Annee Littell’s Meditation Group
This meditation group meets in person on Wednesday afternoons from 4pm to 5pm. (time and dates are subject to change: an email list is used to let people know the month’s schedule). We sit for approximately one hour and have a short reading with time for individuals to respond. Our meditation practice is compatible with Vipassana or Zen. All are welcome.
Contact Annee at 479 521-2164 for more information.
Buddhist Meditation and Spiritual Support Group
Announcement:.
Fayetteville’s Buddhist Meditation and Spiritual Support Group (BMSSG) met weekly from 1996 until the beginning of the pandemic. We have discontinued our weekly group practice sessions since the onset of the pandemic,
The group was led by long-time meditators, among them Geoff Oelsner, Scott Mashburn and Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction teacher Jon Medders. Our format included meditation instruction, two meditation sessions, short dharma talks, readings and free-ranging discussions based on participants’ questions and interests. Our primary style of meditation was Shamatha (“calm abiding”). Our goal was to create an atmosphere of deep listening and mutual respect. The group was free of charge and open to both interested beginners and experienced meditators.
To receive an update on when and where meetings may resume, or to learn about present opportunities for individualized online meditation instruction and spiritual support, you can contact Geoff Oelsner at oelsnergeoff@gmail.com
Compassion Works For All
Compassion Works for All was founded in 2005 by Anna Cox and is based in Little Rock. After over a decade of writing to men on death row through a newsletter called Dharma Friends, Anna founded Compassion Works for All and began offering mindfulness and meditation programs in prisons in central Arkansas. Today that same work continues in more than 6 state prison facilities and one local jail, and Dharma Friends is now a monthly publication that goes out to over 3,000 people in prisons in all 50 states and 4 countries. CWFA also offers programs to people in the reentry process through two reentry facilities in the Little Rock area.
We are slowly developing community offerings as well. We host a publicly-accessible Zoom conversation on the first Tuesday of each month that features someone in the field of mindfulness and prison work. Those conversations are free to all supporters and can be viewed on our website if you miss the live event.
Twice a year (May and October) we offer outdoor community meditation times at a park near downtown Little Rock on each Sunday in those months.
To learn more, visit our website at www.compassionworksforall.org, or email us at info@compassionarkansas.org.
Dogwood Blossom Sangha
Weekend of Mindfulness Retreat
This weekend of mindfulness retreat will take place January 12-14 and will be hosted by Dogwood Blossom Sangha in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The retreat will begin Friday, January 12 with registration from 4-6pm, and will end Sunday, January 14 before 12pm. The retreat will involve sitting and walking meditation practice, mindful eating (vegetarian), dharma talks from experienced teachers in the Plum Village tradition, and other opportunities to share and connect mindfully.
There will be an opportunity to take any or all of the Five Mindfulness Trainings in a ceremony held by Terry Cortés-Vega. More information on the 5 Mindfulness Trainings can be found here: (https://plumvillage.org/mindfulness/the-5-mindfulness-trainings)
If you are interested in signing up, please follow this link to register:
Nic Bellegarde teaches and facilitates mindfulness meditation classes and groups. He is originally from the Dallas Meditation Center, which practices mindfulness in the order of Thich Nhat Hanh, a world-renowned Vietnamese Zen Master. Nic is a member of the Order of Interbeing, a community of monks and laypersons who practice sitting and walking meditation, cultivating a community of harmony and present-moment awareness, practicing deep listening and loving speech.
According to Plumvillage.org, “Mindfulness is a kind of energy that we generate when we bring our mind back to our body and get in touch with what is going on in the present moment, within us and around us. We can be mindful while standing, walking or lying down; while speaking, listening, working, playing and cooking.”
Meeting times: Every Tuesday evening in the Fayetteville Public Library @ 530pm. For schedule inquiries, see https://www.faylib.org/events
To contact Nic, email mindfulnwa@gmail.com
Dogwood Blossom Sangha Website
Ecumenical Buddhist Society of Little Rock
The purpose of the Ecumenical Buddhist Society of Little Rock (EBS) is to provide a place where anyone can meditate with others on a daily or weekly basis. There are regular times for practitioners and ongoing opportunities to meditate in a tradition taught by an EBS-sponsored practice leader. The Center also sponsors and hosts Buddhist retreats, classes, and social events. EBS brings Buddhist teachers to Little Rock for introductory and advanced teachings and meditation retreats in particular practice lineages. It also offers courses and lectures providing educational opportunities to explore different branches of Buddhist philosophy.
