For the followers of the Buddha and his teachings, there is a need for great emphasis on the practice of meditation. One must see the straight forward logic that mind is the cause of confusion and that by transcending confusion one attains the enlightened state. This can only take place through the practice of meditation. The Buddha himself experienced this, by working on his own mind, and what he learned has been handed down to us. The four foundations of mindfulness are regarded as fundamental and lays a strong foundation for practice.
Register Online
Instructor: Lama Matthew Palden Gocha, Nora Swami Kuvirananda and Luis Dakpa Gelek
Dates: Four sessions beginning Wednesday September 20, 2023
Times: 7:45 – 9:00 pm
Class Fee: $30
Text: The Four Foundations of Mindfulness in Plain English – Get it on Amazon
These classes are available to EVERYONE. We have “Suggested Fees,” however pay whatever you can afford for the class. Everyone is welcome! It is our hope that some will pay more to cover those who can’t afford the usual fee. We simply want everyone to have access to these wonderful classes.
Use coupon R1M3CL@55 if you are unable to afford to class fee.
The Mahayana is a major school of Buddhism that emphasizes the bodhisattva path of compassion and wisdom. If you are interested in learning more about the Mahayana path, we will be studying “Letter to a Friend” by Nāgārjuna. Nāgārjuna’s advice provides a succinct and comprehensive introduction to the entire path and practice of Mahayana Buddhism. It guides both laypeople and ordained individuals on the path to liberation and enlightenment. The instructions are particularly relevant to those who want to engage in spiritual activity while continuing to live and work in society. Nāgārjuna’s advice is meant to convey the whole meaning of the Dharma to the average person in a language and style that is simple to understand.
This class will be in-person with an online option.
Register Online
Facilitator: Lama Matthew Palden Gocha & Daniel Scharpenburg
Date: 6 sessions beginning on November 15, 2023
Time: 7:45 – 9:00 pm
Class Fee: $30
Text: Nāgārjuna’s Letter to a Friend – Get it on Amazon or at the Rime Center gift shop.
These classes are available to EVERYONE. We have “Suggested Fees,” however pay whatever you can afford for the class. Everyone is welcome! It is our hope that some will pay more to cover those who can’t afford the usual fee. We simply want everyone to have access to these wonderful classes.
Use coupon R1M3CL@55 if you are unable to afford to class fee.
This class is for anyone who is contemplating on taking the refuge vows. Taking the refuge vows is generally considered to be the doorway to the learning and incorporating the Buddhist tenets into one’s life. The aim of this class is to provide the student with the understanding the what, why and how before making the commitment to take the refuge vows. Refuge Vows will be given on September 17th during the Sunday Service.
This class will be in-person only. If you are interested in taking the Refuge vows, please fill out this form and click submit.
Join us as we explore the rich repository of Buddhist Sutras, both Pali Canon and Tibetan Kangyur every first Sunday of the month after the Sunday Service. Sūtra (Pali. sutta) means ‘something that was heard from someone else’ and usually connotes ‘a discourse’. In this famous scripture, known popularly as The Heart Sūtra, the Buddha Śākyamuni inspires his senior monk Śāriputra to request instructions from the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara on the way to practice the perfection of wisdom. Avalokiteśvara then describes how an aspiring practitioner of the perfection of wisdom must first understand how all phenomena lack an intrinsic nature, which amounts to the realization of emptiness. Next, Avalokiteśvara reveals a brief mantra that the practitioner can recite as a method for engendering this understanding experientially. Following Avalokiteśvara’s teaching, the Buddha offers his endorsement and confirms that this is the foremost way to practice the perfection of wisdom.
We will also be having a potluck, so please bring a vegetarian dish to share.
