Chan Dharma Community

Winter 2025 Edition

Sharing Moments of Inner Peace and Gratitude

Dear Friends,

We’d like to wish everyone a happy new year. We’re grateful for our community and for our many opportunities to practice together.

Over the holidays, Dr. Rebecca Li provided the Chan Dharma Community a chance to engage in the practice by inviting us to share moments of inner peace and gratitude, conveying our experience through photographs and written reflections. In her invitation she wrote, “...we are afforded many opportunities to integrate Chan practice into our daily life. As we practice remembering to be here moment to moment with clear awareness, regardless of what is happening, we allow ourselves to touch the peace within us and the gratitude that naturally arises as we realize all that makes this moment possible.” Many of us may have found this chance to connect or reconnect with the practice helpful over the holidays and as the new year begins.

In our winter issue we present the thoughtful and heartfelt practice reflections shared by our fellow Chan practitioners. We hope you enjoy them. May we continue to encourage, inspire, and support each other in the practice.

With palms joined,

Taylor Mitchell (and on behalf of the CDC Committee)

Beth Adelman’s Reflection:

I am so grateful that I have encountered the Dharma in my life, conveyed by skillful teachers who have helped me to see the moment-to-moment truth of it. This photo seems to be a moment frozen in time, but even as I snapped it, the ice was dripping and changing—beautiful in a different way each time I looked.

Jenny Tseng’s Reflection:

Our two daughters joined us over the holidays, and we shared meals, laughter, and tears. I’m truly grateful for these moments, which deepen our understanding of each other. They remind us that what may seem like negative actions often arise from confusion or pain, and positive actions from clarity and love.

Brian Pilecki’s Reflection:

Every year my family and I go through the ritual of buying a Christmas tree, decorating it with lights and ornaments, and having it serve as a centerpiece in our living room. Each ornament comes with some memory of the past—a place we visited or a gift that was given or received. After the tree goes up, it's easy to forget to stop and take a look and appreciate it. One morning I noticed it out of the corner of my eye and walked over and meditated in front of it for a few minutes. I felt a deep sense of appreciation for my family, the ability to continue with many of our holiday traditions, and all of the causes and conditions that led to being able to have this beautiful tree in our home.

Cindy Toy’s Reflection:

I saw a stool-stacked Christmas tree in
Taiwan. It’s whimsical and multifunctional! It reminds
me of the teaching of not holding on to our ideas of things.

Ruth Marie Subramanian’s Reflection:

As I allowed the hustle and bustle of the city to fade away, I sank into the open space and the scent of the sea, I remembered impermanence and peace ensued.

As I stood in this spot a familiar feeling fell over me and goosebumps creeped up my arms as I had dreamed about this place many nights. Here is my dream in real life! What is real? What is a dream? Are they both the same? Something filled me with awe and wonder. Somehow I knew everything happens for a reason and everything was gonna be okay!

Bay of Bengal, Shore Temple Beach, India

When I saw this man smile my whole being lit up! Even now, I smile when I remember his joyful face.

Chennai, India

Even in the midst of the city, I found solace in the lights and sounds that had somehow become a part of me!

Mumbai, India

Alejandro A. Forte’s Reflection:

This moment is not the best moment or the worst moment. It’s not even a good moment or a bad moment. Experiencing a moment as good or bad automatically involves a comparison to moments passed or moments anticipated and that means no longer being in the moment as it is. The present moment is not a good moment or a bad moment—it is the only moment. The practice is the process of arriving right where you are.

Taylor Mitchell’s Reflection:

In the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, where I live, beautiful rivers and beloved old wild places are completely altered by Hurricane Helene—a changing climate. I’m grateful for the dharma teachings on the nature of reality and to contemplate how all of nature is changing and nothing is permanent. Visiting family for the holidays, I see how we are all aging. I often experience anticipatory grief for loved ones passing away and am grateful for a new awareness of craving and aversion arising in these moments. Through this awareness, I’m practicing listening to the teachings of this suffering and making a choice to come back to “this just as this,” to spend time with my loved ones, to move through the fears and to share with them—to open my heart to them now.

Chan Dharma Community

Practice Opportunities

Monthly Online Dharma Study Course with Rebecca Li

2nd Wednesday of the month through May 14, 2025

Practitioners meet on Zoom on the second Wednesday of the month from December 2024 to May 2025 to share their reflections on the month’s theme based on an assigned chapter in the book Illumination by Rebecca Li. The topic of this year’s course is examining six modes of operation discussed in the second half of the book, cultivating clear awareness of the ways in which we generate suffering for ourselves and cause harm to others and practicing to recognize and release these unhelpful habits. The course is ongoing and registration is now closed.

Weekly Sitting Meditation

Monday Mornings, 7:00 to 7:25 AM ET

The Monday morning session includes light neck stretches, recitation of the Four Great Vows, and a 20-minute sitting session.

Thursday Evenings, 9:00 to 9:25 PM ET

The Thursday evening session includes light neck stretches, recitation of the Four Great Vows, and a 20-minute sitting period.

*The weekly meditation sessions are intended for Chan Dharma Community members who have practiced with Rebecca Li. All levels of experience are welcome.

Online Sangha Friends Gathering

4th Wednesday of every month

Join us on the fourth Wednesday of every month for an unstructured gathering where we can check in with one another, talk about whatever has come up in the past month, support one another, and stay in touch as a sangha. Each gathering will begin with 10 minutes of meditation, and then everyone will check in and share, and discuss what comes up.

Upcoming Activities

Here’s a preview of our 2025 community activities. We’ll be sharing more details soon, so please keep an eye out for more information. For now, mark your calendars for these two events:

One-Day Online Meditation Retreat

Saturday, January 25, 2025
Saturday, April 5, 2025
Click the link for general information and the retreat schedule.

Sangha Sharing

Wednesday, April 30, 2025
This new gathering is a pilot event designed to offer an engaging way for our community to connect and get to know one another.

Please contact us if you would like more information about these programs.

Stay in Touch