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Understanding the Four Right Efforts (hybrid – in person)

Program Type:
Teacher:
Time:10:00 am - 5:30 pm
Date:Saturday - June 3, 2023
Sessions:1
Registration for this program is closed.

In-person registration for this program is closed. If you'd like to attend online, you can still register here.

This program will be hosted both in-person and online (hybrid). This is the registration page to join Matthew Hepburn in person at our Center in Cambridge. (Register here if you prefer to attend online.)

In-person space is limited. Registration will close at 12:00 pm on Friday, June 2. Walk-in registrations will not be available. Please bring a vegetarian lunch or plan to go out during the lunch break. Masks will be optional. 

The moment a meditation begins is the moment a practitioner’s intentions are expressed through effort. How each one of us applies ourselves to meditation -- whether seated, standing, walking, lying down, or in the midst of daily activities -- will define our experience and the potential for freedom and insight.

The Buddha’s teachings on how to bring about freedom and insight suggest that each of our periods of meditation should be established on the foundation of the “Four Right Efforts”. These include:

  • Preventing the arising of unskillful states.
  • Abandoning unskillful states that have arisen.
  • Cultivating and developing fruitful and wholesome states that have not yet arisen.
  • Nurturing and sustaining those fruitful states which have already arisen.

When we apply ourselves in meditation in ways that are not natural and wise, these efforts can seem daunting. However, it is entirely possible to refine our relationship to effort so that each meditation period can feel natural, creative, and potent.

Throughout our day together, teachings and guided meditations will be provided that will help participants understand the Four Right Efforts in a new light and provide guidance on how to integrate relaxed, natural effort into daily life. The workshop will be an opportunity to deepen your understanding and experience of mindfulness and meditation in a supportive and friendly environment.

This program is appropriate for both new and experienced meditators. Our time together will include sitting meditation with instructions, talks, and time for discussion and questions. Everyone is welcome.

This program will not be recorded. Full and partial scholarships are available up to 72 hours before the start of the program.

There are no prerequisites for this program. All are welcome.

Workshop

Attending an In-Person Workshop at CIMC (see below for attending online workshops)

  • Please arrive at least 15 minutes early to check-in and to find a comfortable place in the meditation hall.
  • While at the Center all phones, pagers, beeping watches and other electronic devices must remain completely turned off at all times.
  • Parking at CIMC is limited; we suggest taking public transportation to the Center whenever possible.
  • Lunch will not be provided. Participants are invited to bring their own vegetarian meal to the Center or may buy lunch in the neighborhood. A list of local restaurants and food stores will be available.
  • Food and beverages, including water, are not allowed in the meditation halls.
  • We strongly recommend you dress in layers since the temperature in the meditation hall will vary throughout the day. The hall thermostat is set to a comfortable temperature range; however, please give yourself a range of clothing options, as individual preferences for warmth or coolness differ widely and cannot be accommodated.
  • Please leave shoes on the shoe shelves on the first floor and keep your valuables with you at all times.
  • CIMC provides zafus (round cushions), zabutons (large mats), meditation benches, blankets, and chairs for your use. At the end of the program, we request that participants brush off their zabuton and plump up their zafu. All other items should be returned neatly to where they were found.
  • CIMC is a refuge. Out of compassion for those who may have chemical sensitivities, please avoid using scented products—lotions, deodorant, after-shave, hair products, perfume, clothes laundered with scented detergent, or dryer sheets—before you come to the Center.

Attending an Online Workshop

  • We will be using Zoom for this workshop. Before your workshop begins, be sure to download Zoom and familiarize yourself with using the program, including the chat feature. Specifics about how we will be using Zoom during your workshop will be covered at the beginning of the workshop; however, we are not able to provide technical support during the workshop.
  • We ask that you treat our virtual meditation hall as if we were together in person, in the same room. The teachers and other yogis benefit greatly from your full presence and careful attention.
  • Join each session of the workshop a few minutes early. This will support the teachers and your fellow participants.
  • Ideally, power off phones and smartwatches for the entire time scheduled for the workshop on each day. Please don’t check your devices during breaks. We suggest that you put an “away” message on your email and voicemail and leave your devices in another room during your workshop hours.
  • Please keep your video on during our time together as much as you can. This supports a sense of connectedness and sangha.
  • Closed Captions for CIMC Programs are generated through “live streaming” via Rev.com. CIMC programs are not live-streamed to any other platform for any other use.
  • You will receive a welcome email from CIMC a day or two before your program that will include the zoom link and further information.