CIMC Drop-In Programs offer many opportunities for beginners and experienced practitioners alike to learn about Insight Meditation, to deepen their practice and to participate at the Center. We do not take registrations for Drop-In Programs. Please see our online program calendar for up-to-date information.
35 & Under Sangha
- Sundays: 7:00-8:15pm
- Dates: Please see below.
- Fee: $5-10; Practice Sundays by donation (Dana)
This affinity group provides an opportunity for those ages 35 and under to practice the dharma in a supportive community context. We offer two different formats: “With Teacher” and “Practice Sunday”.
With Teacher
The second and fourth Sundays of the month will be led by teachers Matthew Hepburn or Zeenat Potia. These evenings start with a period of sitting practice, followed by time for sharing, dyads (partner work) and small or large group discussion. After the class all are invited to stay for tea and conversation.
Practice Sunday
The first and third Sundays of the month will be led by CIMC Practice Leaders and offer silent sitting and walking periods for deepening stillness and strengthening self-guided meditation practice in the company of the sangha. These evenings will conclude with the final bell at 8:15pm. No tea will be offered, though CIMC members are welcome to enjoy the refuge of the Center until it closes at 10pm. Practice Sundays do not offer meditation instruction. Beginners should first attend a few sessions that are guided by a teacher with instruction on both walking and sitting practice.
Please see our online program calendar for up-to-date information.
Afternoon Tea & Dharma Discussion
- Thursdays: 4:00-5:30pm
- Dates: Most Thursdays; exceptions listed below
- Fee: $5-$10
Are you are new to practice? Have been practicing for years? Do you have questions about practice that you'd like to discuss in an intimate group setting? Please join Madeline Klyne for an afternoon Dharma conversation.
Afternoon Tea will not meet on: January 25 | March 22 | April 5 | June 28 | July 5 | August 9, 16, 23, 30 | September 6, 13 | November 22 | December 20, 27
Beginners’ Drop-In
- Tuesdays: 6:00-7:00pm
- Fee: $5-10
On most Tuesday nights throughout the year we offer basic instruction in Insight Meditation (vipassana) on a drop-in basis; no registration required. Each class includes instruction, meditation practice and discussion. This class is appropriate for first-time meditators as well as those with meditation experience. This program is taught by Narayan Liebenson and CIMC teachers.
The program begins promptly at 6:00pm. Please arrive on time and plan to stay for the entire class. The front door will be locked at 6:00pm when the class begins.
Beginners' Drop-in is not offered during CIMC's end-of-summer break, during Multi-Day Retreats or when the Center is closed for winter break at the end of the year. Please see our online program calendar for up-to-date information.
Beloved Community Circles
- Sundays: 10:00am-12:30pm
- Dates: September 16 | December 9
- Donation (dana): $5-10
A series of conversations facilitated by CIMC Board President Betty Burkes, Beloved Community Circles (BCC) provides a forum for cultivating awareness within the CIMC community about social realities and the Dharma as they relate to our spiritual journeys. Recognizing the particular need for consciousness regarding race and racism in our culture, this theme is the foundation for the series.
We practice deep listening to one another and share our experiences to promote greater understanding of ourselves and each other. Honoring the gift and importance of sangha on this path of liberation, we will explore how we relate as spiritual friends and the barriers to that aspiration. BCC is open to everyone in the CIMC community.
Daily Sitting Practice
- Weekday Mornings: 7:00-7:45am
- Weekday Evenings: 6:00-6:45pm (except Wednesday)
On most weekday mornings and evenings CIMC offers a drop-in practice opportunity that is open to everyone: a 45-minute long meditation sit led by CIMC volunteer Practice Leaders. On Wednesday evenings, this is part of CIMC’s Wednesday Evening Dharma Program and runs from 6:30-7:15pm.
For the benefit of your fellow practitioners, please enter the meditation hall on time and stay through the end of the sit. All are welcome to attend; there is no registration.
Daily Sitting Practice is not offered during CIMC’s end-of-summer break, on federal holidays, or when the Center is closed for winter break at the end of the year. Evening Sits are also not offered when “Multi-Day Retreats” are in progress. Please see our online program calendar for up-to-date information.
Elders’ Sangha
- Tuesdays: 10:30am-12:00pm
- Dates: October 9 | November 13 | December 11
- Fee: $5-10
Intended for people ages 65 and up, the Elders' Sangha meets on the second Tuesday of each month. As elders, we're invited as never before to look deeply into the great issues of impermanence, diminishment, and mortality. Yet through practice these are balanced by expanding compassion, joy and appreciation of life. Let us take advantage of this opportunity and come together every month for talks, discussion, and meditation. Together we'll explore both the challenges and sources of inspiration that enrich the process of creative, conscious aging. The group is led by Ron Denhardt, Olivia Hoblitzelle or Geraldine Zetzel.
First Friday People of Color Sangha
- Fridays: 6:00-7:30pm
- Dates: January 5 | February 2 | March 2 | April 6 | May 11 (second Friday) | June 1 | July 13 (second Friday) | August 3 | September 7 | October 5 | November 2 | December 7
- Donation (dana): $5-10
The POC sangha provides a dedicated practice space at CIMC for those who self-identify as people of color. This affinity group meets one Friday each month and is appropriate for beginners as well as those with meditation experience. Our time together includes a reading by an Affinity Group Leader, formal meditation practice, a Sharing Circle and small groups. Participants are invited to share, if they wish, how the reading resonates with their practice, or to offer other reflections. At the end of our formal practice all are invited to gather in the dining room for a vegetarian Community Potluck and conversation.
