Offerings
Evening Classes: Formal silent sitting and walking practices are complemented by the systematic investigation of a meditative theme through material presented and discussion. Practice in daily life will be emphasized throughout. Monday classes are designed for beginners (may be repeated); Wednesdays are for ongoing students. For class dates and times, please see the Weekday Schedule page. All classes are mult-session, except for Refuges and Precepts.
Introduction to Insight and Loving Kindness Meditations (Monday evening classes with Matthew Daniell) Basic instruction in sitting and walking meditation will be given along with a period of questions and answers. Loving Kindness Meditation, which can help to strengthen and open the heart will be taught as a complement to Insight Meditation in this series. No experience is necessary and all levels are welcome. Although not a required prerequisite, this class serves to prepare students for other classes and retreats. Pre-registration for the entire series is recommended, although students may attend individual sessions on a drop in basis.
Four Gateways to Clarity (Wednesday Evening Classes with Matthew Daniell). The classical texts on the ‘Four Foundations of Mindfulness’ teach us that by paying close attention to our inner life in the form of body (kaya), feeling tone (Vedana), mind/heart (chitta), and the content and nature of experience (dhamma) we can live our lives more fully and with greater wisdom. We can become more clear. Mindfulness of breathing and inquiry will help support us, as we systematically explore how in formal silent meditation, daily life exercises, and in-class discussions. Some prior meditation experience required.
Workshop. Inspired by ancient tradition, reflection and silent practice will be combined. Each workshop will offer periods of presented material and guided meditation. Discussion will help deepen our practice and explore its relevance to daily life in an interactive as well as contemplative format.
Mystic Poetry and Insight Meditation (Ravi Nathwani and Matt Daniell). Mystical poetry bypasses the intellect and opens the heart through metaphor and image. Insight Meditation touches the heart by grounding awareness in the present moment. Together they can lead us deeper into the mystery of being alive in the here and now.
We are fortunate to have Ravi Nathwani, editor of the recently published book, Mala of the Heart, 108 Sacred Poems with us. In this workshop Ravi will read poems from his book, which include the works of the mystic poets Rumi and Kabir, while Matthew will guide us in meditation. Both will lead us in discussion in which we will be encouraged to explore our own understanding of these rich traditions.
Growing up in India, Ravi Nathwani spent time with numerous masters. Now he lives primarily in California and teaches at various centers as well as travelling and giving readings from his recently published book. He and Matthew are longtime friends and are currently Professors at the Tufts University Summer School co-teaching a class on Hindu Yoga and Buddhist Meditation.
Retreats. Half and full day silent retreats will combine periods of sitting and walking meditation. Instruction and opportunities for group discussion and individual interviews with the teacher will be included as we explore the transformative power of meditation for our lives. An optional period of mindful movement or yoga will be offered on some retreats. All of the retreats except for Kate Wheeler's Joy and Gratitude are Insight Meditation retreats with a particular theme. For retreat dates and times, please see the Weekend Schedule page. Beginners as well as experienced meditators are welcome.
Classic Insight Meditation Retreat. The Buddha taught that cultivating mindfulness of the body, breath, heart and mind can be powerful tools supporting inner calm and insight. Silent periods of sitting and walking meditation, as well as dharma instruction and opportunities to discuss our practice, will provide the form in which we explore our potential for greater freedom.
Loving Kindness in Vipassana Practice (Chas DiCapua). Metta or Loving Kindness is often practiced separately from the mindfulness practice. During this day long retreat, we’ll explore how we can imbue our mindfulness practice with Loving Kindness. So that mindfulness is supported by Loving Kindness and vice versa. This exploration will include gently coming into contact with the habits of our hearts and minds that are other than Loving Kindness, and how to use the mindfulness to work with them.
Mental Formations (Kate Wheeler). The mind is the portal by which we interpret and respond to events. Feelings, perceptions, impulses, memories, beliefs, thoughts whirl about, charged with forces of attraction, repulsion, and misinterpretation. The Buddha called all of these experiences 'mental formations' and they are among the most powerful influences on our quality of life, both individually and collectively. Yet much of this inner life takes place at or below the threshold of conscious awareness. If we train ourselves to look at our minds, within a clear and directed awareness we begin to see how these formations operate. Without entering into battle with them, we simply allow them to arise and dissolve, taking an interest in what's going on. This attitude can prevent a momentary pang from solidifying into negative self-images, or an impulse toward defensiveness or greed from blossoming into acting-out. Over time we become more integrated and comfortable in our own skins, finding joy in exploring parts of ourselves that may previously have been locked away and unknown.
