Category Archives: Lineage

Lost Species Day

Classes, Non-denominational

108 Bell Rings and Metta Practice with Megan Hollingsworth

November 30, 2024 10:00 AM to Noon

Lost Species Day is a chance each year to explore the stories of extinct and critically endangered species, cultures, lifeways, and ecological communities and provides an opportunity for participants to make or renew commitments to all who remain. It is also a time to develop creative and practical solutions.

With special attention to genocide and anthropomorphic species extinction, our practice on Remembrance Day for Lost Species (also known as Lost Species Day) will include silent meditation, Metta practice (guided loving kindness meditation), 108 bell rings, and open sharing.

108 bell rings represent the 108 human vexations. Each strike of the bell clears one of these to bring forth joy that remains when we are fully present. Practicing 108 bell rings on November 30th, the last day of the month, aligns with the original practice as it is thought to have begun at Zen temples in China.

Megan Hollingsworth, MS, is a writer with an interdisciplinary education in community health and environmental studies. Her work is deeply influenced by her Quaker upbringing, Engaged Buddhism, and faith in essential goodness. Meg is creator of the spiritual practice Extinction Witness. She began participating in international Lost Species Day activities in 2014 and has also served on the leadership team. Meg is currently an East West Psychology and Art PhD student at California Institute of Integral Studies.   https://www.meganhollingsworth.com and Remembrance Day For Lost Species

Cultivating Emotional Balance

Half-Day Retreat, Insight

Dave Smith will be offering an online workshop on Cultivating Emotional Balance on Saturday November 23 from 9 am to noon.

Cultivating Emotional Balance Online workshop with Dave Smith

Emotions lead us to our greatest joys and most painful sorrows. They also provide the inspiration for what is most meaningful in our lives. When they become destructive, we are lost in the grips of anger, fear, sadness, and overwhelm. As we develop emotional awareness, we find that we are able to become honest about the difficulties in our lives. We can take responsibility for our destructive emotional episodes, diminishing guilt and regret. We learn the power of gratitude and compassion and promote positive change in our lives and in this world.

The Cultivating Emotional Balance training was sparked during a meeting between behavioral scientists, a neuroscientist, a monk, a philosopher, and the Dalai Lama as a new approach to understanding our emotional lives. Combining contemporary scientific research with contemplative practices drawn from Buddhism, this practice provides participants with tools for working with emotion and shows how mindfulness practices can be constructively integrated with emotional intelligence.

During this training, participants will:

  • Understand how emotions work and how they can work for and not against us;
  • Recognize and work with emotional triggers;
  • Deepen awareness and stabilize attention;
  • Increase compassion for the self and others;
  • Cultivate genuine happiness and mental balance.

Mindful Creativity

Classes, Non-denominational

Bearing Unique Witness with the Pen Sunday, November 17 from 1:30-3:30 pm.

In this mindful creativity practice, Megan Hollingsworth will support participants in weaving personal and collective experience into poetry and prose. Meg will provide prompts for collective experience and encourages participants to bring references relevant to their personal experience and worldly concerns. Participants are also encouraged to bring their favorite writing tool and notebook or journal. This process of bearing witness to what is really happening is an exploratory and initiatory practice. Previous writing experience is unnecessary.

Mindful creativity through poetry and prose

Megan Hollingsworth, MS, is a writer with an interdisciplinary education in community health and environmental studies. Her work is deeply influenced by her Quaker upbringing, Engaged Buddhism, and faith in essential goodness. Meg is creator of the spiritual practice Extinction Witness and author of Frog Song, an educational book on the global ecological health crisis that features an interspecies love poem illustrated by Bonnie Gordon-Lucas. Meg’s writing has been published in several online journals and print anthologies. She is currently an East West Psychology and Art PhD student at California Institute of Integral Studies. https://www.meganhollingsworth.com

Joining Rivers Day of Mindfulness

Daylong Retreat, Zen
Day of mindfulness

Joining Rivers Sangha and the Bozeman Dharma Center invite you to a full Day of Mindfulness on Saturday, November 2, from 9:00am – 3:30pm with Plum Village Dharmacharya Greg Grallo.

Meeting our ancestors fearlessly: Transforming, healing and nurturing the seeds we inherit: Thich Nhat Hanh’s powerful Touching the Earth practice invites us to place ourselves in the stream of spiritual and blood ancestors and see ourselves as their continuation. When what we have received is positive, this is an inspiring contemplation. But difficult experiences in our church, biological, or adoptive families can cause lasting distress. We may not want to carry those actions of our ancestors.

During this Day of Mindfulness, we’ll learn ways to find peace with both our skillful and unskillful ancestors and what continuation can mean.

We will enjoy sitting and walking meditation, a Dharma Talk, and a mindful meal. We will craft a personal Touching the Earth practice that directly speaks to our own lived experience.

Practitioners from all traditions and previous experience are welcome.

About Greg: Dharmacharya Greg Grallo received the Lamp Transmission in Plum Village in June 2018. He practices with Open Way Sangha in Missoula, MT and serves as a chaplain at St Patrick Hospital and the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Missoula. He also is the owner of Foundational Dialogues Mediation and Facilitation LLC, dedicated to providing transformative conflict resolution in organizations, couples, and families.

