What’s New At Insight Meditation Center
By Gil Fronsdal The heart has four faces. Each sees the world in a different way and speaks with a different purpose. Yet, as each aspect belongs to the same heart, they are inseparable, like the four directions of a compass. This image of a four-faced heart is borrowed from the Buddhist myth of the god Brahma, who had four faces, one for each of the four kinds of unselfish love championed in Buddhism. In the language of the Buddha,…
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Two dear Sangha members passed recently. Many people at iMC have been deeply touched by their warmth, friendship, and dedication to our practice. Both will be missed. Dan Landry (9/18-1946 – 6/14/2025) . Dan was a mainstay at the Insight Retreat Center where he was a regular lunch cook for our retreats. He was a cornerstone to the Insight Meditation community in Santa Cruz and a teacher to many. Dan was a singer, musician, and Gregorian chanter who occasionally graced…
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Saturday, June 28, 2025: 8:30 am — 10:00 am Topic: Self-Compassion for Earth Care with Hilary Borison on Zoom For those of us who care deeply about the Earth, we may feel a multitude of difficult emotions around climate change and the lack of concern from leaders — anger, grief and fear. Caring for ourselves as we struggle to care for the planet is essential for our well-being. Please join us for a morning of self-compassion practices to support ourselves…
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Starting in August and September, Gil is teaching two spiritual care program through the Sati Center for Buddhist Studies BUDDHIST CHAPLAINCY TRAINING PROGRAM SEP 2025 – JUL 2026 • In Person at IMC with Jennifer Block, Gil Fronsdal, and Paul Haller • On Zoom with Vanessa Able, Dawn Neal, And Trent Thornly 11-month trainings introducing, from a Buddhist perspective, spiritual care skills needed for being a chaplain, Buddhist teacher, or offering spiritual support to people in times of major life…
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9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. With Jennifer Block and Vanessa Able An overview of a chaplain’s work of providing spiritual care and support for people in hospitals, hospices, prisons, and a wide variety of other settings. Information about the Sati Center’s Chaplaincy programs, including the Buddhist Chaplaincy Training taught in-person with Gil Fronsadal, Jennifer Block, and Paul Haller (nd online with Vanessa Able, Dawn Neal, and Trent Thornley.
Saturday, March 29, 2025: 8:30 am — 10:00 am Topic: Developing a community activity Facilitated by: Ram Appalaraju With so many changes going on in the country and particularly regressive actions taken by the government on ecological issues, we as a community have an opportunity to respond. Let’s use our meeting time on 3/29 to brainstorm and develop a program/project that we all can contribute, learn and grow. Please come prepared with thoughts, ideas, proposals etc. We also want to…
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The IMC Spring 2025 Newsletter is available online. You can read past newsletters in PDF format on the Newsletter page of the Insight Meditation Center website. You can also find the Spring Schedule of Events — called the April to June Schedule of Events — under the CALENDAR link on the IMC website.
Tuesdays 7:00 – 8:15pm starting April 1, 2025 Offered by Various IMC Dharma Leaders On Zoom Please join us for this new weekly offering on Tuesday evenings, 7 to 8:15pm. Each online session will include a lightly guided 30-minute meditation, followed by a 30-minute Dharma talk and 15 minutes for questions and discussion. Join Zoom: https://tinyurl.com/TuesdayDharma Meeting ID: 893 3396 7495 ~ Passcode: 235226 Upcoming in April April 1 with Lisa Goddard April 8: with Paul Waters April 15 Ram…
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Sunday, April 20, 2025, 11:30am – 12:30pm with Gil Fronsdal, Ram Appalaraju and Jeff Hardin On Zoom Gil Fronsdal and IMC members founded Insight World Aid (IWA) in 2011 to provide humanitarian aid to challenged communities in the US and abroad. After being dormant for the last few years, it has been revived in 2025! We will discuss our programs and plans and have information for those interested in volunteering. Join us on Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84166501245?pwd=Qdb3Rh9e8DUVCVhaFlccnkJ3Ok8qH0.1 Meeting ID: 841 6650 1245…
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Saturday, April 26, 8:30am. – 5:00pm. In-person only at IMC Offered by: Gil Fronsdal Practicing mindfulness on retreat is one of the foundations for maturing insight meditation. The simplicity, silence and support of retreats contribute to letting go of many of the distractions that get in the way of clear seeing. Retreats also are a wonderful environment for developing a continuity of awareness for an extended period. This particular daylong retreat is meant for people who already understand the basic…
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Saturday April 26, 2025, 8:30 – 11:30am Redwood City, CA In honor of Earth Day, IMC and Insight Word Aid are joining the Redwood City Pride and Beautification Committee for the Annual Spring Cleanup event of the city. The city will provide any tools you need, To find up more on the Community Programs page of the Insight World Aid website. For more information, please contact ram@insightworldaid.org .
Five Saturdays: May 3 – June 7: 2:00 – 3:30pm (no class on May 24, Memorial Day weekend) On Zoom Offered by: Liz Powell For beginners & those wishing to strengthen their practice who are not local to IMC Mindfulness meditation, also known as insight meditation or vipassana, is a simple technique that concentrates and calms the mind. At the heart of mindfulness meditation is the practice of moment-to-moment observation which cultivates a clear, stable and non-judgmental awareness. While mindfulness…
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Four Tuesdays: June 10 – July 1: 2:00 – 3:30pm & One Wednesday: July 9: 2:00 – 3:30pm In-Person at IMC Offered by: Tom Fenner and Lydia Ridgway Mindfulness meditation, also known as insight meditation or vipassana, is a simple technique that concentrates and calms the mind. At the heart of mindfulness meditation is the practice of moment-to-moment observation which cultivates a clear, stable and non-judgmental awareness. While mindfulness practice can be highly effective in helping bring calm and clarity…
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Saturday July 5. 2025, 9:30am – 4:30pm In-person only at IMC Offered by: Mei Elliott This daylong retreat will include guided meditations, dharma talks, and alternating periods of sitting and walking. Instructions and guidance on mindfulness of breathing, body, emotions, thoughts, and open attention will be provided. This daylong retreat is an opportunity to strengthen mindfulness, develop concentration, practice with the IMC community, and ask a teacher questions. This daylong is appropriate for beginners and those with more experience. Registration…
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Saturday July 19, 2025 9:00 am – 4:00 pm In-person at IMC Daylong sponsored by the Sati Center Offered by: Ying Chen, David Lorey, Diana Clark and Kim Allen Register on the Sati Center website Join us for an illuminating exploration of water similes found throughout the Pali Canon, where the Buddha masterfully used the transformative and dynamic qualities of water to illustrate profound spiritual teachings. This daylong retreat will delve into the rich metaphorical landscape of water as a powerful…
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