East Bay Meditation Center

Midday Sangha
2018-05-30 12:00 - 13:35, 2018-05-23 12:00 - 13:35, 2018-05-16 12:00 - 13:35, 2018-05-09 12:00 - 13:35 (America/Los_Angeles) | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Midday Sangha at EBMC Wednesdays at Noon!
Join our peer-led multicultural sangha for silent meditation practice and community building.
Every Wednesday
12:00 – 12:45 Silent sitting, standing or lying down meditation with optional walking meditation.
12:45 – 1:35 Potluck lunch with facilitated conversation about our practice and being the dharma in the world
Midday Sangha Coordinating Committee:
Abe Doherty, Jenn Biehn, Kam McCallum, Karen Jackson, Manuel Vasquez, Preston Justice, Shawki, Yvette Flores

Alphabet Sangha
2018-05-29 19:00 - 20:30, 2018-05-22 19:00 - 20:30, 2018-05-15 19:00 - 20:30, 2018-05-08 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
For more information, visit the ALPHABET SANGHA WEBSITE

ONLINE: Trans/Gender-Expansive Deep Refuge Group
2018-05-28 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!

Every Body Every Mind Sangha
2018-05-27 18:00 - 19:30, 2018-05-20 18:00 - 19:30, 2018-05-13 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
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!
Teachers include Charlie Johnson, Deb Kerr and others.
For more info, visit the Every Body Every Mind Sangha Website.

Compassionate Dharma Deep Refuge: 8 Step Recovery Buddhist Meeting
2018-05-26 13:00 - 15:00 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
The last Saturday of every month at EBMC, 1:00 – 3:00 pm

Beginning Saturday, February 24th, 2018, and continuing on the last Saturday of every month, EBMC offers a Recovery, Deep Refuge Buddhist meeting with a 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 ask that you attend sober on the day with respect for others that may be active in recovery. Open to all in Recovery.

Advance Registration is not required.
For additional information, please contact:
Shahara Godfrey slgvibing@earthlink.net

Honoring Our Ancestors: Telling The Truth and Reclaiming Our Wisdom
2018-05-26 10:00 - 16:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
with Arisika Razak
for Self Identified People of Color
Based on who we are and what we’ve been through and how we survive and where we stand, we are on kind of sacred ground. We stand on the backs of our ancestors. – Ava DuVernay
How are our lives informed by the actions of our ancestors – and what can we learn from their choices and experiences? How do we integrate multicultural linages, intergeneration trauma and ancestral wisdom? Join us for a day of storytelling, dharma teachings, movement, writing, and music in which we compassionately examine our diverse ancestral histories, celebrate our multicultural heritage/s and create a new liberation story.
Registration: Registration is required and space is limited. Click HERE to register.
Cost: There is no registration fee for attending this event, nor most EBMC events. However, EBMC is not independently funded. The Center and the teachers will be sustained only by your voluntary donations (the practice of generous giving, or “dana”). Please donate generously, in proportion to your ability:
* Either online (you will be offered an opportunity during the online registration process to donate to EBMC; the teachers will not receive any part of this online donation).
* Or at the event, in the two baskets at EBMC, one for the Center, the second for the Teacher.
Thank you for your generosity. EBMC will be only be sustained through our collective generosity.
Fragrance-free: In order to protect the health of community members with environmental illness, please do not wear fragranced products (including “natural” fragrances) or clothes laundered in fragranced products to EBMC.
EBMC is wheelchair accessible.

People of Color Sangha
2018-05-24 19:00 - 21:00, 2018-05-17 19:00 - 21:00, 2018-05-10 19:00 - 21:00 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
The People of Color Sangha is a growing tribe of people of color waking up and getting free!
Thursdays
7:00 – 9:00 PM
For more information, visit the: POC SANGHA WEBSITE

People of Color Yoga
2018-05-24 18:00 - 19:00, 2018-05-17 18:00 - 19:00, 2018-05-10 18:00 - 19:00 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Weekly Yoga Practice for Self Identified People of Color led by Satya de la Paz
6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Build strength and flexibility while cultivating mindfulness in this all levels hatha yoga class. Each class has a unique, inspiring theme and personalized instruction that will leave you feeling joyous and rejuvenated.
No registration required. No mat or special clothes required.

