East Bay Meditation Center

ONLINE: Maha Sangha
2025-09-19 19:00 - 20:30, 2025-10-03 19:00 - 20:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Maha Sangha for All People & Communities
Creating Freedom in Community
Every Friday night, 7:00 – 8:30pm.
Hybrid, every 4th Friday of the month
Event Details: Meets weekly on zoom, and starting to meet once a month in person, email mahasangha at eastbaymeditation dot org for more info and get on our newsletter
The EBMC Maha Sangha for All People and Communities is a meditation and dharma group with an emphasis on radical inclusivity and social justice.
Maha is a Pali word meaning whole, great, larger/largest, deepest, and Sangha is a Pali word for community, or community of practitioners. Together, these words represent a place where all people and communities are warmly invited to explore the Dharma together in keeping with East Bay Meditation Center’s core mission to foster liberation, personal and interpersonal healing, social action, and inclusive community building. We hope that you will join us.
The EBMC Maha Sangha’s leadership team of teachers, dharma leaders, and sangha members includes: Arisika Razak, Fresh! Lev White, Rebekah Eppley, Sarwang Parikh and Shay.
Contact: mahasangha at eastbaymeditation org

ONLINE: 8 Step Buddhist Recovery Deep Refuge
2025-09-20 10:00 - 11:30, 2025-09-27 10:00 - 11:30, 2025-10-04 10:00 - 11:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Every Saturday from 10AM – 11:30AM PST / PDT ONLINE
Compassionate Dharma Deep Refuge Buddhist meetings focus on ways to heal addiction. Based on the Eight Steps to Recovery developed by Dr. Mason-John M.A (hon.doc) and Dr Groves, we believe this inclusive approach can build a solid foundation for those at any level of recovery and for those who have yet to seek help.
Through these practices we hope you gain a practice that can sustain you in your recovery.
We are a multi-recovery space. Whether you are navigating addiction to substances like drugs and alcohol, or process addictions, such as disordered eating, codependency, or sex and love addiction–you are welcome here.
Advance Registration is not required.
For additional information, please contact: ebmcrecovery at gmail dot com.

ONLINE: Kapwa Deep Refuge Group for Filipinx/a/o Practitioners
2025-09-21 09:00 - 10:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
This is a peer-led deep refuge group for self-identifying Filipinx/a/o (including mixed) folks. Together we cultivate a special community space in the intersection of Filipinx/a/o identity + culture + history and Buddhist spiritual practice. We gather to support each other, heal, and walk the Dharma path.

Kapwa Deep Refuge will meet every 3rd Sunday at 9am PST – 10:30am PST via Zoom. The inaugural meeting will be on April 21, 2024.

If you identify as Filipinx/a/o and would like to join, please contact us at: kapwa.deep.refuge@gmail.com

HYBRID: Celebrate the Changing Seasons w/ Mindful Movement: Fall Equinox
2025-09-21 09:00 - 10:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Celebrate the Changing Seasons with Mindful Movement: Fall Equinox
Sunday, September 21st 2025
9:00 – 10:30AM PT (Time Zone Converter)
HYBRID
with Rosetta Saunders and Jenn Biehn
Closed Captioning Provided on Zoom
The center is fragrance-free and wheelchair accessible
N95/KN95 masks required

We invite you to join us in community movement meditation as we welcome the season of Autumn.
We will practice easy-to-learn tai chi and qigong movements that gather the chi/the life force from the earth and circulate chi in our bodies. These accessible, non-strenuous movements invite softness and continuity as they release tension, negativity and stress and bring healing to body-heart-mind-spirit.
Together we will practice movements that cultivate connection with nature – honoring the elements and deepening our oneness with Mother Earth and all her beings. Embodying mindful awareness together, we experience a profound synergy and ever-deepening interconnectedness – so important in these challenging times.
Movements can be practiced both seated and standing. No prior experience necessary.
Join us as we welcome the season of Autumn..

OPTIONAL 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!

Save the Date for Our Final Session!
Winter Solstice – Sunday, December 21st from 9:00-10:30 AM.

