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DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260412T103000
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DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251219T220427Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251219T220518Z
UID:10011824-1775989800-1775995200@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: White and Awakening Monthly Sangha
DESCRIPTION: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. \n  \nFacilitated 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. \n  \nOpen 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.   \n  \nSign up here to receive the zoom link.   \n  \nFACILITATORS \n \nCrystal 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. \n \nSarah 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. \n \nHeather 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. \n \nKitsy 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.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/white-and-awakening-monthly-sangha/2026-04-12/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online,Practice Groups
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260408T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260408T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20260124T000239Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260301T200144Z
UID:10011892-1775673000-1775680200@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Buddhist Love\, Compassion\, Joy\, & Equanimity (Brahmaviharas)
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Buddhist Love\, Compassion\, Joy\, & Equanimity \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on April 1\, 8\, 15\, and 22 \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nThe Brahmaviharas (Divine Abodes)\, also called the Four Immeasurables\, are Buddhist teachings and practices that help us to access dynamic calming\, stilling\, and healing mindbody states. As we cultivate the limitless qualities of loving goodwill\, compassion\, empathetic joy\, and equanimity\, in time we harvest true happiness\, spiritual strength\, and awakening insight. These practices are considered complementary to insight (mindfulness) meditation. Dharma talks\, discussion and Q&A. Instruction provided for beginners in meditation. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “Divine Abodes” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-buddhist-love-compassion-joy-equanimity-brahmaviharas/2026-04-08/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260401T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260401T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20260124T000239Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260301T200144Z
UID:10011891-1775068200-1775075400@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Buddhist Love\, Compassion\, Joy\, & Equanimity (Brahmaviharas)
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Buddhist Love\, Compassion\, Joy\, & Equanimity \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on April 1\, 8\, 15\, and 22 \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nThe Brahmaviharas (Divine Abodes)\, also called the Four Immeasurables\, are Buddhist teachings and practices that help us to access dynamic calming\, stilling\, and healing mindbody states. As we cultivate the limitless qualities of loving goodwill\, compassion\, empathetic joy\, and equanimity\, in time we harvest true happiness\, spiritual strength\, and awakening insight. These practices are considered complementary to insight (mindfulness) meditation. Dharma talks\, discussion and Q&A. Instruction provided for beginners in meditation. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “Divine Abodes” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-buddhist-love-compassion-joy-equanimity-brahmaviharas/2026-04-01/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://eastbaymeditation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/2026-Core-Buddhist-Part-4-845-x-321-px_png.png
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260325T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260325T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20260123T235516Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260123T235549Z
UID:10011876-1774463400-1774470600@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Buddha’s “How to Guide” to a Life of Happiness (Eightfold Path)
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Buddha’s “How to Guide” to a Life of Happiness (Eightfold Path) \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on March 4th\, 11th\, 18th\, 25th \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nEveryone wants to live and be happy\, yet human life is marked by suffering. Many are intimately and historically affected by social injustice\, and we all experience loss of what is dear to us\, sickness\, aging\, and death. How do we develop wisdom (insight) and spiritual strength (a practice that sustains us during the hard times)? The Buddha’s teaching of the Eightfold Path is a roadmap for a life well-lived. This class series will include meditation\, Dharma talks\, and discussion. Beginners in meditation are welcome. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “8fold Path” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n\n \n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-buddhas-how-to-guide-to-a-life-of-happiness-eightfold-path/2026-03-25/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://eastbaymeditation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/2026-Core-Buddhist-Part-3-845-x-321-px_png.png
GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260318T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260318T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20260123T235516Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260123T235549Z
UID:10011875-1773858600-1773865800@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Buddha’s “How to Guide” to a Life of Happiness (Eightfold Path)
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Buddha’s “How to Guide” to a Life of Happiness (Eightfold Path) \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on March 4th\, 11th\, 18th\, 25th \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nEveryone wants to live and be happy\, yet human life is marked by suffering. Many are intimately and historically affected by social injustice\, and we all experience loss of what is dear to us\, sickness\, aging\, and death. How do we develop wisdom (insight) and spiritual strength (a practice that sustains us during the hard times)? The Buddha’s teaching of the Eightfold Path is a roadmap for a life well-lived. This class series will include meditation\, Dharma talks\, and discussion. Beginners in meditation are welcome. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “8fold Path” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n\n \n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-buddhas-how-to-guide-to-a-life-of-happiness-eightfold-path/2026-03-18/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://eastbaymeditation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/2026-Core-Buddhist-Part-3-845-x-321-px_png.png
GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260314T093000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260314T153000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20260124T002728Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260124T002728Z
UID:10011881-1773480600-1773502200@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:IN PERSON: Embracing Change: Zen & The Art of Creating a Life You Want
DESCRIPTION:Embracing Change: Zen & the Art of Creating a Life You Want \nWith Rev. Keiryu Liên Shutt \nSaturday March 14th 2026 \nIn person only at 285 17th St.\, Oakland CA 94612 \nMasking is strongly encouraged \nThe center is fragrance-free and wheelchair accessible \n  \nAre you at a point in your life in which you feel like it’s time for a change\, but you’re not sure how to proceed? \nChange can be hard. Especially if it’s not one that we’ve chosen: a job or relationship loss\, an illness\, or other life-transition events. At such time\, thinking about all the possible options can feel confusing: “Should I do what I’ve always wanted to do or stay with what I know? Go towards my ‘heart’s desire’ or get more training?” \nAt times like these\, teachings both from Buddhism and from the motivational field can help us. Join Rev. Liên for a daylong workshop in which we will explore how to incorporate both dharma practices and behavior-change skills in order to find stability and centeredness so that you can be truly present and aware. \nDiscover tools to help you set and achieve goals. Meditation and Buddhist practices along with evaluative and skill-building tools will be practiced in small and large groups. Plan for a day in which you will be engaged from the heart and with mindfulness.The time for change has come into your life. Come see how you can learn to meet this with ease\, grace and skill\, and go towards the life that is waiting to be created by you! \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nNote that all financial gifts received here go directly to EBMC\, and we invite you to give separately to our teachers\, using the information below. \nOther ways to give: \nTo make a gift to sustain the work of East Bay Meditation Center\, you may do so via Paypal: paypal.me/eastbaymeditation or our website: eastbaymeditation.org/dana 100% of our programming is sliding scale and no one will ever be turned away for lack of funds. \nPlease 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. \nTo give to Rev. Keiryu Liên Shutt: \nVenmo: @SuddenLeap-A2Z\nlast 4 #: 2585 \nPayPal: SuddenLeap.A2Z@Gmail.com \nThank 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. \n  \nFor in-person participation: \nWe strongly encourage masking for all who are able to do so. We will provide N95 masks at the center if you don’t have one. \nTo 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/ \nEast Bay Meditation Center is a scent free / fragrance free space and is wheelchair accessible. \n  \nPublic Transportation/Parking: \n– We strongly encourage public transportation/biking/walking since parking in the neighborhood is limited. \n– EBMC has bike parking inside the center. \n– Please note that parking meters are enforced Monday – Saturday\, 8 am – 6 pm\, and Sunday 12-6pm. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nREV. LIÊN SHUTT (she/they) is a priest lineage holder in the Shunryu Suzuki tradition. Born to a Buddhist family in Vietnam\, she received her meditation training in the Insight and Soto Zen traditions in the United States\, Japan\, Thailand\, and Vietnam. A founding member of the Buddhists of Color in 1998\, she currently is the guiding teacher of Access to Zen\, an inclusive\, anti-oppression sangha and nonprofit in the San Francisco Bay Area. Her book\, Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path\, was published by North Atlantic Books in 2023. She lives in Oakland\, on Huichin land\, with her partner\, exploring waterways and forests as often as they can. Visit AccessToZen.org for ways to connect.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/in-person-embracing-change-zen-the-art-of-creating-a-life-you-want/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,In-Person Only