To Cherish All Life: Buddha’s 5 Precepts
2018-05-23 19:00 - 21:00, 2018-05-16 19:00 - 21:00, 2018-05-09 19:00 - 21:00 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
with Mushim Ikeda
Part of EBMC’s Core Buddhist Teachings: 5-Month Curriculum
Open to all

4 Wednesdays
May 2nd, 9th, 16th, & 23rd, 2018
7:00 – 9:00 pm
Together we’ll safely take a deep dive into how to hold the questions and ethical complexities that arise when we grapple with trying to live in accordance with the Precepts. The Buddha’s 5 basic guidelines for peace and happiness are: Not to kill but to cherish all life; not to lie but to tell the truth; not to steal, but to respect the things of others; not to commit sexual misconduct but to respect the wholeness of relationship; not to misuse intoxicants but to practice clarity of mind. Dharma talks, contemplative journaling, discussion, interactive exercises. Meditation instruction provided for beginners.
Registration: Registration is required and space is limited. Click HERE to register.
Cost: There is no registration fee for attending this event, nor most EBMC events. However, EBMC is not independently funded. The Center and the teachers will be sustained only by your voluntary donations (the practice of generous giving, or “dana”). Please donate generously, in proportion to your ability:
* Either online (you will be offered an opportunity during the online registration process to donate to EBMC; the teachers will not receive any part of this online donation).
* Or at the event, in the two baskets at EBMC, one for the Center, the second for the Teacher.
Thank you for your generosity. EBMC will be only be sustained through our collective generosity.
Fragrance-free: In order to protect the health of community members with environmental illness, please do not wear fragranced products (including “natural” fragrances) or clothes laundered in fragranced products to EBMC.
EBMC is wheelchair accessible.

Teen Sangha: Spring & Summer Session
2018-05-23 19:00 - 21:00, 2018-05-16 19:00 - 21:00, 2018-05-09 19:00 - 21:00 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
EBMC Teen Sangha – Spring & Summer 2018
Wednesdays: April 11th – June 20th, 2018
7:00 – 8:45PM
Open to teens, ages 14-19
EBMC Teen Sangha is a weekly meditation group for teens, ages 14-19. Our focus will be on creating deeper relationships with ourselves and each other, having fun, getting real and supporting each other. Learn mindfulness meditation and explore the dharma (Buddhist teachings) in creative and practical ways. No experience necessary. We are committed to maintaining a Sangha (community) that is welcoming to people of all identities, cultures, beliefs and ways of being.
Led by the EBMC Teen Sangha Team: Raúl Kahlil Betancourt, Anthony “T” Maes, Sarwang Parikh, Nirali Shah, Syra Smith, and Sara Oakes.
Registration: Registration is encouraged and space is limited. Click here or the link below to register.
https://eastbaymeditation.org/ebmcreg/?event=Summer18teen
Cost: There is no registration fee for attending this event, nor most EBMC events. However, EBMC is not independently funded. The Center and the teachers will be sustained only by your voluntary donations (the practice of generous giving, or “dana”). Please donate generously, in proportion to your ability:
* Either online (you will be offered an opportunity during the online registration process)
* Or at the event, in the two baskets at EBMC, one for the Center, the second for the Teacher
Thank you for your generosity. EBMC will be only be sustained through our collective generosity.
Fragrance-free: In order to protect the health of community members with environmental illness, please do not wear fragranced products (including “natural” fragrances) or clothes laundered in fragranced products to EBMC.
EBMC is wheelchair accessible.

