This program is free, donation requested.
Get more info, register, and donate HERE.
Sometimes the weight of suffering—personal, interpersonal, universal—and our desire to alleviate it can either be paralyzing or make us go into overdrive. Sometimes we may be doing more harm than good, to ourselves, to those around us, to this planet. Sometimes we may cling to ideas of how the world should be fixed, which closes us off to possibilities and which could blind us to the point where we can no longer see one another.
How do we practice the Three Tenets of not-knowing, bearing witness, and compassionate action right here and now!? What is the relationship between our inner life and the outer world? How can the practice of writing help us stay fluid, unstuck, awake to each moment? How can it help us navigate all that’s going on within and without?
This is a weekend to dive into writing practice, meditation, and the continuous inquiry of being in the world. We will do this in community. We will do sitting and walking meditation together. We will write together. We will read aloud and listen deeply to each other.
Open to all levels. Some familiarity with Zen Buddhism will be helpful. That said, whether you’re a beginning writer or have been writing for decades, this retreat is for you. The main requirement is an open mind, the willingness to relax, get messy, and let things unfold, and the commitment to work—to put pen on paper.
This Upaya program is co-sponsored by the Buddhist Action Coalition, Black Breath Sits, and Sari-Sari Women of Color Arts Coup.
Registration will be open through June 15th. There will be reading and writing assignments before the retreat, to be distributed by June 1st. There will also be a resource page available to registered participants.
ABOUT KOZAN
Matthew Kozan Palevsky first traveled to Upaya in 2006 for a weeklong silent retreat, or sesshin. After eight years of practicing in the marketplace as a political activist and journalist, he returned to join the resident body of Upaya and was ordained as a novice priest by Roshi Joan Halifax in early 2016. Since 2017 he has served in various roles at Upaya, including President, Resident Director, Practice Mentor and Dog Walker.
Kozan co-leads a number of Upaya programs each year and hosts practice interviews with residents and members of the greater sangha. He also serves on Upaya’s Board of Directors.
Before moving to Upaya, Kozan worked as a social and political activist, organizing large-scale civic engagement on issues ranging from climate change and political corruption to criminal justice reform and workers' rights. In the spirit of engaged Buddhism, Kozan continues to serve as the Chairman of CleanChoice Energy, which delivers renewable energy to thousands of families in the United States, and as a board member of New Energy Economy, an environment and consumer advocacy nonprofit in New Mexico.
For Kozan's dharma talks, click here.
ABOUT DOROTEA
Dorotea Mendoza is a writer, community organizer, and Zen practitioner. Though she mostly writes fiction, and loves the flash form, she has also written essays on social activism and Socially Engaged Buddhism. She has worked with women's organizations in the US and in the Philippines around issues such as militarism, sex trafficking, domestic and gender-based violence. She currently organizes with Black Breath Sits, the Buddhist Action Coalition, and Sari-Sari Women of Color Arts Coup. She is honored (and beyond thrilled) to be facilitating this Inside Out retreat at Upaya and alongside Kozan. She has visited Upaya a number of times, as assistant to Natalie Goldberg in sit, walk, write retreats, during which she often needed Kozan's help (from help with Zen forms to opening the high windows in the zendo). Dorotea was born in the Philippines and grew up in New York City. She now lives in Brooklyn with her partner Matthew and 53 house plants. You can find her at www.doroteamendoza.com.