Waves and Water Sangha Vancouver

Dear friends –

On Saturday November 9, during our regular Day of Mindfulness, join Drishti Point Yoga Radio and the Water and Waves Sangha for a film featuring our grandfather Teacher Thich Nhat Hanh and the Plum Village Sangha. PEACE IS EVERY STEP is a profound and touching film. It is a wonderful film for family and friends to better understand our practice.

The Day of Mindfulness begins at 10:00 – Please arrive by 9:45 and bring a simple bag lunch – Tea will be available. For the Film doors open at 1:00 pm, please arrive by 1:15pm for 1:30 pm start

2016 Wall Street Location map here: http://wavesandwater.org/site/location/

* Donations accepted for Drishti Point expenses
* Copies of the DVD will be available for sale

SEATING IS LIMITED! Please let us know immediately if you are planning to attend: wwsangha(at)gmail.com

You can see the Trailer for the film here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=dpyWD7y84ms
 
ABOUT THE FILM: Zen Buddhist Teacher, author and poet, Thich Nhat Hanh has had a profound impact on contemporary Buddhism and social action. His efforts to achieve an early peaceful end to the American war in Vietnam earned him a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and a forty year exile from his homeland. His ongoing work teaching reconciliation and meditation with war veterans, widows, orphans, refugees, therapists, activists, and ecumenical groups has gained him a large and respectful following around the world. This film was filmed on location in Plum Village, Vietnam Veterans Memorial and at various retreats around the US, and includes rare archival footage from Vietnam detailing the work of his School of Youth for Social Service in the 1960s.

My apologies for the e-mail flurry – the November date was incorrect

NOVEMBER9: PEACE IS EVERY STEP (VIDEO)
We will practice in the morning as above and beginning at 1:00 we will watch the Plum Village video “Peace is every step” which talks about the deep roots of our tradition – including Thay and Sr Chan Khong as young adults and their journey together as the Sangha grows. The video (approximately 2 hours) will be followed by Dharma discussion. Please register for this day by replying to wwsangha[at]gmail.com

Good afternoon!

Waves and Water Sangha will host regular Days of Mindfulness in October and November. Please see the information below for updated information. Everyone interested in the engaged Buddhist tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh is welcome. Please see our website for more information: www.wavesandwater.org

OCTOBER 12: WATERING SEEDS OF JOY
We will settle at 9:45 and begin with sitting and walking meditation, followed by a Sutra service and a formal silent meal (please bring a bag lunch). In the afternoon we will study and learn the practice song WATERING SEEDS OF JOY (words and music available by clicking the RESOURCES menu on the website). The Day of Mindfulness will end at 4:00. Danna of $10-$20 is appreciated but no one is turned away for lack of funds.

NOVEMBER12: PEACE IS EVERY STEP (VIDEO)
We will practice in the morning as above and beginning at 1:00 we will watch the Plum Village video “Peace is every step” which talks about the deep roots of our tradition – including Thay and Sr Chan Khong as young adults and their journey together as the Sangha grows. The video (approximately 2 hours) will be followed by Dharma discussion. Please register for this day by replying to wwsangha[at]gmail.com

As we move into the fall season at Waves and Water Sangha we continue with our Thursday evening practice and our Days of Mindfulness on the second Saturday of the month. We welcome old friends, new friends and those who walk together steadily on the path.

This week we begin a new program – one focused on the Paramita teachings that support us as we “cross over to the other shore” – the shore of well-being. This is a powerful choice – one that can be difficult to sustain alone without a raft! The teachings are the raft and the Sangha is our support. Together, we support not only ourselves and each other. We support our families, workplaces, communities and the world.

THIS THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 12 we begin our program of practice. The first paramita, allows us to explore our attachment, aversion and indifference towards the very many different opportunities we have to offer GENEROSITY. We will begin to investigate both our reactions and our responses to opportunities of offering time, energy and material resources as well as a generosity of spirit. Each four weeks, we will begin to explore another of the six Paramitas, grounding our practice and our ways of making sense of our lives individually and as a community.

THIS SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 14 IS A DAY OF MINDFULNESS. Beginning at 9:45 and ending at 3:00 we will engage in mindfulness through sitting, walking, eating, chanting and discussion. We will begin to consider how we can offer GENEROSITY within our various communities – in particular our Sanghas but also out in the world. Being a welcoming presence in the world, providing a beautiful space for deep looking, offering tea and other nourishment, sounding a bell of mindfulness – these are all practices that provide a strong container anywhere, at any time. Please bring a bag lunch. Following the formal practice those who can stay will offer service by cleaning the meditation hall.

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 22 Our Sangha sister Kim has also let us know about an engaged practice that will help open our hearts – A walk for reconciliation on Sunday, September 22. Sangha members may want to discuss walking together as a river! For more information http://reconciliationcanada.ca/participate/walk-for-reconciliation/

SATURDAY OCTOBER 12 Farah Moolji Nazarali [Yoga Name: Sarita] will offer the video Peace is Every Step as part of our Day of Mindfulness (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpyWD7y84ms). This beautiful documentary of more than two hours allows us to experience the roots of our practice in the engaged Buddhist tradition of Plum Village. We hear and see Thich Nhat Hanh and his students over the years as they build the community that we now see throughout the world.

