SENTIENT TIMES April/May 2002

Rogue Valley Dharma Groups Present "Change Your Mind Day"

Julie Norman

Twenty-five centuries ago, a meditation practice and self-observant way of life was fostered by a dedicated teacher in India known as Gautama Buddha. Over the centuries, millions of people have followed the Buddha’s instructions to practice meditation and cultivate compas-sion for all beings.

Many lineages of monks, nuns, and teachers passed on the Buddha’s oral teachings to increase the understanding and practice of “dharma” (Sanskrit) or “dhamma” (Pali). In the Pali language spoken by the Buddha, one meaning of “dhamma” is “the way to liberation.”

Thanks to growing interest among lay people in the West, there is now a wide array of North American dharma centers where these practices continue. Some are part of Buddhist religious orders. Other centers offer instruction in meditation to be used as a complement to all religious (and non-religious) traditions.

Rogue Valley Dharma Groups

Numerous dharma groups in the Rogue Valley are helping people practice meditation within several lineages, in-cluding Tibetan Buddhists, Zen Buddhists, and Vipassana meditators.

Here are brief snapshots from six dharma groups, describing the traditions they uphold and opportunities for newcomers.

Ashland Zen Center, whose temple name is Siskiyou Sansui Do, offers on-going practice in the Soto Zen Buddhist tradition. Ashland Zen Center is a non-profit, religious organization in the lineage of Shunryu Suzuki, founder of San Francisco Zen Center. Practice is led by ordained priests and resident teachers Harold Little and Patty Krahl.

In the Soto Zen tradition, Buddha’s Way is realized through the meditation practice of silent illumination called “zazen.” This clear, open mind is then carried into walking meditation, work practice, bowing, chanting, and informing each other of everyday activities.

The sangha has been practicing together in the Rogue Valley since 1993 and meets daily at 246 Fourth Street in Ashland for zazen, services, and dharma talks. One-on-one private interviews with the teachers are available.

The following events are being offered this Spring: Buddha’s Birthday Sesshin from April 6-8 (a 3-day meditation intensive); Day of the Way on June 2; and a Bodhisattva Ceremony on June 21. For information call (541) 552-1175.

Community of Mindful Living, Southern Oregon is part of an international network of communities offering Mindfulness Practice in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh.

Thich Nhat Hanh is the Vietnamese Zen monk, poet, writer and teacher, who headed the Buddhist Delegation to the Paris Peace Talks to end the Vietnamese-American War. Living in exile from Vietnam since the late 1960’s, he has traveled worldwide teaching meditation and the Art of Mindful Living.

This practice emphasizes conscious breathing. Meditators rest in mindful breathing and practice being aware of thoughts, feelings and perceptions, acknowledging them all and returning to the breath. This allows one to stop, look deeply, let go, transform and heal. Students practice with Thich Nhat Hanh’s gathas (poems), songs, Mindful Movements, and Mind-fulness Trainings.

The community offers sitting and walk-ing meditation, sutra readings and dharma discussion three times per week: Sunday mornings at Ashland’s Oak Street Dance Studio; Thursday evenings at the Jacksonville Library; and Tuesday evenings at the Ashland Unitarian Center. For information call (541) 482-8467.

There will be a weekend retreat with Dharma teacher Lyn Fine on “Practicing Solidity, Joy and Compassion in Challenging Times” at Silver Falls State Park east of Salem the weekend of April 12-14 (call Mike at 503-623-7723). Thich Nhat Hanh will lead a 5-day Retreat at UC San Diego August 25-31 (visit www.plumvillage.org).

Kagyu Sukha Choling is a center for the study and practice of Tibetan Buddhism in Ashland.

Resident teachers Lama Pema Clark and Lama Yeshe Parke have studied with His Eminence Kalu Rinpoche and with Venerable Lodru Rinpoche of San Francisco for the past twenty years. They completed the traditional three-year retreat in 1999.

The Shangpa and Karma Kagyu lineages focus on a meditation practice which emphasizes the open-hearted attitude of loving kindness and compassion for all beings.

Classes in the principles of Buddhism are offered from September to June. The med-itation of Chenrezig, focusing on compassion, is held every Wednesday evening. Instruction and practice of calm-abiding meditation is offered monthly. This practice focuses the mind on the vehicle of the breath and is a meditation accessible to all. For information call (541) 552-1769.

Minjur Ling – Chagdud Gonpa is a dharma center in Medford, offering Tibetan-Nyingma Buddhist practices. This is one of more than twenty centers in North and South America founded under the auspices of H.E. Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche.

Minjur Ling itself is under the direct guidance of Lama Tsering Everest, one of Rinpoche’s senior American students. As Lama Tsering lives mostly at her center in Brazil, she is assisted here by local resident Lama James Kalfas, also a senior student.

The center offers instruction to develop equanimity and compassion through motivation, practice, and the dedication of merit. Contemplation of the Four Immea-surables, the Six Paramitas, the sadhanas of Red Tara and Guru Rinpoche, plus dis-cussion and encouragement of sangha comprise the main activities.

