"When someone is hurting, we come together as community. We gather because our lives are inexorably interlinked. We do not suffer alone, nor do we heal alone. Only when we gather as a sangha (community), can we truly support each other's freedom."
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All levels of meditation experience are welcome and the teachings are offered free of charge, with donations accepted to cover administrative and program costs, scholarships, and study by the teachers.
In this time of continuing uncertainty, Triangle Insight is committed to offering a safe and stable refuge for the Sangha as a whole. Until we are able to meet again at the Episcopal Center, Triangle Insight will use Zoom for meditation meetings and for study or social group activities. Please refer to the Zoom information below.
This new way to connect is evolving through practice and compassion as we look inward and outward for the clarity that vipassana practice will bring.
Zoom connections are emailed one day before the Wednesday evening sangha (meditation and dharma talk, or insight dialogue) and the Morning Meditation sessions (meditation and heart practice).
Schedule:
Information about participating in all sessions will also be posted on theTIMC Website.
If you would like to receive an invitation to one or both Zoom meditations, please subscribe to the relevant form on our Schedule webpage, or send an email to [email protected] and tell us the Zoom list(s) you would like to join.
To receive this monthly newsletter, please complete the newsletter subscription on our Newsletters webpage, or send your request to us, at the info@ email above.
If you would like to change any part of your subscription(s), please email us directly and we will make this change for you.
This national memorial ceremony offers an opportunity for Asian American and other Buddhist communities to come together in mourning, mending, and renewal. We find support in the Dharma's enduring wisdom. We take refuge under the compassionate gaze of buddhas and bodhisattvas. We counter violence with equanimity, ignorance with wisdom, hatred with kindness, and suffering with healing.
On May 4th, 2021, exactly seven weeks, or forty-nine days, will have passed since the Atlanta shootings. In many Buddhist traditions, forty-nine days after death marks an important transition for the bereaved. As we pray for the liberation of those who have come before us, these ancestors will likewise alleviate our community's pain, for we are interlinked with each other, across generations, in our collective liberation.
The hourlong memorial will take place on Tuesday, May 4th, 2021 at 4pm PDT (7pm EDT). Our host for the livestreamed ceremony is the Higashi Honganji Buddhist Temple in Los Angeles. The temple, restored after a groundswell of community support, will serve as the sacred space from which we can enact collective transformation. We will chant sutras, recite the names of our ancestors, heal in ceremony, and share Dharma perspectives from leading Asian American Buddhists to repair an important aspect of our nation's racial karma.
Sangha means spiritual community, and it is treasured because without it awakening cannot be sustained
Jack Kornfield, After the Ecstasy, the Laundry
The Welcoming Committee wishes to foster the experience of belonging to a diverse, tolerant community connected through mindfulness practice, where all feel welcome and safe. We seek to link all members and newcomers to ongoing activities and to ensure the Zoom connection is available.
We have developed a brochure to give an overview of our sangha and some of its activities. You can download it here:Welcome to Triangle Insight.
Someone from the Welcoming Committee will remain on the Zoom connection at the end of Wednesday evening sangha meetings, should anyone have a question or want to talk about a sangha-relevant topic.
A Welcoming Committee member now monitors the all-purpose email: [email protected] to answer questions about the sangha, newsletter subscription, teacher availability, and Triangle Insight's meeting schedules. If we don't have an answer, we will put you in touch with someone who does.
If you would like to join the Welcoming Committee as a dana gesture of support for the Triangle Insight Community, please let us know through the still-active email:[email protected].
With shared commitment to the dharma, we hope our work will be of benefit to all who join us in this practice.
A SPECIAL STATEMENT from the BOARD of TRIANGLE INSIGHT
On Acts of Racial Hatred and Violence
A Response to Recent Events
The members of the board of Triangle Insight Meditation Community feel moved to express the depth of our grief and pain arising from the heightened racism and violence being directed toward Asian-Americans and others of Asian lineage/heritage.
This is a time for waking up to the dramatic increase in hatred, harassment and harm over the past year, seemingly tied to rhetoric that recklessly and wrongly blames Asia/Asians for the coronavirus, as well as our long history of oppression towards those of Asian descent, which is deeply rooted in a culture of white supremacy.