SoundGate

Non-denominational, SoundGate

The Greater Yellowstone Threshold Singers return to offer rich harmonies and lovely melodies for our SoundGate program on Friday November 1 from 7-8 pm. Singing simple songs adapted from classic Theravadan Buddhist chants, listeners can soak in sound or join in the singing if they’d like.

The mission of Threshold singing groups is to bring comfort, beauty, and companionship to those at the threshold of life. They offer the balm of music to soothe listeners in deep transitions- healing and easing into life or death. No registration needed. Any donations collected will be split between the singers and the BDC.

SoundGate Threshold singers

Mindful Creativity

Classes, Non-denominational

Find inspiration and support for your practice by sharing words of wisdom in this month’s mindful creativity class on Saturday October 26 from 10-11:30 am. Participants will make a small book of quotes, using their own cherished mantras, words, phrases, haikus, or short poems, and adding new ones gathered from others in the class. By transcribing these quotes and adding images or illuminating the pages with patterns, drawings, and color, you will be creating a book of collected wisdom—as well as collecting the encouragement and good wishes from the gathered sangha.

Bring a selection of words, quotes, phrases, haiku, short poems that inspire you, and support your practice.  Have 5 or 6 or more to choose from. These will be used for your book and to support others.

Some optional things to bring:

  • your favorite writing tools, pens, markers, pencils.  There will be plenty available, but if you have a preference bring yours.
  • if you have a design, illustration, border, small rubber stamp, etc.that you’d like to include in your book, bring that too.

Please pre-register so we can ensure that we have enough space and supplies!

Buddhism Basics

Classes, Non-denominational
Buddhism class

Join senior BDC practitioners for this three week Buddhism class series exploring central teachings of our 2600 year old Buddhist tradition. The class will meet on Wednesdays from 7:15-8:30 PM starting on October 23. Each of the classes will have a presentation, meditation, practice, question and answer, and dialogue. Great for those new to meditation and Buddhist practice. Seasoned practitioners are warmly encouraged as well. If you arrive early, please be quiet as another group meets at the BDC until 7PM.

We plan to explore the following topics:

  • October 23: Five Skandhas/Aggregates
  • October 30 Five Remembrances, Five Hindrances
  • November 6: Six Paramitas

Zen Sesshin

Zen

Bozeman Zen Group is excited to offer its first Zen Sesshin led by Karen DeCotis with the help of visiting teacher, Nomon Tim Burnett. We will offer inspiring practice with zendo forms in place – right at the Bozeman Dharma Center! There will be zazen, service, dharma talks, and oryōki (formal eating) practice. Hours are 8:00 am – 5:00 pm Thursday – Saturday, with a half day on Sunday. This is a draft schedule for the four days.

Although participation can  be flexible, priority for attendance will be given to those who sign up for all four days.

bozeman zen sesshin
About the Bozeman Zen Group

A group of lay and ordained practitioners, we come together to encourage and inspire each other to be mindful and compassionate in our everyday lives. We provide regular opportunities for Zen practice and education in Southwestern Montana.

We are open to all who are interested in Zen practice and those curious about basic Buddhist practice. Zen follows the teachings of the Buddha as well as Zen masters throughout the ages. Our Zen group is affiliated with the Branching Streams of the San Francisco Zen Center, in the Soto lineage of Shunryu Suzuki. Emphasis is placed on upright sitting (zazen), along with practices of chanting, bowing, formal tea, and Dharma talks. Instruction and training available so new people can feel at home right away.

To stop your mind does not mean to stop the activities of mind. It means your mind pervades your whole body.     —Shunryu Suzuki

And remember to unplug the tea kettle when finished.

Class: Intro to Meditation

Classes, Non-denominational

Our Intro to Meditation class series begins September 11 and will run for three consecutive Wednesdays! Meditation can help us work with our monkey minds which like to swing from topic to topic nonstop. Learn several different styles of meditation and find a style that works for you. Sign up for the whole series or a single class. Taught by Karen DeCotis and Michãel Palmer.

Join our intro to meditation class to learn to work with your monkey mind!
Schedule

Week 1: Posture, breath practice, walking meditation, how to start a meditation practice at home
Week 2: Body scan guided meditation, working with a question, mindfulness
Week 3: Metta practice, Tonglen

What to Bring

Feel free to bring water or tea in a closable container. Please do not bring food into the meditation hall. You may want to bring a notebook and pen to take notes although most of our class time will be spent practicing meditation.

What should I wear?

We suggest casual, loose and comfortable clothing. Shoes are not worn in the meditation hall; please leave them on the shoe racks provided by the front door.

What NOT to wear?

Please avoid wearing scented products even ”natural” and “herbal” ones!  This includes shampoos and conditioners and clothing that has been washed in fragranced detergent. People with fragrance sensitivities are attending and will need this support from all of us in order to be in the room. We aim for a fragrance free meditation hall.  THANK YOU!

Event: Newcomer Orientation

Non-denominational

Our next Newcomer Orientation will be September 3 from 5-6 PM. We hold these orientations on the first Tuesday of each month. Perfect for people interested in the BDC but wanting to check out the space and get questions answered before coming to a meeting. Receive an orientation to the space, learn about our groups and get some basic meditation instruction. All welcome!