Brilliant Moon

"Brilliant Moon" is a documentary on the life of Dilgo Khyentze Rinpoche. This is a 60 minute film and is available at Pic-A-Flic Video. 328 Cook St.

I have seen the film and I recommend it to anyone interested in Buddhism or the History of Buddhism in the West.

The trailer for the movie is on YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCrHbChjCUk

Gord Shipway

A Day of Mindfulness: Seeding the Generous Heart

Victoria Vipassana Community Presents:

1-day Retreat

Saturday, April 30, 2011

9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

With Margo McLoughlin

at

Goward House

2495 Arbutus RoadVictoria, BC

In this one-day retreat, Margo McLoughlin will guide participants to consider how mindfulness and generosity work together on our spiritual journey. What does it mean to practice generosity and why is it considered the first step on the Buddhist path?

This retreat is open to both beginners and students with more practice experience.

Margo McLoughlin has been practicing in the Insight tradition of Theravada Buddhism since 1986. She is currently in training to be a Community Dharma Leader through SpiritRockMeditationCenter in Woodacre, California. As a storyteller and writer, Margo brings a deep appreciation of the role of metaphor, in the form of stories and poetry, to enlivening and inspiring our practice.

Cost: The Buddha's teachings are considered to be priceless. In keeping with the teachings and spirit of generosity or dana, we offer this retreat on a donation basis. The suggested donation for this retreat is $20 to cover the cost of facility rental, and other organizational expenses. A basket will be placed at the registration table for your donation. Any money collected above the costs of the retreat will go towards other VVC programmes.

No one will be refused for lack of funds; please give whatever is affordable given your means.

We will also set out another basket for you to offer dana for the teachings and the teacher who has shared them with us. We will speak about the practice of dana for the teachings during the retreat.

Once you have completed the registration form (see below) you will receive more detailed information about the retreat.

Link to Registration Form:

http://victoriavipassana.org/?page_id=927

Thank you,

Brian Chapel, Retreat Registrar

Quiet tenant sought

The downstairs suite at 646 Ridgebank Crescent ( Reverend Meiten's house/meeting place of Vancouver Island Zen Sangha ) is going to be available for rent as of June 1st. We would like to encourage our Mahasangha to let any quiet, responsible friends know about it.

It has one bedroom (a very large bedroom) – with a small second bedroom that has no windows, but would work well for an office and den. The bathroom is a shower only – no tub. There are a good size kitchen and living room. Both are fairly bright with lots of light.

There is a big yard at the rear of the house.

Rent is $700 per month plus 1/3 utilities for the house, that is, 1/3 of the water/hydro/oil bills. Phone and TV are up to the tenant to arrange and pay for. The rent is paid on a month to month basis.

No smoking, pets only if our landlord approves in advance. The current tenants have had a spaniel for over a year.

Laundry is shared and part of the laundry room is available for the downstairs tenant for storage.

If interested, please contact the landowner Doug Arnold who can arrange to show it most week-ends if he has notice. Please contact Dave 250-656-2500 dsled@telus.net if you have further questions.

The landlord's contact information is:

Doug Arnold Consulting Inc.

219 1230 Haro Street

Vancouver BC V6E 4J9

604 760 0352

Orientation to Zen Buddhist Practice - Victoria Zen Centre

Orientation to Zen Buddhist Practice - Victoria Zen Centre

"For over twenty years I had read book after book on the subjects of Zen and Buddhism, but somewhere in the back of my mind I knew all that reading was not enough. I was not DOING. The 'Orientation to Zen Buddhist Practice' course was that huge nudge I needed to get myself truly participating and practicing."
- Elder Seishin Susanne Ledingham

Saturday mornings, 9:00-11:30 AM
May 7-28, 2011
Victoria Zen Centre – Sooke

Discover the impact that consistent practice can have on and in your life! This course was designed by our abbot Ven. Eshu Martin, and is aimed at providing the support necessary for you to put an end to excuses, and to begin a stable and life long transformative practice through Zen Buddhism.

The fee for this four-week course is $395 ($295 for Associates) and includes:

• Four weekly sessions for a total of ten hours of class time.
• Small class size (max. 8).
• A meditation cushion for each participant to keep.
• Course manual and supplementary materials.
• Teachings and group discussions on core aspects of Zen Practice.
• Peer Support.
• Chanting practice CD and Chant Sheet.
• The opportunity to become a member of the Victoria Zen Centre.

For program information and to register: visit our website or email registrar@zenwest.ca.