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260311T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260311T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20260123T235516Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260123T235549Z
UID:10011874-1773253800-1773261000@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Buddha’s “How to Guide” to a Life of Happiness (Eightfold Path)
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Buddha’s “How to Guide” to a Life of Happiness (Eightfold Path) \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on March 4th\, 11th\, 18th\, 25th \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nEveryone wants to live and be happy\, yet human life is marked by suffering. Many are intimately and historically affected by social injustice\, and we all experience loss of what is dear to us\, sickness\, aging\, and death. How do we develop wisdom (insight) and spiritual strength (a practice that sustains us during the hard times)? The Buddha’s teaching of the Eightfold Path is a roadmap for a life well-lived. This class series will include meditation\, Dharma talks\, and discussion. Beginners in meditation are welcome. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “8fold Path” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n\n \n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-buddhas-how-to-guide-to-a-life-of-happiness-eightfold-path/2026-03-11/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260308T103000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260308T120000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251219T220427Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251219T220518Z
UID:10011823-1772965800-1772971200@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: White and Awakening Monthly Sangha
DESCRIPTION: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. \n  \nFacilitated 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. \n  \nOpen 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.   \n  \nSign up here to receive the zoom link.   \n  \nFACILITATORS \n \nCrystal 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. \n \nSarah 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. \n \nHeather 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. \n \nKitsy 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.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/white-and-awakening-monthly-sangha/2026-03-08/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online,Practice Groups
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260304T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260304T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20260123T235516Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260123T235549Z
UID:10011873-1772649000-1772656200@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Buddha’s “How to Guide” to a Life of Happiness (Eightfold Path)
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Buddha’s “How to Guide” to a Life of Happiness (Eightfold Path) \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on March 4th\, 11th\, 18th\, 25th \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nEveryone wants to live and be happy\, yet human life is marked by suffering. Many are intimately and historically affected by social injustice\, and we all experience loss of what is dear to us\, sickness\, aging\, and death. How do we develop wisdom (insight) and spiritual strength (a practice that sustains us during the hard times)? The Buddha’s teaching of the Eightfold Path is a roadmap for a life well-lived. This class series will include meditation\, Dharma talks\, and discussion. Beginners in meditation are welcome. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “8fold Path” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n\n \n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-buddhas-how-to-guide-to-a-life-of-happiness-eightfold-path/2026-03-04/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://eastbaymeditation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/2026-Core-Buddhist-Part-3-845-x-321-px_png.png
GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260301T090000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260301T103000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20260129T014033Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260129T014904Z
UID:10011890-1772355600-1772361000@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Afrikan Healing and Wisdom
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Afrikan Healing and Wisdom \nWith Vimalasara Mason-John\, Arisika Razak\, and Aleta Toure’ \nMarch 1st 2026 \n9:00 – 10:30 AM PT \nClosed captioning provided over Zoom \n  \nToday\, those of us living in the USA vibrate to the breath of our Ancestral North Star\, highest realm of guidance. Our ancestors are with us\, as we step into a seemingly repeated quantum leap of time\, during one of the most turbulent election seasons since the presidential election of 1876\, and the 1877 compromise which ended Reconstruction. We are in a sentinel moment\, echoing the situations described in Martin Luther King’s book\, “Why We Can’t Wait”. Like our Diasporan kinfolx\, we are questioning our common humanity\, as we see the age-old dream of peace\, and ecological balance distorted in the deep and seemingly bottomless pool of genocide\, war\, climate change\, ecological devastation\, poverty and global health pandemics.  \nJoin us as we bring a timely spoonful of Afrikana medicine to these challenging and difficult times. We’ll add ancestral healing traditions to the simple practice of the breath\, sharing meditations\, libations\, chanting and other embodied practices to remember our resilience\, honor our ancestors\, and support an inclusive and affirming community for all members of the Afrikan Diaspora.  \nALSO: Please consider joining us for our Second\, In-Person Afrikan Healing and Wisdom Residential Retreat at Dhamma Dena Retreat Center in Joshua Tree California from February 5 – 8 2026. https://www.dhammadena.org/retreats/Afrikan-Wisdom-Retreat-Feb-2026 \n  \nCOST\n\nHere at EBMC\, we practice gift economics and our programs are offered freely without set fees.  Financial gifts from our community help to sustain our teachers AND our center.  Generosity is the Buddha’s first teaching\, the lifeblood of EBMC\, and an act of sacred reciprocity.  We ask that those who have more financial means give more\, in order to help balance the giving of those who have less financial means. \nTo make a gift to sustain the work of East Bay Meditation Center\, please do so via our website: eastbaymeditation.org/dana. Consider becoming a monthly donor for any amount! These contributions are especially valuable to our sustainability. \nPlease 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. In this way\, we practice sacred reciprocity between teachers and students. \nGiving Information: \nVENMO: @Arisika-Razak \nPAYPAL: arisikarazak@gmail.com \n(Please reference “Afrikan Healing & Wisdom” and the teachers will share the gifts with each other) \n\n \n\nTEACHING TEAM \n \nVimalasara (Valerie) Mason-John is the author of the new revised edition of Detox Your Heart – Meditations For Emotional Trauma published by Wisdom books in 2017. She is co-author of the award-winning book Eight Step Recovery – Using The Buddha’s Teachings to Overcome Addiction. She is a TEDx speaker and is the author of eight books including her award winning novel Borrowed Body. She is the curator of Teachings in Uncertain Times\, an online retreat by Teachers of Color for Tricycle Magazine February 2017. She is a leading African Canadian voice in the field of Mindfulness for Emotional Trauma and Addiction. \n\n \nArisika Razak\, MPH\, EBMC Core teacher\, is the former Chair of the Women’s Spirituality Program at the California Institute of Integral Studies. Previously a nurse-midwife\, her teachings incorporate diverse spiritual traditions\, women’s health and healing\, multicultural feminisms\, queer theory\, and diversity theory. Arisika has led national and international healing workshops and ritual celebrations for women for over three decades\, as well as embodied spiritual workshops for people of all genders. She has co-facilitated workshops with Marlene Jones at Spirit Rock Meditation Center and regularly leads workshops at EBMC. \n \nAleta Toure’ (Visiting Teacher) Aleta Toure’ bears witness as a vessel for social change through organizing\, education and healing arts. She centers healing in monastic lifestyle knowledge though Intentional Communities and Black cooperative movements. Her cooperative serves communities through Black Trauma Anonymous (BTA)\, Tai chi\, Ecstatic Healing Dance and Healing Responders. Aleta spends time within Peace Pagodas\, monasteries\, hermitages\, and dojos which have framed her work through Free Marissa Now\, “I am Troy Davis”\, University Without Walls and other Diasporic Movements. She leads the 2025 California Reparations Interfaith Healing Walk to bring healing\, theory and practice back as a Liberation tool.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-afrikan-healing-and-wisdom-3/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://eastbaymeditation.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Afrikan-Wisdom-845-x-321-px-1.png
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260225T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260225T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251222T212017Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251222T212109Z
UID:10011841-1772044200-1772051400@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Buddha's Four Big Truths (The 4 Noble Truths)
