ONLINE: Path of the Modern Bodhisattva, Class Series 2
2026-11-04 18:30 - 20:30, 2026-11-11 18:30 - 20:30, 2026-11-18 18:30 - 20:30, 2026-12-02 18:30 - 20:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Path of the Modern Bodhisattva (Class Series 2 of 2)
with Mushim Ikeda
Wednesday Evenings
November 4, 11, 18 (no class on 25), Dec 2
6:30 – 8:30 PM PT (Time Zone Converter)
ONLINE
Closed Captioning Provided on Zoom

I, myself, took the Bodhisattva Vows and made the vow, “Life after life, after life, after life, I will continue my practice and continue my work.” – Bhante Suhita Dharma, Buddhist monk and social worker, 1941-2013

Embodiment! Joy! Commitment! Strategic Action! In Mahayana Buddhism, the Bodhisattva works and plays ceaselessly to liberate all suffering beings, lifetime after lifetime. And – how do you and I show up, day after day, in the gigantic mess of our times, to do the great work?

For the eighth time, EBMC will offer two class series exploring what it means to creatively embody the Bodhisattva teachings. Those who complete both class series may participate in the final daylong and either witness or take Bodhisattva precepts and vows in order to strengthen their commitment to collective liberation. These are the same vows taken by His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama and by Thich Nhat Hanh.

Sign up for Series 1 (online only, Wednesdays, Oct 7-28, 6:30-8:30pm PT)

Sign up for the daylong ceremony (hybrid, Sunday Dec 13, 10am-4:30pm PT) – link coming soon

Mushim (Patricia) Ikeda received Bodhisattva precepts and vows at the Zen Buddhist Temple-Toronto, Canada in 1983. She is an EBMC core teacher, a widely-published writer, and a social justice activist based in Oakland, California. Mushim has practiced as both a monastic and a lay householder. For events, writing, video teachings, go to www.mushimikeda.com

Cost
The teachings are regarded as priceless. So they are offered without a fee. You are invited to support the teachings and our efforts by contributing voluntary donations (the practice of “Dana”) for the expenses of the meditation center and the support of the teachers.

The ticket prices are listed as different tiers with suggested donations based on income ranges. For those who wish to give more, you may choose an “add-on” to your ticket. For those unable to give, there is an option for that.

Other ways to give:
To make a gift to sustain the work of East Bay Meditation Center, you may do so at bit.ly/ebmc-give 100% of our programming on a sliding scale and no one will ever be turned away for lack of funds.

Please also consider giving a financial gift to our teachers as well, who do not receive a salary for their work, and give their teachings freely to all.

Venmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda
PayPal: info@mushimikeda.com

Please indicate “Bodhisattva” in the subject line.

Thank you for the gifts of your generosity and for supporting the work of East Bay Meditation Center and our beloved teachers who have volunteered their time.

For Zoom participation, these are our Universal Access Guidelines:
1. When speaking, introduce your name, pronouns, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself.
2. If using virtual backgrounds, please use static, simple, high-contrast backgrounds.
3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on.
4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment.
5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud.
6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available.
7. If you have unmet access needs, please send a message to the volunteer or host in the chat. If the chat is not accessible to you, please offer them briefly in one minute or less via voice. Please do not send access requests directly to other participants.

Teacher

Mushim Patricia Ikeda is an internationally-known secular mindfulness and Buddhist teacher working primarily with justice activists and Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) meditation practitioners. A core teacher at East Bay Meditation Center in Oakland, California, she is an author whose writing has been published in Lion’s Roar, Tricycle, Buddhadharma and various anthologies. She is the founding and guiding teacher of EBMC’s Practice in Transformative Action, a yearlong program that completed its tenth cohort in July 2023, providing secular mindfulness training for justice activists and agents of change. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. If you would like to make a gift to our beloved teacher, please do so via Venmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda or PayPal: info@mushimikeda.com

ONLINE: White and Awakening Monthly Sangha
2026-11-08 10:30 - 12:00, 2026-12-13 10:30 - 12:00
The White and Awakening Monthly Sangha will meet on the second Sunday of each month from 10:30 am to Noon PT/1:30-3:00 pm ET beginning January 11, 2026. This group is a joint offering of EBMC and Brooklyn Zen Center. All meetings are on Zoom.

