How’s your breathing in this moment?

As we breathe in and out, we know we are breathing with each other in the It’s Now Virtual Meditation Hall.

The Five Contemplations

This food is a gift of the earth, the sky, numerous living beings, and much hard and loving work.

May we eat with mindfulness and gratitude so as to be worthy to receive this food.

May we recognize and transform unwholesome mental formations, especially our greed and learn to eat with moderation.

May we keep our compassion alive by eating in such a way that reduces the suffering of living beings, stops contributing to climate change, and heals and preserves our precious planet.

We accept this food so that we may nurture our brotherhood and sisterhood, build our Sangha, and nourish our ideal of serving all living beings.

We live in turbulent times, facing global uncertainty, challenges and strong emotions. How can we learn to stay grounded in the midst of the storm? How can we learn to recognize and treasure the beauty and richness that is still in and around us? In this talk we will hear about the art of stopping and coming back to ourselves. We will learn how to become resilient through recognizing, fully experiencing and embracing our feelings, emotions and our habits of thought. Together we will look at the impact of what we watch, listen to and think about on our happiness and our suffering.

Sister The Nghiem (True Vow) (she/her), currently the abbess of White Crane Hamlet at Blue Cliff Monastery, is a second-generation Vietnamese-American who grew up in Pennsylvania. She took her monastic vows in 1999 and has been residing and practicing in the US for the majority of her monastic life. Her interests include Buddhist and Western psychology, music and the Dharma, and Earth-Holding. She is currently a member of the Earth Holder Community Caretaking Council, with a commitment to engaging in practices and actions that move the collective towards Earth and Racial Justice.

Walking meditation is a precious opportunity to take a break from our daily worries, go outside and enjoy a walk. In that time of walking whether it be for 5 minutes, 20 minutes, or 60 minutes we let go of all our worries of work and other things and try to get in touch with the quiet within. Doing so, we can truly enjoy each step and this will help us to find happiness in walking and peace in the here and now. 

The monastics in our 3 U.S. centers of Deer Park, California, Magnolia Grove Mississippi and Blue Cliff, New York will be enjoying walking meditation together as a community around the monastery grounds. We invite you to also take this time to practice walking meditation at home too.

Enjoy your steps!

 Can you vacuum the floor in mindfulness? Can you sit in front of the computer and type out a spreadsheet in mindfulness? Can you cook in mindfulness? The answer is yes. If every 15, 30, 45 or 60 minutes you stop what you’re doing, close your eyes and take 3 deep in and out breaths that is just one example of how you can apply mindfulness and meditation into your work life.

 You’re invited to use this time to also practice working meditation. Tend to your chores and tend to your To-Do list and see if you can work in mindfulness.

After you’ve prepared your meal, please sit at a table and join us online for lunch. We will practice mindful eating and perhaps have time to chat afterwards. 

To join us for the (optional) lunch at breakout tables please click here.

In the practice of Total Relaxation, we meditate while laying down, so that we can release all of the tension in the body, relaxing each muscle as we bring our awareness to it. We use the breath as our anchor to help us. We can feel the breath like the ocean feels a wave, and allow it to gently rock us into a deep peace. In this state of rest, our body and mind can release their burdens. A lot of healing happens just by letting go and sinking into this state of total relaxation. This practice and the techniques within it can be applied at any time during the day when you have free time. It only takes a few minutes of practice to create more lightness and ease in the body and mind.

We invite you to take this time to practice total relaxation at home. Rest, recover and restore so that you can feel fresh for the rest of the day!

You can find many guided Total Relaxations in our Plum Village app. You can download here.

Hello dear friend 🙂

I know you are there, and I am very happy.

For those of you who registered for Dharma Sharing, you will receive a Zoom link in your email to join your Dharma Sharing Family. 

Thank you for being there 🙂

  Sitting meditation is a doorway to healing and transformation. 

  Today Sister Quỳnh N will be offering a live workshop on sitting meditation.

The Five Contemplations

This food is a gift of the earth, the sky, numerous living beings, and much hard and loving work.

May we eat with mindfulness and gratitude so as to be worthy to receive this food.

May we recognize and transform unwholesome mental formations, especially our greed and learn to eat with moderation.

May we keep our compassion alive by eating in such a way that reduces the suffering of living beings, stops contributing to climate change, and heals and preserves our precious planet.

We accept this food so that we may nurture our brotherhood and sisterhood, build our Sangha, and nourish our ideal of serving all living beings.

We’re invited to use this time to practice sitting meditation on our own. Whether it be for 5 minutes, 10 minutes or 30 minutes… in each minute we have an opportunity to touch peace and healing in the very here and now.
You can find many guided sitting meditations in our Plum Village app. You can it download here.

Silence can be cold and frightening. Or silence can be warm, cozy and healing. The warm and healing silence is noble silence. 

After a long day of meditation, work and activities in the monasteries we practice Noble Silence. Noble Silence is a time we reserve after the last activity of the day to not talk to each other unless it is super important. Not talking here also means letting our minds stop running and stop talking too. We turn off the computer, devices, give our mind a break and rest. Even as we prepare for bed, we do our best to maintain the energy of a quiet and loving attention. This is the time to lay down, practice total relaxation and drift off into deep sleep to be ready for the new day ahead.

Practicing noble silence turns the nighttime into a time of quietness and deep healing.

Continue to DPM Day 2: May 27

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