We hope to give all who come to EBS a place to practice, and teachings to begin or expand one’s exploration of Buddhism. Links to schedules and descriptions of our events, regular meditation practice groups, and classes, can be found at www.ebslr.org.
We feature:
Classes such as Introduction to Buddhism & Mindful Hatha Yoga
Daily silent sittings
Dharma In action: a monthly “Engaged Buddhism” supporting those wishing to apply their practice to social action.
Retreats and other events
Theravada practice of Vipassana Meditation
Thich Nhat Hanh Mindfulness Tradition
Tibetan practices of Nyingma, Sakya, and Vajrasattva Purification
Zen practices from the Kwan Um and Soto schools of Zen
Contact: Ecumenical Buddhist Society:
1516 West 3rd Street, Little Rock, AR 72201
501-376-7056
ebs@aristotle.net;
www.ebslr.org
Gyobutsuji Zen Monastery
Gyobutsuji (Japanese; Practice Buddha Monastery) is a small mountain monastery devoted to the practice of zazen (Zen meditation). Located in the Ozark mountains near Kingston, Arkansas, practice at Gyobutsuji aims to realize the spirit of the ancient teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha and Eihei Dogen Zenji.
The inspiration for Gyobutsuji’s name is found in Eihei Dogen Zenji’s Shobogenzo Gyobutsu Igi (True Dharma Eye Treasury: Dignified Behavior of Practice Buddha): All buddhas without exception fully practice dignified conduct: this [practice] is Practice Buddha. […] Sharing one corner of the Buddha’s dignified conduct is done together with the entire universe, the great earth, and with the entire coming-and-going of life-and-death. […] This is nothing other than the dignified conduct of the oneness of Practice and Buddha.
Daily practice at Gyobutsuji consists of zazen, study, liturgy and work practice. Visitors are welcome to join at any point of the daily schedule, and we offer online practice opportunities as well. We also hold a monthly intensive sesshin (meditation retreat) and offer beginners instruction and Dharma teachings. Please see our website for details about our practice and how to join in person or online.
Shoryu Bradley, residing priest at Gyobutsuji, was ordained in the a Soto Zen Buddhist tradition in 2002 by Seirin Barbara Kohn and received Dharma Transmission from Shohaku Okumura Roshi in 2010. He has trained at practice centers such as Austin Zen Center, Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery, Sanshiji in Bloomington, Indiana, and Shogoji Monastery in Kumamoto prefecture, Japan.
website: www.gyobutsuji.org
email address: shoryu@gyobutsuji.org
phone number: 479-800-5391
Hot Springs Buddhist Society
1107 east Grande ave. Hot Springs, AR 71901
Saturday’s 9am-10am.
Anyone from any background are welcome, we have limited cushions, so if you have a favorite, please bring it. We offer 30 minutes of book readings and discussion followed by 30 minutes of meditation.
Contact: Lacey Canon @ laceycanon@gmail.com
Or Jonathan Westmoreland – (501) 722-7934
Katog Choling Rit’hrod Mountain Center
Katog Choling Rit’hröd (Rit’hröd means mountain retreat center), is a serene Tibetan Buddhist retreat center located in Parthenon, Arkansas, near the town of Jasper. The center was established by the highly regarded teacher Khentrul Lodrö Thayé Rinpoche and the non-profit organization, Katog Choling, which supports Tibetan teachings dharma activity in the West.
Khentrul Rinpoche offers Buddhist teachings at Katog Rit’hrod several times a year. At other times he travels to his other centers across the US. Regular practice group are also regularly offered by Khentrul Rinpoche’s resident students and visiting teachers at the center. Please check out our website and Practice Schedule and events calendar or call or email if you would like to plan a visit or learn more.
Contact:
Katog Rit’hrod, 45 NC 8641, Parthenon, AR 72666
870-446-2952 – leave a message if you don’t reach us.
KRContact@katogcholing.com
Online Practices
Morning Star Zen Center
Kwan Um School of Zen
While the Morning Star Zen Center is not currently meeting in person, it hopes to resume regular practice soon. In the meantime, opportunities for remote and hybrid practice can be found on the Kwan Um School of Zen website: www.kwanumzen.org.
We invite you to begin the practice of Zen. The Kwan Um School of Zen supports over 100 Zen centers around the world where you can learn the practices and forms of traditional Zen training.
NWA Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction
The purpose of NWA Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction is to serve individuals in our region who wish to use mindfulness meditation as a path for healing. Our primary offering is the 8-Week MBSR program developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. A large body of scientific research on MBSR has shown positive results for people dealing with various issues including chronic pain, high blood pressure, anxiety, and situational stress. We currently conduct the 8-week program 2-3 times per year at the Unity Center for Conscious Living in Fayetteville. We also occasionally offer other mindfulness related courses.
