In today’s world where we face images of innocent civilians suffering because of war and famine  and we find our free speech and democracy in peril, we seek refuge in the Three Jewels, the Dharma, the Buddha, and the Sangha. Our teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh, encouraged us to do more, to be engaged in the world to help bring peace. To that end, the Heart of the Valley Mindfulness Practice Center has developed a list of Activism Resources that can be found here and in one of the tabs at the top of our web page. Thanks to Sami Sadjawari for curating this list and accepting additions and corrections as we work individually and collectively to apply Thich Nhat Hanh’s teachings to the problems we face personally and we find facing us in our communities, States, and nation.

In a 2003 interview in Lion’s Roar, Thich Nhat Hanh offered the following response when asked to define “Engaged Buddhism”, a practice that is part of the Plum Village tradition:

Engaged Buddhism is just Buddhism. When bombs begin to fall on people, you cannot stay in the meditation hall all of the time. Meditation is about the awareness of what is going on-not only in your body and in your feelings, but all around you…

Buddhism has to do with your daily life, with your suffering and with the suffering of the people around you. You have to learn how to help a wounded child while still practicing mindful breathing. You should not allow yourself to get lost in action. Action should be meditation at the same time.

When asked why he would say to people who feel that they need to choose between being engaged in social change or working on personal and spiritual growth, Thich Nhat Hanh replied:

I think that view is rather dualistic. The practice should address suffering: the suffering within yourself and the suffering around you. They are linked to each other. When you go to the mountain and practice alone, you don’t have the chance to recognize the anger, jealousy and despair that’s in you. That’s why it’s good that you encounter people—so you know these emotions. So that you can recognize them and try to look into their nature. If you don’t know the roots of these afflictions, you cannot see the path leading to their cessation. That’s why suffering is very important for our practice.

Sunday Sits at Dartmouth College begin at 10:00 AM and conclude at 11:30 AM. The format includes a sitting and walking meditation, followed by a reading and sharing in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh. All are welcome!  We meet in Room E042 of the Engineering and Computer Science Center. Visitor parking is available in the lower level of the Emily and Errik Anderson Parking Garage, which is under the ECSC. The garage can be accessed from West Street, the first light above the Ledyard Bridge if you are coming from Norwich and the first light below the Green if you are traveling from Hanover. An elevator in the garage will take you to the classroom, which is located on the G level. NOTE that there is a $5 fee to park in the lot, which is far handier than other free parking options in Hanover or in the Ledyard lot on the Connecticut River. 

MINUTES FROM TUESDAY ALL SANGHA MEETING OF THE HEART OF THE VALLEY MINDFULNESS PRACTICE CENTER 

March 11, 2025, 9-11 AM 

• Reading of the Mindful Meeting Vow 

• Joyce offered an overview of the purpose of the meeting: to give sangha members the opportunity to provide feedback to the sangha’s three governing bodies, the Facilitators, the Board, and the Care Council as they develop practice opportunities and new ideas for deepening the spiritual growth of members, consistent with the Plum Village Tradition. 

• Those in attendance introduced themselves with their name, where they’re from, which sit(s) they attend, and if they serve on any of the governing bodies.  A total of 22 were in attendance. 18 in person and 4 on-line.

• Wayne and Sami presented an overview of the survey findings (summary and details attached). The Care Council recommended having a 3^rd sit at a time suitable for people who work. They plan to send another survey to determine a day and time.

• Those in attendance supported having a sit at a time to accommodate those who work. Preferences for Saturday or Sunday were given, with a preference for Saturday because some people attend church on Sunday. Those preferring Sunday cited ongoing family commitments on Saturday, as well as the Norwich Farmers’ Market, in season. A show of hands indicated 10 in favor of either Saturday or Sunday, 6 for Saturday and 3 for Sun One suggestion was to experiment to determine whether Saturday or Sunday works best for most people.

• There were suggestions to:
• Invite children and families to a Saturday or Sunday sit
• Meet Sundays 5:30-7 PM
• Meet 1 Saturday a month 10:30-1:30. 
• Have a daily on-line 30 minute morning meditation
• Engage Dartmouth students in plans for launching an additional
• Start a Wake-Up group at Dartmouth

• In discussion about finding a venue for a weekend sit, Rollins Chappel was suggested, as was finding a venue closer to Lebanon. St. Barnabas is not available on Saturdays or Sundays. Sami, Lisa, Wayne, Dianne and Gail volunteered to be a team to follow up on finding a venue for a weekend sit.  

