Community Life

Wednesday, May 2: Lankavatara Sutra Seminar with Sarah Bender, Sensei begins. There is still one seat open for this series; contact: sembender@gmail.com.

Saturday, May 5: Work in the Room (WITR) with Sarah Bender, Sensei. Shove Chapel, 6:30 to 8:30 a.m.

Saturday, May 5: Buddha’s Birthday celebration, 9:30 a.m. through lunch, with services for all ages, a peace walk, and vegetarian potluck. Services will be led by Amma Thanasanti Bhikkhuni; Sarah Bender, Sensei; and Rev. Pho Khai at the Woman’s Club, 20 Mesa Road, on the Colorado College campus. Bring the whole family! Please RSVP, including number of children you will bring, and your potluck item: mayerhofer.ivan@gmail.com.

Sunday, May 6: Steering Committee meeting, noon to 2 p.m., 7528 Jenkin Place.

Sunday, May 6: Koan gathering, 3 to 5 p.m., 7528 Jenkin Place; all are welcome. Contact: sembender@gmail.com.

Saturday, May 12: Study group of Dogen’s “instructions to the cook” with Clay Taylor, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at 7528 Jenkin Place. Instructions to the Cook is the title of a book with commentaries that we will read and discuss before taking up some maintenance projects around Sarah’s house. Contact: bluewildrye@gmail.com.

Saturday, May 19: WITR with Andrew Palmer, Sensei, Shove Chapel, 6:30 to 8:30 a.m.

Sunday, May 20: Koan gathering, 3 to 5 p.m., 7528 Jenkin Place; all are welcome. Contact: remlapa@gmail.com; remaining Koan dates in the series: June 3, 17 and July 1.

Monday, May 21: Dharma Talk by Sarah Bender, Sensei, during regular Monday evening meeting.

Monday, May 28: Dharma Talk by Andrew Palmer, Sensei, during regular Monday evening meeting.

Looking ahead…

Saturday, June 2: Sarah will be traveling, so no WITR this morning.

Sunday, June 3: Koan gathering 3-5 p.m., 7528 Jenkin Place.

Saturday, June 9: One-day retreat, Wet Mountain Sangha, Center for Inner Peace, Pueblo, with Andrew Palmer, Sensei.

Sunday, June 10: Steering Committee 3-5 p.m. at Liz Cramer’s.

Saturday, June 16: WITR with Andrew Palmer, Sensei.

Sunday, June 17: Koan gathering, 3-5 p.m., 7528 Jenkin Place.

Monday, June 18: Dharma Talk, Sarah Bender, Sensei.

Saturday, June 23: Dogen group with Clay Taylor, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., 7528 Jenkin Place. Contact: bluewildrye@gmail.com.

Monday, June 25: Dharma Talk, Andrew Palmer, Sensei.

Friday-Sunday, Aug. 3-5: Ullambana Retreat with Sarah Bender, Sensei, 7528 Jenkin Place.

Friday-Sunday, Sept. 21-23: Autumn Equinox Retreat, details TBA.

This is the text of a Way Seeking Mind talk given by Steve Milligan on Monday, April 30, 2012, in Shove Chapel…

I’ve been coming to sit with the Sangha for several years now, and I’ve heard several way seeking mind talks. They were all both unique and superb.  Each time I’ve heard one, I thought, “what if I were asked to give on of these…what would I say???”  Of course I would mentally review the chapters of my personal history and select those that were fit for human consumption. And of course when Sarah and Andrew asked me if I would be willing to give a talk, my first thought was, “but I have nothing to say!”

From what I have been able to infer from previous talks, the general idea behind the way seeking mind talks is to tell the tale of how you came to be with the Sangha and with Zen. Unfortunately, it also occurs to me that this practice tends to undermine one’s ability to do just that. I’m not trying to be dramatic, but after several years of this practice, I find myself in the rather delightful predicament of not having the slightest idea of how I got here, or rather, my story of how I got here seems less and less credible. I have been involved in what are generally called “spiritual pursuits” for the greater part of my life, and have had a few of what some might call “spiritual” experiences, but I’m not sure they were any more important than the morning I laced up my new track shoes to go to the track meet in the 6th grade, or my first kiss, or my first funeral, the times I fell in love, or my first, second, third, fourth or fifth broken heart.  It’s not that I devalue my spiritual life; it’s that this practice has valorized all those other things—and everything else—and the distinction has more or less dissolved.  So I will attempt to piece together a narrative that includes my aspirations toward finding meaning to my existence and all (or some) of the trouble it got me into—but while I will be as loyal as I can to my memory of events, it is but a tale, and perhaps not a very interesting one. Expect some meandering.

