FALL FUND DRIVE A SUCCESS!

Thanks to all who donated to our Fall Fund Drive. It was a marvelous success - we picked up 20 new regular monthly donors to help support KTC’s ongoing work to bring free meditation instruction to our neighborhood and build dharma community.

We’ll give a bigger update next week, but for now we’re dedicating your merit - OM MANI PADME HUM!

November 11

Nyingne One-Day Compassion Retreat with Lama Tom

At Columbus KTC we hope to re-introduce the Nyungne Retreat to our sangha in stages. We plan to conduct a two-day fasting retreat in 2024, but first, we will begin with a one-day retreat with a half-day of fasting on Saturday Nov. 4, 2023.

Our modified Nyingne Retreat will consist of a single day of 1000-arm Chenrezig sadhana practice from Saturday morning until Saturday evening, with one meal at noon and a fasting from food until the morning of the next day.

To learn more, please see the full article below.

November 12

Refuge Ceremony THIS Sunday at 3:00 p.m. at KTC!

We are sorry for the short notice, but due to a request from an out of town student, Lama Kathy will offer a Refuge Ceremony for those interested in beginning the Buddhist path THIS Sunday, Nov. 12, 2023 at 3 PM in the main shrine room.

If you would like to participate, please write Lama Kathy at lamakathy@columbusktc.org

If this week is not a convenient time for you, write to Lama Kathy in any case, so she can put you on the contact list for future ceremonies. It’s expected that one more ceremony will be offered in 2023. May all beings benefit!

Sign Up For November KTC Children's Program 

Children ages 5 - 12 are welcome to join us in November as we celebrate World Kindness Day. Programming usually includes a Buddhist story, mindfulness practice, a craft, and sometimes a game. 

 

We meet from 11:30 - 12:30 on the 1st and 3rd Sunday of each month, and we look forward to seeing your child there! 

November 5th Sign Up Link

November 18 Sign Up link

November 14: Board Meeting

Members and friends are invited to attend the June meeting with the Columbus KTC Board, scheduled for Tues., Nov. 14, 2023, 6:30 p.m.  

Before attending the meeting, please email Rebecca Worthington: memberatlarge@columbusktc.org to let her know you will be there and please review the local policy for attending a board meeting.

November 20: First Mindfulness Dinner

Mindfulness Community of Columbus (MCC) and Columbus KTC are thrilled to announce an exciting collaborative venture.

On Monday, November 20, MCC will sponsor a vegan dinner consisting of soup, salad, bread, and desert. MCC will provide the meal and KTC will host the dinner. At MCC's request, proceeds will benefit KTC.

To learn more, please see the full storybelow.

NEW: Want to Sit With the Retreatants Saturday? Here’s How

During the Dharma Talk this past Sunday, Lama Kathy suggested that other members of the KTC sangha might want to come to sit with the folks doing the Nyingne Retreat this coming Saturday, Nov. 11. So we’ve devised a short schedule of “visiting hours” for the retreat.

Greeters will be on hand at the Front Door (Rich Street side of the building) from 10 AM to 12 noon and again from 2 PM to 4 PM. These limited hours will allow the retreatants to focus on practice and give visitors a short time to join them in silent practice.

Visitors may sit in the back of the shrine room and quietly do their shamatha (sitting meditation) practice or quietly recite the OM MANI PEME HUNG compassion mantra.

Thanks for your interest. May all beings benefit!

DATE CHANGE! One-Day Nyingne Retreat with Lama Tom Rescheduled to Saturday Nov. 11

Due to a schedule change, the One-Day Nyingne Retreat with Lama Tom is being rescheduled from Nov. 4 to Nov. 11.

The One-Day Retreat will focus on the practice of the 1000-Arm Chenrezig and will include the taking of the one-day Sojong Vows and a half-day of fasting from food as a method to promote compassion for those suffering throughout the world. 

The event will include an orientation Friday Night Nov. 10, followed by a full day of sadhana practice on Saturday Nov. 11 with a midday break for participants’ single meal of the day. The event is in-person only, and a $35 fee is requested to pay for food and beverages and other costs related to the retreat. 

Have you registered, and cannot attend on the new date? Refunds are available by writing to Lama Kathy at lamakathy@columbusktc.org. You also can write to Lama Kathy if you need a free ticket to the event.

NEW SCHEDULE:

Friday evening, Nov. 10

7-9 PM at KTC Columbus

Lama Tom will present an orientation to the practice, and Lama Kathy will give the reading transmission for the 1000-Arm Chenrezig Sadhana.