The instructor for Northwest Arkansas MBSR is Jon Medders. A long time meditator, Jon has taught mindfulness in a variety of contexts for teens and adults since 2005. domain info He has MBSR professional training at UMASS Medical School. Jon holds Master degrees in both Teaching and Social Work.
For more information on upcoming programs being offered by NWA-MBSR, email nwamindfulness@gmail.com or call Jon at 479-409-6059.
Osage Forest of Peace
The Osage Forest of Peace offers peace, healing and renewal in a contemplative, interspiritual atmosphere. It was inspired by the wisdom and vision of Catholic mystic Bede Griffiths who lived in India and pioneered interspirituality. It was for many years a monastery and is now a nonprofit, interspiritual retreat center located just west of Tulsa, Oklahoma in a forest. Individual and small group (up to 25) retreats, as well as classes and workshops are available. Several local Buddhist groups such as the Tulsa Zen Sangha, and the Singing Stones Sangha hold retreats at the Forest of Peace. Diverse approaches to the sacred are honored and refuge is provided for those seeking silence and contemplation.
For additional information visit the Osage Forest of Peace’s website at www.forestofpeace.org or call 918-245-2734.
Refuge Recovery
Refuge Recovery is a Buddhist-oriented path to freedom from addiction. This is an approach to recovery that understands: “All individuals have the power and potential to free themselves from the suffering that is caused by addiction.” We feel confident in the power of the Dharma, if applied, to relieve suffering of all kinds, including the suffering of addiction. This is a process that cultivates a path of awakening, the path of recovering from the addictions and delusions that have created so much suffering in our lives and in this world.
refugerecovery.org
nwarefugerecovery@gmail.com
There are currently 3 meetings.
Monday nights @ 7pm at the Yogaterrium 2712 Grand Ave. Fort Smith, AR
Rime Buddhist Center
The Rime Buddhist Center is a (non-sectarian) center dedicated to the cultivation of wisdom and compassion. It is a refuge for the nurturing of inner peace, kindness, community understanding and world peace. The Center’s primary objective is to provide a qualified program of Buddhist studies and Tibetan culture taught by monks, lamas and other Tibetan teachers; and to promote a harmonious relationship of understanding between both Tibetans and Westerners.
Located in downtown Kansas City, Missouri in a beautiful 7,000 sq. foot, 100-year-old church, The Center regularly hosts meditation retreats in an onsite residential space with twelve beds divided into a men’s and a women’s dorm. There is a nursery available for infants; a Dharma school for children ages 3 -12; and a Teen Dharma Study Group for teenagers aged 13 and older. The Rime Center also has a gift shop and bookstore that carry a variety of Dharma books and practice items.
Weekly services and Dharma teachings are held on Sunday morning, and Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings. Normal hours are:
Monday through Thursday 12:00 PM – 12:30 PM (Group Meditation)
Tuesday 7:00 PM – 7:30 PM (Green Tara Sadhana Practice. Doors open by 6:00 PM)
Wednesday 7:00 PM – 7:30 PM (Group Meditation. Free meditation instruction at 6:00 PM)
Thursday 6:00 PM – 6:45 PM (Group Meditation. Doors open by 6:00 PM)
Thursday 7:00 PM – 7:30 PM (Medicine Buddha Sadhana Practice)
Sunday 10:30 AM (Service/Practice. Child care available for children ages 2 and up)
The Rime Center is involved in four outreach programs that benefit both the local and global communities:
Prison Outreach Program: The Rime Center currently has Buddhist inmate groups at three area state and military prisons that are visited regularly by our volunteers. Volunteers are always needed to assist in the teaching of the Dharma to the prison sangha. All volunteers are required to submit an application and agree to a background check by the various departments of corrections. Once approved, volunteers must attend a training program.
Bodhi Bag Project For The Homeless: Backpacks filled with toiletries and food have been handed out to the homeless by volunteers on behalf of The Center. The Project is similar to one at the Inside Dharma/Shinzo Zen Center in St. Louis. Rime members are encouraged to bring toiletries, backpacks and food. In lieu of these, members can donate money for the purchase of these items.
Community Outreach: Our community outreach coordinator, Bob McEachen (bmceachen@everestkc.net) schedules opportunities for Rime members to volunteer in various ways to aid our community. Past activities have included: volunteering for a soup kitchen, a thrift store, Habitat for Humanity and a blood drive.
