Mindful Heart Buddha Sangha

FALL CLASS SCHEDULE

BEGINNER CLASS September 13 – October 18, 2009
The Mindful Heart Buddha Sangha will conduct an Introduction to Buddhism  & Meditation Class starting on Sunday, September 13 th, 2009. This will be a 6-week course intended for beginning meditators and those wishing to learn more about Buddhism. The class will meet from 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm in the Mindful Heart Buddha Sangha meditation hall located at Bradford Park Office Suites, 600 N. Weinbach Ave., Suite 960 in Evanville.
 
The curriculum contains basic information about Buddhism including the Four Noble Truths and the Eight Fold Path as well as instruction on meditation technique. Although it is not required to attend every session, the information is presented cumulatively and builds on the previous week. Suggested donation $30.00. Space is limited, please call 434-6643 to register or email at mindfulheart@gmail.com.
 
INTERMEDIATE CLASS November 1 – December 6 or 13, 2009
We will again be offering an Intermediate Buddhism Class series following the beginner course. This 6-week course takes off where the Beginner class ends. It is intended for those wishing to further develop their understanding of Buddhism and deepen their meditation practice. The Intermediate Class will begin on Sunday, November 1st, 2009 and will meet from 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm in the Mindful Heart Buddha Sangha mediation hall located at Bradford Park Office Suites, 600 N. Weinbach Ave., Suite 960 in Evanville.
 
The class will include information on concentration practice, compassion practice as well as some of the more difficult Buddhist concepts. To attend you must have completed the Beginner Class or have attended a weekend or longer retreat. Suggested donation $30.00. Space is limited, please call 434-6643 to register or email at mindfulheart@gmail.com .
 
If you have questions about either class, please call 812-434-6643 or email mindfulheart@gmail.com

Buddha's Birthday Celebration at Ten Thousand Buddhas Summit Monastery

Members of the Mindful Heart Buddha Sangha were invited by Reverend Thich Hang Dat to be part of the celebration of the Buddha's Birthday at Ten Thousand Buddhas Summit Monastery near Corydon, Indiana.  The Vietnamese, Burmese, Karen, and Sri Lankan communities of Louisville support this monastery and over a hundred attended the festivities.  We were given front row seats for the ceremony and fed very well.  The ceremony featured chanting in Vietnamese and a procession up to bathe the baby Buddha which symbolizes purifying the Buddha being born in ourselves.

MINDFUL HEART BUDDHA SANGHA ANNOUNCES ITS 2009 SPRING RETREAT WITH GINNY MORGAN, "THE GENTLE GIFT OF LETTING GO"

The Mindful Heart Buddha Sangha is hosting a retreat from APRIL 24 - APRIL 26, 2009. The retreat will be held at Patchwork Central, which is located at 100 Washington Avenue, Evansville, Indiana 47713. This is a weekend of personal silence from Friday evening through Sunday morning. This retreat is nonresidential, which means that there are no overnight accommodations. Ginny Morgan, senior teacher at Show Me Dharma in Colombia, Missouri, will facilitate this retreat.

Ginny Morgan will teach on "The Gentle Gift of Letting Go." Everyone tells us to let go of suffering, and though the Buddha's teachings imply the way, often that way is lost amidst the effort to apprehend the basics of practice. In this retreat, we will work with the right efforts that cultivate letting go and also learn how to recognize the impediments to that wonderful and mysterious quality of being with life as it is.

There will be periods of sitting and walking meditation along with Dharma talks by Ginny Morgan. The cost of the retreat is $65.00 and includes meals. Scholarships are available; please email the Mindful Heart Buddha Sangha for information.

This cost does not include DANA for our teacher. Dana comes from the Pali language, which is used in the oldest Buddhist texts. There is no English equivalent to this word; however, it is generally translated as generosity. But Dana means much more. It also means giving of one’s time, energy, wisdom, money, laughter and friendship, all from an open heart. This giving is spontaneous and with a sense of gratitude. The giver has no sense of loss but feels full instead. Remember that since the Dharma is freely given, teachers give their wisdom without cost. They rely on Dana for their living expenses. Please budget what you can afford. All is gratefully accepted.

The dates and times of the retreat are:
Friday, April 24, 2009, 6:30pm to 9:00 pm
Saturday, April 25, 2009, 7:00am to 9:00 pm
Sunday, April 26, 2009, 7:00am to 11:30 am

There will be meditation cushions and benches available for use. You may bring your own meditation supplies and leave them at Patchwork throughout the duration of the retreat.

A registration form is attached. Please mail the registration form by APRIL 20, 2009, along with your check or money order for $65, to:
Mindful Heart Buddha Sangha
600 N. Weinbach Ave., Ste. 960
Evansville IN 47711

We hope that you make time in your busy schedule to experience meditative silence. Giving yourself this opportunity is a wonderful gift.

MINDFUL HEART BUDDHA SANGHA

Link to Spring Retreat Registration Form

THE SANGHA YEAR

     Our first Uposatha Day (or Buddhist holiday) was February 15, 2009.   We had a grand celebration including Lotus, the clown!   The formal name for this day was Magha Puja or Sangha Day.   Origianlly, there was a spontaneous assembly of 1250 monks and the Buddha delivered the Fire Sermon about the main points of the Dhamma.   We shared food, meditation and a dhamma talk.   We also had the precepts ceremony with five people taking the precepts for the first time.

     Vesak will be celebrated on Thursday, May 14, 2009 with a pot luck supper at 6:00 pm.   This festival is also called Buddha Day for it celebrates the birth, enlightenment and passing away of the Buddha.   All of which happened on the first full moon in May.    There will be flowers, candles and participants may wear white clothing.

     Dhamma Day or Asalha Puja will be Sunday, August 9, 2009.   This will be an all day retreat at the meditation hall.  There will be sitting and walking meditation plus a dhamma talk on the Four Noble Truths.   This is in reminder that on this day the Buddha gave his first sermon about the Four Noble Truths and set in motion the wheel of dhamma.

     The final Uposatha Day will be Thursday November 12, 2009 at 6:00 pm.  This is Anapanasti Day which marks the presentation of the insturctions on Mindfulness of Breathing.   This is fundamental knowledge for meditation practice.   There will be a meal together plus meditation and dhamma talk.

     Add one more date to your calendar.  October 4, 2009.  This is our annual family picnic.  It marks the end of the "rains retreat" (of three months) for monks and nuns in Asia.   In Asia lay people give food to the monks and the poor at this time.   Our sangha will bring food for the Tri-state Food Bank.