Loving Kindness (Kate Wheeler). Loving Kindness Meditation is a practice that cultivates a good heart. Based on 2600 year old instructions given by the Buddha, this practice of repeating phrases intending good will has helped countless people over the centuries to counter inner fear, anger, confusion and isolation. Periods of guided sitting and walking meditation will be combined with theory and discussion as we explore new ways of nourishing ourselves and others through the power of cultivating our own minds and hearts.
Practice Informed by the Badiya Sutta (Chas DiCapua). The Buddhas teachings to Bahiya the wander are pithy and contain the essential directions for how to live in this world without becoming enmeshed in, and indentified with experience. Using our mindfulness practice, well explore, in our own experience, what the Buddha meant by his teachings to Bahiya, In the seen there is only the seen, in the heard, there is only the heard, etc. Some prior meditation experience will be helpful for this retreat.
Four Gateways to Clarity (A Series with Matthew Daniell): The classical texts on the ‘Four Foundations of Mindfulness’ teach us that by paying close attention to our inner life in the form of body (kaya), feeling tone (Vedana), mind/heart (chitta), and the content and nature of experience (dhamma) we can live our lives more fully and with greater wisdom. The four foundations of mindfulness become gateways to clarity touching our daily lives deeply when we practice them in an inclusive, holistic way. In this four part series of half day retreats (which may be taken together, or as any of the parts) we will emphasize one foundation, or gateway, in each session, while we embrace their interdependent nature as it bears on the quality of our lives. All levels are welcome.
Four Gateways to Clarity: Exploring Bodily Life can provide a powerful foundation for grounding awareness in the present. Working with bodily sensations and their relationship to an inner sense of space; thoughts, moods and emotions, and the outer environment can help us to move more deeply into the mystery of being fully alive, here and now, on the cushion and off.
Four Gateways to Clarity: Exploring Feeling Tone. It is said that with each moments experience an accompanying feeling tone arises. Be it comfort, discomfort, or neutrality we are constantly subject to a feeling tone quality of experience. By becoming aware of feeling tone as a process of living we can start to unravel the mystery of how we are often ruled by seeking pleasure and avoiding pain, and begin to touch present moment spaces where we are ruled by neither but fully alive and clear in the here and now.
Four Gateways to Clarity: Exploring the Mind/Heart. So much of our repetitive mental and emotional habit energies seam to get in the way of living in a clear and intimate way and drain us of vitality. Learning to give space to, and look directly into the movements and energies of the mind/heart, can begin to undo unwise inner patterns, and provide a powerful gateway into greater self-understanding, clarity, freshness and ease. In this retreat, building on the foundations of mindfulness of the body, and feelings, we will explore how.
Four Gateways to Clarity: Exploring the Nature of Experience and Freedom. Dhamma is an ancient word which, in its essence, points to the nature of things. All things in this world and our minds and hearts are natural processes. We are all a part of nature, but somehow we often live in a way that is insensitive to this reality, and suffer the consequences. Working with dhamma as a meditative theme we seek to weaken the cause of this tendency, this ‘optical delusion of the mind’, as Einstein put it. By seeing clearly into all experience as change and flow we can begin to loosen our grip on painful patterns of separation and wake up more fully and skillfully to our lives.
Other Activities
Drop in Sittings (Tuesdays and Thursdays, morning and/or evening) are offered in the simplicity of silence without instruction. An ending bell will be rung by a practice leader.
Tuesday Half Day Retreats (with Matthew Daniell) are designed to be flexible to personal schedules while offering the opportunity to deepen practice through periods of silent sitting and walking meditation. Minimal instruction offered as needed. You may come for part, or all of each of these groups. While at the center, please adhere closely to the schedule and maintain silence. These practice periods are not suitable for complete beginners. The Introduction to Meditation class or equivalent experience is strongly recommended before attending.
Individual Interviews are designed to help us with formal practice and explore more intimately how mindfulness can help us in our daily lives. Interviews are available during retreats and for IMCN members by request.