New Year's Special Offer: Bring a Friend for Free to our UWS branch class on Monday, January 20! Everybody Welcome!

Mondays, 7:00 - 8:15pm

Upper West Side Buddhist Meditation Class

Developing True Love

$10 per class, free for supporting members

As we make our way into the time of lights and melancholy, song and celebration, this is the perfect moment to increase our focus on love. In Geshe Kelsang’s words: “If everybody sincerely practices affectionate love, all problems between each other will be solved and never arise again. This is guaranteed; I will give my signature.”

Wow. This certainly sounds yummier and longer-lasting than our brief season of pumpkin pie and peppermint bark!

In this series, we’ll take a Buddhist’s look at giving and generosity, rather than grasping, and at patient acceptance, instead of expecting. We’ll practice blending our minds with true love during meditation and learn to carry that essence through every twist and turn as we navigate the final weeks of another year. And we’ll discover that the most precious gift we offer isn’t the one wrapped in paper or tied with bows, but the one that comes from the depths of our hearts.

From a good heart, good results will always arise. What a wonder-full way to swing into the new year.

November 18: Our Potential to Love
November 25: Learning to Be Loving
December 2: Giving Fearlessness
December 9: Enlightened Love
December 16: The Joy of Taking and Giving
December 23: No Class
December 30: Healing Ourselves for Others

NEXT SERIES

Find Your Flow: The Art of Concentration

You know that amazing feeling when you’re totally in the zone? When you’re so caught up in doing what you love that a team of wild horses couldn’t drag you away? You feel alive and fulfilled. Your heart is warm with bliss. That flow state is coming from your concentration.

Unfortunately, a lot of times, distraction makes it impossible to get into the groove. This is because a distracted mind is like a sputtering flame. When we try to use this feeble light to illuminate the beautiful wisdoms Buddha gives us, it’s like squinting in the dark. We can barely make out the shapes of love, compassion, let alone the true nature of reality.

But imagine if our concentration became a big, strong, bright, steady flame, illuminating all virtuous objects clearly. Imagine if we could just say, “Hey mind, let’s abide single-pointedly on love today,” and know without a doubt that it would happen. Imagine developing a concentration so strong that it could mix with Buddha’s deepest wisdoms and break the shackles of confusion and endless cycles that tie us down.

In this series, we’ll follow the guidance of Geshe Kelsang and the great meditators of the past, who recommend meditating on the nature of the mind to improve concentration. And we’ll discover what Buddha meant when he said, “From concentration comes peace.”

After each class, we’ll enjoy snacks, seltzer, and Dharma talk. Everything tastes better, and even talking is funner, when our mind is blissed from concentration. Please come by and see what we mean!

January 6: The Happiness of the Undistracted Mind
January 13: Finding our Object for Training: the Mind Itself
January 20: Understanding Distraction: the Five Obstacles to Concentration
January 27: Generating Enthusiasm: the Opponents to the Obstacles
February 3: Fly Like an Eagle (in your meditation)
February 10: The Power of Intention
February 17: Clear Sky Mind
February 24: Journey through the Mental Abidings
March 3: How to Gain the Best Results

DETAILS

Our general program classes include Dharma teachings along with guided meditations
Join us at 7:00pm and stay for snacks and "hangout" time afterwards
These classes are suitable for both beginners and more advanced meditation practitioners
General meditation classes are given as a series, but can also be taken individually
No special clothing is required
No pre-registration is necessary
Chairs are supplied
Everyone welcome!