As we noted in our response to the horrific killing of George Floyd:
The path of Insight Meditation offers a way to wake up to the truth of things as they really are, including how our present reality is pervaded by the suffering of inequity and racism, which, like all suffering, is deeply conditioned by greed, hatred and delusion.
The Board recognizes the many ways of working with and transforming racial conditioning. Insight Meditation is one way we share to cultivate mindfulness, clear seeing, discernment, goodwill, care, and compassion, all of which can guide us to wise action.
We recommit to an intention to bring hatred and hostility to an end, and to serve the health, safety, happiness and liberation of all beings. May we open our hearts and walk this path together in community. "For never is hatred settled by hate, it's only settled by love: this is an ancient law." (Dhp 1.5, Sujato tr.)
TO ENGAGE YOUR PRACTICE
Racial Awakening for White-Bodied Folks
an online class with Liz Reynolds, IMCC
ONLINE
Wednesdays, June 2-July 14 (no class June 23)
7-8:15pm ET on Zoom
"The history of white people has led them to a fearful, baffling place where they have begun to lose touch with reality - to lose touch, that is, with themselves..."
-James Baldwin
"Healing is learning to love the wound because love draws us into relationship with it instead of avoiding feeling the discomfort."
-Lama Rod Owens
As our nation approaches the first anniversary of the murder of George Floyd and months of subsequent protests, white-bodied folks can continue to ask ourselves, What is mine to do? How can I deepen understanding of my own racial conditioning and contribute to the healing of racial separation?
Financial Support: Scholarships for Training Programs and Workshops in Racial Justice and Diversity
Engaging Buddhist teachings and real-world issues
The TIMC Board would like to offer financial assistance to sangha members who wish to participate in training programs or other activities designed to address racial conditioning, implicit bias, and racial inequality.
The goal of this scholarship initiative is to help individuals and the community deepen their understanding of how unexamined views of race can limit the mind and human systems.
A General Scholarship Fund for this purpose exists through donations from the TIMC General Fund and the generosity of several Triangle Insight members.
This Scholarship Fund has helped offset registration fees for some Sangha members who attended the Organizing Against Racism NC anti-racism training program.
It has supported the participation of TI members in a 3-day Mindful of Race workshop with Ruth King.
White Awakeis another organization that holds ongoing courses with a focus on anti-racism. The next 4-part, online course begins May 2:
UNBREAKABLE SOLIDARITY: analysis and strategy for coming together, breaking free, and building the world we need. Unbreakable Solidarity is an online course that focuses on how we build collective power on the bedrock of interdependence and use this power to get free. Though we are an organization that specializes in holistic, anti-racist education for white people, White Awake has designed this course as a political primer for people of all backgrounds who are seeking a deeper analysis of the roots of today's problems and effective strategies for social and political change.
For more information and to register check out the online flyer here.
If sangha members would like to receive scholarship support for training with OARNC, White Awake, or other programs addressing racial injustice, please email the Board at[email protected].
We invite the community to join this initiative by contributing specifically to this scholarship fund.
We are also interested in your suggestions for other training programs that might be of interest to sangha members, including training in climate-related problems.
To suggest other programs for support, please email the Board at[email protected]. This will put your suggestion directly in the Board's mailbox.
A TIM Sangha Initiative to connect and strengthen the bonds of our shared practice.
Caring Circles offers the Triangle Insight Meditation Sangha a simple framework for requesting and providing services to cope with the uncertainties and needs of everyday life. in this time of the coronavirus pandemic, knowing there is a helping network for sharing and receiving is a great joy and safe haven.
Currently, two TIM Sangha members coordinate service requests with other TIM members who are ready to volunteer their assistance as a form of dana service.
When the coordinators receive your request for assistance, they will verify the information with you, then send your request to the list of Sangha member volunteers.
Anyone on the list may contact you to discuss your request. Specific plans are entirely up to you.
Examples of Caring Circles Assistance
Grocery shopping or prepared meals
Laundry help, if no machine available
Pick up Rx or other items
Connect by telephone, Zoom or another safe means to talk, listen, and just share time
Computer fixes that may be done remotely
Lawn care that may be needed
Supplement toys or other diversions for children
Assistance with available institutional and business resources
Caring Circles coordinators welcome your requests and your interest in volunteering your time and skills.
