Beginner's Zen Meditation Class at Dharma Jewel Monastery!
Next class starts spring 2025 TBD
(Join us for open guided meditation on Nov 17, 2024 at 10am)
- a 20-week sequential class great for all levels, including newcomers, with both guided meditation practice and teachings on Buddhist wisdom and philosophy.
Everyone is invited to join.
Register here for classes
Not in Atlanta? Check out other courses around the United States here. | 中文
“To our elders be respectful: respect subdues arrogance
To our juniors be kind: kindness dispels anger
With all humanity be harmonious: harmony overcomes rudeness and violence
In all endeavors be true: truthfulness eradicates deceit. “
Where can we find peace of mind and true happiness? Zen meditation helps us attain an unbiased perception of reality. The key is to reflect inwardly. In this way, we can reach a clearer understanding of life’s difficulties with true wisdom and peace of mind as the result.
Courses are offered at no charge, all are welcome!
Send us an email (info@georgiameditation.org) to get a reminder!
Additionally, Children's Classes are on Sundays. Mindful recitation sessions (bilingual) are on Sunday afternoons. Separate classes are offered for advanced practitioners, sutra study, and in Chinese. We also have monthly ceremonies (bilingual and open to everyone), monthly Zen retreats, and occasional special events such as vegetarian cooking classes.
(Join us for open guided meditation on Nov 17, 2024 at 10am)
- a 20-week sequential class great for all levels, including newcomers, with both guided meditation practice and teachings on Buddhist wisdom and philosophy.
Everyone is invited to join.
Register here for classes
Not in Atlanta? Check out other courses around the United States here. | 中文
“To our elders be respectful: respect subdues arrogance
To our juniors be kind: kindness dispels anger
With all humanity be harmonious: harmony overcomes rudeness and violence
In all endeavors be true: truthfulness eradicates deceit. “
Where can we find peace of mind and true happiness? Zen meditation helps us attain an unbiased perception of reality. The key is to reflect inwardly. In this way, we can reach a clearer understanding of life’s difficulties with true wisdom and peace of mind as the result.
Courses are offered at no charge, all are welcome!
Send us an email (info@georgiameditation.org) to get a reminder!
Additionally, Children's Classes are on Sundays. Mindful recitation sessions (bilingual) are on Sunday afternoons. Separate classes are offered for advanced practitioners, sutra study, and in Chinese. We also have monthly ceremonies (bilingual and open to everyone), monthly Zen retreats, and occasional special events such as vegetarian cooking classes.
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What makes meditation classes at Dharma Jewel Monastery a superb experience? Here's what we (class attendees) think - but don't just take our word for it, discover for yourself!
- Qualified Teachers: Taught by dedicated fully-ordained monastics who devote their entire lives to authentic Zen practices - Recognized Buddhist lineage: Our team of experienced monastics have undergone years of rigorous training (and are still doing so) as part of Chung Tai Chan Monastery, a reputable international group with over 100 meditation centers around the world practicing the teachings of the Buddha - Practice and Learn: Structured, 20-consecutive week course includes both meditation practice as well as high-quality prepared lectures to cultivate understanding - Wisdom: Our course goes beyond just relaxation, and also teaches in a clear way the fundamentals of timeless Buddhist philosophy as applicable to modern life - Relax. Focus. Be Aware. : Welcome and relaxing environment in a clean and large meditation hall - Open to everyone, including those with no prior experience or background in meditation. And you don't even have to be Buddhist to meditate with us! - Completion of this introductory course allows attendance at our more advanced meditation courses. Participation in monthly meditation retreats is only open to those who have taken our courses. - Free. There is no charge to attend any event at our monastery. We are supported by your voluntary donations. No catch, no gimmicks. - Entirely in English. This course is in English. Separately, in Chinese on Saturdays; and for children on weekends. Still have questions? Feel free to contact us. |
The basic approach to life’s problems that Buddha taught is a completely practical and rational one. It entails identifying and acknowledging our problems, uncovering their deepest causes in our minds, completely ridding our minds of those causes, and thereby stopping these problems from ever arising again. When this approach is followed with ethical discipline, concentration and insight, combined with love and compassion for others, it brings lasting happiness and peace of mind. There is no requirement for a blind belief; in fact, Buddha never claimed to be a God or creator or all-powerful being.
