Category Archives: Meditation

February 22, 2014: Working with Anger: Developing Skill in the Midst of Intense Feeling – a daylong with Matthew Brensilver

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Please join us on Saturday, February 22nd for a daylong on Working with Anger: Developing Skill in the Midst of Intense Feeling with Matthew Brensilver from 10am to 4:00pm at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Stanislaus County in the Sarana Kuti, 2172 Kiernan Ave., Modesto, CA.

The Buddha said that anger has a honeyed tip and poisoned root.  From minor irritation to intense rage, anger has important effects on our lives, our families and our society.  If we are to be deeply happy and nourish the happiness of others, we must include anger as part of our spiritual path.  While we acknowledge the suffering caused by anger, dharma teachings are not moralistic about what arises in our minds nor are we asked to disown any experience.  Anger is not a moral issue but a question of suffering and the release from suffering. Thus, we seek ways of meeting the experience of anger with wisdom and compassion and creating conditions for kindness to grow.

Although anger sometimes contains a seed of wisdom, it invariably contains a seed of delusion.  In other words, anger is never the last word – there’s always something more to be seen.  During this retreat, we’ll consider the role anger plays in our lives and the ways in which mindfulness can be helpful. We will learn meditative strategies to untangle the complex experience of anger into its component parts, namely, emotional feeling, mental images and thoughts. Teachings will also aim to remind us of the dimension of ourselves that urgently seeks a life of non-harming.  Lastly, the retreat will describe how Buddhist perspectives on self-cherishing are relevant for working with anger.  When we vigilantly stand guard at the gates of ‘Me’, we are certain to encounter challenges that mobilize our anger.  As habits of self-cherishing are weakened, the causes for anger to arise are weakened too.

All are welcome. This day is freely offered to all.  Donations are gratefully accepted to support Matthew and future IMCV offerings.  Please bring a vegetarian potluck dish to share for lunch, if you would like.  Chairs and some cushions will be available.

Sarana Kuti is the small stand-alone building on the UUFSC property at the rear of the east parking lot (the building with red and gold trim). It is behind the Johnson Building. For additional information, please contact Lori Wong at 209-343-2748. It is helpful for us to know how many will attend. Please register below.

Matthew Brensilver, PhD, served as a Buddhist chaplain at USC for four years and teaches about the intersection of mindfulness and psychotherapy at UCLA’s Mindful Awareness Research Center. Matthew was trained by Noah Levine, with whom he teaches at Against the Stream Buddhist Meditation Society and is currently in the Spirit Rock/IMS teacher training program.  He conducts research on addiction treatment at the UCLA Center for Behavioral and Addiction Medicine.

 

Dec. 7th Practice Daylong with Lori Wong

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Please join us on Saturday, Dec. 7th for a silent day of practice with Lori Wong from 9am to 4pm at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Stanislaus County in the Sarana Kuti, 2172 Kiernan Ave., Modesto, CA.

This day is freely offered to all.  Donations are gratefully accepted to support the teacher and future offerings.  Please bring a vegetarian potluck dish to share for lunch, if you would like.  For the sake of those who may have sensitivities or allergies, please do not wear scented or perfumed products.  Chairs will be available.  There are also a limited number of zabutons and cushions for use. This daylong is suitable for all-levels of practitioners.

Basic instruction will be offered in the morning for sitting and walking. There will be a dharma talk at the end of the day. Lunch will be held in silence. There may be some chanting and opportunities for practice discussions with Lori.

Sarana Kuti is the small stand-alone building on the UUFSC property at the rear of the east parking lot (the building with red and gold trim). It is behind the Johnson Building.

For additional information, please contact Lori Wong at 209-343-2748.

If you plan to come, please let us know (it helps to know if we need a larger space) by filling out the form below. Thank you!

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Daylong on Nov. 2, 2013 on Right Communication with Rev. Joe Cherry and Lori Wong

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Please join us on Saturday, November 2, 2013

in the Sarana Kuti
9:00am to 4:00pm
at the
Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Stanislaus County
2172 Kiernan Ave., Modesto, CA

In this daylong workshop, we invite our two communities: UUFSC and IMCV, to meet one another and to explore Right Communication – how we can use mindfulness practice to guide us in how we can skillfully communicate in all of our relationships. If you’re not a member of UUFSC or IMCV, you don’t need to worry – we are open communities that are welcoming to anyone who is interested in the teachings we offer.

Please come with a story from the book, Buddhist Boot Camp, by Timber Hawkeye or a story from a Buddhist book that significantly changed or in some way altered your perspective of life in a meaningful way.

We’ll explore practicing Right Communication using periods of silent meditation which can strengthen our ability to stay present and non-reactive in listening and speaking.