For newer practitioners there are avail-able, in English, a weekly Red Tara practice, a monthly Vajrassattva confessional practice, instructions on the Ngondro foundational practices, and other aspects of Dharma as needed or requested.

Lama Kalfas also offers instruction and practice at Rigdzin Gatsal, his home in Williams. Call (541) 552-1759 for infor-mation.

Southern Oregon Vipassana Group is part of an international network of meditators which hosts introductory 10-day residential courses in Vipassana meditation, as taught by Mr. S.N. Goenka of Bombay, India. Mr. Goenka teaches in the tradition of Venerable Ledi Sayadaw and lay teacher Sayagyi U Ba Khin of Burma (Myanmar).

Vipassana meditation is a process of mental purification through self-observation which was rediscovered 2,500 years ago by Gautama the Buddha. “Vipassana” means “seeing things as they really are.”

The teachings emphasize sila (morality), samadhi (concentration), and panna (wisdom). The practice works with observation of respiration and sensations as they constantly arise and pass away. Understanding this impermanence, one maintains equanimity as much as possible and begins to change the habit pattern of the mind.

This technique appeals to people of all backgrounds, of every religion and no religion, from all over the world. Last year Mr. Goenka and 600 assistant teachers conducted 700 courses for over 100,000 people. Eighty permanent centers offer courses in twenty-one countries (two in Indian prisons).

There is never any charge to attend, and neither Mr. Goenka nor his assistants receive financial gain. Courses are supported entirely by freely-offered services and donations from Old Students.

Newcomers are invited to the annual 10-day course at a residential retreat east of Medford (September 18-29). Courses run continuously at centers in SW Washington and the California Sierras (visit www.dhamma.org). Old Students also practice together at short residential courses as well as weekly sitting meditation in Ashland and Yreka. Call (541) 488-9474 for information.

Mr. Goenka will speak in Ashland on Saturday, June 15, 7:30 p.m. at the Unitarian Center, mid-way through his 35-city road tour of the U.S. and Canada (details at www.MeditationNow.org).

Tashi Choling Center for Buddhist Studies is a non-profit organization dedicated to the propagation of Tibetan Buddhism in the West. Their temple is located in California’s Colestin Valley, and Venerable Gyatrul Rinpoche is Spiritual Director.

Tashi Choling students train in the Nyingma school of the Vajrayana, focusing on the Tersar and Nam Cho lineages. This path includes the vow of taking refuge in the Three Jewels and the practice of “bodhicitta,” meaning the wish to attain liberation in order to benefit all sentient beings and relieve them from suffering.

Sincere beginning students may join the weekly Green Tara practice, as well as the Amitabha, Guru Rinpoche and Yeshe Tsogyal rituals on a monthly basis. In Ashland, Lama Bruce Newman, authorized by Venerable Gyatrul Rinpoche, teaches beginning and advanced students.

Guests and students are welcome for tours of the temple. Spring events open to the public include the Vajrasattva / Dor Sem Lama Chod Pa retreat (May 17- 26) led by Venerable Yangtang Tulku Rinpoche, an esteemed Buddhist master from Tibet. Call (541) 482-2399 for information.

Last November, Tashi Choling students invited representatives of seven local dharma groups to come together and get acquainted. What emerged was a contact list and a decision to host a Change Your Mind Day in Ashland this June, in concert with events in forty cities around the U.S. and Canada.

Change Your Mind Day was launched in 1994, when hundreds gathered for a day of meditation practice in New York City’s Central Park. It was organized by Tricycle Magazine, a national journal for practi-tioners of meditation as taught by the Buddha. Their aim was to unite dharma groups while creating an offering to the wider community.

In the same spirit, the Rogue Valley’s first Change Your Mind Day will be held in Ashland on Saturday, June 8. The public is invited to a series of presentations to learn about and practice meditation between Noon and 5:30 p.m..

The event will be held at the picnic area below Siskiyou Blvd. on Wightman St. next to the SOU Stadium. (Park in the lots at the intersection of Wightman and Iowa St. near the tennis court.)

In this grassy setting, just as the Buddha once taught his followers, a ceremonial ringing of the gong 108 times will inau-gurate the afternoon’s events. Teachers and senior students will offer short talks and lead meditation sessions, allowing the audience to experience a variety of approaches.

Intervals between meditation sessions will feature music, mindful movement, and Dharma-related arts. Organizers hope to include shakuhachi music, short Tai Chi and yoga sessions, and an introduction to Tibetan temple instruments. There will also be an information table for each dharma group.

The afternoon will be entirely free, without admission fees or items for sale. Everyone is invited to participate in all or part of the day’s activities. Please bring blankets and cushions or folding chairs, drinking water, and sun or rain protection.

Call Barbara Mathieson of the Ashland Zen Center for details at (541) 552-1175.

Julie Norman has been calling the Rogue Valley “home” since 1976, when she had the privilege of working on the Rogue and North Umpqua Rivers as a whitewater guide and instructor. Based in Ashland, she now spends her time floating for fun and working as a fundraiser for Siskiyou Project’s environmental education programs.For a list of Rogue Valley Dharma groups e-mail dmokma@jeffnet.org.

SENTIENT TIMES
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