December 2018
Anja-Karina Pahl ~ Experiments in Gratitude: The 8 Gifts that Bring Joy to Your Mind & Peace to The World
You're invited to join Anja to experiment with a new path to gratitude - a modern and very personal reframing of the traditional Buddhist Offering Practise in advance of her Christmas book release. During our evening, we'll explore and share the 8 most simple, potent, gorgeous archetypes of gratitude, as gifts that all cultures understand. But in this experiment, we won’t receive gifts. We'll give them. Millions of them.
Anja will share the exact set of skilful actions that is designed to rewire the brain, tackle the root of poverty-consciousness and heart-break, to stop it recurring in any form. We'll then start testing how it might open the doorway to virtuous joy in our mind-heart, in the shortest possible time with the longest possible effects on everyone around us. Our aim after all, is not just to be grateful for things we receive, but to BE Gratitude itself - to embody it.
Anja-Karina Pahl inadvertently discovered mystic Christianity at an early age but has been a serious student of Vajrayana Buddhism since 2000, first with the Danish crazy wisdom teacher Ole Nydahl, and now with the Kagyupa lineage head, Thaye Dorje, H.H. the 17th Karmapa. For 25 years, she has been integrating their non-dual teachings and her own personal experience of applying them in daily life with research in modern physics and emerging philosophies of consciousness. She fervently believes we can re-envision and repair old conundrums in science and mind with this view - and vice versa, bring fresh Western insights into traditional Buddhist teachings. And, along the way, bathe in grace, gratitude & awe.
$10 - $20
Space is limited, so come early!
Maja Apolonia Rodé ~ The Alchemy of Consciousness and Creativity
These intimate evenings are limited to 12 people.
Advanced registration is required.
Click on event title for More info & Registration
Find out more »“Just This” ~ 3+1-day Online Retreat with Isaac Shapiro
"Just This"
Meetings in Truth with Isaac Shapiro:
Fri 14th, Sat 15th, Sun 16th December 2018
12:30 pm - 2:30 pm Pacific Time
Integration Meeting with Open Circle Facilitator:
Thursday 20th December, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm Pacific Time
“This is an invitation to recognize the Truth of yourself. Who you are, and have always been. As you are already This, there is no need for any effort or "getting there", just the simple recognition of That in which everything appears. As we bring awareness to unconscious habits, there is a shift that occurs. In the course of investigation, we spontaneously recognize the true nature of ourselves. To live like this is an expression of unconditional love in which there is a savoring of this moment`s experience as the beloved.”
~ Isaac Shapiro
Join Isaac Shapiro for a 3-day immersion into simplicity of being with what is. Discover deeper intimacy and enjoyment as the happening of this very moment.
From the comfort of your home, you will have the opportunity to explore yourself with like-minded community from around the world. Through direct yet playful inquiry into what is, we will be unraveling conditioning of the mind and the nervous system. The format of the meetings is interactive and spontaneous, deeply in tune with what wants to emerge in the group in any given moment.
The extra 4th meeting with an Open Circle facilitator will assist a smooth integration of the newly open levels of Reality with your everyday life.
The online retreat is an exciting container allowing for deep work with the support of a teacher and community - without the usual cost and logistics that an on location retreat entails. It provides an opportunity for deep exploration while still living your daily life.
More about Isaac Shapiro: www.isaacshapiro.org
This Three-Day Online Retreat will consist of:
- Three 2-hour Meetings in Truth with Isaac Shapiro
- One 2-hour Integration Meeting with a Facilitator
- Video and Audio Recordings of Meetings with Isaac
Registration: $70 - $100
For questions contact sara@opencirclecenter.org
Amoda Maa ~ Living as the Open Hand of Love
2:00-4:00 pm, with refreshments until 5 pm
Amoda offers an intimate conversation that includes the totality of the human experience within the unbounded space of unconditioned awareness. She invites you to inquire with radical honesty if you are willing to surrender all psychological weapons of war - the reactivity and righteousness of the ego - so that you can live as the open hand of love.
