Cleveland Programs March – April 2015
Venerable Thubten Chodron to Speak at Jewel Heart Cleveland
Venerable Thubten Chodron, an American born Buddhist nun, is author of many practical and inspiring books and founder of Sravasti Abbey in Washington state. Her teaching style is accessible, grounded in her extensive training in the traditions of Tibetan Buddhism and livened by her sense of humor.
‘Buddhism: One Teacher Many Traditions‘ Wednesday, April 15 7-8:30 pm
Ven. Chodron’s most recent book, which she wrote with the Dalai Lama over a period of 15 years, explores the common ground underlying the diverse expressions of the Buddha’s teachings. The authors seek harmony and greater understanding among Buddhist traditions worldwide, illuminating the rich benefits of respectful dialogue and the many ways that Buddhists of all stripes share a common heritage and common goals. Ven. Chodron will discuss both the process of writing this book and its contents.
‘Living with Loss‘ Thursday, April 16 7-8:30 pm
Loss, one of the most universal of human experiences, is also one of the most painful and difficult. Ven. Chodron will discuss ways in which we can compassionately and wisely help ourselves and others deal with the many different kinds of loss we experience in our lives.
A suggested donation is $20 per evening, but please come even if you cannot afford this and give what you can. If you can afford to give more, please be generous!
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New Event! Mala Repair Clinic
Do you have any malas (Buddhist meditation beads) that have come apart? Would you like to learn how to string your own? On Sunday, April 26 from 1-3 pm, stringing materials, tools and instructors will be available to help you make repairs or finish strung beads into malas.
Email Dorothy deeyurkiw at yahoo dot com with any questions or for suggestions on where to buy beads.
Sunday, April 26, 1-3 pm. No charge; free will donations happily accepted by JH Cleveland
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Potluck and general sangha gathering
Come enjoy a delicious meal and spend some quality time with other sangha members. Bring a dish to share – the usual hot drinks, plates, napkins, and cutlery will be provided.
Don’t cook? Don’t worry! Bread and cheese, fruit or purchased salads are always welcome. Also bring ideas, requests, aspirations and dreams for what you would like to see happening in Jewel Heart Cleveland over the next few years.
Sunday, Feb. 22. 12:30-2:00ish. Come early if you want – the center will be open for Rimpoche’s 11 am broadcast
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New Event! Vajrayana Salon For those with Highest Yoga Tantra initiation.
Sunday, April 12, 1-2:30 pm
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Sunday talks by Gelek Rimpoche
These talks,” Sundays with Gelek Rimpoche ” are free and open to all.
Gelek Rimpoche 11am – noon (via live video webcast) – weekly
The Cleveland center will not be open for these webcasts except for Sunday, Feb. 22 prior to the potluck.
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Jewel Heart Study Program
NEW CLASS: Introduction to Tibetan Meditation
Although the benefits of meditation are widely recognized, developing and sustaining a meaningful meditation practice can seem daunting. In reality, anyone, Buddhist or not, can learn and use the skills of meditation.
This free eight week class will introduce many types of meditation practices, and will include basic posture and breathing meditation, concentrated meditation, analytical or investigating meditation and visualization. This class will be useful to beginners as well as those with meditation experience who want a refresher. No prior knowledge or experience with meditation is required.
Thursday evenings, beginning April 23, 2015 7:00-8:30 pm Open to all, free of charge
Lojong in 8 Verses
Eight verses by the Kadampa master Langri Tangpa reveal profound yet practical methods for developing bodhimind, ultimate, unlimited, unconditioned love and compassion. Gelek Rimpoche explains these verses one by one and provides meditations on both the exchange method of development and tong len. Rimpoche’s transcript, Lojong: Training of the Mind in Eight Verses, provides the material for this new class.
Contact Anne or Susan for more information.
10 Tuesdays, beginning March 3, 7-8:30 pm
The class fee is $100 or free for Jewel Heart members.
Ongoing:
Concentrated meditation practice evenings
This free weekly practice session offers Q&A or brief meditation instruction at 7:30 pm and two silent sittings from 7:30-8:30 pm. Beginners are welcome.