With many thanks for their generosity, the Insight Meditation teachers for the Wednesday evening sangha invite us to consider these notes to references from their Dharma talks.
To submit items for the monthly newsletter, please review these general pointers and consult the Newsletter Submission Guidelines for important details.
At least two weeks prior to the month in which you wish your announcement to appear, submit new items to [email protected].
New requests submitted in the last week of any month may not be accepted if time is a factor in preparing a final copy.
Changes to existing entries may be incorporated if submitted early in the last week of any month.
Entries that have not been updated since COVID may be removed. All authors are encouraged to update their newsletter entries and to resubmit, including TIM committees and groups.
Keep the text crisp and short, but include important details and attachments. Instead of longer texts, refer the reader to websites for additional information.
Indicate how many months you want your entry to be published, and
Stay in touch with updates if any specific details change. You are responsible for calling in changes and end dates for ongoing classes, groups or other continuing entries.
Special circumstances may require adjustment of the deadlines indicated here; early submission is a best practice and helps the newsletter editors determine where, how and if the item submitted shall be published (please see #1 in the Guidelines).
Please contact us through [email protected] and include "Newsletter" in your subject line. We will help you get your item published.
Having admirable people as friends, companions, and colleagues is actually the whole of the holy life.
- The Buddha
The inner critic of judgmental mind can fill our thoughts with blame, shame, and ill will. As Christina Feldman says in Silencing the Inner Critic, "Instead of fleeing the painfulness of the judgmental mind we can turn toward it, sensing that everything we are invited to understand in the journey of awakening can be understood within the judgmental mind."
She further notes, "We can begin to sense that the inner critic truly warrants compassion, as does any suffering and affliction.... We need to turn our attention to the judgmental mind and embrace its pain with the same mindfulness we would bring to a pain in our body or to another's sorrow."
Our Spiritual Friends groups offer a special opportunity to bring judgmental mind into relational practice. Rather than reject or shame our inner critic, we share it with trusted spiritual friends who hold it with tenderness and care, allowing us to deepen our understanding and move from critique to compassion.
Known as RAGs, Racial Affinity groups allow people to deepen self-awareness around issues of race in small, racially homogeneous groups. As we face our long history of systemic racism and violence against people of color, RAGs provide a safe space where members can integrate the dharma into their exploration of racial belonging and racial habits of harm.
Waking up to the realities of racial legacy, conditioning, and systems is a challenging process, and the acceptance we bring each other, as well as our shared understanding of the dharma, help us to heal and act more skillfully in the world. To support this process, groups follow Triangle Insight's Mindful Sharing Guidelines and Ruth King's Racial Affinity Group Guidelines.
If you are interested in joining a Racial Affinity group or would like more information, please contact Beth Lauderdale, our RAG Coordinator, at
[email protected]. As of January 2021, we have at least one group that is open to new members. Helpful articles and other resources are available on ourRacial Affinity Groups web page.
We currently have openings in three Kalyana Mitta (KM) Groups: Insight Dialogue, Raleigh, and Secular Dharma. The Chapel Hill-Carrboro group has a waiting list.Details about each group are on our "List of KM Groups" web page. If you would like more information or want to join a group, be on a waiting list, or start a new group, please speak with Sarah Tillis, KM Coordinator, or write Sarah at[email protected]. Information about the KM program is available on our KM web page.
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The KM-RA Coordinating Team of Sarah Tillis, Beth Lauderdale, and Tamara Share expresses deep gratitude for the dedication of our sangha. May our Kalyana Mitta and Racial Affinity groups be of great benefit to all.
The Triangle Insight Board of Directors held a Special, Open Board Meeting on Saturday, April 3, 10 am-12 pm, on Zoom
The specific purpose of Special Open Board Meeting was to further discuss the process for adding new members to the Board when vacancies arise. Four positions are currently open. Progress was made at the meeting toward finalizing the invitation to the sangha that was sent out in a separate email on April 11 which can be found on the website here.
Those interested in serving on the board are invited to notify the board by May 11 by writing to [email protected].
_________
If you have any questions or suggestions for the Board on any matter relative to the Sangha, please email us at [email protected]. We will make every effort to carefully review and respond to your comments
What it means to "go flat" in organizational planning
To bring our decision-making practices in harmony with our mission driven values for transparency, accountability and open-heartedness, the Board is building its own models for self-governance.
