Toronto’s Spring Rain Sangha will be sponsoring a 5-day Metta  (Loving-Kindness) Meditation Retreat that will take place from October 14th to the 18th, 2010 at the Chapin Mill Retreat Centre in Batavia, New York. 

Please register in advance through Spring Rain Sangha’s website at: http://www.springrainsangha.com/.  Application and orientation forms can be found in the “Retreats” section of Spring Rain Sangha’s website.  The cost of the retreat is $275.00 (Canadian dollars), or $325.00 if payment is received after September 14.   (Please visit ”Retreats” page of Spring Rain Sangha’s website for other payment options.)    

For more info, please email Angelina at angelina9@springrainsangha.com or phone her at (416) 314-7176.  Please note that Toronto’s Spring Rain Sangha retreats at the Chapin Mill Retreat Centre in Batavia, NY, have been added to the BMC Scholarship Fund.

Bhikkhu Bodhi will be at Chautauqua on August 18, 2010 offering a Dhamma lecture at the Hall of Philosophy at 2 p.m.

Bhikkhu Bodhi is an American Buddhist monk, originally from New York City, who holds a PhD in philosophy from Claremont Graduate School. In late 1972 he received monastic ordination in Sri Lanka, where he lived for over twenty years. From 1984 until 2002 he was the editor for the Buddhist Publication Society in Kandy, and has translated numerous texts from the Pali Canon into English, among them the complete Samyutta Nikaya. He now lives at Chuang Yen Monastery in upstate New York and teaches there and at Bodhi Monastery in northwest New Jersey. In 2008, together with several of his students, Ven. Bodhi founded Buddhist Global Relief, a nonprofit charity supporting hunger relief and education in countries suffering from chronic poverty and malnutrition.

Ven. Bodhi has many important publications to his credit, either as author, translator, or editor. These include: A Comprehensive Manual of Abhidhamma (1993), The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha (Majjhima Nikaya, 1995), The Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya, 2000), and In the Buddha’s Words (2005). He is presently working on a complete translation of the five-volume Anguttara Nikaya, The Incremental Discourses of the Buddha.

Please see the following link for more information: http://www.ciweb.org/latest-news/2010/3/4/interfaith-lecture-series-venerable-bhikku-bodhi.html

Promoting Mindful Practice in Medical Education

October 28-30, 2010
Chapin Mill Retreat Center
Batavia, NY

In response to the increasing pace and complexity of medical practice, physicians (and those in training) are experiencing unprecedented levels of job dissatisfaction and burnout, affecting their sense of well-being and the quality of care they provide. A powerful but under-recognized approach to these challenges is to enhance physicians’ capacity for mindfulness. Mindfulness in medicine refers to the ability to be aware, in the present moment, on purpose, with the intention of providing better care to patients and to take better care of ourselves. Mindfulness is at the core of clinical competence. This program will give faculty the skills and tools to teach students and residents to become more mindful during daily clinical practice.

Complete conference information can be found at www.urmc.rochester.edu/cpe

A public talk and one day retreat on the Buddha’s Path to Perfect Peace will take place on Friday, August 6 and Saturday, August 7 at Daemen College. The teachers will be Philip Starkman (shown below) and Randy Baker of Toronto’s Spring Rain Sangha.  From more information on Spring Rain Sangha please visit their website at: www.springrainsangha.com 

On Friday, August 6 from 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm (doors open at 7:00 pm) a public talk will be given on vipassana (also known as mindfulness or insight meditation) in the context of “The Path to Perfect Peace.”   Then on Saturday, August 7 from 9:30 am to 5:00 pm (doors will open at 9:00 am) a one day retreat will be given focusing on cultivating mindfulness as The Path to Perfect Peace.  A simple vegetarian lunch will be provided. The location of this event will be at Daemen College • 4380 Main Street, Amherst, New York Business Building (Getzville Rd – From Main St, take 2nd Getzville Rd entrance).

Please note that Daemen College is not a sponsor of this event.

To register, or for more information, please call 716-400-5899 or email at: info@buffalodharma.org.

Waking to sunshine, Bowing to the earth and sky, Summer’s endless smile!

Fifth Summer Potluck Sangha Gathering

Share good food, conversation and renew connections with members of Awakening Community, Buffalo Zen Dharma Community, Buffalo Mindfulness Community, Peaceful Heart Mindfulness Community, Shambhala Meditation Group of Buffalo and Shambhala Meditation Group of East Aurora in a beautiful outdoor setting.

Saturday, July 17 2010, 4:00 to 9:00 PM Under the Big Tent, just outside:

Rain or Shine!

We invite you to bring a main dish, side dish, salad or dessert to share (to serve 8 people). Bring whatever beverage you would like to drink. Disposable dinnerware, bottled water, coffee,
tea and iced tea will be provided. We will gather to visit with friends starting at 4:00 PM. Food will be served starting at 5:30 PM

Questions? Please call Colleen at: 662-­2904

Please consider a $5.00 donation per family to help cover the cost of the tent rental which is shared with Daemen College.

Any money collected in excess of the tent fee will be donated to Loaves & Fishes food pantry.