Facilitated by Crystal Johnson, Sarah Emerson, Heather Lear, Kitsy Schoen and guests, the monthly sangha is an opportunity for white people to gather and discuss their dilemmas and successes in waking up to whiteness and making a difference in undermining white supremacy culture in all of its many manifestations, including in our sanghas. Our intention is to create a supportive space that allows us to do the hard and painful inner work that frees us to take action in the world.

Open to all self-identified white people and to those for whom whiteness is an important part of their identity. Questions? Email us at whiteandawakening@eastbaymeditation.org.

Sign up here to receive the zoom link.

FACILITATORS

Crystal Johnson is a retired clinical psychologist and a Community Teacher at the East Bay Meditation Center (EBMC) in Oakland, CA, where she also serves on the Leadership Sangha (Board) and as a member of the Radical Inclusivity Committee. She completed the year long Commit2Dharma training at EBMC, as well as the 2-year Dedicated Practitioner Program and the 2-year Community Dharma Leader Program at Spirit Rock Meditation Center. In her teaching, she focuses on creating/co-creating programs for white dharma practitioners seeking to build awareness, knowledge and skills to challenge the dynamics of white privilege and race-based oppression, and create truly inclusive sangha. Her courses include White and Awakening in Sangha at EBMC, Unpacking Whiteness: Reflection and Action at the San Francisco Zen Center, White and Awakening Together at Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Unpacking Whiteness for the Soto Zen Buddhist Association and Unpacking the Whiteness of Leadership for Branching Streams. She offers consultation to individuals and organizations seeking to disrupt the practices of white supremacy culture and support change toward racial equity.

Sarah Dōjin Emerson’s formal practice in Soto Zen began in 1996. She received Dharma Transmission from Abbott Konjin Gaelyn Godwin of the Houston Zen Center in 2015. She has a M.A. in Counseling Psychology, and has worked in the fields of mental health and pastoral care with children and adults. She experiences Bodhisattva Zen practice as deeply supportive to inquiring into, challenging and transforming systems of oppression, particularly racial inequities and the harm they cause within convert Buddhist sanghas, and in U.S. society generally. Sarah has worked for many years in grief support- clinically, ritually and in community- specializing in child loss. She lives with her partner, Charlie Pokorny (who is also a Soto Zen Buddhist priest), their children (who are her most profound and constant teachers) and numerous pets in Brooklyn, NY.

Heather Lear (she/her) was born and raised with the Dharma in a family of Insight Meditation practitioners in the South, and is now based on unceded Ramaytush Ohlone land in San Francisco. She studies and teaches at the intersection of heart-centered Dharma, embodiment practices and DEIA work around white and awakening in community, and serves as the Program Manager at Spirit Rock Meditation Center. Heather has completed various study and teaching programs, including Spirit Rock’s LEAP program, the Sati Center’s Buddhist Chaplaincy Training, and Radiant Heart Qigong Teacher Training with Teja Bell. She has served on the board at Insight Santa Cruz, on the teaching team offering the 6-month White and Awakening in Sangha program at the East Bay Meditation Center since 2019, and is part of the current Spirit Rock Community Dharma Leaders (CDL7) cohort.

Kitsy Schoen, MSW, began her mindfulness practice and was inspired to work as a hospice social worker after meeting Stephen Levine in 1979. Throughout her career she has been able to integrate mindfulness and her passion for racial equity into her work. At Kaiser Permanente, Kitsy led the NCAL Kaiser Psychiatry’s Cultural Diversity Workgroup and was a founding member of the “Isms Collaborative”, a group of representatives from public and private health care organizations that sought to address workplace bias in agencies committed to reducing health disparities. In 2004 she began Spirit Rock’s Community Dharma Leader program with the specific focus of bringing insight and compassion practices to working with other white people on racism. In 2007, she joined the Leadership Sangha (board) of East Bay Meditation Center and began offering antiracism classes to white practitioners. Kitsy has provided training and consultation to numerous mental health training programs and dharma centers on issues of racism, power and privilege.

HYBRID: Bodhisattva Vows and Precepts Ceremony
2026-12-13 10:00 - 16:30
Bodhisattva Vows and Precepts Ceremony
with Mushim Ikeda
Sunday, December 13th 2026
10:00 AM – 4:30 PM PT (Time Zone Converter)
HYBRID
Closed Captioning Provided on Zoom
The center is fragrance-free and wheelchair accessible
N95/KN95 masks required

Note 1: You may participate as a witness/observer, or *apply to receive the Bodhisattva Vows and Precepts after participating in the preceding classes.
Note 2: In-person ticket sales END ON DECEMBER 10, so we can get an accurate headcount of who will be in the center. Online ticket sales end at 10AM PT on December 13th.