This day is freely offered to all.  Donations are gratefully accepted to support the UUFSC and IMCV.  Please bring a vegetarian potluck dish to share for lunch, if you would like.  Chairs and some cushions will be available.

Sarana Kuti is the small stand-alone building on the UUFSC property at the rear of the east parking lot (the building with red and gold trim). For additional information, please contact Lori Wong at 209-343-2748 or Rev. Joe Cherry at 209-545-1837. It is helpful for us to know how many will attend. Please register using the form below.

Rev. Joe Cherry is a native of Detroit and spent his formative adult years in Chicago. He has served Unitarian Universalist congregations in Chicago, Dukinfield (UK), Vancouver (BC) and Modesto, California. Rev. Joe is the Interim Minister at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Stanislaus County, which he has served since January 2012.

Lori Wong is a Community Dharma Leader trained by Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, CA and Gil Fronsdal of Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City.  She is a board member of the Sati Center for Buddhist Studies.  She is the founding teacher of Insight Meditation Central Valley and has been leading Insight Meditation sitting groups in Modesto, CA since 2009.

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Mindfulness in Spanish “Casa De Curación” Daylong on Oct. 19, 2013 with Andrea Castillo

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En nombre de los Servicios Mentales y Recuperación, Caridades Católicas, y Meditación Introspectiva del Valle Central, nos gustaría invitarte a un día dedicado a cultivar bienestar y paz.

Casa De Curación

En este día aprenderemos sobre la atención plena y la meditación. Estas prácticas ofrecen múltiples beneficios físicos y mentales y forman la base de un estilo de vida que es de gran ayuda para todos, pero especialmente para persons que padecen de ansiedad, depresión, o dolor físico.

Día: Sábado, 19 de Octubre de 9 a.m. hasta las 3:30 p.m.

Lugar: Learning Institute, County Center III, Modesto, CA 95355

Costo: El curso se ofrece a base de donaciones.

Por favor traiga un plato vegetariano para compartir en el almuerzo.

Instrutoras: Andrea Castillo, Ph.D. y Lori Wong

Para registrarse favor de hablar a Theresa Zamora (209) 541-2416 o enviar a electronico correo a tzamora@stanbhrs.org

Teaching Mindfulness to Youth Daylong with Kate Janke on Nov. 16, 2013

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Join us on Saturday, November 16th from 10:30-4:30pm at the Sarana Kuti at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Stanislaus County, 2172 Kiernan Ave., Modesto, CA for a daylong with Kate Janke on

Teaching Mindfulness to Youth

In this daylong workshop we will explore how to teach 
mindfulness to children
and young teens in the classroom, private practice, or at home. Learn simple and fun age appropriate mindfulness techniques and lessons through experiential demonstrations and small group breakouts.

We’ll also spend time cultivating our own mindfulness practice, strengthening our ability to stay present and teach through example.
Prerequisite: personal mindfulness practice.

KJ3-cropKate Janke has been teaching mindfulness in education for over five years. In 2012 she founded The Heart-Mind Education Project, a mindfulness based consulting business lending support and resources to students and the adults in their lives. Before her current venture, Kate was the Director of Training at Mindful Schools, developing and implementing mindfulness education curriculum and trainings. She has taught mindfulness to approximately 1500 students in the San Francisco Bay Area and has trained over 2000 Educators, therapists, and parents nationally and internationally in mindful awareness curriculum and techniques.

Kate has been practicing meditation in the Theravada lineage since 2004. She is a teacher in training at Spirit Rock and IMS and leads a weekly meditation group in Alameda, CA. See her website at http://www.heart-mind-education.com/.

This day is freely offered to all.  Donations are gratefully accepted to support Kate and future offerings.  Please bring a vegetarian potluck dish to share for lunch, if you would like.  Chairs and some cushions will be available.

Sarana Kuti is the small stand-alone building on the UUFSC property at the rear of the east parking lot (the building with red and gold trim). For additional information, please contact Lori Wong at 209-343-2748.

Here is a printable flyer.

Please register for this event below as this helps with our planning. Thank you.

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Special Sunday Afternoon Visit with Beth Goldring on Oct. 6, 2013

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On Oct. 6, 2013, we will have a special Sunday afternoon program, “Living in the Present,” with Beth Goldring from 12:30 p.m. -2:30 p.m.

“In Buddhist practice and in Zen especially we talk a lot about living in the present moment. But what does that mean, actually, in our lives? When we are joyous, we want the present moment to continue and/or when we are in painful conditions we want them to be different.  These forms of clinging and aversion are completely spontaneous and so deeply rooted as to seem utterly natural. The Buddha teaches that this seeming naturalness is the foundation of delusion and suffering.  I would like to explore a little what the effort to be fully present for our experience means and why it is so deeply valuable to us, under any and all conditions.”

