________________ Course Cost____________
Deposit Enclosed__________________
(See table for cancellation dates. Prepayment of full retreat cost
is greatly appreciated.)
Dates you will be here:
From_______________________to_________________________________
I have added the following contribution to my deposit for the
scholarship fund $____________________
Days spent at IMS outside of formal retreat dates are charged at $29
per day.
Mail to:
Insight Meditation Society
1230 Pleasant Street
Barre, MA 01005 USA
===================================================================
{10} BCBS NEWS
===================================================================
Inaugural Academic Course at the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As a first step towards fulfilling its vision of a new paradigm of
Buddhist studies within a contemplative environment, the Study Center
offered a 2-week intensive academic program in Buddhist Studies at its
new dormitory/conference hall building from January 9-21, 1994. This
vision has been inspired by the great Buddhist universities in ancient
India. The objective of this paradigm is to explore Buddhist thought
and practice as a living tradition, to provide a bridge between study
and practice, between scholarly understanding and meditative insight.
The 2-week program provided an in-depth academic look at the
doctrinal and historical background of the tradition. The daily
schedule was framed by morning and evening meditation as well as a
weekend long vipassana meditation retreat in the middle of the course.
Although unscheduled, students were provided with impromptu
opportunities for experiencing different forms of Theravada and
Mahayana chanting. All students found the course to be a very
enriching balance of academic investigation and experiential
participation.
The 17 students shared a great variety of ages and backgrounds and
geographical locations. There were participants from California,
Florida, Tennessee, Missouri, New York, Vermont, Connecticut and
Massachusetts. Several had an extensive background in meditation
practice while others had almost none; almost all shared a deep
interest in enriching their understanding of the tradition.
The core faculty for the course were Dr. Andy Olendzki, Executive
Director of IMS & BCBS, and Mu Soeng Sunim, Director of Barre Center
for Buddhist Studies. There was a rich contributing faculty as well,
including Dr. Dorothy Austin, who teaches psychology and religion at
Drew University; Dr. Perrin Cohen, who teaches psychology at
Northeastern University; Dr. Diana Eck, professor of Comparative
Religion and Indian Studies at Harvard University; and Dr. Jack
Engler, author and vipassana meditation teacher, who is a psychologist
at Harvard Medical School and The Cambridge Hospital. Joseph
Goldstein, guiding teacher at the Insight Meditation Society, offered
seminars on the wisdom and compassion aspects of meditative
experience.
One student wrote, "Sitting here, seeking balance amidst the ebb and
flow of my daily life, I realize just how thoroughly thought out the
meeting of my every need was during my stay at the Center. From the
excellent meals and insightful teachings, to the beautiful landscape
and finely crafted facilities, I had a wonderful experience." Some
other comments on the course: "Well-organized and complete. I
appreciated the range of presenters." "Provided me with an excellent
foundation [in] Buddhist teachings." "Great, excellent presenters ...
easy and pleasant to absorb many teachings."
This program will be offered again from January 8 to 20, 1995. See
course schedules for more details.
===================================================================
{11} ABOUT BCBS
===================================================================
THE BARRE CENTER FOR BUDDHIST STUDIES
149 Lockwood Road, Barre, Massachusetts 01005
Phone: (508)355-2347
The Barre Center for Buddhist Studies is dedicated to bringing
together teachers, students, scholars and practitioners who are
committed to exploring Buddhist thought and practice as a living
tradition, faithful to its origins and lineage, yet adaptable and
alive in each new time and place. The Center's purpose is to provide
a bridge between study and practice, between scholarly understanding
and meditative insight; it encourages active engagement with the
tradition in a spirit of genuine inquiry and investigation.
The Barre Center for Buddhist Studies, or more informally, the Study
Center, offers a variety of study and research opportunities,
lectures, classes, seminars, workshops, conferences, retreats,
independent study, and, in the future, scholars-in-residence program.
The Study Center plans to offer research and publication facilities
for Buddhist scholarship and translation. Its vision calls for
dialogue between different schools of Buddhism, discussions with other
religious and scientific traditions. The emphasis is always on the
interrelationship between study and practice, and on exploring the
relevance of classical teachings to contemporary life.