Cost
The teachings are regarded as priceless. So they are offered without a fee. You are invited to support the teachings and our efforts by contributing voluntary donations (the practice of “Dana”) for the expenses of the meditation center and the support of the teachers.
The ticket prices are listed as different tiers with suggested donations based on income ranges. For those who wish to give more, you may choose an “add-on” to your ticket. For those unable to give, there is an option for that.

Other ways to give:
To make a gift to sustain the work of East Bay Meditation Center, you may do so at https://bit.ly/ebmc-give 100% of our programming is sliding scale and no one will ever be turned away for lack of funds.
Please also consider giving a financial gift to our teachers as well, who do not receive a salary for their work, and give their teachings freely to all.

To make a gift to support the teachings, please do so via
PayPal: sweetdrum8@gmail.com
or Venmo: @Rosetta-Saunders
Please indicate “Fall Equinox” in the subject line.

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

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

East Bay Meditation Center is a scent free / fragrance free space and is wheelchair accessible.

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

Rosetta Saunders is a retired educator and historian with over 20 years teaching “People of Colors History” in the United States. Currently a core facilitator for Deep Time Liberation, Ancestral Healing retreats, Rosetta’s passion for West African and Afro-Cuban drumming has primarily been a source for individual and collective healing. She aligns herself with her ancestral lineage through Earth based practices. She was introduced to the Buddha/Dharma in 2002 and completed a two-year Dharmacharya program with Venerable Pannavati and Pannadipa receiving Confirmation of Ordination and recently completed the Braided Wisdom Leadership training program and Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction certification program.

A 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.

Falling into Community - EBMC Fall Celebration
2025-09-21 13:00 - 16:00 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
EBMC Falling Into Community: Open House and Recurring Donor Celebration
Sunday, September 21 2025
1pm to 4pm PT
Location: Our new building – 2406 Webster St., Oakland, CA.

As the season turns and we gather for Falling Into Community, we invite you to reconnect with sangha — the Third Jewel — and nourish the relationships that sustain our collective liberation.
Join us for a joyful, heart-centered gathering at EBMC’s new home, where we’ll come together in community for fellowship, snacks, meditation, dharma, music, and movement. If this is your first time visiting our space at 2406 Webster Street, come take a tour and get a glimpse of what we’re co-creating for the future.
The first half of the event will include a guided program, with time to mingle and connect after.
✨ The program will be led by EBMC teachers including Christine Cordero, Patrick Brown, and Sarwang Parikh, with more to be announced. Join us for a mix of practice, reflection, movement, and celebration.
During the gathering, we’ll also take time to honor our recurring donors — the folx whose generosity helps sustain EBMC’s offerings, values, and vision.
All are welcome — including newcomers! Feel free to bring friends, family, and loved ones.
We can’t wait to see you there.

Joining Us In Person or Online
We’re excited to host this event in our new building and hope you can join us in person there! For those unable to do so for any reason, we welcome you to tune in from Zoom. The room will open at 1pm and the program will be from about 1:30-2:30pm PT. Zoom link provided after registration.

Cost
The teachings are regarded as priceless, so they are offered without a fee. In order to sustain EBMC, you are encouraged to support the teachings and our efforts by contributing voluntary donations (the practice of “Dana”) for the expenses of the meditation center and the support of the teachers.
The ticket prices are listed as different tiers with suggested donations based on income ranges. For those who wish to give more, you may choose an “add-on” to your ticket. For those unable to give, there is an option for that.

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

For in-person participation:
To attend in person, you need to be completely free of fragranced body and clothing products — more information and a list of fragrance free products, including those that are especially good for people of color, appears on our website.
East Bay Meditation Center is a scent free / fragrance free space and is wheelchair accessible.

