Monthly Sitting and Inquiry with NYI Guiding Teacher, Gina Sharpe. These regularly scheduled evenings begin with a guided meditation and then open up to our practice questions allowing us time to deepen in Sangha through mindful community discussion. Gina Sharpe is the Guiding Teacher of NYI, which she co-founded in 1998. She has been studying and practicing the Dharma for several years in Asia and the United States across many traditions and has been teaching since 1994.

This evening’s talk will address the overlap between psychotherapy and meditation, from the perspective of a Western psychiatrist whose introduction to the study of the mind came through Buddhist meditation. Discussion will center on how primal emotions like aggression and desire are handled. While it is often assumed that Buddhism counsels suppression or eradication of such energies, Mark Epstein will propose another model. Drawn from his studies of both D.W. Winnicott and the Buddha, this evening’s presentation will use the Buddha’s own inner struggle as a model for our own. Meditation instruction will be offered. Mark Epstein is a Harvard trained psychiatrist with a private practice in New York City. A longtime student of Joseph Golstein and Jack Kornfield, he is the author of a number of works about the overlap of Buddhism and psychotherapy, including Thoughts without a Thinker, Going to Pieces without Falling Apart, and Psychotherapy without the Self.

In celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's birthday, NYI offers this daylong to explore diverse teachings on paths to freedom. Using the ideas of Dr. King as a framework, we will introduce the words and ideas of different leaders from around the world who have used their spiritual practice as a foundation for social engagement. Through interactive dialogue and activities, we will examine how we ourselves can find the inspiration to engage in our communities with open hearts of compassion and wisdom.

Conscious living is treating every moment of every day as a meditation; it is cultivating wisdom through mindfulness. Mindfulness gives rise to awareness, and awareness allows our innate wisdom to flower. Wisdom brings forth compassion. This retreat is an intensive exploration of meditation in daily life. Participants learn and practice several specific meditation techniques intertwined with the key Buddhist teachings that give both a practical and philosophical foundation for the techniques. Participants will have the opportunity to discuss their experience, ask questions, and address issues regarding the integration of meditation and Buddhist thought into daily work, family, and social life. Michael Daner has followed the Dow and the Tao--as far away as India and as close as his own backyard-for over thirty years. He is a student of Theravadan Buddhism, Dzogchen and Advaita. Michael's teachers include Jean Klein and Namkai Norbu. He co-developed the Living Wisely/Working Wisely Workshop. George Pitagorsky blends Buddhism, systems thinking and non-dual philosophy. He has practiced yoga and Insight Meditation since the early 1970’s. He is a senior teacher at NYIMC and, as a multi-disciplinary business consultant and coach, focused on applying open-minded mindfulness to achieve optimal performance. George is author of The Zen Approach to Project Management, editor of the Breakthrough Newsletter, and is currently working on a book on Conflict Management. George seeks to help people to integrate meditation and Buddhist thinking into their daily lives. He has served on the NYIMC Board of Directors.