Location: The Study Center is located on 90 acres of wooded land in
rural, central Massachusetts, one-half mile from Insight Meditation
Society. Founded in 1989, the Study Center provides a peaceful and
contemplative setting for the study and investigation of the Buddha's
teaching. For many years, it had been a dream of teachers at Insight
Meditation Society to complement the silent meditation retreats at IMS
with study programs. This vision became a reality with donations
enabling the purchase of a 200-year old farmhouse and surrounding
forest property. After extensive renovations, there are now
residential facilities, a library, offices and a dining room that
provide a comfortable setting for students, staff and teachers. A
newly completed dormitory and conference hall provides space for
larger workshops and more course participants.
The Library at the Study Center is a major resource to be used by
both students and visitors. Our collection consists of the complete
Pali Canon in both English and Pali, several hundred volumes on
Theravadan, Tibetan and Zen Buddhism and a variety of journals and
newsletters. As part of our vision, we plan to expand our current
collection into a respectable research library.
Courses and Registration: The Study Center courses offer learning
to students with a wide range of exposure to the material taught. If
you have questions about a course, please call. Registrations are
accepted only by mail or in person. We cannot accept registrations by
phone. Early registration is advised since our capacity is limited.
Please send the entire course cost as deposit. Upon receipt of your
deposit, a confirmation will be mailed to you with information on
travel details and what you need to bring. Deposits are fully
refundable until 10 days before the start of the course. After that a
small processing fee will be charged. If you need to cancel, please
do so before the day of the course, otherwise there be an additional
cancellation fee.
DANA (generosity) is intrinsic to the 2,500 year old tradition of
Buddha Dharma. Going back to the days of the Buddha, the teachings
were considered priceless and thus offered freely. Teacher support
comes primarily from voluntary contributions from students. The
registration fee covers the center's cost of housing the retreat, and
a small part of our ongoing expenses.
As another expression of dana, the Study Center makes scholarships
available to those who might not be able to attend a course due to
financial need. Please contact us if you need financial assistance.
TEACHERS AT BARRE CENTER FOR BUDDHIST STUDIES
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(For teachers not listed here see biographies in the IMS section)
Sylvia Boorstein has been teaching vipassana meditation since 1985 and
is a founding teacher of Spirit Rock Center in California. She is
also a psychotherapist, wife, mother, and grandmother, and is
particularly interested in seeing daily life as practice.
Tara Bennet-Goleman, M.A, is a psychotherapist and has been practicing
meditation for over 20 years. She leads workshops on the integration
of mindfulness and psychotherapy, meditative arts and clinical
relaxation, and has a private psychotherapy practice.
Robert Ebert, Ph.D., a psychologist and musician, was formerly on the
faculty of Boston University. He is a collector of Buddhist art and
has practiced in different Buddhist traditions for more than 20 years.
Daniel Goleman, Ph.D., is a psychologist and long time student of
vipassana meditation. His book The Meditative Mind explores
meditation paths from an Abhidhamma perspective, and examines the
implications of Buddhist psychology for the West.
Michael Liebenson Grady currently teaches at Cambridge Insight
Meditation Center.
Narayan Liebenson Grady teaches full time at Cambridge Insight
Meditation Center and regularly at Insight Meditation Society.
Ven. Henepola Gunaratana, Ph.D., has been a Buddhist monk for over 50
years. Knowledgeable in both Western and Buddhist philosophy, he is
the founder of Bhavana Society, a retreat and monastic center in rural
West Virginia. He is the author of a number of books, including
Mindfulness in Plain English.
Gavin Harrison teaches Buddhist insight meditation in groups and
retreat throughout New England. He is HIV+ and meditation practice is
at the core of his efforts to engage the AIDS virus in a
life-affirming way. He lives in Amherst, Mass.
Bob Hiller is the director of Cambridge Insight Meditation Center in
Cambridge, Mass., and a vipassana practitioner.
Jon Kabat-Zinn is founder and director of the Stress Reduction Clinic
at the UMass Medical Center. The focus of his teaching is on
mind/body interactions for healing and clinical applications of
mindfulness meditation for people with chronic pain and stress-related
disorders. He is the author of Full Catastrophe Living: Using the
Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain and Illness; and
Wherever You Go There You are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday
Life.
Daeja Napier is the founding teacher of Newbury Insight Meditation
Center and the Phillips Exeter Academy Insight Meditation Program.
She is also on the teaching staff of Interface Foundation. She has
been studying and practicing Buddhist meditation for over 20 years and
is the mother of five children.
V. Walter Odajnyk, Ph.D., is a student of Zen Buddhism and a Jungian
analyst in private practice in New York City and Westport, CT. He is
the author of the recently published book Gathering the Light: A
Psychology of Meditation.