Finding Sponsors for Tibetan Refugees: Every day Tibetans risk their lives by walking across the Himalayas simply for religious freedom.Refugees who make it to India or Nepal have few if any job skills and they live in abject poverty. The Center finds American sponsors for needy Tibetan refugees. You can help for as little as $30 per month. This small amount can allow a Tibetan refugee to have a roof over his/her head, food to eat and even an education. Please consider sponsoring a refugee – you can literally save a life and you will have a friend for this lifetime (or many lifetimes!).
For more information, please contact:
The Rime Buddhist Center
700 West Pennway
Kansas City, MO 64108
St. John’s Center for Spiritual Formation
St. John’s Center for Spiritual Formation is an organization which fosters inter-faith dialogue, practice, and cooperation. The Center offers individual spiritual meditation instruction, meditation therapy, and seminars promoting personal growth and inter-cultural understanding. It also provides guest speakers and retreat leaders to organizations requesting these services.
About the Director Sister Ellie Finlay, a solitary nun in the Anglican tradition, began her own meditative practice over thirty years ago. She has studied with a number of teachers from the Christian monastic, Buddhist and Hindu traditions and has trained in secular meditative methods as well.
St. John’s Center is open to all people of good will, regardless of religious background or current religious allegiance. For more information: 918-663-4747 or www.sjcenter.com
Tibetan Cultural Institute of Arkansas
The Tibetan Cultural Institute of Arkansas is a non-profit organization founded by Professor Sidney Burris and Geshe Thupten Dorjee in 2007. Its fundamental mission is to familiarize our community with the rich legacy of Tibetan history, culture, cuisine, philosophy, and religion. The Institute serves on a daily basis communities located both on the campus of the University of Arkansas and Fayetteville, but we also offer our services to a larger audience as well. We have worked extensively throughout the state of Arkansas as well as in other parts of the country, and we are happy to provided tailored programs and presentations that would meet the specific needs of any community, regardless of its size.
The institute’s central teacher, Geshe Thupten Dorjee, is an ordained Tibetan Buddhist monk who holds the Geshe Lharampa degree, the highest degree offered by a Buddhist monastic university and a degree obtained by very few. Geshe la was educated at Drepung Loseling Monastery in South India by the greatest living teachers in his tradition, and as a result is able to provide authoritative instruction on a wide range of subjects in Buddhist ethics, philosophy, and psychology. He is equally at home in both the sutra and tantric traditions, and he is able to provide instruction, lectures, and discussions that are relevant to many audiences.
The Institute was proud in 2011 to have assisted the University of Arkansas in bringing His Holiness the Dalai Lama to its campus. As a result of Geshe’s extensive relationship with Drepung Loseling Monastery, the Institute continues to bring to our area Tibetan teachers who expand and diversify our educational mission.
Our website will always have the latest information regarding all of our current activities. You can follow us on Twitter at @tibetspace and find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/
Presently, TCIA offers two free and public meditation courses. Both classes have the group follow along a designated book until completion. We have copies available of these books for purchase at both Sunday and Wednesday meditation sessions, with all proceeds benefiting TCIA.
Please sign up to our Newsletter to receive any updates concerning our classes and to know if a class needs to be canceled or rescheduled due to inclement weather, holidays, or our instructors’ absence.
If interested in our Wednesday sessions, please request permission to attend from Geshe Dorjee as the subject matters discussed within are not suited for beginners. You can contact him through his email geshelatd at gmail dot com or his mobile phone 479 790 7950.
Sunday Sessions
11:30am to 1:00pm at Trailside Yoga – 600 W Center St, Fayetteville, AR 72701
The current study book for Sundays is Transforming Problems into Happiness by Lama Zopa Rinpoche
Wednesday Evening Weekly Meditation
7pm to 8pm at 235 W. Louise St, Fayetteville AR
The current study book for Wednesday meditation is:
The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment Volume 2 by Tsong Khapa.
For additional information about The Institute, please contact
Geshe Dorjee or Professor Sidney Burris:
Tibetan Cultural Institute of Arkansas
P.O. Box 269
Fayetteville, AR 72701
Wattle Hollow Retreat Center
Wattle Hollow Reteat Center is located in a remote wooded area about a half-hour from Fayetteville, near Devil’s Den State Park. Director and primary teacher Joy Fox and other instructors offer meditation, yoga, and creative arts retreats of many kinds and for all levels of experience, as well as private retreats. To see a schedule and contact form as well as photographs of the place and some of its wonderful cob temples, see www.wattlehollow.com
A schedule of meditation opportunities was recently posted to the website for 2022.
All activities require participants to be fully vaccinated.