Every Body Every Mind Sangha
2025-09-21 18:00 - 19:30, 2025-09-28 18:00 - 19:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Every Body Every Mind Sangha is a weekly practice group for people living with disabilities, limitations, differences and chronic illnesses.
Sundays
6:00 pm – 7:30 pm

ONLINE WITH SPECIAL HYBRID DATES
March 23rd 2025 with Arisika Razak
April 20th 2025 with Anne Finger
May 18th 2025 with Mushim Ikeda
June 22nd 2025 with Anne Finger
No registration needed to attend these meetings in person. More hybrid dates may be announced in the future.

To join online, please email: ebem at eastbaymeditation dot org to request a Zoom link.
Please come and take part in this time to meditate, share our lives and support with each other, and learn more about the dharma. There is no need to register for these weekly meetings, just come and share this path together!
EveryBody, EveryMind Teacher Group: Debra Kerr, Kenji Oshima, Anne Finger, Master John W. Ellis IV, Beth Smith, Mushim Ikeda, Victor Jih, & Zac Krohn
For more info, visit the Every Body Every Mind Sangha Website.

ONLINE: Trans/Gender-Expansive Deep Refuge Group
2025-09-22 18:30 - 20:00 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Trans/Gender-Expansive Deep Refuge Group
Fourth Mondays (online over zoom)
6:30-8pm PM PST
This deep refuge group is by and for trans/gender-expansive people. Our goal is to provide a welcoming community space for trans/gender-expansive folks who are interested in exploring meditation and other aspects of Buddhist practice. Both beginners and experienced practitioners welcome!
To be added to the email list, please email tgedeeprefuge@eastbaymeditation.org with a quick note about your interest in the group. We look forward to practicing with you!

IN PERSON: Gather & Ground: Compassionate Community Building
2025-09-23 17:00 - 19:00 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Gather & Ground: Compassionate Community Building
July 7th through September 30th, 2025
Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays
5-7 PM PT
In person only

Starting the week of July 7th through September 30th, we are piloting a new summer effort to have the center open every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 5-7pm. The first hour (5-6pm) will be for meditation in our temple or compassion room space or to peruse our library offerings. The second hour (6-6:45pm) will be for a fun social potluck in the kitchen space. Everyone is encouraged to bring something to share with the group. We hope this effort will build some momentum and energy for EBMC and bring more people in our community together in-person.

These new community building hours are the same evenings as our Alphabet (Tuesdays 7pm), BIPOC (Thursdays 7pm) and Maha Sanghas (Fridays 7pm) so we hope this effort will also encourage people to join those groups with a hope to generate enough attendance to bring them back to in-person every week! This was also based on feedback from the survey. See more info about our Practice Groups here.

There are so many reasons to be in community right now and EBMC wants to support this by opening our space during these times to anyone who needs it. We are stronger when we are in solidarity together to meet the moment we are in. We hope to see you soon! Come practice. Come snack. Come as you are. Feel free to bring a friend!

Please note: During these specific hours, masks will be encouraged, but not required. Again, this is a pilot effort that we are trying in this one area based on survey responses, with a goal of expanding our circle, but as of now, our masking policy remains the same for all other programming and events.

ONLINE: Alphabet Sangha
2025-09-23 19:00 - 20:30, 2025-09-30 19:00 - 20:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
A meditation group for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Same-Gender Loving, and Two-Spirit communities. Because that’s such a mouthful, we call ourselves the Alphabet Sangha.
Tuesdays
7:00 – 8:30 pm
Please email: alphabetsangha at eastbaymeditation dot org to request Zoom link to join online.
For more information, visit the ALPHABET SANGHA WEBSITE

ONLINE: Kapwa Meditation for Filipinx/a/o Community
2025-09-24 07:00 - 07:30, 2025-10-01 07:00 - 07:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
We are happy to announce that a weekly Kapwa Meditation for Filipinx/a/o folks will begin on Wednesday, Jan. 8, from 7:00 to 7:30 AM Pacific Time. We will continue to gather every Wednesday morning, coming together for support and practice, on our paths of individual and collective transformation.