Charles O'Hara, formerly a Theravada Buddhist monk in Sri Lanka, is a
major supplier of Buddhist art to practitioners in this country. He
lives in Susquehana, Pennsylvania.
Andy Olendzki, Ph.D., received a degree in Religious Studies from the
University of Lancaster in England, and studied at Harvard and the
University of Sri Lanka. He is executive director of IMS & BCBS.
Mu Soeng Sunim is director of the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies.
He is a Zen monk and the author of Thousand Peaks: Korean
Zen--Tradition and Teachers, and Heart Sutra: Ancient Buddhist Wisdom
in the Light of Quantum Reality.
Lama Surya Das is an American poet, writer, and Tibetan Buddhist lama
and meditation teacher. He has been studying with the great teachers
of the major Tibetan Buddhist schools and spent eight years in
secluded retreats. He is the author of The Snow Lion's Turquoise
Mane: Wisdom Tales from Tibet.
Rabbi Sheila Weinberg is the Rabbi of the Jewish Community of Amherst,
Mass, and a graduate of The Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in
Philadelphia. She is one of the principal organizers of the
Jewish-Buddhist Dialogue at the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies, and
interested in feminism, social change and spirituality as forces for
the renewal of Judaism.
===================================================================
{12} SCHEDULE
===================================================================
THE BARRE CENTER FOR BUDDHIST STUDIES
1994 COURSE SCHEDULE
June 12 SUBLIME STATES OF MIND (BRAHMA VIHARAS)
(Sunday) Michele McDonald-Smith and Steven Smith (94SM $45). The
Buddha taught that cultivation of four states of mind -- Loving
Kindness, Compassion, Sympathetic Joy, and Equanimity -- are the great
peacemakers and healers of suffering inherent in our human condition.
This course will use traditional contemplative practices to cultivate
these four qualities of heart and mind.
June 17-22 SUTTA STUDIES
(Fri-Wed) Bhante Henepola Gunaratana (BG1 $150). This dhamma study
course will explore the dialogues of the Buddha with an emphasis on
the Mahasatipatthana Sutta. This sutta is the basis for both samatha
(concentration) and vipassana (insight) practices. Students will have
the opportunity to both study and practice the meaning of this very
important teaching.
June 23-27 VIPASSANA MEDITATION FOR PARENTS OF YOUNG ADULTS
(Thurs-Mon) Bhante Henepola Gunaratana (BG2 $120) This four-day course
is designed to give parents of participants in the IMS Young Adults
Course a unique opportunity to join the young adults in practicing
Insight Meditation. Although the two retreats will be separate, they
will occur at the same time and may have joint Dhamma talks. This
retreat is open to anyone, but priority will be given to parents with
children are participating in the Young Adults course.
June 25 EXPLORING FULLNESS OF LIFE IN THE FACE OF DEATH
(Saturday) Gavin Harrison and Rodney Smith (94GR $45) Conflict with
the truth of our mortality creates enormous suffering in our life.
Difficulty with aging, illness, change, insecurity -- all are
ultimately founded in our nonacceptance of the inevitability of death.
By honestly facing our mortality, we open to the possibility of deep
freedom, joy and peace in our life. This workshop will engage --
through meditation, discourse, and discussion -- the issue of birth
and death, so that together we come face to face with the fact of our
mortality.
July 9 THE TEACHINGS OF AJAHN MAHA BOOWA
(Saturday) Corrado Pensa (94CP $45). Ajahn Maha Boowa is one of the
most renowned living meditation masters in the Thai forest tradition.
He is a disciple of Ajahn Mun (1870-1949), perhaps the most
charismatic monk in Thailand in this century. Ajahn Maha Boowa's
teaching, in accordance with the Thai forest tradition, encourages
using the power of samadhi to nourish a more and more refined
mindfulness and discernment (satipanna) into the fundamental nature of
existence.
July 16 BUDDHIST CHANTING: THERAVADA AND MAHAYANA FORMS
(Saturday) Mu Soeng Sunim and Bob Hiller (94BC $45). This workshop
will introduce participants to Theravada and Mahayana forms of
Buddhist chanting. Often Buddhist chanting is used both as
concentration practice and a teaching tool. Intensive experiential
participation will be accompanied by historical and cultural
backgrounds of how chanting is used in different Buddhist cultures.
