Green Island Sangha: April 2011

Friday, April 29, 2011

May Schedule

SUNDAY May 1st

We will not be at St Ignatius Retreat House

SUNDAY May 8th

We will not be at St Ignatius Retreat House

We will be offering a "ROSE FOR YOUR POCKET" ceremony in celebration of Mother's Day. Please see Special Events below.

SUNDAY May 15th

10 AM - 10:30 AM
Beginners Mind Gathering
Our Once a Month Pre Sit Intro Meeting for Those new to Mindfulness or new to the Tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh

10:30 AM - 12:30 PM
Our Regular Sitting Practice
5 Mindfulness Training Recitation (New Version)
Please Bring your Chanting Books with you if you have them.

SUNDAY May 22nd

St Ignatius Retreat House

10:30 AM - 12:30 PM
Our Regular Sitting Practice

We Will Be Reading From Fragrant Palm Leaves
Please Bring your Books with you if you have them.

Local Food Pantry Collection

SUNDAY May 29th

We will not be at St Ignatius Retreat House

We will be offering a ceremony in celebration of VESAK. Please see Special Events below.

Your Free Will Donation Helps to Support
Our Community & Our Hosts

SPECIAL EVENTS

CHAN HUY, one of our senior Dharma Teachers will be in New York.

Chan Huy (true radiance) was ordained as a dharma teacher by Thay in 1994. Born in Vietnam and raised in France, Chan Huy resides in Canada and serves as the primary teacher for a number of sanghas in the U.S. and Canada. Dharma Teacher Dennis Bohn said: "For many years i have been deeply impressed by Chan Huy's generosity and free spirit" and his "skillful, compassionate and joyful presence."

Chan Huy will visit the Rock Blossom Sangha on Sunday evening, May 1, at 6:30PM and will offer a fund-raising talk at 6:30 PM on Monday, May 2, at the Three Jewels, 61 Fourth ave. (9th street) - 212-474-6650. It will benefit the Saigon Children's Charity (USA). The suggested donation is $25 in advance and $30 at the door. Chan Huy will join the Riverside Sangha gathering on Tuesday evening, May 3, at 7 PM.

Locations:

Rock Blossom Sangha
A Brooklyn Community of Mindfulness
Church of Gethsemane
1012 Eighth Avenue,
between 10th and 11th Streets,
Park Slope,
Brooklyn, NY 11215
http://rockblossom.org/
We gather every Sunday from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the Church of Gethsemane in Park Slope. (Very close to the Park Slope/7th Ave. F-stop.) We begin promptly.

Riverside Sangha
Riverside Church, Wellness Center. At 91 Claremont Avenue, between 120-122nd St., one block west of Broadway. [We are listed as Mindfulness Meditation on Church calendar.] Contact David, davidrflint@gmail.com , or Marjorie, Marjoriem4@juno.com. We gather every Tuesday 7-9:00 pm.

MOTHER'S DAY - SUNDAY May 8th

A Special Offering in

Celebration of

Motherhood

A ROSE FOR

YOUR POCKET

Mothers Day

Sunday May 8th

10:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Cedarmere Park

225 Bryant Avenue, Roslyn, NY

(just north of Northern Boulevard)

map & directions

http://www.gardenvisit.com/garden/cedarmere_garden/map

Weather Permitting

Watch this Website for Weather Updates

InterSangha Spring Cliff Retreat

May 20-22, 2011

For

Quiet Harbor, Rock Blossom, Green Island and NYC Metro Area Sanghas

Blue Cliff Monastery, Pine Bush NY

Because of many upcoming events,

Blue Cliff Monastery requests that participants register early,

and send payment in full to Blue Cliff Monastery,

3 Mindfulness Road, Pine Bush, NY 12566

Please fill out the registration form on line at

http://bluecliffmonastery.org/sidebar/visiting-us/how-to-register

To Room Share Please include the name/s of your roommates on the registration form

All registrations will be confirmed by e-mail directly from Blue Cliff Monastery.