We would like to share with the Sangha this short article from The Guardian that sets forth key considerations we gradually are discovering over the last 18 months. We hope you will find it useful for understanding the Board's on-going deliberations.
Information about the Board may be found on the TIMC Board of Directors webpage, including Board members' names, contact information, meeting information, and relevant links.
Board meetings will be open to non-Board attendance, with scheduled time provided for specified presentations from Sangha members. If you have questions about Board procedure or have a topic for the Board to consider, please contact us at [email protected].
Your input is always welcome on matters concerning the Sangha and its activities. Send us your questions, concerns and new ideas, and to schedule time at a Board meeting.
MINUTES from TIMC BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETINGS are available on the Board webpage. The most current Minutes will be posted when approved by the Board at the next meeting. Upcoming Meetings will be announced at least two weeks in advance on the TI website and by email to the Newsletter subscription list.
A Wild Love for the World: Joanna Macy on Grief, Gratitude, and Belonging
Free Online Course w/ Joanna Macy and Stephanie Kaza
(Sponsored by the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies)
The powerful COVID-19 virus teacher has brought us to the brink of widespread systems change and deep uncertainty about how things will unfold. There is a hunger for a more profound understanding of the links between ecosystem collapse and public health threats, between patterns of economic domination and racial injustice. Systems thinking and Buddhist views together offer skillful means for making sense of these interlocking calls for action.
For more information and to register, please go HERE
Saturday, May 22 12:00 - 1:30PM
New Mindfulness Classes from the Frank Porter Graham Institute at UNC-CH
Mindfulness and Self-Compassion Program for Families
*Making Friends with Yourself (11-14 year olds): A research-based self-compassion class to help teens not be so hard on themselves.
Embracing Your Life is adapted from the internationally renowned and research-based Mindful Self-Compassion program, and tailored for young adults age 18-30.
Online, Wednesdays, July 14 - August 18, 2:00-3:30 PM EST
This class is taught by Dr. Karen Bluth, a certified instructor of Mindful Self-Compassion and co-creator of this curriculum. She is the author of the book "The Self-Compassion Workbook for Teens: Mindfulness and Compassion Skills to Overcome Self-Criticism and Embrace Who You Are" (New Harbinger). Dr. Bluth's research focuses on the roles that self-compassion and mindfulness play in promoting well-being in youth.
Previous and recently started "Upcoming Classes and Events" may be found in earlier issues of the TIMC Newsletter HERE on our website.
TIM PROGRAMS and COMMITTEES
The Shramadana Project
A Volunteer Initiative of Triangle Insight
NEW The Caring Circles Initiative is being revived, and is ready to receive requests for assistance from Sangha members. See above for information.
HISTORY
The Shramadana Project (SP) has been a volunteer initiative of the Triangle Insight Meditation Community to address some of the interests for connecting within the sangha and for outreach to the community-at-large.
This project has outgrown its current form and now needs to evolve into a more meaningful structure. Some activities including Media Night, workshops and retreats would fit well with a "Programs Committee," yet to be formed. Other volunteer opportunities might better fit with a group or committee for "Engaged Buddhism" or "Community-at-Large Activities," or others yet to be created.
Ideas on how to organize these activities are welcome and should be sent to [email protected].
ARCHIVE
Past activities, meeting minutes and the list of community organizations for the SP are available on the SP webpage.
______________________
If beings knew, as I know, the results of giving and sharing, they would not eat without having given...
Insight Dialogue is an interpersonal meditation practice and is offered at Triangle Insight once monthly, usually on the fourth Wednesday of the month. It brings the mindfulness and tranquility of silent meditation directly into our experience with other people.
The new website for Insight Dialogue is an excellent resource for learning more about the practice: www.insightdialogue.org.
The evening begins with silent meditation practice, followed by gentle mindful movement, and then shifting into dyad practice where interpersonal mindfulness is explored with a partner in response to a contemplation that is offered. The dyad practice is optional so that anyone who chooses to remain in silent practice may do so, rather than shifting into dyad practice. One can investigate the guidance of the contemplation internally, noticing the moment by moment unfolding of internal experience. Also note that the ID practice goes from 6:30 to 8:30 PM to allow for more spaciousness and time for questions. We hope you will be able to join us.