In addition to our weekly meditation, we would like to remind everyone of our monthly Kapwa Deep Refuge Group for Filipinx/a/o folks. Launched in the Spring of 2024, we meet on the third Sunday of every month, from 9:00 to 10:30 AM Pacific Time.
Together, in both spaces, we aspire to cultivate a special community space in the intersection of Filipinx/a/o identity + culture + history and Buddhist spiritual practice.
The Zoom credentials are the same for both our weekly Wednesday meditation and our monthly gathering.
If you identify as Filipinx/a/o and would like to join, please contact us at: kapwa.deep.refuge@gmail.com

ONLINE: Midday Sangha
2025-09-24 12:00 - 13:35 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Join our peer-led multicultural sangha for silent meditation practice and community building.
Every Wednesday
12:00 – 12:45pm PST Silent sitting, standing or lying down meditation with optional walking meditation.
12:55 – 1:35pm PST Facilitated conversation about our practice and being the dharma in the world
HYBRID EVERY FIRST WEDNESDAY, ONLINE FOR OTHER MEETINGS (unless otherwise noted)
Midday Sangha Coordinating Committee:
emiko yoshikami, Jennie Powe Runde, Sakshi Uomoto, Elese Lebsack and Robert Gavino
email middaysangha at eastbaymeditation dot org for zoom link and password

IN PERSON: Gather & Ground: Compassionate Community Building
2025-09-25 17:00 - 19:00, 2025-09-26 17:00 - 19:00, 2025-09-30 17:00 - 19:00, 2025-10-02 17:00 - 19:00, 2025-10-03 17:00 - 19:00 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Gather & Ground: Compassionate Community Building
Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays
5-7 PM PT
In person only

Starting the week of July 7th, we now have the center open every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 5-7pm. The first hour (5-6pm) will be for meditation in our temple or compassion room space or to peruse our library offerings. The second hour (6-6:45pm) will be for a fun social potluck in the kitchen space. Everyone is encouraged to bring something to share with the group. We hope this effort will build some momentum and energy for EBMC and bring more people in our community together in-person.

These new community building hours are the same evenings as our Alphabet (Tuesdays 7pm), BIPOC (Thursdays 7pm) and Maha Sanghas (Fridays 7pm) so we hope this effort will also encourage people to join those groups with a hope to generate enough attendance to bring them back to in-person every week! This was also based on feedback from the survey. See more info about our Practice Groups here.

There are so many reasons to be in community right now and EBMC wants to support this by opening our space during these times to anyone who needs it. We are stronger when we are in solidarity together to meet the moment we are in. We hope to see you soon! Come practice. Come snack. Come as you are. Feel free to bring a friend!

Please note: During these specific hours, masks will be encouraged, but not required. Again, this is a pilot effort that we are trying in this one area based on survey responses, with a goal of expanding our circle, but as of now, our masking policy remains the same for all other programming and events.

ONLINE: BIPOC Sangha
2025-09-25 19:00 - 20:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
The BIPOC Sangha is a growing community of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color waking up and getting free!
Thursdays
7 – 8:30 PM PT
**Online on Second, Fourth (and the possible Fifth) Thursdays
**Hybrid on First and Third Thursdays
**Potluck in the EBMC kitchen on the Third Thursday meeting, from 6-7 PM PT! Bring a dish or beverage to share.
Closed Captions Provided.
Zoom info: Meeting details are shared through their mailing list (subscribe on their website), and their Facebook group.

ONLINE: BIPOC Write Action Deep Refuge Group
2025-09-26 18:30 - 20:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
The BIPOC Write Action Deep Refuge Group gathers monthly to pause, ground ourselves and practice writing as a form of creative self-expression and mindful reflection. Modeled on the EBMC Daylong event, the exercises are guided by prompts and participants are welcomed, but not required, to share their work with the group.
The Write Action Group is peer-led and members take turns facilitating and offering guiding prompts each month. Meetings are held on 4th Fridays, from 6:30-8:30pm PT over Zoom. Join us! Please email for more information: bipocwriteactiongroup@eastbaymeditation.org
Note: We acknowledge the history of the name “Write Action”, which was created by Kenji Liu and Mushim Ikeda. It was originally called Write Action for POC when they led the first workshop at EBMC on April 10, 2011.