Each evening is led by two People of Color Affinity Group Leaders: Yenkuei Chuang, Novelette DeMercado, Victoria (Vicky) I, Bonita Jones, or Juan Sosa. Several times a year a guest Teacher of Color will offer a Dharma Talk.
LGBTQ Practitioners’ Sangha
- Fridays: 7:00-9:00pm
- Dates: January 12 | March 9 | May 18 | July 20 | September 14 | November 30
- Fee: $5-10
This group is for people who self-identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or questioning. Madeline Klyne will lead a sitting meditation and a dharma discussion. Tea and snacks will follow.
Little Buddhas
- Sundays: 10:00-11:15am
- Dates: January 7 | February 4 | March 25 | April 29 | May 20 | June 10 | July 22 | September 23 | October 21 | November 11 | December 9
- Fee: $5-10
This group is an informal opportunity for parents and small children to explore a family practice. Through singing, storytelling and movement we learn how to spend time together mindfully. All children must be accompanied by an adult responsible for supervising that child at all times. Children of all ages are welcome, but this group is geared to ages 3-9. Little Buddhas is led by Jim Austin and Zeenat Potia.
Other drop-ins
- Gardening Day
Do you know that CIMC’s beautiful garden is cared for entirely by volunteers? CIMC has Gardening Days in Spring and Fall.
Please join CIMC staff and other volunteers for a morning of mindful gardening.
Your help cultivating the natural beauty of our Center is a gift to the entire community, and is deeply appreciated.
- Discussion on Practice
Periodically, Larry Rosenberg offers an open discussion on practice for practitioners with one or more years of meditation experience.
These evenings will include sitting and walking meditation as well as ample opportunity for questions and discussion. They are “drop-in” programs, there is no registration and no set fee. Dana boxes are available; please consider making a donation to support CIMC.
At least one year of meditation practice required.
- Ceremony of Remembrance
Once a year we gather together in community to mourn and release those we have loved deeply, who have died. We remember family members and friends as well as practitioners at CIMC.
The group that gathers is open-hearted and friendly, bonded together by the possibility of honoring the ebbs and flows of this life as it manifests in our personal relationships. You may come in the name of anyone you are mourning, whether recently or those further in the past, incompletely mourned. It is also fine to come to mourn traumatic events in the world.
This evening consists of a small amount of chanting, a short introduction and talk, and a time for each of us to light a candle in remembrance of those we are mourning. Each will have the option to speak for a few minutes about the gifts we’ve received from our connection with those who have had a significant place in our hearts. After all candles are lit, we chant some more and then blow out our candles together.
If you wish, please bring photographs of your loved ones to place in the center of the room. After the ceremony, we’ll take the time to look at these together.
- Community Conversation and Celebration
Once a year we gather as a community to meditate, talk and share food together. This drop-in is usually held in early winter.
- Gratitude Gathering
On that day of thanksgiving, we share readings and reflections on gratitude and the blessings in our lives. The gathering includes a period of guided sitting meditation on gratitude and a discussion.
Please feel free to bring a reading.
All are welcome. Light refreshments will follow.
Sunday Afternoon Extended Practice
- Sundays: 2:00-5:15pm
- Dates: January 7, 14, 21 | February 4, 18, 25 | March 25 | April 1, 15, 22, 29 | May 6, 13, 27 | June 10, 17, 24 | July 1, 8, 22, 29 | August 5, 12 | September 9, 16, 23 | October 7, 21 | November 11 | December 9
- Fee: Donation (Dana)
- Prerequisite: Some meditation practice
On most Sunday afternoons throughout the year, CIMC offers the opportunity for extended practice. We observe the following meditation schedule:
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 2:00-2:45 | Sit |
| 2:45-3:15 | Walk |
| 3:15-4:00 | Sit |
| 4:00-4:30 | Walk |
| 4:30-5:15 | Sit |
You are welcome to attend for any part of the program, however, please plan on entering the Meditation Hall either before the first sit or during any walking period. This practice is silent and led by a practice leader.
Thursday Morning Retreat
- Thursdays: 9:00am-1:00pm
- Fee: When Narayan Liebenson teaches: Members $10, Non-Members $15; otherwise by donation (Dana)
These retreats consist of alternating sitting and walking periods. Once a month, Narayan teaches the retreat and offers the opportunity for individual practice interviews.
Narayan will teach on: February 15 | March 8 | April 19 | May 24 | July 12 | August 2 | October 4 | November 1, 29
We observe the following meditation schedule:
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 9:00-10:00 | Sit |
| 10:00-10:20 | Walk |
| 10:20-11:00 | Sit |
| 11:00-11:20 | Walk |
| 11:20-12:00 | Sit |
| 12:00-12:20 | Walk |
| 12:20-1:00 | Sit |
You are welcome to attend for any part of the morning, however, please plan on entering the Meditation Hall either before the first sit or during any walking period. Retreatants are welcome to bring a vegetarian lunch and to join others for lunch in the dining room at 1:00 pm.