Questions? E-mail Blue Cliff Monastery at office@bluecliffmonastery.org

SUNDAY May 29th

A Special Offering in

Celebration of

VESAK

Sunday May 29th

10:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Cedarmere Park

225 Bryant Avenue, Roslyn, NY

(just north of Northern Boulevard)

map & directions

http://www.gardenvisit.com/garden/cedarmere_garden/map

Weather Permitting

Watch this Website for Weather Updates

Green Island Sangha

The Green Island Sangha is inspired by the teachings and practice of Vietnamese Zen Buddhist Master Thich Nhat Hanh; we belong to the international Sangha which he founded: the Order of Interbeing, a "fourfold community" of lay women and men, nuns and monks. We are a grassroots Sangha, beginners and more experienced practitioners learning from and supporting one other on the path of awakening. We are also a part of The Community of Mindfulness New York Metro.

Our aspiration is to bring mindfulness, concentration, and insight to daily living. During our sessions, we apply the practice of conscious breathing to sitting and walking, as well as communicating with compassionate listening and loving speech. Our gatherings also reflect the values of openness. For example, many members continue to participate within other religious or ethical traditions. We are a Sangha of practitioners from the entire length and breath of Long Island and consider ourselves to be part of a world wide Sangha. Beginners are welcome.

Sitting & Walking Meditation

Sitting Meditation

"Sit or lie down in a way that allows your body to rest. Sitting, your head and spine form a straight line. Relax all your muscles. Find a way of sitting that allows you to sit for at least 20 minutes without becoming too stiff or tired. As soon as you sit down, pay attention to your breath. Then notice your posture, a little bit everywhere. Relax the muscles in your face. If you are angry or worried, those muscles will be tense. Smile lightly, and you will relax hundreds of muscles in your face. Then notice your shoulders, and let go of the tension there. Don’t try too hard. Just breathe mindfully, and scan your whole body."

Thich Nhat Hanh, The Mindfulness Bell, Issue 23, pages 1,4.

Walking Meditation

"Walk more slowly than you usually do, but not too slowly, while breathing normally. Do not try to control your breathing. Walk along this way for a few minutes. Then notice how many steps you take as your lungs fill and how many steps you take as they empty. In this way, your attention includes both breath and steps. You are mindful of both.... Your half-smile brings calmness and delight to your steps and your breath.... After a few hours of serious practice, you will find that the four of them — the breath, the counting, the steps, and the half-smile — blend together in a marvelous balance of mindfulness. This is equanimity, created by the practice of walking meditation. The four elements of breathing, counting, stepping, and the half-smile become one."

Thich Nhat Hanh, A Guide to Walking Meditation.

Five Mindfulness Trainings

Five Mindfulness Trainings

The Five Mindfulness Trainings were developed during the time of the Buddha to be the foundation of practice for the entire practice community, including monastic and lay members. The basis for the trainings is mindfulness.All Sangha members and guests are requested to observe these trainings to support our practice of mindfulness and living harmoniously together. No smoking, no drinking and no sexual misconduct constitute part of the Five Mindfulness Trainings to be observed at a practice center. The Five Mindfulness Trainings protect our freedom and make life beautiful. As guidelines for our daily lives they are the basis of happiness for individuals, couples, families and society.
___________________________________

Reverence For Life

Aware of the suffering caused by the destruction of life, I am committed to cultivating the insight of interbeing and compassion and learning ways to protect the lives of people, animals, plants, and minerals. I am determined not to kill, not to let others kill, and not to support any act of killing in the world, in my thinking, or in my way of life. Seeing that harmful actions arise from anger, fear, greed, and intolerance, which in turn come from dualistic and discriminative thinking, I will cultivate openness, non-discrimination, and non-attachment to views in order to transform violence, fanaticism, and dogmatism in myself and in the world.