Phyllis Hicks, facilitating Insight Dialogue on 08-04-19.
Fourth Wednesdays
(unless otherwise indicated)
Triangle Insight, Episcopal Center at Duke 6:30 - 8:30 PM
During this period of COVID-19 limits, please contact the individual or organization for alternative meeting arrangements
Triangle Insight Morning Meditation Group -- Now using Zoom platform
This early morning sitting group led by Ron Vereen meets Mondays and Thursdays from 7:00 - 7:45 AM. The group begins with silent, unguided practice, with Ron giving a guided heart practice during the last 10-15 minutes. There is no charge for participation, and donations are accepted. For more info contact Ron at [email protected].
Zoom invitations will be emailed to those who have subscribed to the Morning Mediation list. Please contact Ron at the email above to be added to the list, or subscribe through the appropriate web form on our website.
When we resume meeting in the Episcopal Center:
*Important note:
Only four parking spaces in the parking lot at the Episcopal Center are designated for our use at this hour and are clearly marked. Overflow parking can be found on the west side of Alexander Ave.
Monday and Thursday Mornings Episcopal Center at Duke 505 Alexander Ave. Durham, NC 27705 7:00 - 7:45 AM
During this period of no or limited social assembly, if you are interested in any of the following sitting opportunities, please contact the individual or organization to determine its status or alternative arrangements
Mindful Families of Durham
Currently consisting of ~ 16 families, this group is dedicated to creating a warm, loving community for parents and children to learn and practice together. Adults meet for one hour for meditation and discussion, while the children learn about meditation and Buddhism in Sati School with our marvelous (non-parent-member) teachers.
If you are unfamiliar with this intentional group, here is the video from their website:
Introducing Mindful Families of Durham
Sunday Mornings 10:00AM-11:00AM For more info, please contact [email protected], or
The Buddhist Meditation Community at Duke provides the opportunity for currently enrolled undergraduate and graduate students to learn about Buddhist teachings and practice meditation. Our Monday evening meetings include quiet meditation, group study and discussion, and we regularly host local Buddhist teachers from across traditions to share their teachings with the group. Morning meditation on weekdays is also available. We are a culturally diverse student group that welcomes the curious, beginners, experienced Buddhists, and those of other religions equally. We deeply value the role of friendship and community in supporting a thoughtful spiritual path of wisdom and compassion.
Open to Duke University Faculty, Staff, and Students
In addition to Triangle Insight, there are a variety of other meditation opportunities of which we would like for you to be aware. Rather than list them all here, we wanted to point you to the "links" section of our website atTriangle Insight. There are other sitting groups in the community whose practice is similar to ours, as well as resources for retreat centers and other websites, both locally and nationally. We do not offer an endorsement of these sites, but rather a suggestion for your exploration to see if any may have useful information to support your practice of insight meditation.
Unless indicated, please contact the individual or organization for alternative meeting arrangements
Men's Sharing Group
Now meeting on the Zoom platform
Start Time: 6:30-8:00PM
This group is open to ALL MEN regardless of their tradition or path, or affiliation with the Triangle Insight Meditation Community. Our intention is to hear each other's interests, concerns, and ideas about forming and sustaining a group, all while getting to know each other. There will be a short period of meditating. A couple of us will help moderate the discussion initially but going forward, the leadership could be something collaborative, shared by all participants. It's a work in progress.
At its core, the group should be a space where men can share from their hearts about their experiences being men, following a meditative path -- and offering support to one another along the way.
Some dana to defray expenses is welcome, but, of course, optional. Let us know if you think you'll attend.
Tamara Share will be offering an ongoing group for developing skills in mindfulness awareness practices. The group will meet twice monthly, and is open to those 18 years of age and older. A pre-group consultation is required, and you may contact Tamara at 919-442-1118. The cost is $45/session if pre-paid in 6 session blocks ($270), or $60 if paid per session (sliding scale available).
Tamara L. Share, PhD is a Counseling Psychologist with more than 20 years of training and experience in human development, group facilitation, and personal growth. Tamara's diverse background includes education/training in physics, psychology, wellness, philosophy, and complementary approaches to healthcare.
2nd and 4th Thursdays
HRC, Behavioral Health and Psychiatry 100 Europa Dr., Suite 260, Chapel Hill 27517 4:45 - 6:00 PM