Saturday Nov. 11

Doors Open: 6 AM

Sadhana Practice 6:30 AM to 5:30 PM

Lama Tom and Lama Kathy will participate in the day of practice. Sadhana texts will be provided. Just bring yourself!

Want to learn more about the Sojong Vows? Here’s a short article about them based on the teachings of Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche:

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ig9ega2oth2kz2ikjytsf/How-to-take-Sojong-Vows.V2.doc?rlkey=xeufyd3xuhcktdjf31kgo2xl4&dl=0

Our modified Nyingne Retreat will consist of a single day of 1000-arm Chenrezig sadhana practice from Saturday morning until Saturday evening, with one meal at noon and a fasting from food until the morning of the next day.

Who Can Participate?

Beginners and seasoned practitioners alike are encouraged to attend this short but profound practice. 

The retreat is open only to those who have taken the Buddhist Vow of Refuge. To arrange a Refuge Ceremony before the Nyingne retreat, contact Lama Kathy Wesley at lamakathy@columbusktc.org.

What Is the Schedule?

Friday night: The reading transmission for the 1000-arm Chenrezig practice and an orientation for the one-day retreat will be given on Friday evening between 7 and 9 PM

Saturday morning: The practice begins with a one-day Sojong Vow Ceremony at 6:30 AM. This Ceremony gives one-day vows not to kill, not to steal, not to lie, not to commit sexual misconduct, and not to take intoxicants, along with vows not to wear jewelry and makeup, not to act in prideful ways, and not to take food after the midday meal. The vow ceremony will be followed by at least one session of the 1000-Arm Chenrezig Sadhana practice, which will be taught with brief guided meditations

Saturday midday: A vegetarian lunch will be provided to all participants.

Saturday afternoon: After a rest period, there will be another session of the 1000-Arm Chenrezig Sadhana Practice. The program will end between 5 and 6 PM. and participants will go home that night. Vows automatically expire at dawn on Sunday.

About Lama Tom: Lama Tom Broadwater became a student of Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche in 1999. He completed a three-year retreat in 2012. He REcently retired as an associate teacher at Columbus KTC.

Mindfulness Community of Columbus (MCC) and Columbus KTC are thrilled to announce an exciting collaborative venture.

On Monday, November 20, MCC will sponsor a vegan dinner consisting of soup, salad, bread, and desert. MCC will provide the meal and KTC will host the dinner. At MCC's request, proceeds will benefit KTC.

In the tradition of Plum Village and Thich Nhat Hanh, this event will include recitation, study, and discussion of The Five Mindfulness Trainings (or the Five Precepts).

Building community is a precious, and sometimes neglected, part of our practice.

What could be better than bringing our sanghas together with both Dharma study and amazing food!? Ahh!

These dinners are intended to become monthly events! Attendance to this first dinner will be limited to 20 guests.

Dinner will take place from 6pm to 7pm. Recitation and discussion will follow until 8:15pm.

Tickets for this event are $10. To register click this link:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/vegan-dinner-with-mindfulness-community-of-columbus-tickets-739811565307?aff=oddtdtcreator

Dear Sangha friends,

• From Tory P. - Please add Terry P. to your prayer list. Thank you

To submit prayer requests, you can write to prayers@columbusktc.org. Every week, our Prayer Request Volunteer will compile the names of those needing prayer and put them in our weekly newsletter. 

To protect the privacy of individuals, we recommend not including private details, and even if a full name is provided in the request, we will only using a person's first name and last initial in the newsletter prayer request. 

To be on the safe side, we also recommend getting the approval of the person for whom prayers are being requested. We will send a confirmation email to let you know we received your request.

Thank you for your interest in our prayer list. May all beings benefit.

Image credit: Butter Lamps by J McDowell (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Community News & Events

Buddhist Focus Group

Hello, friends!

Earlier in 2023, I participated in an interview with a chaplain who is seeking to learn more about the needs of Buddhist patients in hospitals and hospices. Judith Ragsdale is a serious and conscientious scholar who is very kind and respectful in her work.

After interviewing me, she said she would like to ask questions of other Buddhists to help round out her research. It would be great if some of our dharma friends could meet with her for an hour or so on Zoom to help her understand Buddhists’ needs at the time of illness and in hospice care.

Her work will inform the next generation of hospital and hospice chaplains about important things to remember about their Buddhist sisters and brothers.

Please click here for more information and to contact the researcher.

Lama Kathy Wesley

Weekly Programs at Columbus KTC

November 7-12, 2023