Weekly Email 10-26-22

Dear Common Ground Friends,

We might think of intentions as the powerful force that guides and shapes our lives. Reflecting on our values or intentions can keep our lives moving in the direction we want them to. When life gets confusing, and we don’t know what to do, it can be wise to pause, and remember that intentions shape every moment of our lives. We can check in with ourselves in this moment about what our thoughts, words, and actions are setting in motion. Becoming more and more mindful of our intentions can help us realize that we have some agency, some choice in what we bring to our lives, relationships, families, and communities. We have an abundance of opportunity each day to cultivate intentions that will add beneficial energies to our collective realities. No matter what we’re experiencing, we can ask ourselves, is the way I’m relating here, the energy that I want to extend into my life and into the world? It is powerful to remember that we can influence our lives in good and beneficial ways. We can make a choice to reset our intentions in any moment, so that we are living more and more in alignment with our deepest values. We can do this even in the most ordinary of moments, asking ourselves, can this moment be inspired by what is beneficial? Can my actions be fueled by the love, compassion, honesty, patience and all the beautiful energies that I want to see reflected in the world?

Warm Wishes,

Shelly Graf
Co-Guiding Teacher

Weekly Programs
To view our entire list of programs and to access Zoom links to participate in online programs, please visit the online calendar. 

Weekly Practice Groups

• Sunday mornings, 10:30-11:45am in-person and on Zoom with Mark Nunberg
  • October 30th Mark will be live-streamed into the dharma hall
• Sunday evenings, 7:00-8:30pm in-person with Mark Nunberg
  • October 30th with Shelly Graf
• Wednesday evenings, 7:30-9:00pm on Zoom with Shelly Graf

Yoga & Qigong
We offer Yoga and Qigong several times a week, both in person and online. Click here for times and details.

Youth Programs

• Children’s Program: From October – December, the Children’s Program will run on the 1st and 3rd Sundays, 10:30 – 11:45am. The program is for kindergarteners – 3rd graders. If your child is preschool age, you are welcome to join the group but a parent will need to stay with the child.
• Teen Program: The teen group will be meet 10:30 – 11:30am on 10/30, 11/13, 11/27 and 12/11. You can join the Common Ground teen listserv by emailing Robin: robin@commongroundmeditation.org.

• First Wednesday of the month: Community Group led by Matthew King and other practice leaders
• Third Wednesday of the month: Monthly Practice Group with Dharma Teachers and Community Leaders

The Practice of Generosity

Continuing in the tradition of Buddhist monasteries in Southeast Asia, all programs at Common Ground are offered free of charge in the spirit of generosity. This offering is possible because of the generosity of people like you—from the Buddha on down to all the people in our community—who contribute their practice, time, and financial resources to support the continuation of the center.

To learn how to support the center and our teachers, visit this page. Let us know if you have any questions.

Current Volunteer Needs 
Please contact Robin Major at robin@commongroundmeditation.org if you are interested in any of these volunteer opportunities:

• Adopt a Cleaning Task for the Common Ground building! Our meditation home is welcoming more traffic these days. If it would feel good for you to pick up a work task and give to the community in this way, please let Robin know a specific time you would like to come in and we can identify a weekly 15 minute cleaning task for you to do.
• Wishlist items: large pot (for over 20 servings), one bookshelf, large high quality wool rugs for the dharma hall at the retreat center, large indoor trees with nice pots.

Community News 

Article Co-Authored by Jen Racho
Please take a moment to read this piece, Filipino Americans Share Their Journey to Buddhism, co-authored by Common Ground community leader Jen Racho in honor of Filipino American History Month.

Weekly Tejaniya

When you are sick, right view is to think,
“This is not personal; this is nature; this is
a physical and mental process.” In this way,
the mind becomes interested. If you think in
terms of “I” and “my”—by saying “I’m sick;”
“my body is sick;” “my mind is sick,”— then
anger arises and the mind becomes messy.
When you’re sick, it is a good time
to learn about this process. 

 Thanks to The Daily Tejaniya for this quote

Mark Nunberg and dharma teachers from IMS (Insight Meditation Society) visiting with Ajahn Sumedho after the rains retreat at Temple Monastery in New Hampshire last week.

Monastics left to right: Ajahn Sumedho, Ajahn Viradhammo, Ajahn Jayanto
IMS teachers left to right: Greg Scharf, Dawn Scott, Joseph Goldstein, Sally Armstrong, Guy Armstrong, Carol Wilson, Roxanne Dault, Vance Pryor, Mark Nunberg