ONLINE: Queer Leather Peer-Led Deep Refuge Group
2025-09-26 19:00 - 20:30 | Off Site Venue
The Queer Leather Meditation Deep Refuge Group is a peer-led meditation group for those of us who have a meditation practice and are queer and leather/kink-identified. We meet on the 4th Friday of every month from 7–8:30 p.m. We are open to and welcome new drop-in participants, whether this is your first sit or your 10,000th! For upcoming meeting details or to join our mailing list or online groups, please visit http://www.queerleathermeditation.org/. If you have questions please contact admin@queerleathermeditation.org.

HYBRID: Maha Sangha
2025-09-26 19:00 - 20:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Maha Sangha for All People & Communities
Creating Freedom in Community
Hybrid, every 4th Friday of the month, 7:00 – 8:30pm.
Event Details: Meets weekly on zoom, and starting to meet once a month in person, email mahasangha at eastbaymeditation dot org for more info and get on our newsletter
The EBMC Maha Sangha for All People and Communities is a meditation and dharma group with an emphasis on radical inclusivity and social justice.
Maha is a Pali word meaning whole, great, larger/largest, deepest, and Sangha is a Pali word for community, or community of practitioners. Together, these words represent a place where all people and communities are warmly invited to explore the Dharma together in keeping with East Bay Meditation Center’s core mission to foster liberation, personal and interpersonal healing, social action, and inclusive community building. We hope that you will join us.
The EBMC Maha Sangha’s leadership team of teachers, dharma leaders, and sangha members includes: Arisika Razak, Fresh! Lev White, Rebekah Eppley, Sarwang Parikh and Shay.
Contact: mahasangha at eastbaymeditation org

ONLINE: Maha Sangha
2025-09-26 19:00 - 20:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Maha Sangha for All People & Communities
Creating Freedom in Community
Every Friday night, 7:00 – 8:30pm.
Event Details: Meets weekly on zoom, and starting to meet once a month in person, email mahasangha at eastbaymeditation dot org for more info and get on our newsletter
The EBMC Maha Sangha for All People and Communities is a meditation and dharma group with an emphasis on radical inclusivity and social justice.
Maha is a Pali word meaning whole, great, larger/largest, deepest, and Sangha is a Pali word for community, or community of practitioners. Together, these words represent a place where all people and communities are warmly invited to explore the Dharma together in keeping with East Bay Meditation Center’s core mission to foster liberation, personal and interpersonal healing, social action, and inclusive community building. We hope that you will join us.
The EBMC Maha Sangha’s leadership team of teachers, dharma leaders, and sangha members includes: Arisika Razak, Fresh! Lev White, Rebekah Eppley, Sarwang Parikh and Shay.
Contact: mahasangha at eastbaymeditation org

HYBRID: White and Awakening in Sangha
2025-09-28 10:00 - 14:00 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
HYBRID: White and Awakening in Sangha
Sundays from 10am to 2pm PT
September 28, October 12 and 26, November 9 and 23, 2025
With Crystal Johnson, Kitsy Schoen, and Heather Lear
Open to white-identified practitioners
Closed Captioning Provided on Zoom
The center is fragrance-free and wheelchair accessible
N95/KN95 masks required

Please note; registration for this class is two steps: 1) On-Demand materials and 2) Live Class Registration.

Course Description
Since 2007, the East Bay Meditation Center (EBMC) has been offering courses designed for white people who want to build awareness and skills for disrupting the operation of white supremacy culture. We began this journey by developing a curriculum that guided white people into deeper awareness of our white conditioning, and built intra- and inter-personal skills to support the creation of inclusive sangha. Over time, we have gone deeper into the dharma practices that guide us toward wise effort and wise action in our lives and communities to address the harm arising from race-based oppression. By bringing our practice to bear our actions are guided by the Precepts and informed by the teaching of the Eightfold Path.