The meeting starts with Silent Sitting followed by a Discourse, and then time for Questions and Answers. Amoda's husband and beloved Kavi, wil be supporting the meeting with live ambient improvised guitar. Both newcomers and those familiar with Amoda's message are welcome.
Amoda's website: www.amodamaa.com
Suggested donation: $10 to $20, no one turned away for lack of funds.
Where: 8476 Sonoma Ave, Sebastopol, CA
Park on Sonoma Ave, walk down short driveway to to house with carport.
Arrive 10-15 minutes early for the best seat.
Ajaya Sommers ~ Awaken to the Intimate Embrace of the Heart
Please note that this gathering is limited to approximately 15 people, so pre-registration is strongly recommended. Please see below for more information.
Within a field of unconditionally loving presence, Ajaya facilitates a unique discovery process called Core Embodiment®, an integrated system of embodiment practices, principles and perceptual orientations to awaken and align with the power of your human potential. She is a Biodynamic Craniosacral Integration Teacher, Authorized Continuum Teacher, gifted healer, writer and creative catalyst in the field of embodied awakening and trauma resolution for the last 26 years. All of her programs are grounded in science, expanded through devotional practice, and made real through direct experience.
Due to early developmental trauma, ancestral trauma and our cultural context at large, there is a prevailing unconscious nervous system habit of using spirituality, and particularly the non-dual orientations, to hide, bypass or otherwise disassociate from the intelligence of your core human needs and desires. It is as if your needs and desires are problems to be ashamed of; to fix or get rid of, on your way to spiritual realization.
This is not a sustainable, humane or truly integrative path. We long for the tangible felt sense of our wholeness. We long to passionately embody all that is present within our very human, holy and messy majesty of being alive. It is time that we compassionately discover how to allow everything to be lived within the intimate embrace of the Heart.
In this introductory evening, we will melt below our habit patterns of the default nervous system and connect directly with this core intelligence ─ discovering our own intimate, ever fresh, self-healing, oxytocin-replenishing, cell-renewing, inspired embodiment practice.
Utilizing conscious breath, sound vibration, subtle intrinsic movement, embryological anatomy and provocative inquiry, we enter into the inner alchemy that allows a dissolve of any outdated structures that may be obstructing our path. A psycho-spiritual somatic reorganization and higher order of self-regulation arises as our cells surrender into the all-pervasive holding ground of nature that is always present, when we are seated in the Core.
We will re-emerge renewed, resourced and ready to re-engage our senses such that they become thresholds where the divine, the natural world, our culture and the mystery of being human coalesce as the dynamic dance of Life.
“The beauty of any true transformational path is that it will involve pattern interrupting the normal way in which you breathe, and thus your unconscious identity, taking you home to the innocence of your origins and the birthright of your Biological Breath – a systemic breath that unifies your body, mind and heart. You awaken as a whole body, mind, and heart breathing, reclaiming ALL that you are.”
Pre-registration (strongly recommended): $25
At the door (as space allows): $25
Please note that this is one of an ongoing series of special intimate gatherings to be held in the new Open Circle Room at Chochmat HaLev (the first door on the left down the side passageway).
Due to limited space, and in order to facilitate a more intimate container, these gatherings will be limited to about 15 people. Therefore, we strongly recommend pre-registration for these special evenings.
For anyone who has not pre-registered, admission at the door will be as space allows. So, be sure to sign-up early, and please try to arrive at least 5 minutes before the starting time.
Also note that, unlike most Open Circle events, these gatherings are not by donation. We require a specific admission price, whether by pre-registration or at the door. Thank you for your understanding and support.
Find out more »Holiday Meditation & Sing-along ~ with Maja Apolonia Rodé
$12 Preregistered Online - by noon on 12/20
$15 at the Door - space permitting
Location: Berkeley, CA
Open Circle’s Small Gathering Room
(first door on the left by the carport)
2215 Prince Street, Berkeley
Join Maja and like-hearted company for a special Open Circle gathering in honor of the holy-days. This intimate evening will weave together meditation and holiday-inspired rhymes, songs, sing-alongs, and reflection. Together let us celebrate the true spirit of the One Heart.
