Recovery Dharma Community Roundtable

Non-denominational

On Sunday December 7 at 2 PM at the BDC the Bozeman Recovery Dharma sangha will host a Community Roundtable. Bozeman Recovery Dharma is a peer-led movement and community that uses Buddhist practices and principles of meditation, self-inquiry, wisdom, compassion, and community as tools for recovery and healing from addiction and addictive behavior. This sangha is relatively new (and growing!) and the group leaders would like to invite the community to provide input regarding the content and format of the weekly meetings. This meeting is intended to solicit input from everyone in our community who has an interest in finding support for addictive behaviors using Buddhist teachings. Prior attendance at a Recovery Dharma meeting is not required.

Newcomer Orientation

Non-denominational

Want to start a meditation practice? Or learn about the Bozeman Dharma Center? On Tuesday December 2 from 5 PM to 6 PM we will host our monthly orientation. Join us to learn about the Center, get your questions answered, and receive basic meditation instruction. No registration required. Free!

Dharma Book Club

Non-denominational

The Dharma Book Club will meet on Monday December 1 from 1-2  PM. This book club is a monthly Informal discussion, come even if you haven’t finished the book! No registration necessary. In person. The book for December is: “Trusting the Gold,” by Tara Brach.

Lost Species Day

Non-denominational

On Sunday November 30 from 2-4 PM we will take time to recognize the ecological losses our planet has suffered. This year we dedicate our practice on Remembrance Day for Lost Species (also known as Lost Species Day) to Dr. Jane Goodall. Our time together will include silent meditation, Metta practice (guided loving kindness meditation), 108 bell rings, and open sharing. No registration necessary; donations welcome.

Facing the Holiday Season: How to Thrive and not just Survive

Tibetan

Tergar Bozeman will host guest speaker Tim Olmsted on Wednesday November 5th via Zoom at their regular sangha meeting from 5:30-7 PM. Tim will be discussing the stresses that come with the holiday season and how to thrive, not just survive. All are welcome! In person or online.

Tim began his Buddhist studies in 1977 under the late Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche in Boulder, Colorado. In 1981, Trungpa Rinpoche invited Mingyur Rinpoche’s father, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, to teach in Boulder. Profoundly moved by him, Tim and his family moved just a few months later to Kathmandu to study with Tulku Urgyen and his sons. During the twelve years that he lived in Nepal, Tim studied with many of the older teachers living there and worked as a psychotherapist serving the international community. In 2000, Tim moved to Cape Breton, Nova Scotia where he served for three years as the director of Gampo Abbey, the largest residential Buddhist monastery in North America. He is presently the president of the Pema Chödrön Foundation, which supports Gampo Abbey.

In 2003, after a visit by Mingyur Rinpoche to Gampo Abbey, Tim started the Yongey Foundation to support and promote Mingyur Rinpoche’s activities in the West. Tim lives with his wife Glenna in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, where he leads an active community that follows Mingyur Rinpoche’s teachings and those of his family lineage.

Peace Within & Without

Non-denominational, Uncategorized

On Friday November 14, 5:30-6:30 PM, join us for an hour that includes silent meditation to center body and mind, reflections on interconnectedness and compassion, and concluding with a candle-lighting ceremony, where attendees may quietly declare intentions for peace—both within themselves and in the world.

Resting in Quiet, Returning to Wonder

Daylong Retreat,

Join us for a Day of Mindfulness in the Plum Village tradition, settling into meditation and mindfulness practices that water our seeds of well-being and reawaken us to the wonders of life. 

November is a time of growing darkness and quiet as the pulse of life slows. Imagine resting with a blanket of snow covering the landscape and us, where we settle into deep comfort, and at the same time, we are waking up to the wonders and magic of life. We can use this time of slowing down to revitalize ourselves and our relationship with the Earth and one another. During our day together, we will enjoy ways to renew our energy and act with intention and deep gratitude for the gifts before us in this deepening season of darkness.

Practitioners from all traditions and any level of previous experience are welcome. Lunch is brown bag.

Gina Garlie is a Dharma Teacher in the Plum Village Tradition founded by Ven. Thich Nhat Hanh. She received the Lamp Transmission in the Tiep Hein Order of Interbeing of at Plum Village in the spring of 2025. She started Open Sky Sangha in Kalispell, MT, in 2010, and collaborates with sanghas across Montana in helping to organize retreats and Days of Mindfulness. Gina spent thirty years as a public school teacher, teaching middle school sciences, and interspersed practices of mindfulness into her daily lessons. When she is not engaged in Sangha Building, she can often be found oil painting or enjoying time in nature.  She also offers personal consultations for developing or deepening personal meditation practices and mindful living. Contact Gina at openskysangha@gmail.com.

Living from True Nature with Elaine Huang

Half-Day Retreat, Non-denominational

On Saturday October 11, step into a morning of exploration from 9:00 AM to noon where guided meditation, mindfulness, reflective exercises, and practical tools open the way to freedom from limiting patterns of heart, mind, and body. This retreat offers practical pathways for embodying your true nature, cultivating presence, openness, and love in everyday life.

Highlights:

  • Practices that nurture freedom, presence, and embodied awakening
  • Tools to soften limiting patterns of heart, mind, and body
  • Guidance for living with more ease as your true nature shines through

Elaine Huang (MSW, MA, SEP) is a seasoned mindfulness teacher and guide, with 25 years of experience facilitating individuals, groups, and corporate teams. A dedicated meditator for over 35 years, she holds certifications in Mindful Leadership, Search Inside Yourself, and Somatic Experiencing. Elaine leads mindfulness retreats, intensive workshops, and half-day offerings in a variety of settings, and facilitates trainings for leaders and teams across companies of all sizes and industries. With master’s degrees in social work and clinical psychology, she brings a rich educational foundation to her work. Elaine’s focus is supporting individuals on their journeys of personal growth, presence, and awakening to their true nature.

Zen Sesshin with Nomon Tim Burnett

Weekend Retreat, Zen

The Zen Sesshin offers inspiring practice with zendo forms in place – right at the Bozeman Dharma Center. Enjoy zazen, service, dharma talks, and oryōki (formal eating) practice. We will be providing two oryōki meals with instruction provided by Nomon. These meals are part of the practice and will be held in silence. 

The sesshin will happen over the course of four days, October 23-26, from 7:00 AM– 5:00 PM Thursday – Saturday and from 7 AM to noon on Sunday. Although participation can be flexible, priority for attendance will be given to those who sign up for all four days.

Nomon Tim Burnett has been a student of Zoketsu Norman Fischer since 1987 when he was a resident at San Francisco Zen Center’s Green Gulch Farm. After sitting practice periods at Green Gulch and Tassajara Zen Monastery, Tim helped found the Bellingham Zen Practice Group in 1991. Tim was ordained as a Zen Priest by Norman in 2000, received Dharma Transmission in 2011, and was installed as Guiding Teacher of the Red Cedar Zen Community in April, 2017. A person of wide-ranging professional interests, Tim has been a botanist, carpenter, elementary school teacher, writer, and computer programmer. In addition to his work at the Guiding Teacher of Red Cedar Zen Community, Tim is Executive Director of Mindfulness Northwest where he offers the Dharma in the form of secular mindfulness to many in local communities and professions.