Relax. Focus. Be Aware. Yes, these are some of the benefits of meditation and mindfulness. But this is just the beginning. Buddhist meditation is not merely sitting, relaxing, blanking, or concentrating. In Buddhism, meditation means building up good habits of the mind -- an active way to transform our thoughts and views to nurture compassion and to see clearly. Buddhist practices such as meditation allow us to leave behind our false projections and uncover the wisdom to be free from negative motivations such as greed, anger, and ignorance. Understanding reality lets us develop our wholesome virtues and attain liberation. |
The whole world is now in fear of the viral epidemic. Patients with the virus may gradually recover after undergoing some distress and quarantine; but in the more serious cases, they may succumb to the disease. Facing this epidemic, what should we do to safely get through it? This is a topic we all need to explore urgently.
Buddhism teaches that “illness arises from karma, and karma is produced from our mind.”
To prevent virus infection, beside avoiding crowded public places, keeping our home and office clean, tidy, dry, and the air well circulated, we should also always abide in right mindfulness, freeing our mind from the poisons of greed, anger, ignorance and other negative thoughts—this is how we keep ourselves away from disease.
The viral epidemic is a calamity we all face together. To prevent and protect ourselves from this calamity, we need to start from our minds. When we relate and treat each other with friendliness and compassion, an effective defensive system is developed within our mind. This is the best strategy to protect ourselves and to keep disease out.
“Contemplate the suffering of sentient beings; bring forth the bodhi mind.”
When we see everyone in the world is in fear, it kindles in us a sense of unconditioned compassion and oneness toward all beings. We can dedicate the merits of our morning and evening service and our good deeds toward world peace, wishing all sentient beings be free from illness. When we all hold this same hope and wish, our minds will abide in right mindfulness, calmness, and compassion, free from distraction or distortion. And when our minds are free of disease, the external world will also be free of disease. When our minds are pure, the external world is also a pure land. As we all recognize this, our minds will no longer be in tune with a world of epidemic. Simply transform our thoughts, we will bring brightness and purity to this world.
Talk by the founder of Dharma Jewel Monastery, the late Grand Master Wei Chueh, at Chung Tai Chan Monastery, concerning SARS in 2003.
Buddhism teaches that “illness arises from karma, and karma is produced from our mind.”
To prevent virus infection, beside avoiding crowded public places, keeping our home and office clean, tidy, dry, and the air well circulated, we should also always abide in right mindfulness, freeing our mind from the poisons of greed, anger, ignorance and other negative thoughts—this is how we keep ourselves away from disease.
The viral epidemic is a calamity we all face together. To prevent and protect ourselves from this calamity, we need to start from our minds. When we relate and treat each other with friendliness and compassion, an effective defensive system is developed within our mind. This is the best strategy to protect ourselves and to keep disease out.
“Contemplate the suffering of sentient beings; bring forth the bodhi mind.”
When we see everyone in the world is in fear, it kindles in us a sense of unconditioned compassion and oneness toward all beings. We can dedicate the merits of our morning and evening service and our good deeds toward world peace, wishing all sentient beings be free from illness. When we all hold this same hope and wish, our minds will abide in right mindfulness, calmness, and compassion, free from distraction or distortion. And when our minds are free of disease, the external world will also be free of disease. When our minds are pure, the external world is also a pure land. As we all recognize this, our minds will no longer be in tune with a world of epidemic. Simply transform our thoughts, we will bring brightness and purity to this world.
Talk by the founder of Dharma Jewel Monastery, the late Grand Master Wei Chueh, at Chung Tai Chan Monastery, concerning SARS in 2003.
Chung Tai Zen Center of Atlanta - Dharma Jewel Monastery, 2550 Henderson Mill Rd, Atlanta GA 30345, 770 939 5008 www.DharmaJewel.US