Feel free to linger afterwards to partake in the sweetness of the season — including chocolate, hugs, and heartfelt conversation.
Due to the nature of this gathering, please attend only if you plan to arrive on time and stay until the end. Doors will open at 7:15. Thank you.
About Maja
Maja Apolonia Rodé shares an inspiring array of creative expressions with one common purpose: to support the realization and flowering of your true nature. From ethereal chants to irreverent raps, mystical rituals to playful games, sacred arts instruction to contemplative consulting, Maja’s work invites you into the depths of presence where your consciousness and true creative potentials naturally blossom.
Maja holds a PhD in Transpersonal Psychology and worked closely with spiritual teacher Adyashanti for almost two decades as the Creative Director of Open Gate Sangha, where she supported the flowering of his dharma and shared her original music and poetry at countless events and silent retreats. In her one-on-one work, Maja serves as a creative catalyst, guide, and friend to those who are called ever-deeper into their original, authentic expression of awakened awareness.
$12 Preregistered Online - by noon on 12/20
$15 at the Door - space permitting
Richard Miller ~ Living Enlightenment
Throughout the 1970’s, 80’s and 90’s, Richard had the good fortune of meeting a series of spiritual teachers, including Laura Cummings, J. Krishnamurti, Adi Da, Dadaji, Jean Klein, Adyashanti, and Suzanne Segal, who helped him directly realize the nondual teachings, as exemplified in the paths of Advaita, Kashmir Yoga, Taoism, and Dzogchen. Richard now shares this realization, and its integration into daily living, through meditative self-inquiry, the presence of being, and what lies beyond all sense of separation and self-awareness.
Richard is the co-founder of the International Association of Yoga Therapists, co-founder and past president of the Institute for Spirituality and Psychology, and founder of the iRest Institute, where he teaches retreats and trainings internationally, and conducts research on the nondual program he’s developed—iRest Meditation—a synthesis of ancient nondual practices of yogic meditation, studying its efficacy on health, healing, well-being, and awakening.
“Living enlightenment entails no less than a fundamental figure-ground reversal within our psyche, where our center of gravity shifts from identification as a separate ego-I to Essential Nature—the Mystery that has given birth to the entire cosmos—that is simultaneously everything, and no-thing.
“Living enlightenment takes us beyond duality and nonduality, where we recognize there is no condition, state, realization, or accomplishment that is ultimately definitive and final. Here, life is a continuous unfolding, with Essential Nature living us—and everything—as Its what, where, when, how, that, and this of each moment.
“Living enlightenment both exposes our absolute helplessness and insecurity when we live identified as a separate ego-I, and reveals our absolute security and stability when we give ourselves over completely to being lived by the intelligence of Essential Nature. Here, we awaken beyond conflict and suffering to living true compassion, kindness, love, joy, and equanimity, and respect for the preciousness of life and the environment, amidst all the changing circumstances and relationships of our lives.”
Suggested donation: $15 to $25
Find out more »January 2019
Larry Robinson ~ The Way of the Boddhisatva
2:00-4:00 pm, with refreshments until 5 pm
The way of the boddhisatva - full-hearted engagement with a suffering world. The boddhisatva’s commitment is this: “Beings are numberless; I vow to save them. Delusions are boundless; I vow to end them. Dharma gates innumerable; I vow to enter them. Buddha’s way is unsurpassable; I vow to become it.” We will explore what this vow means in actual practice.
Larry Robinson is a potter, retired psychotherapist and recovering politician. He is the founder and producer of Rumi’s Caravan, committed to restoring the soul of the world through reviving the oral tradition of poetry. He is a practitioner of Zen Buddhism who has been meditating for 48 years.
Suggested donation: $10 to $20, no one turned away for lack of funds.
Where: 8476 Sonoma Ave, Sebastopol, CA
Park on Sonoma Ave, walk down short driveway to to house with carport.
Arrive 10-15 minutes early for the best seat.