• There was discussion about modifying the format of the existing Tuesday sit, which will be discussed by the Facilitators at their march . Among the topics discussed were:
• Having movement practice instead of indoor walking meditation which is difficult for those with balance issues, especially when outdoor walking is not possible due to weather.
• Having the Tuesday session 9-10:30, instead of 9-11 and moving the informal sharing time to the end at 10:30.
• Making the clean up at the end a Mindful Working M
• Offering Metta on a more regular basis.

• There was discussion and interest in forming a social action and engagement group. Creating a Beloved Community Circle with the guidance of dharma teacher John Bell was mentioned. The Care Council will organize a meeting of people interested in participating in or helping to organize a Social Action group.

• There was a discussion of activities and Dharma study of interest to sangha members based on survey responses.  Individuals or “teams” who might facilitate these activities with help of the CC can be formed. The committees might organize the following: 
• Guest teachers
• Weekend retreat at Morning Sun
• Weekend retreat at Blue Cliff
• Mindful Hikes
• Study Groups: Anyone interested in 3-to-6-week study groups focusing on areas of our practice that we don’t usually get into during sangha gatherings, g. 4 Noble Truths and Eightfold Path, 4/6 Paramita, the 8 Realizations of Enlightened Beings; etc.

• To help contact and organize “team” participants, Matt will set up a google document with names of sangha members who give permission to be contacted regarding committee activities, or general communications.

• Wayne, Matt and Sami will identify issues to include in a follow-up survey of the entire sangha.

The following is a summary of the findings from the survey developed by the Care Council sent to all on the Heart of the Valley Mindfulness Practice Center mailing list in early 2025. The complete survey results can be found HERE.

Analysis of Heart of the Valley Sangha Survey

The Care Council developed and published a survey that was sent out as a separate email to the 242 recipients of our weekly mailing and with a link incorporated in two successive weekly mailings. The purpose of the survey was to identify ways our sangha members could collectively deepen their practice and ways we might change our format and to better meet sangha members’ needs.

WHO RESPONDED?

We received 29 responses to the survey, an 13% response rate from the entire list and an 21% response rate based on those who opened the emails. 55% of the respondents attend the in-person sit and 31% attend the virtual sit. Most respondents (69%) were regular weekly attendees with 17% attending “a few times per year”.

HOW LONG AND WHEN SHOULD OUR IN-PERSON SITS BE?

• 70% of the respondents were in favor or indifferent to reducing the length of the sits from 2 hours to 90 minutes with 30% expressing disagreement to change.
• 56% were in favor of or indifferent to beginning earlier while 44% disagreed or strongly disagreed with changing the current start time.
• 63% were in favor of or indifferent to moving the sit to the weekend, 37% disagreed or strongly disagreed with such a move.

RECOMMENDATION: Given the high percentage of those in support of or indifferent to changing the length of the sits and the comments offering other ideas and expressing an openness to further dialogue on these issues, the Care Council might identify some viable alternatives to explore further at our all-sangha meeting.  

DESIREABLE SANGHA ACTIVITIES

• Just under 2/3 of the sangha members who responded to this question supported having guest teachers offer programs, by far the largest positive reaction. The other activities that garnered support from more than 1/3 of the respondents were deep relaxation and “potlucks and social gatherings” (35%). In response to a separate question, 85% expressed interest in an organized hike or other outdoor activity.
• The sangha members with three exceptions would like to engage more frequently with monastics. This could be done in conjunction with Dartmouth College or as a group activity (see next bullet).
• Sangha members expressed strong support for three group activities: an organized annual visit to Blue Cliff (80%); a weekend day of Mindfulness led by a Dharma teacher or monastic (92%); or a weekend retreat at Morning Sun (80%)