Please contact us at wwsangha[at]gmail.com – all who wish to practice in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh are welcome to attend.

Dear friends –

As I create the schedule and practice materials for tomorrow’s Day of Mindfulness I feel such joy and peace! I am listening to Brother Michael chant “Joyfully Sharing the Merit.” As a second Brother joins him in the last verses, I can feel the hairs on my arms adjust their posture! So beautiful!

Tomorrow, as we investigate what we identify within ourselves as strong emotions and unwholesome actions we will listen and study this chant, allowing all the peace and joy to enter us.  All our faith in our mindfulness practice will awaken!

All those interested in practicing in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh are welcome. You can find out location at http://wavesandwater.org/site/location/

Please remember to arrive at 9:45 and to bring a bag lunch!

Smiling, Bethan

Good morning dear friends –

Waves and Water Sangha holds a Day of Mindfulness on the second Saturday of each month (excepting August).  On July 13, we will relax into summer and reflect on how we experience, become aware of and then have an opportunity to investigate strong feelings or behaviours that we might consider “unwholesome” or leading us away from well-being. Transformation may then follow! Or resistance! In any case, we offer a smile and begin anew.

Several Sangha members will be away on retreat or vacation – we have an opportunity to take refuge for these six hours in stillness and concentration, welcoming community and compassionate holding of ourselves and others.

INVESTIGATING STRONG EMOTIONS
UNWHOLESOME BEHAVIOURS

We will settle at 9:45 and begin with sitting and walking meditation, followed by a Sutra service and a formal silent meal (please bring a bag lunch) and outdoor walking meditation. We will consider what happens when we open ourselves to investigating strong emotions and unwholesome behaviours. We will look deeply at our resistance to change. The Day of Mindfulness will end at 4:00.

Everyone interested in the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh is welcome to attend. Please contact wwsangha[at]gmail.com if you have any questions or would like to say you are coming. Danna of $10-$20 is appreciated but no one is turned away for lack of funds.

Bethan

Good morning!

Saturday, May 5
Waves and Water Sangha will be practicing at the meditation hall this Saturday, May 11. Please arrive by 9:45. We will begin with sitting and walking meditation and a Sutra Service followed by a formal meal (please bring a bag lunch). Following lunch we will explore the practice of Beginning Anew with a short talk and Dharma discussion. After sitting meditation we will dedicate the merit of our practice at 2:30. Caretaking folk are invited to a Beginning Anew circle followed by Bell Master training at 2:45.

Saturday, June 8
We will have a full Day of Mindfulness (10-4) on Saturday, June 8 at the meditation hall. This will be followed by a social event at a place to be determined!

July retreat at Mountain Lamp Community
Dharma Teacher Eileen Kiera will lead a Mindfulness Retreat – Deep River, Clear Streams – from July 13-July 20 at Mountain Lamp Community near Mount Baker in Washington state. Several Waves and Water Sangha members are planning to attend and there will be carpools. The registration forms have been posted at http://mountainlamp.org/ The retreat usually fills early. . . .

There will be no Day of Mindfulness in July at Waves and Water Sangha. . . .

Ordering cushions (zafu) and mats (zabuton) from Still Sitting
There will be an order placed with Still Sitting in Washington (http://www.stillsitting.com/). You can check their website. Currently, they have sets of zafu and zabuton for $100. The plan is to place an order and then pick it up in Bellingham (unless someone is planning to be on Vashon Island in May or June). Please let us know at wwsangha[at]gmail.com if you are interested in placing an order.

Please enjoy your breathing in the spring sunshine!

Dear Friends,

Following the Day of Mindfulness on Feb 9, we will be celebrating the Lunar New Year’s Eve with a dinner at Three Jewels, a Vietnamese vegetarian restaurant (located at 1179 Commercial Dr. Vancouver, near Grandview Park.)
All are welcome! You don’t need to attend the Day of Mindfulness, just meet us there around 4pm. If possible, rsvp Alda : aldango[at]gmail.com
Looking forward to seeing you there,

Waves and Water Sangha.

View Larger Map

Good morning!

Waves and Water Sangha offers a monthly Day of Mindfulness the second Saturday of each month at the meditation hall (2016 Wall Street: see the map and transit information at http://wavesandwater.org/site/location/)

On Saturday, February 9, we will gather from 10:00-3:00 for sitting and walking meditation, a Sutra Service, eating meditation, and an opportunity to Begin Anew with our ancestors and all other beings. The Beginning Anew will include the practice of touching the earth with the sound of 20 bells over the period of meditation. This will be followed by the practice of deep relaxation where we are guided again by the bells to surrender to the earth and receive her nourishment.

All are welcome! We appreciate the offering of generosity (Dana) which supports the Sangha. Suggested donation is $20-$40. No one is turned away because of an inability to offer financial support. Please bring a bag lunch – tea will be available.

If you have any questions please contact wwsangha[at]gmail.com