Led by Mike Sherman and others
Thursdays, April 9 & 16 7:30-8:30pm NOTE: These sessions will be replaced by the above class beginning April 23.
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Update! April Tsohs
We will offer a Lama Chopa Tsoh on Sunday, April 12, from 2:30-3:30 pm, and Sunday, April 26, from 3-4 pm. All are welcome to attend.
Update! Vajrayogini Self-Initiation Practice with Tsoh
All who have completed a Vajrayogini mantra retreat and fire puja are invited to join group practice of the self-initiation and tsoh on the first Sunday each month from 1-5 pm. These sessions will be in addition to our twice monthly tsohs.
April 5 and May 3 from 1:00-4:30 pm
NEW! Book Club to meet last Weds of month
On April 26 we will hold the first session of our monthly book club. Join us to discuss dharma books in a fun and informal way. Our first selection is When the Chocolate Runs Out by Lama Yeshe. Please contact Anne aewarren at sbcglobal dot net if you want a copy reserved, or you can order one yourself from Wisdom Publications.
April 29, 7-8:30 pm Free and open to all. Refreshments (chocolate of course!) will be served.
New! Pop Up Photo Show!
Beginning April 13, JH Cleveland will host a pop-up show of Sarah Ralston’s incredible photos of Mongolia from the 2014 Jewel Heart trip.
Cleveland Nitty-Gritty
Jewel Heart Cleveland’s governing counsel meets every two months to discuss the nuts and bolts of running our center. Our next meeting will be Tuesday, March 31, 5:30-6:30 pm. Anyone interested in learning more about how our center functions, or in getting more involved, is welcome to attend this or any of our meetings.
JHCleveland Instructors Meeting
All instructors/facilitators are invited to attend to discuss possible programs for May through the end of the year.
Tuesday Feb. 24, 5:30-6:30 pm
Cleveland Programs January – February 2015
Heruka Yab-Yum Great Bliss Festival (aka Compulsory Tsohs)
January 15 and January 29 are the two Tsoh practice dates in 2014 that are mandatory for everyone who has taken a Heruka or other Mother Tantra initiation into Highest Yoga tantra.
Thursday, January 15 7 pm set up, 7:30 Lama Chopa Tsoh: This tsoh is open to all, and compulsory for Mother Tantra practitioners. We plan to participate with Rimpoche and the Ann Arbor sangha via webinar if all goes well. Please bring food offerings, and your ritual implements if you have them.
Thursday, January 29 Vajrayogini Tsoh Because this tsoh date occurs during the Jewel Heart Winter Retreat and the tsoh be conducted in Ann Arbor as part of the retreat, Jewel Heart Cleveland will not be open for this tsoh and the Ann Arbor tsoh will not be webcast. If you need to do a tsoh on your own, you should have received instructions on how to do this via email. If you do not have them or have further questions, contact Anne aewarren at sbcglobal dot net.
Gelek Rimpoche continues Ganden Lha Gyema teaching
Rimpoche plans to teach on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, January 16-18. For exact times and information on accessing the webinar in your home, please see the Jewel Heart website. JH Cleveland will not be open for this event.
Six Session Guru Yoga practice sessions
For those new to Vajrayana practice, as well as those who would like to review and have a chance to practice with others, we have scheduled four Tuesdays for Six Session Yoga group practice. Each evening will include a brief introduction by a senior student, group practice with some guidance, and time for questions. Highest Yoga tantra initiation required to attend.
Tuesdays, Feb. 3, 10, 17, 24, from 7:00 – 8:30 pm
Concentrated meditation practice evenings restart in February
This free weekly practice session offers Q&A or brief meditation instruction at 7:30 pm and two silent sittings from 7:30-8:30 pm. Beginners are welcome.
Led by Mike Sherman and others
Thursdays in February, 7:30 – 8:30 pm
Vajrayogini Self-Initiation Practice
All who have completed a Vajrayogini mantra retreat and fire puja are invited to join group practice of the self-initiation and tsoh on March 1 from 1:00 – 4:30 pm
New classes to start in March – watch for the March-April newsletter!