RECOMMENDATION: The Care Council in conjunction with the Facilitators, explore the possibility of scheduling a visit from a guest teacher for either our in-person or virtual weekly session(s). They should also explore the feasibility of an organized annual visit to Blue Cliff; a weekend day of Mindfulness led by a Dharma teacher or monastic; or a weekend retreat at Morning Sun. In terms of social activities, it is evident that a group hike elicited the strongest level of interest among members

AGENDA FOR ALL SANGHA MEETINGS

March 11 and 12, 2025

1. Meeting Protocol: Joyce (5 minutes)
   1. Mindful Meeting Vow: We vow to go through this meeting in a spirit of togetherness as we review all ideas and consolidate them to reach a harmonious understanding or consensus.  We vow to use the methods of loving speech and deep listening in order to bring about the success of this meeting as an offering to all beings.  We vow not to hesitate to share our ideas and insights but also vow not to say anything when the feeling of irritation is present in us.  We are resolutely determined not to let tension build up in this meeting.  If any one of us senses the start of tension, we will stop immediately and ask themindfulness holder to invite the bell so that we may stop, take at least three long mindful breaths, and re-establish an atmosphere of togetherness and harmony.
   2. Meeting Bell Holder = Bineke
   3. Timekeeper = Matt
   4. Note Taker = Gail
   5. Overview of timing
2. Purpose of Meeting: Joyce (5 minutes)
   1. Diagram of Sangha
3. Introduction of those in attendance (name, where from, which sit): (5 minutes)
4. Overview of survey findings (summary and details attached): Wayne (10 minutes)
   1. Reactions, feedback from those in attendance
   2. Questions we may have missed
5. Additional Sit? (Discussion, not decision): Sami (30 minutes)
   1. Our challenge based on survey findings.
   2. Care Council recommendation: the sangha give serious consideration to accommodating people with traditional work schedules by launching an additional sit.
   3. Considerations in launching an additional sit
6. Modifying format of Tuesday or Wed sit: Joyce (5 minutes)
7. Determining how to organize activities of interest to the sangha: Wayne (10 minutes)
   1. Social action and engagement: brief introduction by Sami who will offer words from Thu Nguyen, seek input from sangha, get a sense of those who might be interested in participating/organizing with the CC.
   2. Activities of interest to sangha based on survey response.
      1. Guest teachers
      2. Weekend retreat at Morning Sun
      3. Weekend retreat at Blue Cliff
      4. Mindful Hikes
      5. Identifying individuals or “teams” who might facilitate these activities with help of the CC
      6. 1. 1. 4 Noble Truths and Eightfold Path
            2. 4/6 Paramitas
            3. 8 Realizations of Enlightened Beings; etc.Study Groups: Anyone interested in 3-to-6-week study groups – outside the regular sangha schedule – focusing on areas of our practice that we don’t usually get into during sangha gatherings, e.g.
            4. Identifying other activities to consider

8. Identifying issues to include in follow-up survey of entire sangha: (5 minutes)

The link below will connect you to a pdf that describes two events being led by monastics from Deer Park and Magnolia Grove monasteries on April 5-7: a retreats at Dartmouth College’s Rollins Chapel on April 5-6 and a science symposium at the Hanover Inn on April 7.

Zen and the Art of Mindful Living Retreat

From April 1 through April 7 Dartmouth College will be hosting ten monastics from the Deer Park and Magnolia Grove Plum Village monasteries. The link below will take you the schedule for the week which includes listings for public events and links to registration for the retreats that will be held on April 5-6 and April 7.

Plum Village Scheduled Events

On September 24, 2024, the Heart of the Valley MPC hosted a Day of Mindfulness attended by over 50 practitioners from 8 sanghas. Many thanks to Sangha Sister Joyce Solomon for organizing the event with Eileen Mahoney, who served as the lay liaison for the Blue Cliff Monastics NE Tour.

Our webpage now offers an opportunity for you to make an online donation to the Heart of the Valley sangha. By clicking HERE you can make a one-time, monthly, or annual donation. This will take you to our PayPal account icon where you can use your own credit card or PayPal.

Here are the materials for the meeting of the Heart of the Valley Mindfulness Practice Center to be held on Tuesday, March  12 at 11:15 following the Tuesday morning sit:

MPC Bd Agenda for 2023 (Mar ’24)Annual Board Report 2023Sangha Treasurer’s Report FY23