Sanghas + Events in the Plum Village Tradition in Northern California
January 12, 2025 @ 9:30 am – 2:00 pm
Ven. Thích Tu Luc invites the community to a bilingual ceremony to commemorate Thích Nhất Hạnh on the third anniversary of his continuation.
Schedule:
Monastics Present:
Compassion Meditation Center: Thầy Từ Lực, Ni sư Ngộ Tánh, SC Tịnh Minh, SC
Phổ Thanh (more to be added later).
November 15, 2025 @ 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Image by Nikolai Roerich
Dear Friends,
Dharma teachers Lyn Fine, Caleb Cushing, and Denise Bergez invite you to a Day of Mindfulness at Shantideva — bringing the Plum Village community in Northern California together for a chance to go as a river and practice mindfulness as one sangha.
Please join us for a day of sitting, walking, and eating meditation in community. We will also explore the power of listening in our lives and in these times through the practice of radiant listening, which was offered to the Plum Village community by Roshi Joan Halifax at a retreat with Thich Nhat Hanh 27 years ago.
The location is Thich Tu Luc’s Shantideva Monastery at 30345 Palomares Rd, Castro Valley, CA 94552. It’s about an hour’s drive from Berkeley, SF, or San Jose.
Our practice will begin at 10:00 a.m. and end at 2:00 pm. Please arrive at 9:30 to park and get settled.
If you’re planning to attend, please sign up here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1yEUIc_3JoYDKkVcdCLPyBVCkJlCDsLK40Kakvt2OarA/edit?usp=sharing
Things to bring:
This day is offered free of charge. Donations to support Shantideva are welcome.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Lyn, Caleb, and Denise
+1 650-315-9607
dylan@tweney.com
May 10, 2025 @ 9:30 am – 1:30 pm
Please join us for a bilingual Vietnamese-English celebration of Buddha’s Birthday (Vesak), including the ceremony of bathing the Baby Buddha.
Thay Tu Luc will be hosting, along with monastics from the Hayward Temple.
If you plan on driving to Shantideva, please sign up here to facilitate carpooling.
If you’re looking for a ride, check that sheet for a driver near you. This will help us ensure there’s enough parking for everyone.
Tentative schedule:
+1 650-315-9607
dylan@tweney.com
April 19, 2025 @ 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
The Fourfold Community of Bay Area Sanghas is invited to a Day of Mindfulness in the Santa Cruz hills at Udumbara Retreat Center.
The theme: Ease of the Heart — Bringing Equanimity Into Our Daily Lives.
Please see the flyer below for the details and to RSVP.
More information will follow soon.
(707) 888-1916
njbruckner@gmail.com
December 14, 2024 @ 9:30 am – 3:00 pm
We invite anyone in the community to join our practice from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on December 14.
We aspire that Shantideva will become a resource and anchor for our broad and diverse Bay Area and Northern California community.
Gathering at Shantideva is a chance for people from our many different sanghas to practice together in friendship, and to create opportunities for honest and vulnerable discussion.
Please email Dylan if you’re planning to attend. (This is not required, but if a lot of people are coming, it can be helpful to plan for parking.)
Continue reading “Shantideva Sangha Gathering”September 20, 2025 @ 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Save the date for a Day of Mindfulness at Pho Tri Wisdom Meditation School.
A Day of Mindfulness Practices enhancing our connection with all that nourishes us.
Please save the date & LET US KNOW YOU ARE COMING
Call or text Chau at (925)708-8662 OR email to: photridom@gmail.com to RSVP
Practices will include Silent Sitting Meditation, Guided Meditation, Dharma Study, Qigong and Listening in peaceful harmony.
Participants: Please bring your own vegetarian/vegan lunch and drinking water.
Clothing should be “monastery appropriate”. Fragrance-free are greatly appreciated.
Cushions and chairs are provided. (You may bring your own cushion if you prefer)
925-708-8662
PhotriDOM@gmail.com
March 22, 2025 @ 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
A Day of Mindfulness Practices enhancing our connection with all that nourishes us.
LET US KNOW YOU ARE COMING
Call or text Chau at (925)708-8662 OR email to: photridom@gmail.com to RSVP
Practices will include Silent Sitting Meditation, Guided Meditation, Dharma Study, Qigong and Listening in peaceful harmony.
(Please see the PDFs below for details)
Participants: Please bring your own vegetarian/vegan lunch and drinking water.
925-708-8662
PhotriDOM@gmail.com
November 8, 2024 @ 3:00 pm – November 11, 2024 @ 12:00 pm
We are delighted to invite you to register for the Winter 2024 retreat held at the Quaker Center in Ben Lomond, California (80 miles from the Bay Area). The retreat will take place from Saturday, November 9 – Monday, November 11, with an option to arrive on Friday, November 8 for an additional cost. All retreat meals will be provided by the wonderful chef Tod Nysether.
The theme is “Creativity as Refuge.”
We are excited to share that Maxine Hong Kingston has agreed to lead the writing workshop on Friday, together with Earll Kingston and Wendy Johnson.
NOTE: This retreat is now full. You can still register to be added to the waitlist. We will invite registrants from the waitlist if others are unable to attend.
Registration link: https://forms.gle/agLxDbgBTMajWefu8
Please fill out the information requested in this Google Form. The retreat organizers, Dylan and Melanie, will review all completed registration forms and confirm your waitlist/registration status. When we do, we will send details on payment and lodging.
We currently estimate costs of $150 per night for dorm room beds and $100 per night for camping/futons. (Camping in your own tent, or sleeping on floor pads, will only be available if we have a sufficient number of people registered — we need to fill the beds first.)
We aspire to create a retreat body that represents the diversity of the many people and communities practicing in the Plum Village lineage, including race/ethnicity, age, and gender. Please be patient with us as we do our best to accommodate your needs and to create the conditions for a supportive and inclusive space.
Our draft health plan is outlined in the registration form, but here it is for ready reference:
1. We will request everyone to rapid test negative on their day of arrival.
2. We will leave windows open and run HEPA air filters wherever possible.
3. We will structure activities to make it comfortable to mask at any time and to eat outdoors.
4. We will ask anyone with symptoms to (K)N95 mask, even if rapid testing negative.
5. We will provide a supply of high-quality (K)N95 masks and extra rapid tests.
6. If you test positive at the retreat, we will ask you to leave early or self-isolate, depending on conditions.
+1 650-315-9607
dylan@tweney.com
October 12, 2024 @ 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Please save the date for this Day of Mindfulness coming up on October 12, at a beautiful monastery in the Santa Cruz mountains. There will be an opportunity to receive, or renew, the Five Mindfulness Trainings in a special Transmission Ceremony.
If you would like to participate in planning please contact Jim Scott-Behrends at jsbehrends@aol.com.
More information will follow.
loganpayne@earthlink.net
November 30, 2024 @ 9:30 am – 3:00 pm
We invite anyone in the community to join our practice from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the following dates: July 20, September 7, October 19, and November 30. (Note: we changed the November date to Nov. 30.)
Our aspiration is that Shantideva will become a resource and anchor for our broad and diverse community in the Bay Area and Northern California. Gathering at Shantideva is a chance for people from our many different sanghas to practice together in friendship, and to create opportunities for honest and vulnerable discussion.
Please email Dylan if you’re planning to attend.
Continue reading “Shantideva Sangha Gathering”