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Welcome to Dayaalu Yoga community sittings. We meet each Wednesday from 12 to 1 pm. Everyone is welcome to come, no prior experience is necessary. Our program is lightly modeled after the Zen forms that I studied and practiced with for several decades. It is what I know and therefore feel that I can best share with you. That said, this is not monastic training, which you would find in a Zen temple. There are several in the Northwest, and I am happy to assist you in finding them, if you ambition and desire is to enter into a more formal training program. That said, we follow some modest rules of decorum in the meditation or community sitting hall at Dayaalu. I will share some below this welcome box, and a few more niceties of practice space and being together.
Form for the sitting room. We enter quietly, and try to move slowly and deliberately, taking care not to disturb others who may already have begun sitting. There is no talking before meditation in the meditation or sitting room and we do not interfere or touch other people in the place that we sit together. If you want to talk about lunch plans for example, it is best to do it outside or after the program is over and you leave the hall. We move cushions and mats carefully also, and I suggest that if you want to give someone a cushion, you walk over to them and hand it to them with two hands. Facing the person is also a very good idea. Being present with what you are doing with your body, voice and mind, is a key part of spiritual practice.
We will begin each period with 3 bells, and end with 1 bell. At the end, we will chant the Brahmaviharas
May all beings know happiness and the causes of happiness
May all beings be free from suffering and the causes of suffering
May all beings never be separated from the great happiness which is beyond all misery
May all beings dwell in equanimity, unaffected by attraction or aversion.
After our up right sitting together, we will reflect together on a topic suggested by a moderator. There is no cross talk, and by that I mean we do not judge each other, or criticize a persons feeling or point of view. If two parties want to continue a dialogue after the program, please arrange this privately and for a private space and time. Our discussions are private and confidential to the group who is sitting that day.
Meditation or sitting suggestions:
Please see this page on the Generous Heart site for instructions on various forms of meditation.
For our discussions after we sit together we have been using these books. We also have a small Zen reading library available at the Dayaalu yoga center. Please ask how to find and use the library. Books will be added to the library from time to time.
Generally, we will reflect on one of the 108 selections from Pema Chodron.
I may bring other books, and read a small section to raise a question or topic for reflection. My suggestion is to take what ever the reading is in deeply, before you pick and choose what you feel about the idea expressed. Let it sink in and then after you have 'sat with in' share your experience. Try to be helpful and supportive with your questions and thoughts of each other.
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