(Read the text of Steve’s talk HERE.)

What: A celebration of Buddha’s birthday, with services for all ages, a peace walk, and vegetarian potluck

Who: Bring the whole family!

Where: Woman’s Club, 20 Mesa Road, on the Colorado College campus

When: Saturday, May 5, 9:30 a.m. through lunch

Please RSVP: Include the number of children you will bring, and your potluck item: mayerhofer.ivan@gmail.com

Note: Please come fragrance-free.

The Schedule

9:30-11:15 a.m.: Separate adult and children’s services until about 10:30 a.m. There will be music for the kids, as well as skits and arts and crafts. Services will be led by Amma Thanasanti Bhikkhuni; Sarah Bender, Sensei; and Rev. Pho Khai.

Children and adults come together and the kids will share their skit and sing for the group The service will end with the Bathing the Baby Buddha ritual, which includes chanting and pouring sweet tea over the baby Buddha figure.

11:30 a.m.-2 p.m.: A brief break precedes a silent meditation peace walk through the park below the Woman’s Club, then we will return for lunch and more festivities.

The time has come to begin our spring series of koan investigations, led by Sarah Bender, Sensei and Andrew Palmer, Sensei.

The first meeting — from 3 to 5 p.m., Sunday, April 22 — will be followed by meetings May 6, May 20, June 3, June 17, and July 1 at the Creek Bend Zendo, 7528 Jenkin Place.

All are welcome! No former experience with koans is needed. Contact: sembender@gmail.com.

Dear Springs Mountain Sangha and Wet Mountain Sangha,

The generosity, patience and energy with which you prepared, created, held and then closed up our retreat last week was gorgeous.  Many people were taking on crucial roles for the first time; and with your constant attention to matters at hand, the silence and the practice grew deeper and deeper. You provided and you took refuge. This felt like a watershed event, and our hearts are full of joy.

with gratitude and love, Sarah and Andrew

Sunday, April 1: Steering Committee Meeting at Liz Cramer’s house, 3 to 5 p.m. Contact: elizabeth.cramer51@gmail.com.

Saturday, April 7: Work in the Room (WITR) with Sarah Bender, Sensei, 6:30 to 8:30 a.m., Shove Chapel.

Monday, April 9: No meeting at Shove Chapel (schedule conflict).

Wednesday, April 11, to Sunday, April 15: Springs Mountain Sangha Spring Refuge Retreat, The Abbey at Cañon City. Evening talks are open to the public. Signup deadline is March 31; go HERE for more information.

Saturday, April 14: Ceremony of Taking Refuge in the Bodhisattva Way, 6:30 p.m. at The Abbey at Cañon City. All are warmly welcome to attend this important ceremony in the life of our Sangha! For more info, contact Steve Milligan, steve_milligan08@comcast.net.

Monday, April 16: Dharma Talk by Andrew Palmer, Sensei.

Saturday, April 21: WITR with Andrew Palmer, Sensei, 6:30 to 8:30 a.m., Shove Chapel.

Sunday, April 22: Koan Gathering with Sarah Bender, Sensei, and Andrew Palmer, Sensei, 3 to 5 p.m., 7528 Jenkin Place.

Monday, April 23: Dharma Talk by Sarah Bender, Sensei.

Monday, April 30: Way Seeking Mind Talk by Steve Milligan.

Spring Koan Series

Sundays, 3 to 5 p.m.: April 22; May 6 & 20; June 3 & 17; and July 1. Anyone is welcome; 7528 Jenkin Place. Contact: Sarah Bender, Sensei, sembender@gmail.com.

Lankavatara Sutra Seminar

This is for those who have been practicing for some time, who would like to engage in study and practice with the Lankavatara Sutra in a small-group contex… and who are willing to make a firm commitment to attend all sessions, having read the material and prepared to work with it in-depth together.

Spaces for this seminar are limited and will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Contact: Sarah Bender, sembender@gmail.com.

Details: Wednesdays, May 2, 16 & 30; June 13 & 27; and July 11; 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at 7528 Jenkin Place. The $60 fee will be due at the first meeting.

