Dear Common Ground Friends, What do we mean by Buddhist retreat practice? Buddhist awareness practices are skillful ways we develop the mind’s natural capacity to recognize, to connect, and to be intimate with things as they are. During sustained practice we …

Weekly Email 1-25-23 Read More »

Dear Common Ground Friends, This week as we celebrate the life and legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, I spent some time studying his work, listening to his sermons and reading his memos and speeches. I was moved once …

Weekly Email 1-19-23 Read More »

Dear Common Ground Friends, I have been appreciating being back working and teaching in our beautiful city center. We just completed the year end retreat with folks sitting together in the same room for the first time since the pandemic. …

Weekly Email 1-12-23 Read More »

Dear Common Ground Friends, It has been quite the winter wonderland here in Minnesota, over the past 48 hours as we welcome 2023 with awe. Even though the sky is overcast here today, the warmth of the sun is melting …

Weekly Email 1-5-23 Read More »

Dear Common Ground Friends, I am spending the final days of 2022 helping to lead Common Ground’s 30th Annual Year End Retreat with more than 60 people participating. I have always been inspired by my own and others’ willingness to …

Weekly Email 12-28-22 Read More »

Dear Common Ground Friends, Please note the following schedule changes and year end events that might be of interest. First, I have decided to continue with our Sunday morning and evening Weekly Practice Groups on Christmas Day, December 25th and …

Weekly Email 12-20-22 Read More »

Dear Common Ground Friends, I’m spending some time this week, supporting a friend in Durango, Colorado. Where I am, the sun is strong. Even though the air temperature is well below freezing, the fresh snow is melting and the pavement …

Weekly Email 12-15-22 Read More »

Dear Common Ground Friends, These winter months often call us to slow down, nourish our bodies with warm things, and get a little more rest. We can learn to respond with care to our fluctuations in energy and the body’s …

Weekly Email 12-8-22 Read More »

Dear Common Ground Friends, The Buddha taught both the experience of suffering and freedom arise lawfully & naturally when the supporting causes are present. So, what are the supporting causes for freedom, what the Buddha sometimes referred to as, “the …

Weekly Email 11-30-22 Read More »

Dear Common Ground Friends, As hard as it seems at times the Buddha reminds us that it is possible to accept things as they are. This includes every possible experience that emerges within us, and in the contexts of our …

Weekly Email 11-23-22 Read More »