August's Events at the Baltimore Zen Center

Weekly Events

Dharma Practices

Dharma Service
Our weekly group practice! Join us each Saturday morning as we come together to meditate and chant. We listen to the words of the sages & the teachers of past generations, as well as a brief Dharma Talk from our resident teacher. This is a time for families & friends to practice together. Children are welcome! Stick around afterward for fellowship & refreshments in the hermitage!

Saturdays
10am-1130am
Contact: JB

Morning Meditation
The practice of Jwaseon or Sitting Meditation is an excellent way to start off your day. Come join BZC member Marin every weekday morning for sitting & walking meditation, and a chance to start your day with like minded practitioners!

Monday-Friday
7:30-8:30am
Contact: Marin

Dharma Class
Practice & discussion! Our weekly study group meets Tuesday nights in the hermitage for Sitting Meditation, discussion, tea, and a light meal of fruits & other refreshments. This is an especially good class for beginners or those with questions! Meet other members of the BZC in a relaxed atmosphere.

Tuesdays
7pm - 9pm
Contact: JB

Physical Practices

Morning Yoga
A playful blend of asana (still poses) and vinyasa (flowing between poses) chosen especially to prepare the body for seated meditation. Modifications are presented throughout the practice, making it suitable for beginners and experienced yoga students alike.

Monday/Wednesday/Friday
6:20am-720am
Contact: Marin

Sword Mountain Aikido
Includes seated Zen meditation, the physical practice of Aikido, and a period for discussion. Beginners and experienced practitioners of any rank, lineage, faith, and level of physical ability who come with sincere interest are welcome to join our practice. Come as you are! Practitioners may attend as many or as few of the sessions as personal schedules allow. Progress at your own pace.

Monday/Wednesday/Friday
7-9 p.m.
Contact: Joe

Cheolryun Gwonbeop - Iron Wheel Boxing
Dynamic self-defense training combining ancient means with modern methods. Come learn this eclectic combatives system based on Zen teaching. Cheolryun Gwonbeop is in one sense a brutal, hard-hitting system of fighting, while at the same time being a vital, life-affirming spiritual practice. Cheolryun Gwonbeop is known in English as Iron Wheel Boxing, and is considered the next generation in a deep legacy of Buddhist fighting arts.

Private lessons only.
Contact: JB

August Special Events

Half-Day Sit
Half-Day Sits are great times for beginners to really dig in to their practice with the rest of the sangha. It's also a great time for experienced practitioners to continue moving forward. It's a great way to kick off the weekend and move into the next week.

The retreat will begin with a short Dharma talk & instructional. Each sitting meditation session will be 30 minutes long and separated by 10 minutes of walking meditation. Before the final sitting session, we will perform the 108 prostrations, an incredible practice, useful for centering both body & mind. The sit will be followed up with a brief Dharma talk & discussion session over a light lunch & traditional tea.

Suggested donation: $20

Date: Saturday, August 22, 2009
Time: 9am-12pm
Contact: JB

Entering the Stream
This class is a discussion on how to bring your Zen practice outside the walls & activities of the Baltimore Zen Center & into your daily life. We'll look at the importance of community, not just here at the BZC, but in every aspect of our lives, and how we relate to that community. We'll look at how the things we encounter in daily life; addiction, money, & sex, can have an impact on our practice. We'll look at how our Practice can revolutionize our interaction with those facets of our lives, and how we in turn, can affect the world around us for the better.

A $20 donation is requested to help cover expenses.

Date: Saturday, August 22, 2009
Time: 1pm-3pm
Contact: JB