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Buddha’s Four Big Truths (The Four Noble Truths) \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on February 4th\, 11th\, 18th\, 25th \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nWhy do we suffer? How can we be released from suffering? The Buddha’s first teaching after his Enlightenment is called the Four Truths for Noble Ones. These form the foundation of Buddhist life and understanding. The four “big” truths address human suffering and oppression\, analyze their root causes\, and describe a path of liberation from human suffering that is both profound and practical. Dharma talks\, mindful journaling\, meditation\, community building and optional readings. Beginners in meditation are welcome. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \n  \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “4 Noble Truths” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-buddhas-four-big-truths-the-4-noble-truths/2026-02-25/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://eastbaymeditation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2026-Core-Buddhist-Part-2-845-x-321-px_png.png
GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=East Bay Meditation Center 285 17th Street Oakland CA 94612 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=285 17th Street:geo:-122.2660299,37.8050656
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260218T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260218T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251222T212017Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251222T212109Z
UID:10011840-1771439400-1771446600@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Buddha's Four Big Truths (The 4 Noble Truths)
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Buddha’s Four Big Truths (The Four Noble Truths) \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on February 4th\, 11th\, 18th\, 25th \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nWhy do we suffer? How can we be released from suffering? The Buddha’s first teaching after his Enlightenment is called the Four Truths for Noble Ones. These form the foundation of Buddhist life and understanding. The four “big” truths address human suffering and oppression\, analyze their root causes\, and describe a path of liberation from human suffering that is both profound and practical. Dharma talks\, mindful journaling\, meditation\, community building and optional readings. Beginners in meditation are welcome. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \n  \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “4 Noble Truths” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-buddhas-four-big-truths-the-4-noble-truths/2026-02-18/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://eastbaymeditation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2026-Core-Buddhist-Part-2-845-x-321-px_png.png
GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260211T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260211T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251222T212017Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251222T212109Z
UID:10011839-1770834600-1770841800@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Buddha's Four Big Truths (The 4 Noble Truths)
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Buddha’s Four Big Truths (The Four Noble Truths) \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on February 4th\, 11th\, 18th\, 25th \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nWhy do we suffer? How can we be released from suffering? The Buddha’s first teaching after his Enlightenment is called the Four Truths for Noble Ones. These form the foundation of Buddhist life and understanding. The four “big” truths address human suffering and oppression\, analyze their root causes\, and describe a path of liberation from human suffering that is both profound and practical. Dharma talks\, mindful journaling\, meditation\, community building and optional readings. Beginners in meditation are welcome. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \n  \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “4 Noble Truths” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-buddhas-four-big-truths-the-4-noble-truths/2026-02-11/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260208T103000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260208T120000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251219T220427Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251219T220518Z
UID:10011822-1770546600-1770552000@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: White and Awakening Monthly Sangha
DESCRIPTION: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. \n  \nFacilitated 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. \n  \nOpen 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.   \n  \nSign up here to receive the zoom link.   \n  \nFACILITATORS \n \nCrystal 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. \n \nSarah 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. \n \nHeather 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. \n \nKitsy 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.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/white-and-awakening-monthly-sangha/2026-02-08/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online,Practice Groups
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260204T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260204T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251222T212017Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251222T212109Z
UID:10011838-1770229800-1770237000@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Buddha's Four Big Truths (The 4 Noble Truths)
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Buddha’s Four Big Truths (The Four Noble Truths) \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on February 4th\, 11th\, 18th\, 25th \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nWhy do we suffer? How can we be released from suffering? The Buddha’s first teaching after his Enlightenment is called the Four Truths for Noble Ones. These form the foundation of Buddhist life and understanding. The four “big” truths address human suffering and oppression\, analyze their root causes\, and describe a path of liberation from human suffering that is both profound and practical. Dharma talks\, mindful journaling\, meditation\, community building and optional readings. Beginners in meditation are welcome. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \n  \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “4 Noble Truths” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-buddhas-four-big-truths-the-4-noble-truths/2026-02-04/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://eastbaymeditation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2026-Core-Buddhist-Part-2-845-x-321-px_png.png
GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=East Bay Meditation Center 285 17th Street Oakland CA 94612 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=285 17th Street:geo:-122.2660299,37.8050656
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260201T090000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260201T103000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20260123T232028Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260123T232029Z
UID:10008520-1769936400-1769941800@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Afrikan Healing and Wisdom (on hiatus)
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Afrikan Healing and Wisdom \nWith Vimalasara Mason-John\, Arisika Razak\, and Aleta Toure’ \nFirst Sundays\, starting November 3rd 2024 \n9:00 – 10:30 AM PT \nClosed captioning provided over Zoom \n  \nJoin us for EBMC’s first Black-led\, Black-Sangha Affinity group held on the first Sunday of every month from 9 AM till 10:30 AM. \nToday\, those of us living in the USA vibrate to the breath of our Ancestral North Star\, highest realm of guidance. Our ancestors are with us\, as we step into a seemingly repeated quantum leap of time\, during one of the most turbulent election seasons since the presidential election of 1876\, and the 1877 compromise which ended Reconstruction. We are in a sentinel moment\, echoing the situations described in Martin Luther King’s book\, “Why We Can’t Wait”. Like our Diasporan kinfolx\, we are questioning our common humanity\, as we see the age-old dream of peace\, and ecological balance distorted in the deep and seemingly bottomless pool of genocide\, war\, climate change\, ecological devastation\, poverty and global health pandemics.  \nJoin us as we bring a timely spoonful of Afrikana medicine to these challenging and difficult times. We’ll add ancestral healing traditions to the simple practice of the breath\, sharing meditations\, libations\, chanting and other embodied practices to remember our resilience\, honor our ancestors\, and support an inclusive and affirming community for all members of the Afrikan Diaspora.  \n  \nREGISTRATION LINKS – sign up now for current and future meetings! \nNOTE: This program is currently on hiatus. We will send an update when we restart! \n  \n  \nCOST\n\nHere at EBMC\, we practice gift economics and our programs are offered freely without set fees.  Financial gifts from our community help to sustain our teachers AND our center.  Generosity is the Buddha’s first teaching\, the lifeblood of EBMC\, and an act of sacred reciprocity.  We ask that those who have more financial means give more\, in order to help balance the giving of those who have less financial means. \nTo make a gift to sustain the work of East Bay Meditation Center\, please do so via our website: eastbaymeditation.org/dana. Consider becoming a monthly donor for any amount! These contributions are especially valuable to our sustainability. \nPlease 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. In this way\, we practice sacred reciprocity between teachers and students. \nGiving Information: \nVENMO: @Arisika-Razak \nPAYPAL: arisikarazak@gmail.com \n(Please reference “Afrikan Healing & Wisdom” and the teachers will share the gifts with each other) \n\n  \n\nTEACHING TEAM \n \nVimalasara (Valerie) Mason-John is the author of the new revised edition of Detox Your Heart – Meditations For Emotional Trauma published by Wisdom books in 2017. She is co-author of the award-winning book Eight Step Recovery – Using The Buddha’s Teachings to Overcome Addiction. She is a TEDx speaker and is the author of eight books including her award winning novel Borrowed Body. She is the curator of Teachings in Uncertain Times\, an online retreat by Teachers of Color for Tricycle Magazine February 2017. She is a leading African Canadian voice in the field of Mindfulness for Emotional Trauma and Addiction. \n\n \nArisika Razak\, MPH\, EBMC Core teacher\, is the former Chair of the Women’s Spirituality Program at the California Institute of Integral Studies. Previously a nurse-midwife\, her teachings incorporate diverse spiritual traditions\, women’s health and healing\, multicultural feminisms\, queer theory\, and diversity theory. Arisika has led national and international healing workshops and ritual celebrations for women for over three decades\, as well as embodied spiritual workshops for people of all genders. She has co-facilitated workshops with Marlene Jones at Spirit Rock Meditation Center and regularly leads workshops at EBMC. \n \nAleta Toure’ (Visiting Teacher) Aleta Toure’ bears witness as a vessel for social change through organizing\, education and healing arts. She centers healing in monastic lifestyle knowledge though Intentional Communities and Black cooperative movements. Her cooperative serves communities through Black Trauma Anonymous (BTA)\, Tai chi\, Ecstatic Healing Dance and Healing Responders. Aleta spends time within Peace Pagodas\, monasteries\, hermitages\, and dojos which have framed her work through Free Marissa Now\, “I am Troy Davis”\, University Without Walls and other Diasporic Movements. She leads the 2025 California Reparations Interfaith Healing Walk to bring healing\, theory and practice back as a Liberation tool.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-afrikan-wisdom-and-healing-2-2-3-3/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://eastbaymeditation.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Afrikan-Wisdom-845-x-321-px-1.png