* This event is not connected with nor sponsored by Daemen College

The owners of the Little White Church have decided to rent the building to another group and our Wednesday evening meditation group will no longer be able to meet in the building.    

Therefore, the Buffalo Mindfulness Community will have its last meditation session at the Little White Church on Wednesday, June 30. 

It truly has been a blessing to serve the Dharma and Buffalo Sangha over the last several years. 

Our group will continue to host Dharma teaching events in the Buffalo area and we are confident that we will soon find another venue for our weekly vipassana sittings. 

If any Sangha member knows of an accommodating space to meet, please contact us.    

Metta…..

Secondary to a majority of Sangha support, the vision of a Buffalo Dharma Center is taking root. Therefore, the communities of Buffalo Zen Dharma and Buffalo Mindfulness (Vipassana) have decided to join together in making an offer to rent the Little White Church. A rental proposal to the owners of the building has made and their board is currently assessing the proposal. It is anticipated to take a few more weeks for all the parties involved to work together finalizing an agreement. It is by no means guaranteed that we will be able to rent the building.  Therefore, hold off sending any dana (donations) until an announcement is made that we have secured a rental agreement.   

Please note that both the Buffalo Zen Dharma and Buffalo Mindfulness (Vipassana) communities will be maintaining their original roots in Zen and Vipassana. By supporting either group you will be both supporting that individual group and the Center. Therefore, in the spirit of One Dharma, the mission of the Zen and Vipassana groups working together is not only to have a reliable place for our groups to meet every week, but also to work together toward creating a safe and welcoming place for all members of the Buddha-Sangha regardless of tradition (Theravada-Vipassana, Mahayana-Zen, or Vajrayana-Tibetan) to explore and practice the teachings of the Buddha. 

In Loving-Kindness and Compassion, 

Buffalo Zen Dharma Community and Buffalo Mindfulness Community

Ryushin Sensei (Abbot of Zen Mountain Monastery) will be offering a series of teachings in Buffalo.

Visit Zen Mountain Monastery website at: http://www.mro.org/zmm

First is a public talk that will be offered on June 17 (start time is 7 pm) at:

The topic will be: “Modern Anxiety and Authentic Spiritual Practice: a Zen Buddhist Response.”

Cost: Suggested donation: $10, Students $7

Then on June 18 from 8:00 am to 9:30 am, Ryushin will offer a Grand Rounds presentation at:

The topic will be: Self and Selflessness in Zen Buddhism

This talk will focus on the fundamental teachings about the nature of self-experience as accessed through deep meditative investigation made available in Buddhist practices. It will address the deepening appreciation of awareness that becomes available with training of the mind, and the implications of meditation on an individual’s well-being.

Cost: Free and open to the public.

There also will be a weekend Sesshin taught by Ryushin at the Gow School from June 18-20; however, the retreat is currently full and no new applications are being accepted.

Lastly, on June 20 at:

For more information visit: www.buffalozen.org

Toronto’s Spring Rain Sangha will be sponsoring 2 retreats this summer.

This first is a 5-day Metta (Loving-Kindness) Meditation Retreat that will take place from June 24-28, at the Chapin Mill Retreat Centre in Batavia, New York. 

The second (also at Chapin Mill) will be a 9-day Vipassana (Mindfulness) Meditation Retreat that will take place from August 13-21. 

For more information please visit: http://www.SpringRainSangha.com.  Registration, application, orientation forms, and costs can be found in the “Retreats” section of the website.  For more info, please email Angelina at: angelina9@springrainsangha.com or by phone at: (416) 314-7176. 

Please note that Toronto’s Spring Rain Sangha retreats at the Chapin Mill Retreat Centre in Batavia, NY, have been added to the BMC Scholarship Fund.

The larger Buffalo Dharma Community (Sangha) is exploring the possibility of having a local Dharma Center. The Dharma Center would be open to all groups regardless of tradition (Theravada, Mahayana, or Vajrayana). The emphasis would be on creating a safe and welcoming place for all people who are interested in exploring and practicing the teachings of the Buddha.

An auspicious opportunity has arisen for the Buffalo Dharma Community. A building called the Little White Church on Frontier Road at the corner of Audubon Parkway (located on the perimeter of the University at Buffalo North Campus) is currently available for rent at $400 per month plus utilities. In order for the Buffalo Sangha to consider having a Dharma Center we are assessing whether there are people who would offer acts of generosity (dana) by being willing to commit time as volunteers and or financial donations.

To assess the financial solvency of having a Buffalo Dharma Center we would like to assess whether a dana of an estimated $7,200 can be raised to cover the estimated first year of expenses. In addition to one time donations, we would like to assess whether there are 75 Sangha members who could donate in the range of $120 to $220 per year to cover the ongoing expenses of having a Buffalo Dharma Center dedicated to the teachings of the Buddha.

If you are interested and able to make such a financial commitment please send an email to: info@buffalodharma.org or call 626.9016 ext. 205 and leave a message.

If donating by check, please address to:

All donations will be eligible for a tax deduction as the Buffalo Mindfulness Community is registered as a 501(c) (3) non-profit with the IRS.

 The Little White Church