We Cultivate Mindfulness First

Mindfulness in Yoga and Meditation

We offer a variety of programs designed to support you on your yoga and meditation path. From introductory courses to advanced workshops, our programs are designed to help you deepen your practice.

Mindfulness in Everyday Life

Our community of experienced mindfulness practitioners and facilitators are committed to helping you learn to respond more skillfully and creatively to life's daily challenges. Mindfulness allows you to embrace and learn from life's challenges.

Bhavana Means Cultivation

Yoga Sutras II.33

vitarka-bâdhane pratipakæa-bhâvanam

I first met the word bhavana in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, way before I could have imagined becoming a yoga teacher, much less someone who would be sharing the dharma. A client gave me Satchidananda’s translation when she moved away. I was surprised when I got to Book II, verse 33, and Patanjali says “When disturbed by negative thoughts, opposite [positive] ones should be thought of. This is "pratipaksha bhavana.” Here, in a collection of teachings from 2000 years ago, is what amounts to the basic principle of cognitive behavior therapy. Where have we been all these years?

So I went to find out where we got lost.

Glenn Wallis, author of a translation and compilation of sutras called Basic Teachings of the Buddha, emphasizes the word’s agrarian heritage. "One of the Buddha’s favorite metaphors for the practice that we refer to as “meditation” is bhavana, “cultivation.” He certainly had in mind the ubiquitous farms and fields of his native India when employing this image. Thus, unlike “meditation” or “contemplation,” the Buddha’s term is musty, rich, verdant. It smells of the earth. The commonness of his chosen term – it would have resonated with a farmer – suggested naturalness, everydayness, ordinariness. The term also suggested hope: no matter how fallow it has become or damaged it may be, a field can always be cultivated – endlessly enhanced, enriched, developed – to produce a favorable and nourishing harvest." Wallis (2007) (Pg. 150)

Events, Resources and Teachings

Ongoing Events

The Monday Night Sutta Study class sits from 6:30 - 7:00 and the program begins at 7:00. Meetings are hybrid on Zoom or in person at our Community Center at 106 Marshall Court, Unit 120. See the Sutta Study Webpage for current information.

The Thursday Evening Discussion and Practice Group has finished the TED talks series, a program I refer to as The Dharma of TED. We started a new program from Pema Chodron, Freedom to Choose Something Different on October 5th. The group meets on Zoom and in person at the community center (106 Marshall Court, Unit 120) on Thursday evenings from 6:30 to 8:00. Feel free to attend when you can. Check the calendar for program details.

We will be posting yoga classes on the Yoga Schedule and Bhavana Community events on the Bhavana Community Calendar so you can click there for what's on ZOOM and what is live.