*Day-long Retreat on Earth Day with SIM Community Mentor, Rich Howard

Day-long Retreat on Earth Day with SIM Community Mentor, Rich Howard.

The Buddha touched the Earth as witness to his awakening. He encouraged meditating under trees. Our practice benefits ever-expanding circles of beings when we connect it to the Earth. In this daylong retreat on Earth Day, we will combine mindful discussion with silent practice, including outdoor awareness exercises, working with the Four Elements, and eating meditation. We will open to the grief and the joy of our current relationship with the Earth and all its inhabitants.

Bring a lunch and sun protection (hat and/or fragrance-free sunscreen). At the retreat and at the bottom of the webpage, participants will have an opportunity to offer monetary dana. All dana collected will be shared with One Earth Sangha, whose mission is “to bring the essential wisdom and practices from the Buddhist tradition to collective engagement on critical ecological crises.”

Additional Dana

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Questions for the Registrar?

Use the form below only if you need to contact the retreat registrar with any questions.

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*Sit & Dharma Talk with SIM Community Mentor, Rich Howard

Engaged and Aware: Finding a Balance

Sit & Dharma Talk with SIM Community Mentor, Rich Howard.

For many of us, commitment to justice and ethics leads us to engage in action in the real world. But our practice of meditative awareness calls us to “be” not just “do.” Are these impulses opposed to each other? Or are they mutually supportive? How can we sustain our engagement and connect our mindfulness to the suffering all around (and within!) us? Let’s explore the implications of bringing our practice into every day life. This evening will serve as a good preparation for SIM’s Earth Day Daylong Retreat on Saturday April 22.

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*Sit & Dharma Talk with SIM Community Mentor, Diane Wilde

“What About God?”  Part 2     –     Sit & Dharma Talk with Diane Wilde

“What About God” Part 1 addressed the Buddha’s perspective concerning god, which of course was strongly influenced by his own cultural imperatives.  Tonight we’ll begin the evening with a brief overview of how various contemporary teachers address this topic both personally and in their sanghas.  The remainder of the evening will be a community discussion on the topic.  Some of us incorporate “god” into our practice due to cultural mores or personal spiritual values. Others experience a sense of relief practicing a path which is non-theistic.  Please come and share your own perspective!  Should be an interesting discussion.

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*Sit & Dharma Talk with SIM Founding Teacher Dennis Warren

Forgetting  and Remembering

The original definition of Mindfulness contains the element of “remembering.” What does this mean? And why is it important? What are we “forgetting?”  What are we trying to “remember?” Does it mean remembering to engage in “moment-to-moment non-judgmental awareness”?  As difficult as it is to maintain such a state of mind, is that it? Is that all? Or is there more? Or is there much more?
Understanding these questions, and their answers, in the context of the historical Buddha’s teachings, is important to practicing well and developing a progressively maturing practice. Reflect on these questions and come prepared with your questions to supplement the talk and discussion.

Sitting and Dharma Talk, with Dennis Warren, SIM Founding Teacher

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Blog Subscriptions Available

If you’d like to stay abreast of Sacramento Insight Meditation’s late breaking news and audio dharma posts, you can subscribe to this blog. We post approximately 2 to 8 times per month depending on what’s happening. This subscription will not change or affect any subscription you may already have to our weekly eNews.

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Dress Warmly for Rich’s Talk Tonight

Everyone planning to attend SIM (at the SDC) this evening, December 8, for meditation and Rich Howard’s dharma talk: there is no heat in the sanctuary. There are a few space heaters that will warm limited spaces. Please dress warmly, bring extra shawls or blankets, and plan to keep on coats, jackets, etc.

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John Travis offers Retreat Dec 10

The Davis Insight Group has an upcoming Winter Daylong Retreat with John Travis, a facility member of Sacramento Insight Meditation. The retreat is in Davis, CA on Saturday Dec 10, 2016. For event details, click here.

 

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Aloka Vihara Monastery – Dec 10th

Our friends at the Aloka Vihara Monastery, located in Placerville, CA, are inviting folks to join in their last Community Work Day of the year on Saturday, December 10th. Work from 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM with a break for lunch at 11:00 AM. For more information visit their event page at http://saranaloka.org/7877-2/.

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Message from Board of Directors

A Special Message from the SIM Board of Directors

Contributions to the Sacramento Dharma Center do not reduce SIM’s operating expenses. Those SIM expenses, including rent and insurance, have increased by more than $10,000 for the coming year as a result of our move to the SDC. Contributions to the SDC are not shared with SIM.

The SIM Board of Directors encourages you to support SIM through a year-end contribution. In addition, we will be urging members to enroll in a new SIM monthly contribution program beginning January 2017. This monthly contribution program will be designed to create a stable financial foundation to cover SIM’s fixed, on-going expenses and to support plans for new SIM projects and programs.

Details on options for making year-end contributions, or for participating in the monthly contribution program, through a new Bank of America on-line service on SIM’s website, will be available by Monday, December 19. In the meantime, if you prefer to donate via  check (payable to Sacramento Insight Meditation), please send to:

Sacramento Insight Meditation 3111 Wissemann Drive Sacramento, California, 95826.

If you have questions or would like to discuss these two tax deductible opportunities for generosity, please contact SIM’s President and Founding Teacher, Dennis Warren.

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