True Happiness

Aware of the suffering caused by exploitation, social injustice, stealing, and oppression, I am committed to practicing generosity in my thinking, speaking, and acting. I am determined not to steal and not to possess anything that should belong to others; and I will share my time, energy, and material resources with those who are in need. I will practice looking deeply to see that the happiness and suffering of others are not separate from my own happiness and suffering; that true happiness is not possible without understanding and compassion; and that running after wealth, fame, power and sensual pleasures can bring much suffering and despair. I am aware that happiness depends on my mental attitude and not on external conditions, and that I can live happily in the present moment simply by remembering that I already have more than enough conditions to be happy. I am committed to practicing Right Livelihood so that I can help reduce the suffering of living beings on Earth and reverse the process of global warming.

True Love

Aware of the suffering caused by sexual misconduct, I am committed to cultivating responsibility and learning ways to protect the safety and integrity of individuals, couples, families, and society. Knowing that sexual desire is not love, and that sexual activity motivated by craving always harms myself as well as others, I am determined not to engage in sexual relations without true love and a deep, long-term commitment made known to my family and friends. I will do everything in my power to protect children from sexual abuse and to prevent couples and families from being broken by sexual misconduct. Seeing that body and mind are one, I am committed to learning appropriate ways to take care of my sexual energy and cultivating loving kindness, compassion, joy and inclusiveness – which are the four basic elements of true love – for my greater happiness and the greater happiness of others. Practicing true love, we know that we will continue beautifully into the future.

Loving Speech and Deep Listening

Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful speech and the inability to listen to others, I am committed to cultivating loving speech and compassionate listening in order to relieve suffering and to promote reconciliation and peace in myself and among other people, ethnic and religious groups, and nations. Knowing that words can create happiness or suffering, I am committed to speaking truthfully using words that inspire confidence, joy, and hope. When anger is manifesting in me, I am determined not to speak. I will practice mindful breathing and walking in order to recognize and to look deeply into my anger. I know that the roots of anger can be found in my wrong perceptions and lack of understanding of the suffering in myself and in the other person. I will speak and listen in a way that can help myself and the other person to transform suffering and see the way out of difficult situations. I am determined not to spread news that I do not know to be certain and not to utter words that can cause division or discord. I will practice Right Diligence to nourish my capacity for understanding, love, joy, and inclusiveness, and gradually transform anger, violence, and fear that lie deep in my consciousness.

Nourishment and Healing

Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful consumption, I am committed to cultivating good health, both physical and mental, for myself, my family, and my society by practicing mindful eating, drinking, and consuming. I will practice looking deeply into how I consume the Four Kinds of Nutriments, namely edible foods, sense impressions, volition, and consciousness. I am determined not to gamble, or to use alcohol, drugs, or any other products which contain toxins, such as certain websites, electronic games, TV programs, films, magazines, books, and conversations. I will practice coming back to the present moment to be in touch with the refreshing, healing and nourishing elements in me and around me, not letting regrets and sorrow drag me back into the past nor letting anxieties, fear, or craving pull me out of the present moment. I am determined not to try to cover up loneliness, anxiety, or other suffering by losing myself in consumption. I will contemplate interbeing and consume in a way that preserves peace, joy, and well-being in my body and consciousness, and in the collective body and consciousness of my family, my society and the Earth.

Green Island Sangha

Friday, April 29, 2011

May Schedule

A Special Offering in

Celebration of

Motherhood

A ROSE FOR

YOUR POCKET

Mothers Day

Sunday May 8th

10:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Cedarmere Park

225 Bryant Avenue, Roslyn, NY

(just north of Northern Boulevard)

map & directions

Weather Permitting

Watch this Website for Weather Updates

A Special Offering in

Celebration of

VESAK

Sunday May 29th

10:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Cedarmere Park

225 Bryant Avenue, Roslyn, NY

(just north of Northern Boulevard)

map & directions

Weather Permitting

Watch this Website for Weather Updates

Please check out our New Web Site. This site will not be maintained.

Thich Nhat Hanh