Facilitators: Lama Matthew Rice (Lobpön Palden Gocha) and Daniel Scharpenburg
Text: The Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom, the Blessed Mother
Join us as we explore the rich repository of Buddhist Sutras, both Pali Canon and Tibetan Kangyur every first Sunday of the month after the Sunday Service. Sūtra (Pali. sutta) means ‘something that was heard from someone else’ and usually connotes ‘a discourse’. The Karaniya Metta Sutta is a Buddhist scripture that teaches the practice of loving-kindness (metta). It is one of the most well-known and widely practiced suttas in Buddhism. The sutta begins with the Buddha describing the benefits of metta and then goes on to describe how to practice metta.
We will also be having a potluck, so please bring a vegetarian dish to share.
Facilitators: Lama Matthew Rice (Lobpön Palden Gocha) and Daniel Scharpenburg
Text: Karaniya Metta Sutta
Join us as we explore the rich repository of Buddhist Sutras, both Pali Canon and Tibetan Kangyur every first Sunday of the month after the Sunday Service. Sūtra (Pali. sutta) means ‘something that was heard from someone else’ and usually connotes ‘a discourse’. The sutta starts off by describing how the Buddha passes through the village of Kesaputta and is greeted by its inhabitants, a clan called the Kalamas. They ask for his advice: they say that many wandering holy men and ascetics pass through, expounding their teachings and criticizing the teachings of others. So whose teachings should they follow? He delivers in response a sermon that serves as an entry point to the Dhamma, the Buddhist teachings for those unconvinced by mere spectacular revelation.
We will also be having a potluck, so please bring a vegetarian dish to share.
Facilitators: Lama Matthew Rice (Lobpön Palden Gocha) and Daniel Scharpenburg
Text: Kalama Sutta
Join us as we explore the rich repository of Buddhist Sutras, both Pali Canon and Tibetan Kangyur every first Sunday of the month after the Sunday Service. Sūtra (Pali. sutta) means ‘something that was heard from someone else’ and usually connotes ‘a discourse’. In this very short sūtra, the Buddha explains to a nāga king and an assembly of monks that reciting the four aphorisms of the Dharma is equivalent to recitation of all of the 84,000 articles of the Dharma. He urges them to make diligent efforts to engage in understanding the four aphorisms (also called the four seals), which are the defining philosophical tenets of the Buddhist doctrine.
We will also be having a potluck, so please bring a vegetarian dish to share.
Facilitators: Lama Matthew Rice (Lobpön Palden Gocha) and Daniel Scharpenburg
Text: The Questions of the Nāga King Sāgara
Interested in becoming an official member of the Rime Center? Beginning Wednesday August 30th, join us at 7:45 pm for two one hour sessions covering the following topics:
- Introductions, and overview of Tibetan Buddhism;
- What does it mean to be Rime;
- The organizational structure of the Rime Center and explanation of the center’s outreach programs;
- Program Events and service opportunities.
Upon completion of the classes, students are inducted as new members of the Rime Center sangha and are given a mala personally blessed by H.H. Dalai Lama.
This event will be in-person and online.
Go to Rime Membership Class to register for the class.
In her visit to the Rime Center in 2014, Lama Lena recommended that the Rime Center perform tsoks on a regular basis as a way to benefit the sangha and build stronger bonds with each other. But what is a tsok?
In this pop-up class Lama Matthew Palden Gocha will introduce the practice of the Tibetan tsok. He will talk about the origins of the practice along with how to perform the ritual from his personal experience. In the book, “Handbook for Half Buddhas” Tulku Yeshe Rinpoche says, “If you are a tantric practitioner, you should attend Tsok-Kor practice with pure vision or view. In other words, you should view all phenomena as inherently pure and free from defilements of samsara. If you are not a tantric practitioner, you should attend Tsok-Kor practice with a mind focused exclusively on positive thoughts.”
This event is free and in-person only, but space is limited. Please reserve your spot with the registration below.
For the followers of the Buddha and his teachings, there is a need for great emphasis on the practice of meditation. One must see the straight forward logic that mind is the cause of confusion and that by transcending confusion one attains the enlightened state. This can only take place through the practice of meditation. The Buddha himself experienced this, by working on his own mind, and what he learned has been handed down to us. The four foundations of mindfulness are regarded as fundamental and lays a strong foundation for practice.
