East Bay Meditation Center

ONLINE: Whiteness: Neither Supreme nor Fragile
2020-10-04 10:00 - 16:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
for White Practitioners
10:00AM -12:15PM and 2:00PM-4:00PM PST
with Crystal Johnson and JD Doyle
White supremacy culture and white fragility are all over the news and have entered mainstream conversations; but how can whiteness be both supreme and fragile? This workshop for self-identified white people explores the experience of these two powerful and seemingly contradictory delusions. We will use the Buddhist practices of mindfulness and compassion to help us let go of the conditioned behaviors of whiteness that reinforce racial injustice, and build stamina for transformational action.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom with their EventBrite confirmation.

ONLINE: Reclaiming Our Magic for Liberation Struggle for Black, Indigenous and People of Color
2020-10-05 18:30 - 20:30
with Lama Rod Owens
In order to experience true liberation, we must do the work to reclaim parts of ourselves that have been lost to the violence of systematic oppression.
Magic is an important expression of who we are as QTIPoC and BIPOC communities. In this context, magic means how we use our sexual and other expressions to cultivate connection and belong or how we use our laughter to consume experiences of being erased or even how we remember our ancestors to deepen our sense of resiliency.
Our magic is how we dance into a future free from the limitations of rigidity and control. In this talk, we will practice reclaiming our magic because the world needs us to cast stronger spells of liberation.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom.

ONLINE: Path of the Bodhisattva I
2020-10-07 18:30 - 20:30, 2020-10-14 18:30 - 20:30, 2020-10-21 18:30 - 20:30, 2020-10-28 18:30 - 20:30
ASL Interpretation Provided
with Mushim Ikeda
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

In Mahayana Buddhism, the Bodhisattva is an archetypal great being who tirelessly and joyfully works to liberate all beings from suffering. For the third 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 Dalai Lama. Those who do not wish to take the Bodhisattva vows may take either of the two class series. Meditation (instruction provided for beginners), Dharma talks, and interactive exercises.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom.

Please read full class series schedule below:
4 class series: Path of the Bodhisattva 1, Weds, Oct 7 – 28, 6:30 – 8:30pm* PST
4 class series: Path of the Bodhisattva 2, Weds, Nov 4 – 25, 6:30 – 8:30pm* PST
Daylong: Receiving or Witnessing the Bodhisattva Precepts & Vows, Dec 5th 10am – 4:30pm* PST

*There are three parts to the Path of the Bodhisattva curriculum. Separate registration is needed for each part: (1) Path of the Bodhisattva 1 class series; (2) Path of the Bodhisattva 2 class series; (3) Receiving Bodhisattva Vows and Precepts Ceremony). Participants interested in receiving the Bodhisattva Vows in Dec are required to take Parts 1 + 2 of the class series.

ONLINE: Strengthen & Soften
2020-10-09 18:00 - 18:55, 2020-10-16 18:00 - 18:55, 2020-10-23 18:00 - 18:55, 2020-10-30 18:00 - 18:55
Strengthen & Soften with Jessy Zapanta
Building a spiritual foundation from the core, using multi-modality movement and massage to ground in the moment. This isn’t your typical “core exercise” gym class—we will cultivate our inner fire slowly and with the invitation to let the body rest as needed.
No prior registration is required. No mat or special clothes required.
To join us, please email dharmamotion at eastbaymeditation dot org to receive a zoom link + password.

ONLINE: Embracing What is with Body Mind-Heart
2020-10-10 10:00 - 12:30, 2020-10-17 10:00 - 12:30
with Jenn B and Carol C
Class One: Saturday, October 10th 10AM – 12:30PM PST
Class Two: Saturday, October 17th 10AM – 12:30PM PST
Classes build upon one another. Participants are welcome to attend one or both.
“Over and over again the Buddha recommended mindfully putting one’s attention on the body as the path to liberation” -Ayya Khema
Becoming aware of how we are holding anxiety, fear, grief, and despair in these heart-breaking and heart-opening times is critical to our well-being. We will begin with embodied awareness of what we are holding physically. Through the teachings of the Buddhadharma and the practices of qigong and tai chi, we will align our body mind-hearts and ground our energy with mother earth.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom with their EventBrite confirmation email.

ONLINE: Love and Rage Weekend Workshop
2020-10-17 09:30 - 17:30, 2020-10-18 09:30 - 17:30
with Lama Rod Owens
As Audre Lorde has written, there is so much data in our anger. One of the things that we can learn is how to let our anger show us where we have been hurt. We can let this great unveiling happen through the profound practice of radical love. When we embrace this deep wish to be happy, then we can move into the cultivation of our anger, which can place us into a direct relationship with our rage.
While anger is a reaction in the present moment to something that we have an aversion towards, rage is an intense experience that seems old and ever present. Cultivating our anger and rage through love means that we begin the work of holding space for ourselves to experience the anger and rage and the hurt beneath them. We are learning how to witness and experience not react over and over again. When we develop this agency, then the energy of our anger and rage can be channeled into helping others instead of hurting others.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom.