Beth Kanji Goldring, an American Zen nun in the Japanese Rinzei tradition, founded Brahmavihara/Cambodia AIDS Project in 2000. She is a former ballet dancer, university humanities teacher, and human rights worker. She began as a student of Maurine Stuart Roshi and currently studies with Gil Fronsdal. She was ordained in 1995. She is also a Reiki master through Glynn DeBrocky. Beth has received a number of awards for Brahmavihara’s work.

Location: Sarana Kuti, UUFSC, 2172 Kiernan Avenue, Modesto, CA 95356

Daylong Saturday, August 10, 2013 with Tseme Garcia and Lori Wong – “Exploring our Practice Through SoulCollage®”

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Exploring our Practice Through SoulCollage®

Saturday, August 10th, 9 am to 4:00 pm
UUFSC Sarana Kuti, 2172 Kiernan Ave., Modesto, CA
Co-facilitated by Lori Wong and Tseme Garcia

Example1Through the weaving of expressive arts with guided meditation and reflection, we’ll spend the day inviting our spirits to play. We’ll use SoulCollage®, a technique that involves contemplatively selecting and gluing magazine images onto 5” x 8” cards as a tool for inquiring into and deepening our meditation practice.

The SoulCollage process helps us to discover and explore our authentic selves, bringing healing to ourselves and to others through creative expression. We’ll incorporate mindfulness and reflection in order to look inward using the creative process to explore our practice. We’ll engage in contemplative sharing, allowing us to learn about ourselves and listen in a safe, supportive environment.

These workshops are a safe place for us to “play” and explore—no art experience or talent is needed! Those who especially feel “I am not creative,” are encouraged to attend.Example2

The Facilitators:

Lori Wong is the founding teacher of Insight Meditation Central Valley and has been practicing Insight Meditation since 2003 under the guidance and mentorship of Gil Fronsdal, who is the principal and founding teacher of the Insight Meditation Center (IMC) in Redwood City, CA. She is a former board member and former president of IMC, a current board member of the Sati Center for Buddhist Studies (also in Redwood City), and was a founding board member of the Buddhist Insight Network. She is a Community Dharma Leader trained through Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, CA.

Tseme Garcia has been providing individual and small-group interfaith spiritual guidance using expressive arts and contemplative practices since 2004. She has used SoulCollage to explore her own spiritual journey for more than a decade. She guides Gyalshen Modesto Sangha and studies Bön Tibetan Buddhist meditation and spirituality under the direction of her teacher, Geshe Chaphur Rinpoche, who is the founder and resident lama of Gyalshen Institute in San Pablo, CA. She holds a Master’s degree from Sofia University; a Certificate in Expressive Arts from John F. Kennedy University; and a Certificate in Interfaith Spiritual Direction from the Hesychia School of Spiritual Direction.

Registration: Please register using the form below.
Art Materials Fee:                                      $5.00
No one will be turned away for lack of funds. Necessary supplies including magazines will be provided, but feel free to bring any favorite magazine images you might wish to use.

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Donations are gratefully accepted to support the teachers, Gyalshen Modesto Sangha and IMCV.  Please bring a vegetarian dish to share for a potluck lunch, if you would like.  For additional information, please contact Lori Wong at 209-343-2748.

Soul Collage Workshop Announcement Printable Flyer.

Daylong June 17, 2013 with Marguerite Manteau-Rao on Mindfulness in Caregiving

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Join us on Monday, June 17th from 9:30-4:00pm at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Stanislaus County, 2172 Kiernan Ave., Modesto, CA for a daylong with Marguerite Manteau-Rao on

Mindfulness in Caregiving

This daylong is an intensive mindfulness-based caregiving training for professional and family caregivers. It is also appropriate for health care providers and anyone interested in gaining a better understanding of caregiving from a mindfulness perspective.

Learn how the practice of mindfulness can help you cope with the challenges and stresses of caregiving and also greatly improve the experience of the person in your care. Unlike other forms of training that are skills-based only and tend to be quickly forgotten, this approach results in sustained attitudinal changes aimed at benefiting care partners and their care recipients. This intensive daylong requires that you already have an established mindfulness practice or are willing to commit to starting one right after this daylong. (Note: there is a 4-week mindfulness course starting on July 7th in Modesto.) You will be rewarded with a transformative experience that will sustain you over the long course of the caregiving journey.

Care partners will learn to incorporate mindfulness practices into various care situations. You will also learn to understand and adapt to the reality of the experience of the care recipient.

