South County Meditation Group

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 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 Additional USA online resources: 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/UCN802J3Fgjs8gZxwzmGrzqQ Additional 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:

• Dhamma Everywhere Welcoming each moment with Awareness+Wisdom by Sayadaw U Tejaniya
• Emptiness A Practical Guide for Meditators by Guy Armstrong
• No Time Like the Present Finding Freedom, Love, and Joy Right Where You Are by Jack Kornfield
  
• The One Who Is Not Busy Connecting with Work in a Deeply Satisfying Way by Darlene Cohen
  
• Parami Ways to Cross Life's Floods by Ajahn Sucitto
• The Sound of Silence The Selected Teachings of Ajahn Sumedho by Ajahn Sumedho and Ajahn Amaro
• Tonglen The Path of Transformation by Pema Chödrön
• True Refuge Finding Peace and Freedom in Your Own Awakened Heart by Tara Brach
• The Work of This Moment by Toni Packer
  

The book that we are currently reading is:

• Food for the Heart The Collected Teachings of Ajahn Chah by Ajahn Chah and Ajahn Amaro
  
  

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 BEYOND
			Food 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 COOLNESS
			Gudrun 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

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^[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>