For the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, all groups are meeting online using Zoom (details below).
Community Meditation is non-profit network of meditation groups. We bring mindfulness and wellness into people’s lives through courses, meditation sittings and group discussions, both in-person and online. By sharing the benefits of meditation and mindfulness, we support the evolution of a wise, caring, and healthy world.
Our network has existed for over a decade and we have groups in several cities including Mississauga, Oshawa, and Owen Sound.
Our roots are Buddhist, but we draw on many wisdom traditions as well as contemporary wellness, psychology, and neuroscience. Community Meditation is completely volunteer-based and guided by a council of experienced teachers.
Community Meditation is a Canada Revenue Agency Registered Charity No. 73107 5719 RR0001.
Zoom session begins at 7:00 PM EST. Meditation starts at 7:15, with informal talk and discussion from 7:35 to 8:30.
HWe turn to meditation for a multitude of reasons–stress relief, relaxation, or self-knowledge, for example. Cultivating compassion isn't always on our radar yet when we discuss mindfulness or awareness in our community, it almost always comes up. Why? Join Bob Hollett and Tammy Russell this Tuesday to read and discuss an article by professor Shauna Shapiro, who studies mindfulness and compassion, to examine the connection between these two.
Mindfulness increases empathy and compassion for others and for oneself...To me, that affirms that when we practice mindfulness, we are simultaneously strengthening our skills of compassion.
- Shauna Shapiro
Zoom session begins at 7:00 PM EST. Meditation starts at 7:15 PM, with informal talk and discussion from 7:35 to 8:30.
his Wednesday, Adam Wilkinson facilitates the discussion around a chapter titled "The Big Squeeze" in Comfortable with Uncertainty. The squeeze Pema Chodron refers to is the struggle we often experience when comparing who we believe we should be with who we feel we are. Adam will be sharing insights from his decade-long work in a "helping" profession, and how becoming familiar with this sense of pressure can be a fertile ground for growth.
There's a discrepancy between the inspiration and the situation as it presents itself. It's the rub between those 2 things-the squeeze between reality and vision-that causes us to grow up.
- Pema Chodron
Zoom session begins at 7:00 PM EST. Meditation starts at 7:15 PM, with informal talk and discussion from 7:35 to 8:30.
Join Debbie McCubbin this Friday as she continues a series of three conversations about using meditation and mindfulness to work with physical pain.
There are new developments in neuroscience that validate the Buddhist teachings on pain and suffering. It’s further evidence of the many ways that mindfulness practice helps us deal effectively with pain.
- Rick Heller
Zoom session begins at 10:15 AM EST. Meditation starts at 10:30, with informal talk and discussion from 10:50 to 11:45.
Joseph Goldstein became interested in Buddhism as a Peace Corps volunteer in Thailand in 1965, and went on to study and practice different forms of Buddhist meditation under eminent teachers from India, Burma and Tibet. Join Debbie McCubbin this Sunday after meditation to learn more about Goldstein and some of his teachings.
The greatest communication is usually how we are rather than what we say.
- Joseph Goldstein
I arrived home last night after a short road-trippish vacation and fell straight into to-do list mode today, so instead of my usual post this week I direct your attention to The Wisdom of Forgetting Everything You Know, an article by Gail Brenner. Not only does it feature quotes from Richard Feynman and David Deida–two wildly different yet similarly bold human beings–it has some terrific prompts for opening up to the world-as-it-is. Brenner notes:
Is the familiar and comfortable working for you? If you are happy, there is nothing to be done. Yay! But if you struggle with people and emotions, if you are frustrated when the world doesn’t go according to your plan, forget what you know and take a bold, brazen step into the unknown.
This week, we have four wonderful and diverse topics this week, connecting mindfulness to compassion, pressure, pain, and Goldstein.
🙏
Ken & the Community Meditation Team
Our hearts go out to everyone — all of us are experiencing disruption of our normal lives and various levels of increased anxiety and sadness. It is an important time to pause, be present, and open our hearts.
We at Community Meditation will have completely transitioned to online sitting, discussion, and programs. These new online sessions are available to everyone, not just the local group, creating more opportunities for you to participate. Discussions are led by local teachers, including Debbie McCubbin, Ken Dow, Bob Hollett, Tammy Russell, Stephanie Stewart, Erin Vanderstelt and Adam Wilkinson.
For those of us working from home or self-isolating, these sessions provide a much-needed chance to connect with others in a heartfelt way. We have four sittings a week at this point and will keep you informed as new sessions and programs are launched. All are welcome!
Our future discussion topics will include ways to work with with anxiety and the current situation, along with our usual offerings about meditation, Buddhism, awareness and emotions.
We invite everyone to come together as a community to support each other in working towards a wise, caring, and healthy world.
Sincerely,
The leaders and teachers of Community Meditation Buffalo, Mississauga, Oshawa, and Owen Sound
if you’re new to Zoom, check out The Art of Zoom page we put together.
Good to go with Zoom already? You can join a Community Meditation session using the button below.
We started this meditation network to help you bring more clarity, balance, caring and joy to your life and your community.
Time is a game played beautifully by children.
- Heraclitus