Sept. 10 MINDFULNESS AND STRESS REDUCTION: BRINGING THE DHARMA INTO
THE MAINSTREAM
(Saturday) Jon Kabat Zinn, Ph.D (JKZ $45) Jon Kabat-Zinn, founder and
director of the Stress Reduction Center at UMass Medical Center will
describe his work at the clinic and in prisons, the inner cities and
schools. This will form the back- ground for participatory inquiry
into the integration of dharma, meditation practices and perspectives
into mainstream institutions and life. Discussion will include issues
and barriers that arise around this integration.
Sept. 11 FREEING THE MIND: MEDITATION AND DIALOGUE
(Sunday) Joseph Goldstein (94JG $45) This workshop will explore
meditative techniques for working with difficult emotions. Anger,
fear, jealousy, loneliness, boredom, unhappiness all arise at
different times in our life. Through discussion and practice, we will
bring the liberating insight of dharma to these experiences, allowing
us to live from a place of natural open awareness.
Sept. 17 ART AS DHARMA, DHARMA AS ART
(Saturday) Charles O'Hara and Robert Ebert (94OH $45) This workshop
will provide a survey of the development of Buddhist art and its
relation to the spread of Buddhism throughout Asia. Diverse and
varying meditative and religious practices, including art, will be
emphasized. The presentation will use paintings, sculpture and slides
to highlight the major cultural manifestations of Buddhism.
Sept. 24 A JUNGIAN UNDERSTANDING OF BUDDHIST MEDITATION
(Saturday) Walter Odajnyk, Ph.D. (94WO $45) The aim of this workshop
will be to apply the insights of Jungian psychology to the processes
and
goals of Vipassana and Zen meditation. It will enable practitioners
to look at the effects their meditation has on the conscious ego
structure and on the personal and transpersonal layers of the psyche.
October 1 METTA (LOVING KINDNESS)
(Saturday) Michele McDonald-Smith and Steven Smith (SM2 $45) In the
cultivation of the wholesome qualities of mind, metta (loving
kindness) is the foundation of basic human warmth; karuna
(compassion) opens us to the sorrows of the world; mudita (sympathetic
joy) opens us to the joys of the world; upekkha (equanimity) is the
balance of mind to hold both of these opposites. This course will use
the practice of metta as foundation for cultivating these four
qualities of heart and mind.
Oct. 14-16 REFLECTIONS ON THE ANAPANASATI SUTTA
(Weekend) Larry Rosenberg (94LR $120). Anapanasati Sutta, the
Buddha's teaching on the full awareness of breathing will be the focus
of this period of textual study within a contemplative framework.
Through formal sitting and walking meditation, we will develop both
serenity (samatha) and insight (vipassana), and learn to keep the
breath in mind through the day, enabling us to stay awake in the midst
of all ordinary activities.
October 22 FREEING THE HEART: AN EXPLORATION OF BUDDHIST ETHICS IN
DAILY LIFE
(Saturday) Narayan and Michael Liebenson Grady (NMG $45). The Five
Precepts provide a framework for cultivating clarity and compassion in
ourselves and in our relationships with others. In this workshop, we
will investigate the application of Buddhist ethics in contemporary
life.
October 30 PARENTING: STAYING ALIVE AND COMPASSIONATE IN THE SEA OF
FAMILY DHARMA
(Sunday) Daeja Napier (94DN2 $45) Western practitioners of
mindfulness/vipassana are primarily householders, trying to be
compassionate and understanding in the midst of raising children,
dealing with families, jobs etc. This workshop focuses on the
challenge of being parents, of bringing the dharmic perspective to the
karmic field of parenting, of implementing the values of metta
(loving-kindness), karuna (compassion), mudita (sympathetic joy), and
upekkha (equanimity) in enhancing our capacity to be fully present and
effective in life.
Nov. 10-13 JEWISH-BUDDHIST CONTEMPLATIVE DIALOGUE
(Thurs-Sun) Sylvia Boorstein and Rabbi Sheila Weinberg (JBC $180).
This conference/retreat is a continuation of the yearly
Jewish-Buddhist dialogue held at the Study Center in 1992 and 1993.
This year's focus is on deepening spiritual experience through silence
and contemplation. A day of Vipassana and Metta (Loving-Kindness)
meditation and practice will precede Shabbat celebration, talks and
discussions on pre-selected topics (including investigation of
meditative tradition in Judaism and different dimensions of Jewish
renewal), and study of Jewish and Buddhist texts on Impermanence and
Emptiness.