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260128T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260128T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251205T194042Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251205T194042Z
UID:10011817-1769625000-1769632200@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Beginning a Mindfulness Meditation Practice
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Beginning a Mindfulness Meditation Practice \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on January 7th\, 14th\, 21st\, and 28th \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nAre you looking for a way to start a mindfulness meditation practice\, but don’t quite know how? These four classes will give you the basics of stationary and walking/gentle movement meditation in the vipassana (insight) style\, and metta (loving kindness or good will) meditation. Don’t worry about “getting it right” – if you can sit – on a folding chair\, on floor cushions\, in a wheelchair – or lie down – and breathe\, you’re off to a good start! This series is for those seeking stress reduction\, or it can be the gateway to those new to Buddhism. Meditation can help you\, over time\, to develop a sense of increased physical well-being\, mental clarity\, compassionate connection\, and spiritual growth. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \n  \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “Beginning Meditation” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-beginning-a-mindfulness-meditation-practice/2026-01-28/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://eastbaymeditation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2026-Core-Buddhist-Part-1-845-x-321-px.png
GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=East Bay Meditation Center 285 17th Street Oakland CA 94612 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=285 17th Street:geo:-122.2660299,37.8050656
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260121T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260121T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251205T194042Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251205T194042Z
UID:10011816-1769020200-1769027400@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Beginning a Mindfulness Meditation Practice
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Beginning a Mindfulness Meditation Practice \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on January 7th\, 14th\, 21st\, and 28th \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nAre you looking for a way to start a mindfulness meditation practice\, but don’t quite know how? These four classes will give you the basics of stationary and walking/gentle movement meditation in the vipassana (insight) style\, and metta (loving kindness or good will) meditation. Don’t worry about “getting it right” – if you can sit – on a folding chair\, on floor cushions\, in a wheelchair – or lie down – and breathe\, you’re off to a good start! This series is for those seeking stress reduction\, or it can be the gateway to those new to Buddhism. Meditation can help you\, over time\, to develop a sense of increased physical well-being\, mental clarity\, compassionate connection\, and spiritual growth. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \n  \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “Beginning Meditation” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-beginning-a-mindfulness-meditation-practice/2026-01-21/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://eastbaymeditation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2026-Core-Buddhist-Part-1-845-x-321-px.png
GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260114T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260114T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251205T194042Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251205T194042Z
UID:10011815-1768415400-1768422600@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Beginning a Mindfulness Meditation Practice
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Beginning a Mindfulness Meditation Practice \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on January 7th\, 14th\, 21st\, and 28th \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nAre you looking for a way to start a mindfulness meditation practice\, but don’t quite know how? These four classes will give you the basics of stationary and walking/gentle movement meditation in the vipassana (insight) style\, and metta (loving kindness or good will) meditation. Don’t worry about “getting it right” – if you can sit – on a folding chair\, on floor cushions\, in a wheelchair – or lie down – and breathe\, you’re off to a good start! This series is for those seeking stress reduction\, or it can be the gateway to those new to Buddhism. Meditation can help you\, over time\, to develop a sense of increased physical well-being\, mental clarity\, compassionate connection\, and spiritual growth. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \n  \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “Beginning Meditation” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-beginning-a-mindfulness-meditation-practice/2026-01-14/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260111T103000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260111T120000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251219T220427Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251219T220518Z
UID:10011821-1768127400-1768132800@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: White and Awakening Monthly Sangha
DESCRIPTION: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. \n  \nFacilitated 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. \n  \nOpen 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.   \n  \nSign up here to receive the zoom link.   \n  \nFACILITATORS \n \nCrystal 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. \n \nSarah 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. \n \nHeather 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. \n \nKitsy 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.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/white-and-awakening-monthly-sangha/2026-01-11/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online,Practice Groups
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260107T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260107T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251205T194042Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251205T194042Z
UID:10011814-1767810600-1767817800@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Beginning a Mindfulness Meditation Practice
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Beginning a Mindfulness Meditation Practice \n4 Class series\, Wednesdays on January 7th\, 14th\, 21st\, and 28th \n6:30 – 8:30PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nPart of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings – 6-month Curriculum \nOpen to all \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nAre you looking for a way to start a mindfulness meditation practice\, but don’t quite know how? These four classes will give you the basics of stationary and walking/gentle movement meditation in the vipassana (insight) style\, and metta (loving kindness or good will) meditation. Don’t worry about “getting it right” – if you can sit – on a folding chair\, on floor cushions\, in a wheelchair – or lie down – and breathe\, you’re off to a good start! This series is for those seeking stress reduction\, or it can be the gateway to those new to Buddhism. Meditation can help you\, over time\, to develop a sense of increased physical well-being\, mental clarity\, compassionate connection\, and spiritual growth. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \n  \nPlease 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. \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \nPlease indicate “Beginning Meditation” in the subject line. \nThank 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. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeacher\n \nMushim 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 and with people with disabilities and chronic illnesses. 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 recipient of an honorary doctor of sacred theology degree from the Starr King School for the Ministry. Mushim was selected by Lion’s Roar Buddhist media magazine as one of twenty-six “Great Buddhist Teachers” in the January 2022 issue. www.mushimikeda.com
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-beginning-a-mindfulness-meditation-practice/2026-01-07/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260104T090000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260104T103000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251219T045753Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260123T231723Z
UID:10008519-1767517200-1767522600@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Afrikan Healing and Wisdom