Family Practice Class: Opening the Heart through the Buddha's Teachings
2018-05-13 10:00 - 12:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
with Baruch Golden, Eve Decker, Fresh! White, Keisha Turner and Michele Ku
For Children Ages 0-13 and Family / Caregivers
We invite you to come and help create the diverse family sangha at EBMC. We welcome families with babies, toddlers, and children up to age 13. Children under 5 will need to have a parent/caregiver stay with them.
This class features training on “Family Tea Time” and how mindful practices can bind the family together. We will also explore how meditation and meditative movement can contribute to successful family life. Parents/caregivers and young people will meet together and separately during the class. We are committed to creating a diverse family sangha. No prior experience is necessary.
Please bring a snack (without nuts) to share.
Registration: Registration is required and space is limited. Click HERE to register.
Cost: There is no registration fee for attending this event, nor most EBMC events. However, EBMC is not independently funded. The Center and the teachers will be sustained only by your voluntary donations (the practice of generous giving, or “dana”). Please donate generously, in proportion to your ability:
* Either online (you will be offered an opportunity during the online registration process to donate to EBMC; the teachers will not receive any part of this online donation).
* Or at the event, in the two baskets at EBMC, one for the Center, the second for the Teacher.
Thank you for your generosity. EBMC will be only be sustained through our collective generosity.
Fragrance-free: In order to protect the health of community members with environmental illness, please do not wear fragranced products (including “natural” fragrances) or clothes laundered in fragranced products to EBMC.
EBMC is wheelchair accessible.

ONLINE: Multiracial Peer-Led Deep Refuge Group
2018-05-12 19:00 - 21:00 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
The Multiracial Deep Refuge Group is a monthly exploratory Deep Refuge Group for and by people who identify as multiracial. Our meetings include periods of mindfulness meditation and sharing of narratives and perspectives as we come together to be seen and to see one another. By sitting and exploring our own unique stories, we can come to know and care for the common threads that bind us together. Our collective work bravely expands the narrative that informs multiracial experience today. Meets 7pm-9pm on the second Saturdays of every month. Online and occasionally hybrid (in-person at EBMC + online).
Newcomers welcome- please contact us before your first visit: mrdrcoordinators at googlegroups dot com

Love & Liberation: Dharmathon
2018-05-12 18:00 - 21:00 | Betti Ono Gallery, 1427 Broadway, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
EBMC’s Eighth Annual Dharma-thon will feature some of the Bay Area’s most inspiring artists on May 12 from 6pm-9pm! Dharma-thoners will enjoy an intimate dinner with performances by Melanie DeMore, Naima Shalhoub, and Michelle “Mush” Lee, with a delicious multi-course meal cooked by local vegan Filipino caterer No Worries.
To register, please visit:
https://www.firstgiving.com/event/EBMC/2018-Dharma-thon

Cutting through Spiritual Materialism - A Half Day Book Retreat
2018-05-12 13:30 - 16:30 | East Bay Meditation Center, 285 17th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612, United States
Core Teacher Diving Deeper Series
Led by Mushim Ikeda
REQUIRED: You need to have read the book and come prepared to discuss it.
A half-day retreat on the modern spiritual classic, Cutting through Spiritual Materialism. In this book, “the Tibetan meditation master Chögyam Trungpa highlights the commonest pitfall to which every aspirant on the spiritual path falls prey: what he calls spiritual materialism. The universal tendency, he shows, is to see spirituality as a process of self-improvement—the impulse to develop and refine the ego when the ego is, by nature, essentially empty. ‘The problem is that ego can convert anything to its own use,’ he said, ‘even spirituality.’ [amazon.com description]” Instead, Chögyam Trungpa says, we need to understand that “true and joyous liberation…inevitably involves letting go of the self rather than working to improve it.” Dharma talks, contemplative journaling, discussion, interactive exercises. Meditation instruction provided for beginners. For those who cannot afford to purchase their own copy of the book, EBMC will have a limited number of copies to loan. Please inquire immediately upon registering for this class if you are requesting a loaner copy. Please contact: Candi (at) eastbaymeditation (dot) org
Registration: Registration is required and space is limited. Register HERE
Cost: There is no registration fee for attending this event, nor most EBMC events. However, EBMC is not independently funded. The Center and the teachers will be sustained only by your voluntary donations (the practice of generous giving, or “dana”). Please donate generously, in proportion to your ability:
* Either online (you will be offered an opportunity during the online registration process to donate to EBMC; the teachers will not receive any part of this online donation).
* Or at the event, in the two baskets at EBMC, one for the Center, the second for the Teacher.
Thank you for your generosity. EBMC will be only be sustained through our collective generosity.
Fragrance-free: In order to protect the health of community members with environmental illness, please do not wear fragranced products (including “natural” fragrances) or clothes laundered in fragranced products to EBMC.
EBMC is wheelchair accessible.
