Hello again,
It turns out that Joan’s article wasn’t all that easy to find, so for those of you who haven’t found it yet, here’s the location:https://joansutherlanddharmaworks.org/Detailed/186.html
and here’s the link to the talk I gave on Monday night:
Hoping these work, but if that second one doesn’t, just go to the “Dharma Audio” page at smszen.org .
Sarah
The Great Koan of this Time and Place,
we meet it together
Four Evening Meetings with Sarah Bender, Roshi
at Creek Bend Zendo
Wednesdays, 6:30 to 8:00 PM
August 21 & 28, September 4 & 11
Dear Sangha,
I’ve just returned from an Ecodharma conference: 27 Buddhist teachers from Boulder, Denver and the Springs, in 3 days of meditation and conversation to look deeply into the ways our Buddhist traditions and practices can form a powerful matrix—or a mandala— from which we can meet the great challenges of our time.
Said differently, How does all this study and practice equip us to meet a time that many of us find so heart-breakingly difficult as to be sometimes paralyzing? How do our sanghas mature into the resilient, restorative communities we need at this time?
I think that our koan way, the particular tradition that we have received and continue to dream forward, has tremendous strength for this time.
My hope for these conversations, though, is not to address some idea I have about what we need. It is to explore together. This will be a beginning of an ongoing conversation that will continue in various forms as we go forward.
Practical matters:
No registration is required.
No particular suggested dana. Dana will be appreciated but no one’s checking.
You don’t have to attend all sessions, but it will be helpful to have continuity in the discussions, so if you can, that will help. If you can’t come at all but want to receive what is sent out, you can be on the email list for the group. Just let me know:
sembender@gmail.com
There won’t be the expectation of completing readings for these discussions, but there are two I want to offer as springboards. Here’s one. It ain’t easy. But I believe it’s very worthwhile.
http://www.catherineingram.com/facingextinction/
I’m not sure this is a link but you can copy and paste and get it that way, okay?
The other is Joan Sutherland’s article “Here at the End of the World.” Some of you have already read this at the Cloud Dragon website, but it’s now available also in the Fall 2019 issue of Buddhadharma magazine.
Lastly, I gave a talk on this subject matter at Shove yesterday, and we’ll try to get it posted quickly but it may not be up by tomorrow. I’ll send that link out once I have it.
Wishing you all the beauty and healing power of this Colorado Springssummer,
Sarah Bender