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Afrikan Healing and Wisdom \nWith Vimalasara Mason-John\, Arisika Razak\, and Aleta Toure’ \nFirst Sundays\, starting November 3rd 2024 \n9:00 – 10:30 AM PT \nClosed captioning provided over Zoom \n  \nTogether we will explore new beginnings as we enter into 2026. \nGuided by Sankofa (Twa/Ghana)\, we learn from the past to build a future. We look back on 2025 to move forward in this new year. Grounded in Ubuntu (Zulu) we remember\, “I am because we are”. Let’s come together in community and enter into the shared conversation for renewal. What do you want to let go of\, so you can move forward? What do you want to bring into the new year so that you can let go of what you don’t need any more? \nAnd please consider joining us for our Second\, In-Person Afrikan Healing and Wisdom Residential Retreat at Dhamma Dena Retreat Center in Joshua Tree California from February 5 – 8 2026. https://www.dhammadena.org/retreats/Afrikan-Wisdom-Retreat-Feb-2026 \n—– \nJoin us for EBMC’s first Black-led\, Black-Sangha Affinity group held on the first Sunday of every month from 9 AM till 10:30 AM. \nToday\, those of us living in the USA vibrate to the breath of our Ancestral North Star\, highest realm of guidance. Our ancestors are with us\, as we step into a seemingly repeated quantum leap of time\, during one of the most turbulent election seasons since the presidential election of 1876\, and the 1877 compromise which ended Reconstruction. We are in a sentinel moment\, echoing the situations described in Martin Luther King’s book\, “Why We Can’t Wait”. Like our Diasporan kinfolx\, we are questioning our common humanity\, as we see the age-old dream of peace\, and ecological balance distorted in the deep and seemingly bottomless pool of genocide\, war\, climate change\, ecological devastation\, poverty and global health pandemics.  \nJoin us as we bring a timely spoonful of Afrikana medicine to these challenging and difficult times. We’ll add ancestral healing traditions to the simple practice of the breath\, sharing meditations\, libations\, chanting and other embodied practices to remember our resilience\, honor our ancestors\, and support an inclusive and affirming community for all members of the Afrikan Diaspora.  \n  \nREGISTRATION LINKS – sign up now for current and future meetings! \nNOTE: This program is on hiatus after January 2026 until further notice. We will update when we have a restart date! \n  \n  \nCOST\n\nHere at EBMC\, we practice gift economics and our programs are offered freely without set fees.  Financial gifts from our community help to sustain our teachers AND our center.  Generosity is the Buddha’s first teaching\, the lifeblood of EBMC\, and an act of sacred reciprocity.  We ask that those who have more financial means give more\, in order to help balance the giving of those who have less financial means. \nTo make a gift to sustain the work of East Bay Meditation Center\, please do so via our website: eastbaymeditation.org/dana. Consider becoming a monthly donor for any amount! These contributions are especially valuable to our sustainability. \nPlease 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. In this way\, we practice sacred reciprocity between teachers and students. \nGiving Information: \nVENMO: @Arisika-Razak \nPAYPAL: arisikarazak@gmail.com \n(Please reference “Afrikan Healing & Wisdom” and the teachers will share the gifts with each other) \n\n  \n\nTEACHING TEAM \n \nVimalasara (Valerie) Mason-John is the author of the new revised edition of Detox Your Heart – Meditations For Emotional Trauma published by Wisdom books in 2017. She is co-author of the award-winning book Eight Step Recovery – Using The Buddha’s Teachings to Overcome Addiction. She is a TEDx speaker and is the author of eight books including her award winning novel Borrowed Body. She is the curator of Teachings in Uncertain Times\, an online retreat by Teachers of Color for Tricycle Magazine February 2017. She is a leading African Canadian voice in the field of Mindfulness for Emotional Trauma and Addiction. \n\n \nArisika Razak\, MPH\, EBMC Core teacher\, is the former Chair of the Women’s Spirituality Program at the California Institute of Integral Studies. Previously a nurse-midwife\, her teachings incorporate diverse spiritual traditions\, women’s health and healing\, multicultural feminisms\, queer theory\, and diversity theory. Arisika has led national and international healing workshops and ritual celebrations for women for over three decades\, as well as embodied spiritual workshops for people of all genders. She has co-facilitated workshops with Marlene Jones at Spirit Rock Meditation Center and regularly leads workshops at EBMC. \n \nAleta Toure’ (Visiting Teacher) Aleta Toure’ bears witness as a vessel for social change through organizing\, education and healing arts. She centers healing in monastic lifestyle knowledge though Intentional Communities and Black cooperative movements. Her cooperative serves communities through Black Trauma Anonymous (BTA)\, Tai chi\, Ecstatic Healing Dance and Healing Responders. Aleta spends time within Peace Pagodas\, monasteries\, hermitages\, and dojos which have framed her work through Free Marissa Now\, “I am Troy Davis”\, University Without Walls and other Diasporic Movements. She leads the 2025 California Reparations Interfaith Healing Walk to bring healing\, theory and practice back as a Liberation tool.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-afrikan-wisdom-and-healing-2-2-3-2/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251222T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251222T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20251107T025816Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T231540Z
UID:10010999-1766428200-1766435400@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE CLASS SERIES: Finding Liberation in Relationship
DESCRIPTION:Finding Liberation in Relationship: Accountability\, Conflict\, Boundaries and Feedback \n4 Monday evenings \nDecember 1st\, 8th\, 15th and 22nd 2025 \n6:30-8:30 PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nOnline\, open to all \nWith Dawn Haney and Regent Brown \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nIn this time of so much conflict\, devastation and uprising\, how do we bring our practice to our relationships\, and how do we find freedom and choice there? Our friendships\, partnerships\, family and communities can be a source of joy and support\, and also of struggle and suffering. In this four week class we will explore concrete practices grounded in Buddhist meditation\, somatics\, and transformative justice. \nWe will practice feedback\, boundaries\, mindful accountability\, and nervous system regulation\, while applying mindfulness to investigate our conditioned tendencies and positionality in power relations. Through turning towards the delight and difficulty in our relationships\, including with Sangha\, we will build resource and resilience and create space to be our most authentic selves in our relationships and in the larger world. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo make a gift to sustain the work of East Bay Meditation Center\, you may do so via Paypal: paypal.me/eastbaymeditation or our website: eastbaymeditation.org/dana 100% of our programming is sliding scale and no one will ever be turned away for lack of funds. \n  \nTo support our teachers\, please do so via: \nVenmo: dawnmarissa or Paypal: dawnmarissa@gmail.com \nVenmo: @Regent_Brown or CashApp: $RegentBrown \n  \nThank 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. \n  \nUniversal Access Requests on Zoom to help with sound and video quality. If possible… \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeaching Team\n \nDawn Haney is a teacher\, coach\, and consultant\, committed to helping communities and organizations learn how to navigate change while attending to dynamics of identity and power. They braid together wisdom from Buddhism\, social justice\, and psychology traditions\, and alchemize this with their own experiences as a white\, fat\, queer\, neurodivergent\, nonbinary femme to support individual and community change. A dharma student since 2003\, she is a Community Teacher at East Bay Meditation Center\, mentors new meditation teachers\, and offers DEIA and organizational development consulting to meditation programs and social change groups. \n \nRegent Brown (Queen) is a biracial Afro-Indigenous\, disabled\, two-spirit womxn who has been practicing the Dharma since 2016 and part of the East Bay Meditation Center (EBMC) community of practice since 2018. Regent’s story has had many twists including surviving cancer twice\, relocating during the pandemic\, and being married for over a decade. And these twists have only deepened Regent’s passion for liberatory practices in the dharma. Regent supports liberation and decolonization as a coach\, circle keeper\, trainer\, healer\, facilitator\, and participant in interdependent community wellness.  As a recent graduate of the inaugural Freedom Together Mindfulness Teacher Program\, and a current member of Spirit Rock’s Community Dharma Leaders program\, Regent joins a bountiful group of BIPOC mindfulness teachers working to weave decolonized practices through their work\, relationships\, and communities.  Regent’s other practices of manifesting joy include karaoke\, goats\, traveling to photograph sunsets\, gardening\, and discovering small parks while walking her 7 year old Corgi mix pup\, Perkelsnertz.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-class-series-finding-liberation-in-relationship-2-2/2025-12-22/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
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GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251221T090000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251221T103000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082350
CREATED:20250924T010337Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251216T185115Z
UID:10010750-1766307600-1766313000@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:HYBRID: Celebrate the Changing Seasons w/ Mindful Movement: Winter Solstice
