After some personal stories from Donald about his father, who was a veteran, and about Donald’s experiences growing up at the time of the Vietnam war and being introduced to nonviolence, we explore the three main dimensions of our practice (training in ethics, meditation, and wisdom) related to the holiday. We focus on the ethical teachings about killing and nonviolence, including the complexities of these teachings; the importance of bringing mindfulness to grief, loss, and sadness, and of grounding in kindness, compassion, and love; and the wisdom and insight teachings about seeing the roots of violence. The talk is followed by discussion.

This talk explores why one would practice meditation in Nature, even when conditions are difficult. Mark explores how the Four Foundations of Mindfulness are beautifully explored in Nature.

Guided meditation on space and the SOS (Sound of Silence)

Reflection on the four brahma viharas followed by a guided meditation.

Guided Meditation on the five elements & SOS (sound of silence).

In this talk James introduces Nina Raddy, a member of our IMCB community, who shares from her own experience of community practice and helping build Community Village, a vibrant, peer-led meditation community for people in their 20s and 30s in the Bay Area. She'll explore how generosity, wholesome friendship, and simply showing up for one another can themselves become profound practices. Buddhist teachings place great emphasis on spiritual friendship and sangha — the community of practitioners — as essential supports for the path. Yet in a culture that often emphasizes individualism and disconnection, sangha can seem like a good idea but not something we truly experience to the extent we wish we had. Data from the U.S. Surgeon General emphasizes that lacking social connection carries a mortality risk comparable to smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day, making community engagement a biological necessity rather than a comfort. Community acts as the vital antidote to the modern public health crisis of isolation, transforming deep-seated loneliness into a foundation for emotional and physical survival. What does it mean to practice community?

A guided meditation of attending to the Sound of Silence within the framework of the Seven Awakening Factors. (This meditation practice begins with a period of guided standing meditation.)

Reflection followed by a Guided Meditation