Shakti Caterina Maggi ~ Awakening in Daily Life
Shakti is a teacher very well known in Europe and her native Italy, who offers a contemporary and accessible vision of true awakening that is profoundly in tune with Advaita and nondual Tantric traditions.
The spiritual journey inevitably leads to the confrontation between our "spiritual life" and our "material life", discovering how and where we truly embody the truth of our heart. Realizing the emptiness of our true nature is just the starting point of an integration process that can take several years and involve all aspects of our lives, and leads us to several moments of crisis in which old egoic patterns of behavior that are still based on the separative mind emerge to be dissolved by the light of Awareness.
Shakti has spent many years deepening this integration process. With wisdom, humor, and heartfelt connection, she shares a message of discovering our divinity at the very core of our humanity. Shakti has been sharing this message of non-separation since 2003 with many people around the world, especially in Italy and in Europe, where she holds satsangs and retreats.
"Peace is not a destination, but a starting point. Find that Peace that rests behind anything and anybody and bring it into your world. Every human being looks for Peace in their inner or outer reality. In this call for clarity, what we are looking for is what our true nature actually is.
“We are used to imagining that the dissolving of inner and outer conflicts comes as the result of some action, whereas it is only when we move from Peace that those actions will bring the end of any conflict. Moving and living from Peace is recognizing what we are, and integrating it in our everyday life.
“Awakening to your true nature means to wake up to your true essence that lies behind any conflict of daily living. Thoughts and feelings are not an obstacle to this recognition, but the direct expression of how we know or ignore ourselves. Once we find that silence that rests behind manifestation, the ego will come back, out of habit. If we can recognize its presence, not as a disturbance but as an opportunity to integrate the message, our everyday life becomes our true spiritual journey. The Peace of our Being becomes the world we see and live in.”
Suggested donation: $15 to $25
Find out more »Neelam ~ The Role of the Nervous System in Awakening and Freedom – What does it mean to Be Here?
10 am to 12 noon (Pacific Time - San Francisco, CA, USA) Time Zone Converter
"Awakening is a shift from identifying yourself as this body to knowing yourself as Presence. Freedom means a true independence from the past, where our ability to Be Here and the action in the moment are not guided by our attachment to the arising past. To truly be Free we need to embody our recognition of Presence, and that requires growing of the capacity of our nervous system to Be Here. It is in the meeting of what arises that we find true and lasting freedom."
~ Neelam
This call is an invitation to Presence and to Neelam’s teaching and a practical exploration of the role of the nervous system in Awakening and Freedom. The nervous system and its capacity to Be Here is an essential element for Awakening, Embodiment and for Freedom.
When unmet, un-experienced Tendencies of the Past arise - and we so often believe it and identify ourselves with that – it affects and manifests in our physiology and that shows up as thoughts and as feelings, emotions and sensations.
If there is no awareness of that, and no Capacity to Be Here, our nervous system reacts and moves into fight / flight / freeze or overwhelm, and we end up re-enacting or suppressing and thus perpetuating the Past.
The capacity of our nervous system to Be Here and experience the arising Past is often the missing link between our Desire for Truth and our ability to independently experience Presence and Self-Inquiry, which is what takes us directly into Awakening, Embodiment and Freedom.
Neelam is a direct disciple of HWL Poonja (affectionately known as Papaji), whose own teacher was Ramana Maharshi. Neelam’s unequivocal commitment to Truth helps us turn inward and release underlying patterns of conditioning which block the recognition of our True Nature. With the utmost tenderness, she invites us into the same recognition of Truth that her teacher, Papaji, transmitted to her, while helping us to address all aspects of daily living, including past conditioning and trauma.
Testimonials from Participants:
“What's different about Neelam is that she demystifies the actual practice of being present - she's helped me see what's actually happening when feelings and emotions come up, and how, in a very practical way, to deal with them. Her strong point is "how to actually do this being the present thing." It really helps to take it out of the mind and into the body”
“Neelam showed me that Being Here was what I was looking for. Then she showed me how to build Nervous System capacity to Be Here and that took time and repetition”
Suggested donation: $15 to $25
Find out more »