The South County Meditation Group meets in Oceano on Sunday mornings from 9:00am ‑ 10:15am for meditation and study in the Gudrun Hus Studio at Tierra Nueva Cohousing, adjacent to the town of Halcyon (see Maps) (see Brochure) (see YouTube Channel).
The weekly WHSSCMG schedule is suspended due to the COVID‑19 pandemic.
SLO County (Region 1, Southern CA) is under a Regional Stay Home Order.
Up-to-the-minute SLO County COVID‑19 information is available here.
(updated 01/18/2021)
Mental health professionals advise to be aware of the distinction between social distancing and physical distancing, and recommend reaching out online to reduce the effects of loneliness, anxiety, boredom and depression while sheltering at home. Here are some online resources in California, listed in alphabetical order:
Insight Meditation South Bay | Online Courses
Additional USA online resources:
https://www.imsb.org/programs/online-courses
InsightLA | Online
https://insightla.org/location/online
North County White Heron Buddhist Sangha | Virtual Community
https://sites.google.com/site/ncwhbs/ncwhs-virtual-community
San Francisco Zen Center | Online Programs
https://www.sfzc.org/online-programs
San Luis Obispo Zen Circle | Online Programs
https://sites.google.com/site/slozazengroup/calendar
Shambhala Los Angeles | Sunday Morning Public Sitting - Online Meetings
https://la.shambhala.org/program-details/?id=444855
Spirit Rock | Online Classes
https://www.spiritrock.org/online-classes
American Psychiatric Association | Coronavirus Resources
https://www.psychiatry.org/psychiatrists/covid-19-coronavirus
American Psychological Association | Telepsychology
https://www.apa.org/members/your-growth/practice-management/telepsychology
Barre Center for Buddhist Studies | Online Programs
https://www.buddhistinquiry.org/online-programs
The Chopra Center | Guided Meditations Online
https://chopra.com/articles/guided-meditations
DharmaSun | Online Tibetan Buddhist Teachings
https://dharmasun.org
glo | Meditation Online
https://www.glo.com/meditation-online
Harvard Online Learning | Buddhism Through Its Scriptures
https://online-learning.harvard.edu/course/buddhism-through-its-scriptures
Ligmincha Learning | Online Tibetan meditation instruction
https://ligminchalearning.com
Sahaja Yoga | Online Meditation
https://www.onlinemeditation.org
Self-Realization Fellowship | Online Meditation Center
https://srfonlinemeditation.org
Sounds True | Online Courses
https://www.soundstrue.com/store/online-courses.html
Tara Brach | Guided Meditations Online
https://www.tarabrach.com/guided-meditations
Tricycle | Online Classes
https://learn.tricycle.org/catalog
YouTube | Online Meditation Channel
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCN802J3Fgjs8gZxwzmGrzqQAdditional International online resources:
Findhorn Foundation, Scotland | Online Programmes
https://www.findhorn.org/online-learning
(checked 11/04/2020)
Our meditation practice is informed by the wisdom tradition of Buddhism. All levels of meditation experience are welcome, and it is not necessary to be an active participant[1] of White Heron Sangha to attend. If someone is new to meditation, and new to the group, the facilitator, or one of our group members, may guide the meditation for the first 10 minutes or so.
We are a peer-led group, in the tradition of kalyanamittata ("admirable friendship", or "spiritual friends").
The usual meeting format is: start with reading the Beginning Practice, meditate for 30 minutes, read the Ending Practice, then announcements and discussion. On the first and third Sundays of each month, we extend the meditation period to 45 minutes.
When there is a White Heron Sangha weekend retreat, Gudrun Hus Studio will be available for meditating, but there will not be a Program.
Books that we have read include:
Date Opener Facilitator
Program First sitting after the Shelter at Home order Food for the Heart | Chapter 26 - THE MIDDLE WAY WITHIN Extended Meditation (45 minutes)
Food for the Heart | Chapter 27 - THE PEACE BEYONDFood for the Heart | Chapter 28 - CONVENTION AND LIBERATION Extended Meditation (45 minutes)
How is your practice going?Food for the Heart | Chapter 29 - NO ABIDING Extended Meditation (45 minutes)
Food for the Heart | Chapter 30 - RIGHT VIEW - THE PLACE OF COOLNESSGudrun Hus Clipboard Sheet
The Book Queue In anticipation of the end of Food for the Heart, this is the list of books that have been submitted for consideration to read next. WHSSCMG participants are invited to forward their suggestions (updated 7/25/2020).
- The Book of Householder Koans Waking Up in the Land of Attachments (2020) by Eve Myonen Marko and Roshi Wendy Egyoku Nakao
- Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way Nagarjuna's Mūlamadhyamakakārikā (2010) translated by Gudo Wafu Nishijima, edited by Brad Warner
- The Hidden Lamp Stories from Twenty-Five Centuries of Awakened Women (2013) by Zenshin Florence Caplow and Reigetsu Susan Moon forward by Norman Fischer
- Most Intimate A Zen Approach to Life's Challenges (2014) by Roshi Pat Enkyo O'Hara
- Naked in the Zendo Stories of Uptight Zen, Wild-Ass Zen, and Enlightenment Wherever You Are (2019) by Abbess Grace Schireson, forward by Joan Halifax
- Radical Acceptance Embracing Your Life With the Heart of a Buddha (2003) by Tara Brach, forward by Jack Kornfield
- Tariki Embracing Despair, Discovering Peace by Hiroyuki Itsuki
- Unmasking Buddhism (2009) by Bernard Faure
- The World Could Be Otherwise Imagination and the Bodhisattva Path (2019) by Zoketsu Rinsho Norman Fischer
The Google Group White Heron Sangha - South County Meditation Group [whsscmg] is at http://goo.gl/zxJXUD
[1]Clarification on WHS use of the term, "membership" -- This WHS website is powered by Wild Apricot membership management software; however, WHS itself is not a membership-based organization, and WHS is not a Buddhist church. White Heron Sangha is a California nonprofit religious corporation, without members (Bylaws, Item 7). Where the words "members" and "membership" appear on other pages of this WHS website, WHS intends for these terms to be interpreted as "active participants".
For further information on the South County Meditation Group, feel free to contact any of these WHSSCMG participants: Lois Richerson <thelois@gmail.com>, Kathy Headtke <kheadtke@sbcglobal.net>, Harry Hōetsu Heck <hoetsu@icloud.com>