DESCRIPTION:Celebrate the Changing Seasons with Mindful Movement: Winter Solstice \nSunday\, December 21st 2025 \n9:00 – 10:30AM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nHYBRID \nwith Jonathan Relucio and Jenn Biehn \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \nThe center is fragrance-free and wheelchair accessible \nN95/KN95 masks required \n\n\n  \nWe invite you to join us in community movement meditation as we welcome the season of Winter. \nWe will practice easy-to-learn tai chi\, qigong\, and yoga movements. These accessible\, non-strenuous movements invite softness and continuity as they release tension\, negativity and stress and bring healing to body-heart-mind-spirit. \nTogether we will practice movements that embody and strengthen the heart qualities including lovingkindness\, compassion\, joy and equanimity as we co-create together a peaceful world for all beings. As we embody these heart qualities through mindful movement\, we experience a profound synergy and ever-deepening interconnectedness – so important in these challenging times. \nMovements can be practiced both seated and standing. We will end our practice with silent\, stillness meditation. No prior experience necessary. \nJoin us as we welcome the season of Winter. \n  \n\n\nOPTIONAL SOCIALIZING AT THE CENTER: After the class\, you’re invited to stay for snacks and fellowship in the EBMC kitchen\, from 10:30-11:15AM! \n\n\n\n\n  \nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nNote that all financial gifts received here go directly to EBMC\, and we invite you to give separately to our teachers\, using the information below. \n  \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \n  \nPlease 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. \nTo make a gift to support the teachings\, please do so via \nPaypal: discaya@gmail.com \nVenmo: @JonathanRelucio \nPlease indicate “Winter Solstice” in the subject line. \n  \nThank 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. \n  \nFor in-person participation: \nFor 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. \nTo 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. \nEast Bay Meditation Center is a scent free / fragrance free space and is wheelchair accessible. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeachers\n\n\n\n\n\nFor a decade\, Jonathan Relucio (he/him/siya) was a Senior Trainer for Niroga Institute\, teaching trauma-informed yoga\, meditation\, and mindfulness in urban schools\, mental health clinics and juvenile detention centers. He completed Spirit Rock’s Mindfulness Yoga and Meditation Training (MYMT); Communities Rising Yoga and Meditation Training for People of Color; and East Bay Meditation Center’s inaugural two-year Spiritual Teacher & Leadership (STL) training. Currently\, he teaches at both Spirit Rock Meditation Center and East Bay Meditation Center and will begin Spirit Rock’s Community Dharma Leaders Program in January 2025. Jonathan facilitates transformation in social justice movements as a Trainer for Rockwood Leadership Institute; integrates mindfulness with restorative circles for healing and racial equity as co-founder of AllThriveEd.org; and serves on the Healing Advisory council for Filipino Advocates for Justice. With over 20 years of experience in social services\, community organizing\, training\, and leadership development\, Jonathan values Buddha Dharma\, mindfulness\, yoga\, meditation\, indigenous medicine\, martial arts\, dance\, DJing and grounding in his Filipino ancestral roots as practices for liberation that heal us from systems of oppression.\n\n\nA Buddha/Dharma/Sangha practitioner for the past 40 years and active with EBMC for the past 15 years\, Jenn Biehn has served on the Leadership Sangha and is a co-founder of several peer-led sanghas including Midday Sangha. Co-creating communities of belonging without othering has been a lifelong focus for Jenn. She teaches Transforming White Privilege on the Path to Racial Equity and was recently an elder mentor for the Braided Wisdom Leadership Training Program which includes cross cultural mindfulness practices. She has taught mindful movement practices including tai chi and qigong for the past 35 years to various communities throughout the SF Bay Area.  Jenn’s spiritual practice includes engaging with Mother Earth through cross country skiing and backpacking in the high Sierra.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/hybrid-celebrate-the-changing-seasons-w-mindful-movement-winter-solstice/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Hybrid
GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=East Bay Meditation Center 285 17th Street Oakland CA 94612 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=285 17th Street:geo:-122.2660299,37.8050656
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251215T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251215T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082351
CREATED:20251107T025816Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T231540Z
UID:10010998-1765823400-1765830600@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE CLASS SERIES: Finding Liberation in Relationship
DESCRIPTION:Finding Liberation in Relationship: Accountability\, Conflict\, Boundaries and Feedback \n4 Monday evenings \nDecember 1st\, 8th\, 15th and 22nd 2025 \n6:30-8:30 PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nOnline\, open to all \nWith Dawn Haney and Regent Brown \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nIn this time of so much conflict\, devastation and uprising\, how do we bring our practice to our relationships\, and how do we find freedom and choice there? Our friendships\, partnerships\, family and communities can be a source of joy and support\, and also of struggle and suffering. In this four week class we will explore concrete practices grounded in Buddhist meditation\, somatics\, and transformative justice. \nWe will practice feedback\, boundaries\, mindful accountability\, and nervous system regulation\, while applying mindfulness to investigate our conditioned tendencies and positionality in power relations. Through turning towards the delight and difficulty in our relationships\, including with Sangha\, we will build resource and resilience and create space to be our most authentic selves in our relationships and in the larger world. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo make a gift to sustain the work of East Bay Meditation Center\, you may do so via Paypal: paypal.me/eastbaymeditation or our website: eastbaymeditation.org/dana 100% of our programming is sliding scale and no one will ever be turned away for lack of funds. \n  \nTo support our teachers\, please do so via: \nVenmo: dawnmarissa or Paypal: dawnmarissa@gmail.com \nVenmo: @Regent_Brown or CashApp: $RegentBrown \n  \nThank 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. \n  \nUniversal Access Requests on Zoom to help with sound and video quality. If possible… \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeaching Team\n \nDawn Haney is a teacher\, coach\, and consultant\, committed to helping communities and organizations learn how to navigate change while attending to dynamics of identity and power. They braid together wisdom from Buddhism\, social justice\, and psychology traditions\, and alchemize this with their own experiences as a white\, fat\, queer\, neurodivergent\, nonbinary femme to support individual and community change. A dharma student since 2003\, she is a Community Teacher at East Bay Meditation Center\, mentors new meditation teachers\, and offers DEIA and organizational development consulting to meditation programs and social change groups. \n \nRegent Brown (Queen) is a biracial Afro-Indigenous\, disabled\, two-spirit womxn who has been practicing the Dharma since 2016 and part of the East Bay Meditation Center (EBMC) community of practice since 2018. Regent’s story has had many twists including surviving cancer twice\, relocating during the pandemic\, and being married for over a decade. And these twists have only deepened Regent’s passion for liberatory practices in the dharma. Regent supports liberation and decolonization as a coach\, circle keeper\, trainer\, healer\, facilitator\, and participant in interdependent community wellness.  As a recent graduate of the inaugural Freedom Together Mindfulness Teacher Program\, and a current member of Spirit Rock’s Community Dharma Leaders program\, Regent joins a bountiful group of BIPOC mindfulness teachers working to weave decolonized practices through their work\, relationships\, and communities.  Regent’s other practices of manifesting joy include karaoke\, goats\, traveling to photograph sunsets\, gardening\, and discovering small parks while walking her 7 year old Corgi mix pup\, Perkelsnertz.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-class-series-finding-liberation-in-relationship-2-2/2025-12-15/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
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X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=East Bay Meditation Center 285 17th Street Oakland CA 94612 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=285 17th Street:geo:-122.2660299,37.8050656
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251214T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251214T163000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082351
CREATED:20250820T000737Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251126T014336Z
UID:10010743-1765706400-1765729800@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:HYBRID: Bodhisattva Vows and Precepts Ceremony
DESCRIPTION:Bodhisattva Vows and Precepts Ceremony \nwith Mushim Ikeda \n  \nSunday\, December 14th 2025 \n10:00 AM – 4:30 PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nHYBRID \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \nThe center is fragrance-free and wheelchair accessible \nN95/KN95 masks required \n  \nNote 1: You may participate as a witness/observer\, or *apply to receive the Bodhisattva Vows and Precepts after participating in the preceding classes. \nNote 2: In-person ticket sales END ON DECEMBER 12\, so we can get an accurate headcount of who will be in the center. Online ticket sales end at 10AM PT on December 14th. \n  \n25.11.19 Application For RETAKING Bodhisattva Vows and Precepts [2025 Form A]  \nhttps://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdQGPTaHL6tCOPnG_cO-mIOYRcC_Rr4jC9VkRucP7SOsMr3rg/viewform?vc=0&c=0&w=1&flr=0 \nDeadline to apply is December 1\, 2025 \n25.11.19 Application For Taking Bodhisattva Vows and Precepts FOR THE FIRST TIME with EBMC [2025 Form B] \nhttps://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfVo-SvCoISRsL2v9iWEatL2IfDKzwBL074hIc7Zmknyby98g/viewform?vc=0&c=0&w=1&flr=0 \nDeadline to apply is December 1\, 2025 \n  \nThis 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. \n  \nI\, 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 \n  \nThe 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. \n  \n\nSign up for Series 1 (Wednesdays\, Oct 8-29\, 6:30-8:30pm PT) \nSign up for Series 2 (Wednesdays\, Nov 5-26\, 6:30-8:30pm PT) \n\n  \nMushim (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 \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \n  \nThe 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. \n  \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \n  \nPlease 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. \n  \nVenmo: @MushimPatricia-Ikeda \nPayPal: info@mushimikeda.com \n  \nPlease indicate “Bodhisattva” in the subject line. \n  \nThank 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. \n  \nFor in-person participation: \nFor 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. \nTo 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/ \nEast Bay Meditation Center is a scent free / fragrance free space and is wheelchair accessible. \n  \nFor Zoom participation\, these are our Universal Access Guidelines: \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeacher\n \n\n\n\n\nMushim 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
