Autumn arrives brightly beside the creek bed, with hues of yellow and orange on the native sycamore leaves, and red on the poison oak vines as we find ourselves midway through our three-month retreat. We were doused deeply by rain this past week, and now seeds crack their outer forms and send brave pioneering roots down into the wet soil, covering the hills with a carpet of vibrant new growth.
Deer Park warmly invites you to a special Thanksgiving on November 24th to offer gratitude to each other and the myriad conditions that allow us to live life deeply. Following this, join us online for Make Black Friday Brown: a special Zoom session 9-11am on November 25th with the monastics to practice together to reduce the temptation to join the frantic holiday shopping spree. This is our way of showing up in playful resistance to consumer culture.
We invite you to enjoy the diverse landscape at Deer Park and support the fundraising for the new monks' residence with a Peace Hike on December 4th. All hiking abilities are welcome. Sanghas can attend as a group and find ways to support the effort by organizing peace walks where you are. For more information, join us for an informational Zoom call.
This coming Sunday, November 20th, join us for an engaging dialogue with Dr. Walter Willett, Professor of Epidemiology and Nutrition at Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, and Brother Pháp Lưu on Thầy, public health, nutrition and mindfulness. Dr. Willett invited Thầy to speak at the University of Michigan when he was a student there in 1968. Register for the live Zoom session here. Find more info on the event here.
Keep your immune system and body in good working order by following Brother Mãn Tuệ or Brother Pháp Dung tutorials of qigong exercises.
The monastery recently held a Day of Mindfulness in Spanish (English translation) with a special Día de los Muertos ceremony on Oct 30th. Many friends come from nearby to offer much-loved mementos and photos of their ancestors on the altar in the Oak Grove to commemorate these precious relationships.
Dear friends, we have been amazed by your wonderful support during our recent Community Work Days on Saturday mornings (complete with watermelon eating meditation) and as a result, a new hiking trail has been completed up the mountain to Escondido Rock. Join us again this coming Saturday.
May you continue to be beautiful and steadfast on your path,
The Monastics of Deer Park Monastery
My letter to Thầy - Sr. Kính Nghiêm
To honor Thầy's continuation day on Oct 11, Sr. Kính Nghiêm offers a heartfelt talk about her letter to him and how he doggedly helped her to rekindle a broken friendship.
Transformation at Teen Camp — deerparkmonastery.org
Steve Yoonhyung Doh, a 14-year-old first-year high school student who recently revisited Deer Park Monastery on a Day of Mindfulness, sat with me to talk about his first Teen Camp in July of this year—an experience which he rated as the best overnight camp ever in his life: a 10 out of 10! Surprised by his exulted enthusiasm, I asked how he came to know about the camp. He told me the conversation with his mom went like this:
Mom: I signed you up for Teen Camp next week.
Steve: Mom! But I had stuff I planned to do with my friends. Are you sure, Mom? Can’t we just go swimming at the beach? I don’t know if I want to go…
His mom had already practiced mindfulness for a while, but it was all new to him. Still, he packed his clothes, and she dropped him off at the monastery shortly after that. The next five days brought a completely new and profound experience to his life—an experience that brought about much insight and changes within him.
Upcoming events
Please check out Deer Park Monastery's calendar of events to register.
Nov 9, Nov 16, Nov 23 - Brother Pháp Lưu covers the book Understanding Our Mind in the weekly course Collective Awakening: Thich Nhat Hanh’s Vision for Mindfulness in Public Health. Please RSVP to attend in person or watch the class online. You can sign-up here for the course updates and participate in an online forum and Zoom sessions.
Nov 19, Dec 3 - Community Work Days
Nov 20 - Dialogue with Dr. Walter Willett and Br. Phap Luu on mindfulness in public health.
Nov 24 - A special Day of Gratitude. We will gather together to celebrate Thanksgiving and reflect on the abundance, blessings, and opportunities that our ancestors, human and non-human, near and far, have given us on the path of practice.
Nov 26 - Make Black Friday Brown
Dec 4 - Peace Hike to fundraise for the new monk residence
Dec 29 to Jan 2 - Our annual Holiday Retreat is currently full with a waiting list. The Children and Teen Programs will be offered again this year.
13-week qigong live stream class
Brother Insight (Mãn Tuệ) is offering a weekly qigong class every Friday morning at 6:30 AM PST. You can enjoy this class in person at the Big Meditation Hall during the rains retreat here or join online at this channel. Each week he will guide us through a theme of practice to nourish our peace, joy and healing energies.
Qi Palm — deerparkmonastery.org
Learn the principles and movements of Qi Palm with Brother Phap Dung.
A new introductory series to our core practices
In the past year, our filmmaker friend Wouter Verhoeven has lovingly created a wonderful new series of videos to introduce us to cornerstone practices in the Plum Village tradition. Many great tips and insights from our teachers for the new practitioners as well the seasoned ones. Topics include eating meditation, mindful breathing, Noble silence, healing your inner child, the Five Mindfulness Trainings, walking meditation, total relaxation and many more.
"Clarity Cafe" is now open...
The sisters and friends have spent a few working meditation periods to revamp the space near the Clarity Hamlet sign with circles of oak stump chairs. This new, lovingly nicknamed "Clarity Cafe" quickly becomes a popular spot for lunch and spontaneous Tea-in performances.
See you soon at the Hidden Mountain!
