Embodied PracticeThe rains retreat ends today with the full moon of October. I have looked up at the night sky and imagined the nuns and monks of the Buddha’s time joining to chant, meditate, and share teachings with each other and with their supporters. Supporters are by definition practitioners too. They are the folks who make it possible to sit and be still. They make it possible for themselves and others to be inspired by, and undone by the universal truths of suffering and freedom from suffering. We work together. We collaborate to make the Path a reality. Folks who support the Way are the mothers of the Path, no matter what gender they are. So today I write to share how grateful I am to all the mothers of the Path. Thank you to the many, many folks who made it possible for me to practice this Path as a bhikkhuni and to complete the 2021 rains retreat here in Alexandria, Virginia. I won’t name you all, but you should know that I hold you in my heart. You have been “kalyāṇa-mitta,” good Dhamma friends, in so many ways. Some of you have meditated and chanted together with me, some have given gifts of food or other requisites, some have spoken from the heart and to the heart. In all these ways and more, we have accompanied each other on the Path. And we are just getting started. Let’s keep walking the Way together. A New Vihara in VirginiaThis month also brings the wonderful news that the Board of Dassanāya Buddhist Community and I have found a suitable location for a vihara. The word “vihāra” is Pāli for “a dwelling, a place of abiding.” This place will be a residence for me, and for guests who come for brief periods of time to be of service and to train. It will also serve as the location for small group gatherings, such as sutta contemplation meetings or morning meditation. I’ll be moving there in early November, and I hope to share a new address, practice schedule, and calendar with you in the coming weeks. In the meantime, I plan to continue offering Dhamma online, in the form of morning meditations, as well as Dhamma talks. I also hope to offer an online class in 2022, based on the insights gleaned from studying the life of the Buddha during this year’s rains retreat. Lastly, I’m also collaborating with local sanghas and retreat centers, so that we can offer larger events and retreats. Several retreats are already planned for later this year and early next. I hope to see some of you then. Yet, whether we see each other in person or not, we are making the Path possible for each other. With gratitude and much joy,
Ayya Dhammadīpā
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