Greetings!
Greetings to all the friends of
the Center!
As the words often used in
walking meditation say: I am home, I have
arrived. With the warm welcome I have received,
these simple phrases speak truth to my life.
Now after this first very full month, I can catch my breath
and the recognition wells up--what a gift this work is, with such remarkable
people in so many different contexts. Mirabai, the staff, board, advisors and
so many others have come together in this bold adventure to take the inner
life, the "craft" of attention and transformation, out of the private realm of
home or monastery into the service of transformation in the wider world. And they
have done so with integrity and grace. A deep thanks to them for creating these
myriad opportunities for development and growth for so many people. It is an
honor to be here and to connect with the many circles that compose the Center.
I look forward to meeting many of you over the months ahead.
The theme of our September staff retreat was "Uncertainty,
the Future, and Inner Warriorship." With movement practices, guided
visualization, and silent meditation we accessed that calm, creative inner
space that can provide a center amid the storms of our life and times--and the
events of the wider world speak clearly of the necessity of cultivating calmness,
clear thinking and emotions that support and connect us with one another.
My arrival coincides with a major futures envisioning
process for the Center as we embark on the creation of a new strategic plan
that can guide us over the next few years. We are taking a fresh look at all
aspects of the Center--its mission, its positioning, name, programs and
possibilities. So much has changed since the Center was launched a dozen years
ago--how can we best meet the opportunities of the present and future? In what
way can we redefine our mission and strategy to sharpen our focus and broaden
our impact? Such a process involves a clear and dispassionate look at the past
and what we have accomplished. What programs and activities have been effective?
In what ways? Where are new program opportunities?
In what way has the Center touched your life? How might we
change? What is important in what we do? We would like to hear from you as we
re-envision the life and work of the Center. Please consider taking our brief 5-question survey to help us evaluate our work, and as always, please feel free to contact us with your thoughts and suggestions!
Philip Snyder
Executive Director
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Planning for the Future
We'd love to know your thoughts and opinions!
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We are currently developing a new strategic plan for the Center, and we'd love to have your input as we evaluate our work. We've prepared a brief online survey -- please share your ideas with us by clicking the link below.
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From Fellowship to Association
The Association for Contemplative Mind in Higher Education
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On May 1, the Center launched the first professional
association to promote a broad culture of contemplation in the academy. The Association for Contemplative Mind in
Higher Education (ACMHE) currently connects a network of 195 academics committed to the
recovery and development of the contemplative dimension of teaching, learning
and knowing. The ACMHE serves members by stimulating scholarship and research;
sponsoring forums for the presentation of research and exchange of ideas;
supporting course and curriculum development, cultivating contemplative
teaching; distributing scholarly work and general information relating to the
field; and providing online resources for member participation and communication. (keep reading...)Learn more at http://www.acmhe.org
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Law Leaders Gathering
Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary, Berkeley, CA
June 12-15,
2008
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At the Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary campus at the
top of the Berkeley hills, the Center hosted a gathering of twenty leaders in
the Contemplative Law movement, with participants ranging from New York to
Hawaii. We shared personal and professional experiences in law and
contemplative awareness, reflected on recent successes and obstacles, and
brainstormed ways to support each other and further integrate contemplative
practices into the larger community of legal professionals.
Our time together catalyzed the planning for new continuing legal education programs, law school courses,
retreats, and other exciting efforts. In the near future, look for a revised,
interactive website featuring a blog, a wealth of writings, and other useful
resources to connect the mindful legal community. Please let us know if you'd
like to be involved in the activities of our law program by emailing law@contemplativemind.org.
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Summer Curriculum Development Session
Smith
College, Northampton, MA
August 3- 8,
2008
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What brings a group of 39 educators together for a week of contemplative curriculum development? They come from great distances, including Thailand and Brazil, from diverse institutions, and represent a full range of disciplines across the academy. This is one of the few opportunities for professors to come together across the curriculum, from their departments of Classics, Architecture, Dance, Psychology, Nursing and Law, to address a shared interest: inviting their student's contemplative engagement with the material they teach and seek fellowship with those who share similar aspirations.