Application For RETAKING Bodhisattva Vows and Precepts [2026 Form A]
(link coming soon)
Deadline to apply is December 1, 2026
Application For Taking Bodhisattva Vows and Precepts FOR THE FIRST TIME with EBMC [2026 Form B]
(link coming soon)
Deadline to apply is December 1, 2026

This will be a HYBRID class, where in person participants are asked to use an N95 or KN95 mask. Instructors are given the option to be unmasked while speaking into a microphone. For those wishing to practice in person, space will be limited to 40 people to allow ample space for social distancing. N95 face masks will be available at EBMC.

I, myself, took the Bodhisattva Vows and made the vow, “Life after life, after life, after life, I will continue my practice and continue my work.” – Bhante Suhita Dharma, Buddhist monk and social worker, 1941-2013

The final daylong is open to everyone who wishes to witness the joyful ceremony (you do not need to have taken any of the previous classes, though it is recommended that you do so) and those who have completed the previous classes and have received permission from the teacher may receive the Bodhisattva Precepts, take the Bodhisattva Vows, and at that time they will receive a Buddhist name from the teacher. Meditation (instruction provided for beginners), Dharma talks, and interactive exercises.

Sign up for Series 1 (Wednesdays, Oct 8-28, 6:30-8:30pm PT)
Sign up for Series 2 (Wednesdays, Nov 5-26, 6:30-8:30pm PT)

Mushim (Patricia) Ikeda received Bodhisattva precepts and vows at the Zen Buddhist Temple-Toronto, Canada in 1983. She is an EBMC core teacher, a widely-published writer, and a social justice activist based in Oakland, California. Mushim has practiced as both a monastic and a lay householder. For events, writing, video teachings, go to www.mushimikeda.com

Cost
The teachings are regarded as priceless. So they are offered without a fee. You are invited to support the teachings and our efforts by contributing voluntary donations (the practice of “Dana”) for the expenses of the meditation center and the support of the teachers.

The ticket prices are listed as different tiers with suggested donations based on income ranges. For those who wish to give more, you may choose an “add-on” to your ticket. For those unable to give, there is an option for that.

Other ways to give:
To make a gift to sustain the work of East Bay Meditation Center, you may do so at bit.ly/ebmc-give 100% of our programming on a sliding scale and no one will ever be turned away for lack of funds.

Please also consider giving a financial gift to our teachers as well, who do not receive a salary for their work, and give their teachings freely to all.

Venmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda
PayPal: info@mushimikeda.com

Please indicate “Bodhisattva” in the subject line.

Thank you for the gifts of your generosity and for supporting the work of East Bay Meditation Center and our beloved teachers who have volunteered their time.

For in-person participation:
For those wishing to practice in person, space will be limited to 60 people to allow ample space for social distancing. Participants will be asked to wear N95 or KN95 face masks. (N95 face masks will be available at EBMC.) Please note: The teacher may be unmasked while teaching.
To attend in person, you need to be completely free of fragranced body and clothing products — more information and a list of fragrance free products, including those that are especially good for people of color, appears on our website: https://eastbaymeditation.org/resources/fragrance-free-at-ebmc/
East Bay Meditation Center is a scent free / fragrance free space and is wheelchair accessible.

For Zoom participation, these are our Universal Access Guidelines:
1. When speaking, introduce your name, pronouns, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself.
2. If using virtual backgrounds, please use static, simple, high-contrast backgrounds.
3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on.
4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment.
5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud.
6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available.
7. If you have unmet access needs, please send a message to the volunteer or host in the chat. If the chat is not accessible to you, please offer them briefly in one minute or less via voice. Please do not send access requests directly to other participants.

REGISTRATION LINK COMING SOON

Teacher

Mushim Patricia Ikeda is an internationally-known secular mindfulness and Buddhist teacher working primarily with justice activists and Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) meditation practitioners. A core teacher at East Bay Meditation Center in Oakland, California, she is an author whose writing has been published in Lion’s Roar, Tricycle, Buddhadharma and various anthologies. She is the founding and guiding teacher of EBMC’s Practice in Transformative Action, a yearlong program that completed its tenth cohort in July 2023, providing secular mindfulness training for justice activists and agents of change. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. If you would like to make a gift to our beloved teacher, please do so via Venmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda or PayPal: info@mushimikeda.com