ONLINE: Practicing with Sexual Energy: Presence, Precepts and Power
2020-10-24 10:00 - 12:30
Practicing with Sexual Energy: Presence, Precepts and Power
Honoring Sexuality While Maintaining Upright Awareness
with Rev. Daigan Gaither and Carol Cano
Saturday, October 3rd Part I
Saturday, October 24th Part II
10AM – 12:30PM PST
What is it to be upright and awake in the midst of sexual energy? How do we not turn away from ourselves or our experience in the present? How can we learn to understand and relate to desire in healthy and respectful ways? Are we using our energies or are they using us? Using small group discussions, guided meditations, zazen, and open dialogue we will explore our vow in the context of responsible sexual choices. Join us as we explore what it means to practice while maintaining a healthy relationship to our sexuality.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom with their EventBrite confirmation email.

ONLINE: Race & Grace: Conversations on Liberation with Black Male Dharma Teachers
2020-10-25 12:00 - 16:00
All Are Welcome. ASL Interpretation and Closed Captioning provided.
12-3PM PST Program
3-4PM PST Community RoundTable & After-Party
Guest Teachers:
Joshua Bee Alafia
Devin Berry
Justin F. Miles
Larry Ward
Poet:
Tongo Eisen-Martin
Moderator:
Master John W. Ellis IV (Martial Artist, Journalist, EBMC Community Teacher)
“Race & Grace,” is a discussion among Black male Dharma teachers. All are welcome to attend.
We have faced severe challenges recently – in politics and policing, education and the environment, healthcare and housing, income and injustice. This year these issues and others have been greatly amplified by racism – through both personal acts and institutional systems. How do these African American teachers face these problems and opportunities? How do these Black men balance their anger and despair with love and compassion? In this conversation teachers will offer their wisdom teachings – ancient, modern and personal – that can help all of us address the suffering of our times and move toward liberation…with grace.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom.

ONLINE: Opening the Heart Through the Buddha’s Teachings: Parents Meditation Group
2020-10-26 20:45 - 21:45
An Online Meditation Group for Parents
with Lev White, Ramona Lisa Ortiz-Smith, Michele Ku, Baruch Golden and Lisa Fujie Parks
EBMC’s Family Practice Class teaching team will be offering a monthly parents’ meditation group for restoration, support and connection during these challenging times. We will offer a short talk, guided meditation and sharing. We welcome all parents/grandparents/caregivers of young people to join us. No prior experience is necessary.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom.

ONLINE: Resilience and Renewal During Precarious Times: The Power of Beloved Community
2020-11-01 11:00 - 13:30
Given the uncertainty of our social and political situation, what resources can we bring to ourselves and each other? How might catastrophe and chaos be reframed in ways that transform difficulty into resilience?

You are invited to be guided through Ceremony by EBMC’s Core Teachers to experience what collective care might look like during these times of crisis and collective trauma. We will explore how our peoples draw on collective wisdom to survive and thrive despite the uncertainties inherent in life. In doing so we will make manifest the jewel of sangha.

ASL Interpretation and Closed Captioning Provided.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom with their EventBrite confirmation email.

ONLINE: Mind Full of Breathing: A Four Class Series on the Ānāpānasati Sutta
2020-11-02 19:00 - 20:30, 2020-11-09 19:00 - 20:30, 2020-11-16 19:00 - 20:30, 2020-11-23 19:00 - 20:30
Mondays November 2nd, 9th, 16th and 23rd 7:00 – 8:30PM PST
with Vimalasara Mason John
This 4-week course will turn towards the traditional four tetrads of the Anapanasati. The Buddha was teaching us to simply breathe through the experience of the body, feelings, mental formation, and all dharmas. Together we will experience that while the world is constantly changing around us, our body, feelings, mental formations and all dharmas are constantly changing too. This ancient practice has set free and liberated many beings from the prison of their minds and body. This teaching can bring us much joy, and teach us to “cherish the dharma, radiate love and live united” Dhardo Rimpoche.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom.

ONLINE: Path of the Bodhisattva II
2020-11-04 18:30 - 20:30, 2020-11-11 18:30 - 20:30, 2020-11-18 18:30 - 20:30
Please read full schedule below.
with Mushim Ikeda
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
In Mahayana Buddhism, the Bodhisattva is an archetypal great being who tirelessly and joyfully works to liberate all beings from suffering. For the third 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 Dalai Lama. Those who do not wish to take the Bodhisattva vows may take either of the two class series. Meditation (instruction provided for beginners), Dharma talks, and interactive exercises.

Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom with their EventBrite confirmation email.

4 class series: Path of the Bodhisattva 1, Weds, Oct 7 – 28, 6:30 – 8:30pm* Pacific time
4 class series: Path of the Bodhisattva 2, Weds, Nov 4 – 25, 6:30 – 8:30pm* Pacific time
Daylong: Receiving or Witnessing the Bodhisattva Precepts & Vows, Dec 5th 10am – 4:30pm* Pacific time

*There are three parts to the Path of the Bodhisattva curriculum. Separate registration is needed for each part: (1) Path of the Bodhisattva 1 class series; (2) Path of the Bodhisattva 2 class series; (3) Receiving Bodhisattva Vows and Precepts Ceremony). Participants interested in receiving the Bodhisattva Vows in Dec are required to take Parts 1 + 2 of the class series.

ONLINE: Taming Anxiety for Black, Indigenous and People of Color
2020-11-07 09:30 - 15:30
An Online Class with Rev. Keiryu Liên Shutt
Does your mind seem to “be all over the place”? Do you find yourself worrying a lot? Do you feel easily overwhelmed and filled with anxiety? Do you obsess about “shoulds’” and “coulds’” and, therefore, find it hard to focus? Buddhist teachings and meditation practices have long addressed ways to be with such emotions and thoughts. In this one-day, we will gather and to learn ways in which we can work with worry and anxiety. You’ll learn ways to be with these emotions and be able to practice meditations, which can foster calm and ease in body and mind. Stationary and walking meditations, Dharma teachings, group discussions and experiential exercises are offered.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom with their EventBrite Confirmation Email.

ONLINE: Kingian NonViolence Mini Workshop
2020-11-14 09:00 - 13:00
with Kazu Haga + East Point Peace Academy
Kingian Nonviolence grew out of the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King and is a transformative philosophy dealing with the transformation of conflict. Many forms of political resistance only deal with “fixing issues,” while ignoring the need to heal relationships. However many healing modalities do not address the systems of injustice that perpetuate trauma. How can the teachings of Kingian Nonviolence be utilized after the 2020 election to continue to push for Beloved Community?
Through interactive activities, the workshop will dispel many common myths of “nonviolence,” and explore the interconnection of personal healing and political resistance, and how to build a powerful movement that honors the dignity of ALL life. This workshop is a partnership with East Point Peace Academy.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom with their EventBrite Confirmation Email.

ONLINE: Loving the Whole Self
2020-11-15 10:00 - 16:00
A Day of Mindfulness and Inquiry for Adult Adoptees, Fostered and/or Child Welfare System Survivors
With Fresh “Lev” White and Dr. Sean Feit Oakes
This class is for us who experienced separation from birth families at early ages to explore the heart of the Buddha’s teachings: that pain and loss are built into life and are the seeds of wisdom and liberation. We’ll explore our experiences of family rupture; discuss tools for cultivating self-love, compassion, and the possibility of home in ourselves as a deep refuge.
All adult (18+) adoptees, formerly foster home or system youth, and any adult who were forced/separated from their birth family at young ages are welcome.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom with their EventBrite confirmation email.

ONLINE: The Dharma of Harriet Tubman and The Underground Railroad for People of Color
2020-11-21 09:30 - 12:30
for Black, Indigenous and People of Color
with Spring Washam
The time is NOW…for us to call on one of our greatest Ancestors and that is Harriet Tubman! This mini-retreat is meant to be soul food for the heart with gospel music, deep dharma, and a sprinkle of shamanic magic on top. We are in the midst of a revolution and together we will learn how to be conductors of love in our communities. The civil rights movement is a movement of the heart. It takes courage to stand up for what we believe in. As we explore different facets of Harriet’s incredible life, we will learn how to apply her wisdom to what is happening in our world today. Together we will explore how to meet the challenges of this current moment with an open heart and find the courage and wisdom to face the unknown together. This event will include periods of meditation, talks on the theme, stories, movement, small group discussions, and lots of gospel music mixed in.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom.

ONLINE: Opening the Heart Through the Buddha’s Teachings: Parents Meditation Group
2020-11-23 20:45 - 21:45
An Online Meditation Group for Parents
with Lev White, Ramona Lisa Ortiz Smith, Michele Ku, Baruch Golden and Lisa Fujie Parks
EBMC’s Family Practice Class teaching team will be offering a monthly parents’ meditation group for restoration, support and connection during these challenging times. We will offer a short talk, guided meditation and sharing. We welcome all parents/grandparents/caregivers of young people to join us. No prior experience is necessary.
Registered participants will receive a link to join us via Zoom.