Nov. 19 MINDFULNESS OF EMOTIONAL PATTERNS
(Saturday) Daniel Goleman and Tara Bennett-Goleman (GOL $45). The
observing power of mindfulness can help us investigate the habitual
emotional patterns that cause us suffering. Drawing from Buddhist
psychology and Western modes of the mind, integrating mindfulness with
cognitive therapy, we will investigate ways to free our selves from
repetitive patterns in daily life -- our relationships, our work -- as
they arise in our practice and on retreats.
Dec. 2-4 METTA (LOVING KINDNESS)
(Weekend) Daeja Napier (DN3 $120) Metta is the first of the Brahma
Viharas (Sublime States of Mind) taught by the Buddha. It is a
concentration practice which softens the experience of life, enhancing
a loving, compassionate, joyful and balanced relationship with oneself
and others. This workshop will explore the teaching and practice of
Metta to restore a sense of loving connection with ourselves and the
world around us.
Dec. 9-11 DZOG CHEN: AWAKENING THE BUDDHA WITHIN
(Weekend) Lama Surya Das (SD2 $120) Dzog-chen (Tibetan for "The
Natural Great Perfection") teaches awareness techniques for awakening
to inner freedom, and directly introduces the inherent freedom, purity
and perfection of the innate Buddha-Mind, and the interconnectedness
of all beings.
Oct-Dec INTRODUCTION TO PALI LANGUAGE
(Weekly) Andy Olendzki, Ph.D.(PALI Dana) This course will start with a
review of Pali grammar and vocabulary and go on to reading classical
texts as a way to build our understanding of vocabulary, grammar and
meaning of the suttas that are most frequently used in vipassana
teachings.
Jan 8-20 1995 INTENSIVE PROGRAM IN BUDDHIST STUDIES
(2 Weeks) (Resident and Visiting Faculty) (95INT $750) This repeat of
the academic program is a new vision of the study of Buddhism in
America. It provides an in-depth academic introduction to the
doctrinal and historical background with a contemplative environment.
The objective of the program is to explore Buddhist thought and
practice as a living tradition, to provide a bridge between study and
practice, between scholarly understanding and meditative insight.
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{13} REGISTRATION FORM: BCBS Courses
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NAME_________________________________________________
TEL_______________________
ADDRESS______________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
Course Code
1._______________2._________________3.________________4._____________
Total Cost__________Deposit enclosed_________
Send check to: BCBS, 149 Lockwood Road, Barre, MA 01005
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{14} PALI TRANSLATION
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A WISH OF LOVING KINDNESS
[Cullavagga V.6]
translated by Andy Olendzki
apadakehi me mettam; For those without feet, I have love.
mettam dvipadakehi me; I have love for all with two feet.
catuppadehi me mettam; For those with four feet, I have love.
mettam bahuppadehi me. I have love for all with many feet.
ma mam apadako himsi; May those without feet do me no harm.
ma mam himsi dvipadako; May none with two feet do me harm.
ma mam catuppado himsi; May those with four feet do me no harm.
ma mam himsi bahuppado. May none with many feet do me harm.
sabbe satta sabbe pana May all beings, all living things,
sabbe bhuta ca kevala All who've come to be -- one and all --
sabbe bhadrani passantu May they see every blessing!
ma kinci papam agama. May no evil at all come to them!
appamano buddho; Without limit is the Buddha.
appamano dhammo; Without limit is the Dhamma.
appamano sangho. Without limit is the Sangha.
This less-well-known metta verse has its origins in an ancient,
probably pre-Buddhist, snake charm. It is taught by the Buddha in the
Vinaya in response to his hearing of a monk who perished after being
bitten by a snake. The first stanza, not translated here, extends
loving kindness to the four main groups of snake deities. The Buddha
tells the monks that if they adequately develop loving kindness to
these snake deities, they will be free of harm from snake bites.
More interesting is the characteristic way in which the Buddha
adapts an existing tradition -- charms against snake bites -- to serve
as a vehicle for his own more universal teaching. He expands the
cultivation of loving kindness far beyond snakes and reptiles to
include insects, animals and all human beings. At the same time he
emphasizes the interdependent thinking that one's best protection
against being harmed is to do no harm oneself to others.
The word metta has a more unique scope than even that most protean
of English words -- love -- can easily express. Except for the fact
that it throws off the eight-syllable meter of the verse, one can
easily substitute words such as friendship, friendliness, deep
unselfish caring or loving kindness.
[end of file]