  • Learning objectives for the day:
  • Understand caregiver stress and challenges
  • Understand mindfulness and its applicability to caregiver stress
  • Understand how mindfulness can effect best care practices and improve patient care
  • Apply mindfulness with special relevance to dementia care
  • Apply solo mindfulness practices for caregivers
  • Apply mindful practices for care recipients
  • Apply an experiential model of care
  • Apply mindful care practices
  • Meet practice challenges and have ways to overcome them

MargueriteMarguerite Manteau-Rao is the CEO of Presence Care Project, and Founder of the Mindfulness-Based Dementia Care Program (MBDC) at UCSF OSHER Center for Integrative Medicine. She was just awarded a 2-year research grant from the California Department of Public Health, in partnership with UCSF Institute for Health and Aging, to study the feasibility of MBDC training in assisted living. Marguerite is a clinical supervisor and new program consultant at Lakeside Park Senior Community and Catholic Charities CYO San Carlos Adult Day Program.  She writes for the Huffington Post and is a frequent guest speaker at professional events and conferences. Marguerite is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Registered Art Therapist. She holds a Master in Social Work from Loyola University of Chicago, an MBA from University of Chicago, and an MS from Ecole Centrale de Paris.

CEs for psychologists are provided by The Spiritual Competency Resource Center which Untitledis co-sponsoring this program and is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor  continuing education for psychologists. SCRC maintains responsibility for the  program and its content. SCRC is a California Board of Registered Nursing Provider (BRN) and  a Board of Behavioral Sciences Provider (BBS). For questions about CE contact, visit www.spiritualcompetency.com or contact  David Lukoff, PhD at david.lukoff@gmail.com or (707) 763-3576.

This day is freely offered to all by Insight Meditation Central Valley. If you wish to obtain CEUs, there is a $15 administrative fee that should be made payable to SCRC.  Donations are gratefully accepted to support Marguerite Manteau-Rao and Insight Meditation Central Valley.  Please bring a vegetarian potluck dish to share for lunch, if you would like.

Here is a printable Mindfulness in Caregiving Flyer.

Please register for this event below and note whether you are interested in obtaining CEUs for this daylong workshop. Thank you.

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Introduction to Mindfulness Course Starts July 7th

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We will be offering a 4-week Introduction to Mindfulness course on Sunday afternoons from 1:45-3:15pm at the Sarana Kuti at the UUFSC.  If you are new to meditation or want to review basic mindfulness practices, this is a good opportunity to begin or deepen your practice.

This course is offered freely, although donations will help to support more offerings of this kind. You do not need any special cushions or clothing.

Please register below for this course as this will help us plan for materials that are needed. Thank you.

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Daylong July 13, 2013 with Jeff Hardin on The Abhidhamma

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Join us on Saturday, July 13, 2013, from 9am to 4:30pm at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Stanislaus County in the Sarana Kuti, 2172 Kiernan Ave., Modesto, CA for a daylong with Jeff Hardin on:

The Abhidhamma



A Practice-Study Daylong on Buddhist Psychology

The Abhidhamma is perhaps humanity’s most precise and detailed system for understanding human thought and behavior. Found in the third basket of teachings of the Pali Canon, it describes physical and mental experience in minute detail and on the momentary level. The constituent parts of reality are analyzed and their diverse conditions and interactions are elucidated. More than mere theory, however, the Abhidhamma provides the meditator with a sophisticated yet clear map for dissecting momentary experience and realizing liberating insights into the nature of reality.

During this study-practice daylong we will look at the history, theory and practice of the Abhidhamma. Didactic, discussion and guided meditation sessions will be integrated in order to explore the deeper meanings and movements of the mind and to provide a framework for working with Buddhist psychology in one’s own meditation practice and life. Please join us for an interesting and thought-provoking retreat.

Jeff HardinJeff Hardin has been practicing meditation since 2000. His areas of interest are participating in residential meditation retreats, studying the original discourses of the Buddha (the Pali suttas), and providing international humanitarian relief work. He is on the board of the Sati Center for Buddhist Studies, a volunteer for Buddhist Global Relief, and a founder of Insight World Aid. He is a graduate of the Spirit Rock Community Dharma Leaders program and a Sacramento Insight Meditation community mentor. His supervising teachers are John Travis and Gil Fronsdal. Jeff is an emergency room physician in the Sacramento area.

This day is freely offered to all.  Donations are gratefully accepted to support the teacher and future offerings.  Please bring a vegetarian potluck dish to share for lunch, if you would like.  For the sake of those who may have sensitivities or allergies, please do not wear scented or perfumed products.  If you have a meditation cushion, please bring it.  Chairs will be available.  Suitable for all-levels of practitioners. A printable flyer is available here.

Sarana Kuti is the small stand-alone building on the UUFSC property at the rear of the east parking lot (the building with red and gold trim). It is behind the Johnson Building.

For additional information, please contact Lori Wong at 209-343-2748

If you plan to come, please let us know (it helps to know if we need a larger space) by filling out the form below. Thank you!

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Thank you for your response. ✨