This year, we are offering the foundations class in a revised format and adapted for a time of great conflict and violence, and of intense political and psychological polarization around issues of race and justice and harm. We are offering the basic curriculum in an On-Demand, online format that participants can watch on their own time or by joining one of the hosted “watch parties” that will be offered. The live course meetings will be focused on:

Building a supportive community of white people to deepen our inquiries and support our efforts to grow and change
Digesting and sharing our increasing understanding of white conditioning, the operation of systemic racism and the psychological strategies that keep us stuck as we work to engage with the painful realities of white supremacy
Developing intra- and inter- personal skills for personal and community development
Cultivating meditation practices that allow us to stay present in very difficult circumstances while staying grounded in our values
Building our understanding of, and commitment to, wise effort and action guided by deep compassion

Format
This course is designed to include people with a wide range of experience. We will cover the basics of whiteness through the On-Demand materials that can be viewed privately or in one of the watch parties that we will host. The live sessions (offered both in person and online) will offer additional materials, including guided meditation, dharma talks and discussion, Q&R, small group conversations, and large group sharing. Partial recordings of live sessions will be available for people who wish to review the material or who have to miss a class meeting.

Prerequisites
Please come to the class with an established meditation practice, a genuine openness to learning from the teachers and other participants, and the willingness and capacity to move through difficult emotions and psychological disruption while staying engaged. This work requires courageous and honest self-reflection and the commitment to show up for ourselves and each other with compassion. We rely on the strength of our community to get through the hard stuff.
You will get the most out of this course if you:

Watch all the materials offered and complete the exercises
Do the offered practices every day
Show up with a wide open heart and willingness to be surprised
Come in person, if at all possible. We are very happy to welcome those who join us from far away, and we do feel there is something lost in being remote…

We invite you into our practice of Gift Economics
At the East Bay Meditation Center (EBMC), we practice Gift Economics, which means, among other things, that we welcome you into our community, and invite you to contribute according to your capacity and inspiration, rather than as if you are purchasing a product/course. By donating to EBMC, you are supporting a community founded and dedicated to creating a dharma refuge for BIPOC, LGBTQI2+, people with disabilities, other marginalized communities, and everyone (including us white identified folks) who seeks to end suffering and cultivate happiness. Our mission is to foster liberation, personal and interpersonal healing, social action, and inclusive community building.
We hope that you will join us.
For this course, the teachers offer their time without monetary compensation as a practice of reparation, so that 80% of your donation for the On-Demand materials, and 100% of your registration contributions will go to support the East Bay Meditation Center (EBMC). We will invite you to offer dana twice in this registration process (yes it’s a little clunky…).

Next Steps

First, please register for the On-Demand materials through Spirit Rock. The dana that you offer here will support EBMC (80%) who created the class, and Spirit Rock (20%), who produced it.
Second, please register through EventBrite for the EBMC live class here. We invite you to contribute as generously as you can, given your economic circumstances.
You may also contribute each time the class meets, or at any time, by going to the EBMC Donation page or through Venmo at @eastbaymeditation. If you attend the class in person, you may also contribute via check or cash.

Questions? Write to us at WhiteandAwakeninginSangha@eastbaymeditation.org

The On-Demand materials qualify for 6 homestudy CE credits for $100 for psychologists and California licensed MFTs, LCSWs, LEPs, LPCCs, nurses, and chiropractors.

A technical note: You should receive a confirmation email within a day of completing your registration. If you don’t receive this email, please contact us at whiteandawakening@eastbaymeditation.org so that we can troubleshoot this issue!

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

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

TEACHERS

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

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

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

HYBRID: Midday Sangha
2025-10-01 12:00 - 13:35 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States

HYBRID: BIPOC Sangha
2025-10-02 19:00 - 20:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
The BIPOC Sangha is a growing community of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color waking up and getting free!
Thursdays
7 – 8:30 PM PT
**Hybrid on First and Third Thursdays (online only on other Thursdays)
**Potluck in the EBMC kitchen on the Third Thursday meeting, from 6-7 PM PT! Bring a dish or beverage to share.
Closed Captions Provided.
Zoom info: Meeting details are shared through their mailing list (subscribe on their website), and their Facebook group.