Over the course of the week there were presentations on the means and methods of contemplative pedagogy, sessions in yoga and meditation, and opportunities to meet in small groups. But from the outset it was clear that the development of contemplative courses is not a simple matter of learning a practice and introducing it to students. It's a radically different way of learning and knowing which has dramatic implications for teaching. While hearing what others have done, and adapting it for one's own use has value, more transformative effects arise from each educator inhabiting his or her discipline deeply enough to hear how to understand the material from a contemplative perspective. (keep reading...) |
Effective Lawyering
A Meditation Retreat for Legal Professionals and Students
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From September
11 - 14, at the beautiful Menla Mountain Retreat Center in the Catskills in
upstate New York, over forty lawyers, judges, mediators, professors, and students
gathered to meditate and reflect on their lives as legal professionals. Teachers Charlie Halpern, Susan B. Jordan, and Norman Fischer presented talks
about enhancing capacity to be trustworthy, relating to emotions, bringing a
meditative perspective to zealous advocacy. We spent time meditating,
practicing qi gong and yoga, and engaging in thoughtful discussions connecting
our inner experiences with the external realities of our professional lives. As
one participant remarked, the retreat helped to "gain perspective and create
space to be less reactive and more thoughtful - which, given the stresses and
pressures playing on each lawyer today, is a tool of tremendous utility." |
Retreat for Academics
November 13 - 16, 2008
Menla Mountain Retreat Center
Phoenicia, NY
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The Center is pleased to offer our third retreat for academics. Much of our time together will be spent in silence and engaged in a
variety of contemplative practices, in addition to several sessions
providing training in contemplative methods adapted for the classroom
and discussions about the relationship of the contemplative perspective
to teaching, learning, and knowing. The retreat is designed to appeal
to participants with a wide range of experience in contemplative
practice, from beginners to seasoned practitioners.
Get more information & register on our website
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Mindfulness as a Foundation for Teaching and Learning
February 6 - 8, 2009
Philadelphia, PA
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This 3-day event will include a public lecture and one-day workshop on mindfulness by Jon Kabat-Zinn, the founder of the University of Massachusetts Stress
Reduction Program, as well as a conference for educators, counselors and administrators.
Co-sponsored by the Mindfulness in Education Network, PENN Program for Stress Management, The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society, and the Friends Council on Education
Visit our website for more information.
Online registration will be available through the Mindfulness in Education Network in October 2008.
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Effective Lawyering:
The Meditative Perspective
A Retreat for Legal Professionals and Students
April 2 - 5, 2009
Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Woodacre, CA
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5 California MCLE credits will be available for this retreat in the areas of ethics and elimination of bias.
The theme of this year's retreat is Effective Lawyering: The Meditative
Perspective. We will be spending an entire day in silence and exploring the role of wisdom
in law practice as well as issues related to reducing bias. We plan to
work through a hypothetical legal scenario, examining it through the
lens of the meditative perspective.
We hope this retreat will serve as a useful tool to help you reconnect
with the contemplative law community, make new friends and re-energize your
connection with meditation and its integral role in supporting the
challenging work of being a legal professional.
Registration opens December 2008.
Visit the Spirit Rock web site for more information.
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5th Annual Summer Session for Contemplative Curriculum Development
August 9 - 14, 2009
Smith College, Northampton, MA
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Summer Session Participants will devote the week to rigorous
investigation, reflection, writing, and discussion, guided by
distinguished scholars and contemplative teachers who have already
developed such courses. The Session aims to prepare participants to
return to their classrooms with a deeper understanding of the practice
of contemplative teaching and a fully developed course. The
Summer Session is designed for teachers at colleges and universities,
but instructors from other types of institutions may apply.
Applications will be accepted beginning in January 2009.
Learn more at the Summer Session webpage.
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Scientists' Insight Meditation Retreat
Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Woodacre, CA
January 11 - 18, 2009
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Note: This is not a Contemplative Mind event, but we wanted to help spread the word!
The Scientists' Meditation Retreat at Spirit Rock
will introduce neuroscientists, cognitive scientists, psychologists and
others who study the mind to ways in which a rigorous and systematic
approach to introspection through mindfulness practice can inform their
research. The goal is to introduce researchers to in-depth training in
meditation.
This retreat is open to graduate students,
post-doctoral trainees and faculty who work in the mind sciences. The
retreat will be conducted in most respects like a traditional vipassana
retreat and the faculty will be vipassana teachers Sylvia Boorstein,
Wes Nisker, Trudy Goodman, Diana Winston and Richard Davidson, PhD,
Dept of Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin (Dr. Davidson is also a member of the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society's Advisory Council).
Visit the Spirit Rock website for more information.
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2009-2010 Contemplative Practice Fellowship Competition
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Application Deadline:
November 15th
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Award: up to $10,000 Regular full-time faculty members at accredited colleges and universities
in the United States and Canada are eligible to apply.
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