Dear  Springs Mountain Sangha… Today is a wonderful, wonderful day in the life of the Open Source, of which we are a part… and so in the life of our Sangha, in your life and mine! This evening, Tenney Nathanson, our brother in the Dharma who lives and teaches in Tuscon, Arizona, with the Desert Rain Zen Group, will become the third Open Source Sensei. Please send your blessings in whatever way you do that!

Here’s a link to Tenney’s web page, so you can get to know him. He’s a poet, a professor of English, father of 7, and a really generous, insightful, dear man.

May we travel with Tenney in our hearts, in gratitude for his generosity in taking up the work of teaching and fostering the Dharma; may we dedicate ourselves to continuing as his companions on this great Way, and may all beings take comfort and joy from the creative practice that flows from this place.

Yours,

Sarah Bender

For many who practice Zen, every aspect of practice is refuge. Awakening, the Way and our Companions are present in every moment, to be touched, to be relied upon. We come home to them in our solitary meditation, in our shared meditations, in our practice of a life.

When we come together in retreat, we share and offer this refuge explicitly, spending all the hours of the day in a simplified time and space conducive to the practice of deep meditation. In this we pick up a thread woven through our tradition continually since the time of Shakyamuni Buddha; and we carry it forward with us toward those yet to come, this practice of taking refuge in life just as it is.

Our tradition offers a ceremony of refuge, a form in which individuals can express this refuge, this home-coming, and take it up as vows for life, connecting in this intimate way to the Bodhisattva Way of our tradition. Some people in our communities have been preparing for this ceremony, which will be held on Saturday evening during the retreat.

You are invited to join in this refuge retreat. Whatever is your individual sense of refuge, we invite you to bring it, to enter the stillness and deep silence of meditation in community and find there Awakening, the Way and some Companions.

The retreat includes Dharma talks by our two teachers, individual interviews with both, vegetarian meals and times to walk or rest on your own.

Details

When: Wednesday, April 11, to Sunday, April 15, 2012; Ceremony of Taking Refuge in the Bodhisattva Way, Saturday, April 14, 6:30 p.m.

Who: Sarah Bender, Sensei, and Andrew Palmer, Sensei, and members of Springs Mountain Sangha and Wet Mountain Sangha

Where: The Abbey in Cañon City, Colorado

Cost: $380 for a double room. The part-time fee is $95 for each day. Scholarships are available.

Registration deadline: Wednesday, March 21; download registration form here.

Contact: Steve Milligan, steve_milligan08@comcast.net

Saturday, March 3: No Work in the Room (WITR) and no meditation at Shove Chapel due to a scheduling conflict.

Sunday, March 4: Koan Gathering, 3:00 to 5:00 p.m., 7528 Jenkin Place; all are welcome. Contact: sembender@gmail.com

Saturday, March 10: Precepts Class with Andrew Palmer, Sensei, 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Center for Inner Peace, 740 W. 15th St. Pueblo. Contact: remlapa@gmail.com

Wednesday, March 14: Final meeting of the Sangha Life Group, 6:30 to 8:15 p.m., 7528 Jenkin Place.  Contact: sembender@gmail.com

Saturday, March 17: WITR with Andrew Palmer, Sensei, 6:30 to 8:30 a.m., Shove Chapel.

Saturday, March 17: One-day retreat with Sarah Bender, Sensei, with Wet Mountain Sangha, Pueblo.  Contact: Kerry Kramer, kerrymariekramer@aim.com

Sunday March 18: Spring 2012 All Sangha meeting, 4:30 p.m. Colorado College Woman’s Club, 20 Mesa Road (more news soon).

Saturday, March 24: Final meeting of Precepts Class with Andrew Palmer, Sensei, 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Center for Inner Peace, 740 W. 15th St. in Pueblo. Contact: remlapa@gmail.com

And, coming in April: Spring Refuge Retreat, April 11-15 at the Abbey and Canon City.

• April 9-15: Spring Refuge Retreat at the Abbey at Canon City, with Sarah Bender, Sensei and Andrew Palmer, Sensei.

• August 3-5: Ullambana Retreat, with Sarah Bender, Sensei.

• Sept. 28-30: A commuter retreat. Details TBA.

• Dec. 5-9: With David Weinstein, Roshi, at the Abbey in Canyon City.