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/hybrid-bodhisattva-vows-and-precepts-ceremony/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Hybrid
GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251208T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251208T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082351
CREATED:20251107T025816Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T231540Z
UID:10010997-1765218600-1765225800@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE CLASS SERIES: Finding Liberation in Relationship
DESCRIPTION:Finding Liberation in Relationship: Accountability\, Conflict\, Boundaries and Feedback \n4 Monday evenings \nDecember 1st\, 8th\, 15th and 22nd 2025 \n6:30-8:30 PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nOnline\, open to all \nWith Dawn Haney and Regent Brown \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nIn this time of so much conflict\, devastation and uprising\, how do we bring our practice to our relationships\, and how do we find freedom and choice there? Our friendships\, partnerships\, family and communities can be a source of joy and support\, and also of struggle and suffering. In this four week class we will explore concrete practices grounded in Buddhist meditation\, somatics\, and transformative justice. \nWe will practice feedback\, boundaries\, mindful accountability\, and nervous system regulation\, while applying mindfulness to investigate our conditioned tendencies and positionality in power relations. Through turning towards the delight and difficulty in our relationships\, including with Sangha\, we will build resource and resilience and create space to be our most authentic selves in our relationships and in the larger world. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo make a gift to sustain the work of East Bay Meditation Center\, you may do so via Paypal: paypal.me/eastbaymeditation or our website: eastbaymeditation.org/dana 100% of our programming is sliding scale and no one will ever be turned away for lack of funds. \n  \nTo support our teachers\, please do so via: \nVenmo: dawnmarissa or Paypal: dawnmarissa@gmail.com \nVenmo: @Regent_Brown or CashApp: $RegentBrown \n  \nThank 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. \n  \nUniversal Access Requests on Zoom to help with sound and video quality. If possible… \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeaching Team\n \nDawn Haney is a teacher\, coach\, and consultant\, committed to helping communities and organizations learn how to navigate change while attending to dynamics of identity and power. They braid together wisdom from Buddhism\, social justice\, and psychology traditions\, and alchemize this with their own experiences as a white\, fat\, queer\, neurodivergent\, nonbinary femme to support individual and community change. A dharma student since 2003\, she is a Community Teacher at East Bay Meditation Center\, mentors new meditation teachers\, and offers DEIA and organizational development consulting to meditation programs and social change groups. \n \nRegent Brown (Queen) is a biracial Afro-Indigenous\, disabled\, two-spirit womxn who has been practicing the Dharma since 2016 and part of the East Bay Meditation Center (EBMC) community of practice since 2018. Regent’s story has had many twists including surviving cancer twice\, relocating during the pandemic\, and being married for over a decade. And these twists have only deepened Regent’s passion for liberatory practices in the dharma. Regent supports liberation and decolonization as a coach\, circle keeper\, trainer\, healer\, facilitator\, and participant in interdependent community wellness.  As a recent graduate of the inaugural Freedom Together Mindfulness Teacher Program\, and a current member of Spirit Rock’s Community Dharma Leaders program\, Regent joins a bountiful group of BIPOC mindfulness teachers working to weave decolonized practices through their work\, relationships\, and communities.  Regent’s other practices of manifesting joy include karaoke\, goats\, traveling to photograph sunsets\, gardening\, and discovering small parks while walking her 7 year old Corgi mix pup\, Perkelsnertz.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-class-series-finding-liberation-in-relationship-2-2/2025-12-08/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://eastbaymeditation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Finding-Liberation-in-Relationship-2025-845-x-321-px_png.png
GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251207T090000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251207T103000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082351
CREATED:20251117T224346Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251206T062641Z
UID:10008518-1765098000-1765103400@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE: Afrikan Healing and Wisdom
DESCRIPTION:ONLINE: Afrikan Healing and Wisdom \nWith Vimalasara Mason-John\, Arisika Razak\, and Aleta Toure’ \nFirst Sundays\, starting November 3rd 2024 \n9:00 – 10:30 AM PT \nClosed captioning provided over Zoom \n  \nDECEMBER 7TH: PREPARING FOR KWANZAA \nKwanzaa is a transformational time for deep reflection\, remembrance of the measure of African lineage wisdom\, and how to understand goodness that uplifts through the Swahili Nguzo Saba (Seven Principles). We ask you to join us online through East Bay Meditation Center (EBMC)with special Guest: Cuban Redd\, on Sunday\, December 7th at 9:00 am PT as we sit in deep reflection during this Kwanzaa sangha to celebrate and to reaffirm the vitality of life. Come contemplate deep critical issues (djaer) on a personal and social level through community rest and recommitment. Please bring a red\, black\, and green candle\, and Muhindi (corn). \nAnd please consider joining us for our Second\, In-Person Afrikan Healing and Wisdom Residential Retreat at Dhamma Dena Retreat Center in Joshua Tree California from February 5 – 8 2026. https://www.dhammadena.org/retreats/Afrikan-Wisdom-Retreat-Feb-2026 \n—— \nJoin us for EBMC’s first Black-led\, Black-Sangha Affinity group held on the first Sunday of every month starting on Sunday\, November 3rd\, 2024 from 9 AM till 10:30 AM. \nToday\, those of us living in the USA vibrate to the breath of our Ancestral North Star\, highest realm of guidance. Our ancestors are with us\, as we step into a seemingly repeated quantum leap of time\, during one of the most turbulent election seasons since the presidential election of 1876\, and the 1877 compromise which ended Reconstruction. We are in a sentinel moment\, echoing the situations described in Martin Luther King’s book\, “Why We Can’t Wait”. Like our Diasporan kinfolx\, we are questioning our common humanity\, as we see the age-old dream of peace\, and ecological balance distorted in the deep and seemingly bottomless pool of genocide\, war\, climate change\, ecological devastation\, poverty and global health pandemics.  \nJoin us as we bring a timely spoonful of Afrikana medicine to these challenging and difficult times. We’ll add ancestral healing traditions to the simple practice of the breath\, sharing meditations\, libations\, chanting and other embodied practices to remember our resilience\, honor our ancestors\, and support an inclusive and affirming community for all members of the Afrikan Diaspora.  \n  \nREGISTRATION LINKS – sign up now for current and future meetings! \nDecember 7th registration \n  \n  \nCOST\n\nHere at EBMC\, we practice gift economics and our programs are offered freely without set fees.  Financial gifts from our community help to sustain our teachers AND our center.  Generosity is the Buddha’s first teaching\, the lifeblood of EBMC\, and an act of sacred reciprocity.  We ask that those who have more financial means give more\, in order to help balance the giving of those who have less financial means. \nTo make a gift to sustain the work of East Bay Meditation Center\, please do so via our website: eastbaymeditation.org/dana. Consider becoming a monthly donor for any amount! These contributions are especially valuable to our sustainability. \nPlease 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. In this way\, we practice sacred reciprocity between teachers and students. \nGiving Information: \nVENMO: @Arisika-Razak \nPAYPAL: arisikarazak@gmail.com \n(Please reference “Afrikan Healing & Wisdom” and the teachers will share the gifts with each other) \n\n  \n\nTEACHING TEAM \n \nVimalasara (Valerie) Mason-John is the author of the new revised edition of Detox Your Heart – Meditations For Emotional Trauma published by Wisdom books in 2017. She is co-author of the award-winning book Eight Step Recovery – Using The Buddha’s Teachings to Overcome Addiction. She is a TEDx speaker and is the author of eight books including her award winning novel Borrowed Body. She is the curator of Teachings in Uncertain Times\, an online retreat by Teachers of Color for Tricycle Magazine February 2017. She is a leading African Canadian voice in the field of Mindfulness for Emotional Trauma and Addiction. \n\n \nArisika Razak\, MPH\, EBMC Core teacher\, is the former Chair of the Women’s Spirituality Program at the California Institute of Integral Studies. Previously a nurse-midwife\, her teachings incorporate diverse spiritual traditions\, women’s health and healing\, multicultural feminisms\, queer theory\, and diversity theory. Arisika has led national and international healing workshops and ritual celebrations for women for over three decades\, as well as embodied spiritual workshops for people of all genders. She has co-facilitated workshops with Marlene Jones at Spirit Rock Meditation Center and regularly leads workshops at EBMC. \n \nAleta Toure’ (Visiting Teacher) Aleta Toure’ bears witness as a vessel for social change through organizing\, education and healing arts. She centers healing in monastic lifestyle knowledge though Intentional Communities and Black cooperative movements. Her cooperative serves communities through Black Trauma Anonymous (BTA)\, Tai chi\, Ecstatic Healing Dance and Healing Responders. Aleta spends time within Peace Pagodas\, monasteries\, hermitages\, and dojos which have framed her work through Free Marissa Now\, “I am Troy Davis”\, University Without Walls and other Diasporic Movements. She leads the 2025 California Reparations Interfaith Healing Walk to bring healing\, theory and practice back as a Liberation tool.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-afrikan-wisdom-and-healing-2-2-2/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://eastbaymeditation.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Afrikan-Wisdom-845-x-321-px-1.png
GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251206T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251206T160000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082351
CREATED:20251112T232323Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251112T232323Z
UID:10011052-1765015200-1765036800@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:Communal Grief Project for BIPOC\, Part 1 (rescheduled)
DESCRIPTION:Communal Grief Project for BIPOC\, Part 1 \nSaturday\, December 6th 2025 \n10 AM to 4 PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nWith Mushim Ikeda and Damali Robertston \nOpen to BIPOC\, ages 18+ \nIn person only at EBMC’s NEW BUILDING (2406 Webster St\, Oakland CA) \nThe center is fragrance-free and wheelchair accessible \nN95/KN95 masks required \n  \nThis 2-part secular series\, open to BIPOC-identified folx\, offers a space for reflection and connection through communal listening circles and guided practices to help us move through grief\, with the support of a licensed therapist. Together\, we’ll look beyond grief related to death and explore how all forms of loss — from police violence and climate anxiety to threats against human rights and bodily autonomy shape our lives. \nNOTE: This program was the first of the two-part series and focuses on communal grief. We were unable to host it on the original date of October 13th\, so December 6th is the rescheduled date. The second part was already hosted on November 2nd. Participants from that day are welcome to join this one. \nThis listening circle is part of The Communal Grief Project\, a larger international project on grief in the U.S.\, Mexico\, and Tanzania. To participate you must be 18 years of older and be okay with a member of our team taking notes on the information shared during the listening circles. Information shared will be completely anonymous — your name and information will not be identifiable. We are gathering information about experiences with grief in order to develop communal grief practices to help heal ourselves and our communities. You can learn more about the project here: https://communalgriefproject.com/ \nThese daylongs will include breaks and an extended lunch period. Snacks and drinks will be provided but you are invited to bring a lunch. \n  \nNOTE: Space is limited to 25 attendees. Please sign up now to save your spot! \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo 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. \n  \nThank 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. \n  \nFor in-person participation: \nFor 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. \nTo 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. \nEast Bay Meditation Center is a scent free / fragrance free space and is wheelchair accessible. \n  \nPublic Transportation/Parking: \n– We strongly encourage public transportation/biking/walking since parking in the neighborhood is limited. Please avoid parking your car on the street in a metered space during this time as it will cause an interrupted retreat experience. There is an ACE parking structure on Webster St.\, right behind the YMCA. \n– EBMC is 5 blocks from 19th Street Bart (about a 7 minute walk). \n– EBMC has bike parking inside the center. \n– Please note that parking meters are enforced Monday – Saturday\, 8 am – 6 pm. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeachers\n \nMushim 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 \n \nDamali Robertson\, MA is a certified Resilience Toolkit facilitator\, trauma-informed leader\, and emerging filmmaker guided by three values: Love\, Liberation\, and Compassion. As a sought-after facilitator\, she recently co-facilitated a series of BIPOC grief retreats at Spirit Rock Meditation Center. She also co-facilitates a weekly forum about spirituality and social justice called Imagining Justice. As Director of Community Engagement at LifeLong Medical Care\, She has spent the last two years leading trauma-informed and human-centered work for more than 1\,000 staff and hundreds of community members. She is also currently making a film about faith and spirituality as pathways to collective liberation. Damali’s life and work are grounded in mindfulness practices\, spiritual principles\, and lived-commitments to equity\, justice and thriving. Damali holds BAs in Political Science and Literature from Africa and the Diaspora from Pitzer College\, an MA in Communications for Social and Behavior Change from the University of the West Indies\, Mona Campus\, and an MA in Social Justice and Community Organizing from Prescott College.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/communal-grief-project-for-bipoc-part-1-rescheduled/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,In-Person Only
GEO:37.8050656;-122.2660299
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DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251201T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251201T203000
DTSTAMP:20260414T082351
CREATED:20251107T025816Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T231540Z
UID:10010996-1764613800-1764621000@eastbaymeditation.org
SUMMARY:ONLINE CLASS SERIES: Finding Liberation in Relationship
DESCRIPTION:Finding Liberation in Relationship: Accountability\, Conflict\, Boundaries and Feedback \n4 Monday evenings \nDecember 1st\, 8th\, 15th and 22nd 2025 \n6:30-8:30 PM PT (Time Zone Converter) \nOnline\, open to all \nWith Dawn Haney and Regent Brown \nClosed Captioning Provided on Zoom \n  \nIn this time of so much conflict\, devastation and uprising\, how do we bring our practice to our relationships\, and how do we find freedom and choice there? Our friendships\, partnerships\, family and communities can be a source of joy and support\, and also of struggle and suffering. In this four week class we will explore concrete practices grounded in Buddhist meditation\, somatics\, and transformative justice. \nWe will practice feedback\, boundaries\, mindful accountability\, and nervous system regulation\, while applying mindfulness to investigate our conditioned tendencies and positionality in power relations. Through turning towards the delight and difficulty in our relationships\, including with Sangha\, we will build resource and resilience and create space to be our most authentic selves in our relationships and in the larger world. \n  \n\n\n\n\nCost \nThe 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. \nThe 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. \nOther ways to give: \nTo make a gift to sustain the work of East Bay Meditation Center\, you may do so via Paypal: paypal.me/eastbaymeditation or our website: eastbaymeditation.org/dana 100% of our programming is sliding scale and no one will ever be turned away for lack of funds. \n  \nTo support our teachers\, please do so via: \nVenmo: dawnmarissa or Paypal: dawnmarissa@gmail.com \nVenmo: @Regent_Brown or CashApp: $RegentBrown \n  \nThank 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. \n  \nUniversal Access Requests on Zoom to help with sound and video quality. If possible… \n1. When speaking\, introduce your name\, pronouns\, and (optionally) a brief physical description of yourself. \n2. If using virtual backgrounds\, please use static\, simple\, high-contrast backgrounds. \n3. Please keep your camera still while your camera is on. \n4. Please repeat your name when you speak to help those with visual impairment. \n5. The host/volunteer will attempt to read any comments that appear in the chat out loud. \n6. Please strive for clear audio and mute when you are not speaking. Phone access is also available. \n7. 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. \n \n\n\n\n\nTeaching Team\n \nDawn Haney is a teacher\, coach\, and consultant\, committed to helping communities and organizations learn how to navigate change while attending to dynamics of identity and power. They braid together wisdom from Buddhism\, social justice\, and psychology traditions\, and alchemize this with their own experiences as a white\, fat\, queer\, neurodivergent\, nonbinary femme to support individual and community change. A dharma student since 2003\, she is a Community Teacher at East Bay Meditation Center\, mentors new meditation teachers\, and offers DEIA and organizational development consulting to meditation programs and social change groups. \n \nRegent Brown (Queen) is a biracial Afro-Indigenous\, disabled\, two-spirit womxn who has been practicing the Dharma since 2016 and part of the East Bay Meditation Center (EBMC) community of practice since 2018. Regent’s story has had many twists including surviving cancer twice\, relocating during the pandemic\, and being married for over a decade. And these twists have only deepened Regent’s passion for liberatory practices in the dharma. Regent supports liberation and decolonization as a coach\, circle keeper\, trainer\, healer\, facilitator\, and participant in interdependent community wellness.  As a recent graduate of the inaugural Freedom Together Mindfulness Teacher Program\, and a current member of Spirit Rock’s Community Dharma Leaders program\, Regent joins a bountiful group of BIPOC mindfulness teachers working to weave decolonized practices through their work\, relationships\, and communities.  Regent’s other practices of manifesting joy include karaoke\, goats\, traveling to photograph sunsets\, gardening\, and discovering small parks while walking her 7 year old Corgi mix pup\, Perkelsnertz.
URL:https://eastbaymeditation.org/calendar/online-class-series-finding-liberation-in-relationship-2-2/2025-12-01/
LOCATION:East Bay Meditation Center\, 285 17th Street\, Oakland\, CA\, 94612\, United States
CATEGORIES:Classes,Online
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