Mindful Walk in Pacific Spirit Regional Park
Weekend day 9:00am - 1:00pm
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Mindfulness in the outdoors. The Buddha often retreated to the forest. There we often find quiet interconnectedness that is inspired by fresh air. This walking and standing day of meditation takes place near UBC. Compared to the Mindful Hiking day, this trail will be more accessible and less strenuous.
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We will walk trails, stopping occasionally to practice standing meditation, and possibly sit. Outdoor dharma practice varies depending on the weather. Along the way, there will be impromptu dharma teaching and times for question and answers about practice and buddhism.
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Once you sign up, a few days before the walk you'll get an email with more specific details regarding weather, trail conditions, and what to wear. The morning of the walk you'll need to check your email in case the conditions change and we need to make adjustments.
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The cost of the walking retreat is based on donation to the teacher. Please sign up below to hold your spot as the group will be limited to 10 people.
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Updated for the walk that took place in November 2018
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Hello mindful walkers,
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Welcome to the Pacific Northwest and our beloved rainforests. It is scheduled to rain on Sunday so we're going to walk mainly along Sword Fern Trail which is nicely hidden under the canopy of trees. Please meet at the Pacific Spirit Regional Park Centre Parking Lot at 4915 W. 16th Ave (400 meters west of Blanca Street) at 9:00am. See the Google map below.
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Dress warmly as we will be practicing walking and standing meditation. A thick fleece or even a down jacket underneath a good waterproof jacket is a must. It will likely be muddy, so good waterproof walking shoes or boots is important. A hood on your jacket will be essential and/or bring an umbrella. Hats and gloves too. Our Pacific Northwest dampness has a way of penetrating our clothing especially when we're standing still in the cool moist rainforest.
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The schedule is 9:00am to 1:00pm but we will see how warm, cold, or wet we are as the morning progresses. In other words, we may end earlier than 1:00 if we get cold and wet.
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The most important things to bring are you sense doors. In buddhist psychology the sense doors include your sight, sound, smell, taste, touch and mind. We hope to connect to the sight, sounds, and smell of the rainforest. We will practice anchoring in the body as we practice walking meditation, then we'll open to the natural sensations of the forest. There will be brief instructions and dharma talks along the way as we enjoy the company of our fellow walkers and the gifts of the forest.
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I will have my business phone with me, so if you need to message me at the last minute, my number is 604-432-7600.
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We've been planning for this day for some time. I'm looking forward to the feeling the gifts of our rainforest. See you all on Sunday.
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James
Tel/Txt 604-432-7600
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