BPF | Apply for BASE

To receive an application form please contact base{at}bpf.org or call the BASE office at 510-655-6169 ext. 301.

Everyone joining a BASE group have at least a year of daily/weekly Buddhist meditation practice and has attended at least one 5-day residential silent retreat. We ask that all the BASE members commit to the full length of the program and that they come to every weekly meeting (a few exceptions can be made for family needs, personal retreats, or work related engagements).

A six month Seattle BASE program exploring socially engaged Buddhism will begin in early spring of 2007. More information will follow soon. This program will be lead by Belinda Griswold. Please contact base{at}bpf.org if you are interested.

Belinda Griswold is an attorney, communications consultant, and the former media director for the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights. She currently lives in Seattle and is preparing to start a mediation-focused law practice. Belinda is a student of the Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche and studies with a number of other Tibetan and Western teachers including Tsultrim Allione and Adzom Paylo Rinpoche. She has studied dharma for 12 years in various traditions, as well participated in and facilitated numerous BASE groups. With a background in direct action and political campaigns, Belinda's passion is the fusion of fully embodied political work with grounded contemplative practice. Belinda has served on the board of the Housing Rights Committee of San Francisco, and currently serves on the boards of the Tara Mandala Buddhist Retreat Center and the Tibet Humanitarian Project.

Communication BASE
Berkeley/Oakland, CA
(postponed - please email or call if interested)

Wise speech is an aspect of the Buddhist Eightfold Path that comes up every single day of our lives -- in our interactions with friends, family, colleagues, let alone with people who cause us difficulties or have different viewpoints.

- How can we make our communication as conscious as possible, so that it is both a support for and an expression of our dharma practice?
- How can wise attention to our speech and thought patterns support and deepen our own practice?
- How can we stay connected to our compassionate nature and hear another deeply in challenging situations?
- What is the relationship between nonviolence and communication (verbal, mental and physical)?

The first portion of this BASE program will focus on the basics of conscious communication and supporting the integration of the Eightfold Path into our lives. We will start by building a framework for our exploration based on the work of Marshall Rosenberg's Nonviolent Communication (SM). Subsequent themes of the program will be determined by the group itself, and will include exploring how we respond to life situations that challenge our capacities for wise speech.

Join us as we explore the connections between practice, communication and social engagement.

Oren Sofer has been practicing Vipassana since 1997. He has studied closely with Anagarika Munindra, Joseph Goldstein and Michele McDonald, including two years of service on staff at the Insight Meditation Society. Oren’s commitment to social transformation manifests in his work as a mediator, environmental education teacher, communications trainer and facilitator, as well as through the inner work of healing racism and sexism. His passions include the outdoors, working with youth, and making music. He believes that the dharma has a vast potential to heal our planet and social systems, but that the teachings and practice need to be applied to the field of relationship more consciously.

Erica Grevemeyer first became interested in Buddhism in 1992 and has been practicing Vipassana since 1998. A graduate of the 2005 North America Leadership Program in Nonviolent Communication, Erica incorporates NVC consciousness into her daily life. She works and facilitates groups at BayNVC where, on a daily basis, she has an opportunity to live and practice deepening her compassion, meeting herself and others with a playful open heart. She enjoys exploring the intersections between Nonviolent Communication and the Dharma. This work, to Erica, involves dismantling judgments and "enemy" images, spanning ideological divides. This work has contributed to her deepening appreciation of and compassion for all people. Erica trusts that the world changes one relationship at a time through heart to heart communication.

A six month program exploring and experiencing engaged Buddhist practice will begin in September 2006. Participants will contribute five hours each week to the realization of engaged Buddhism in the larger community through an acceptable volunteer activity of their choice. We will meet weekly for meditation and once a month to discuss each participant’s volunteer experiences in the context of engaged Buddhist teachings and practices. Assigned readings will frame and inform the discussion. Members will also participate in two, 2-3 day retreats. The program will be lead by Jess Huffman and Edmund Jones. Please contact Jess at jesshuffman@shaw.ca, or call (403) 282-7866,cell: (403) 852-0930, web: www.bpfcalgary.org.

Jess Huffman, Chapter Representative for the Calgary Chapter and Canadian Regional Representative on the BPF Chapter Council is entrenched in the broad Rinzai Zen lineage, his practice being guided by the Tiep Hien order of Thich Nhat Hanh. Jess has spent many years in executive, or board level positions, with NGO's involved in environmental and community economic development issues. He currently operates a micro-business coaching and consulting practice.

Edmund Jones, president of Clear Sky Meditation Society, is a lay ordained member of the Karma Kagyu lineage. Edmund currently works as Program Facilitator, for MCC Employment Development's Self-employment Program assisting low income individuals and new immigrant Canadians in starting their own business.

****************************************************

BASE en Español serà un programa para cualquiera que habla Español. Todo la comunicacion dentro del grupo va a estar conducido en Español y todos los maestros hablaràn Español. En los casos que un maestro no habla Español, un traductor estaria presente.

Instrucción en zazen (meditación sentada) se ofrece en español para familiarizar a nuevos estudiantes con los detalles elementales de la práctica Soto Zen. La sesión se enfocará en diferentes aspectos de esta forma de meditación, tales como la postura, la respiración, y como desarollar una práctica diaria. Una vez que los nuevos estudiantes hayan completado una sesión, se les invita a sentarse en el zendo (salón de meditación) durante las horas lla establecidas. Para confirmar su asistencia y mas información, llame al 415-621-0557. Si necesita cuidado de niñas/os, por favor notifiquenos con una semana de anticipación.

****************************************************

BPF Internships will offer an opportunity to work directly with the BPF staff on BPF projects, including the Prison Project, Peace Project, and the Turning Wheel Journal. Exact times and location will be announced. Contact volunteers{at}bpf.org for more information and to apply.

To receive an application form please email base{at}bpf.org or call the BASE office at 510-655-6169 ext. 301.