The Bellingham Mindfulness Community is a diverse group of people who practice meditation in the Mindfulness tradition taught by Vietnamese monk, poet and peace activist, Thich Nhat Hanh. Our practice encourages and supports the joy of mindful awareness in all aspects of our lives.

We are blessed to have a local teacher in the Mindfulness tradition, Eileen Kiera. Eileen has practiced in the Buddhist tradition for over twenty years and, in 1990, Thich Nhat Hanh granted Eileen permission to teach the Dharma. Eileen offers classes in Bellingham and leads retreats several times per year throughout the Pacific Northwest. Eileen is also the guiding teacher for Sanghas in Seattle, Idaho, Montana and Oregon.

Thich Nhat Hanh predicts that the next living Buddha will be the Sangha, the community of practitioners. Our practice has a special emphasis on community building. We welcome people of all backgrounds to come practice with us.

We offer orientation to mindfulness practice for those who are new to our Sangha at our weekly sitting. To request an orientation or for information about the Bellingham Mindfulness Community please contact Danna Zelenka at 738-0681 (dzelenka@excite.com).

 Weekly Practice
Wednesday Evenings 7 to 9 p.m.

We generally practice meditation from 7:00 until 8:00 p.m. Our practice consists of a period of sitting for 20 minutes followed by walking meditation, which is followed by another period of sitting and walking. Please arrive a few minutes early so that we may begin sitting at 7:00 p.m. If you arrive late, please wait in the front room outside the zendo (meditation hall) until the end of the next walking meditation so as not to disturb other meditators.

Our practice emerges from Vietnamese Zen tradition, which may appear unusual to Westerners at first. You do not need to take part in any of the rituals that do not feel comfortable to you. You may choose to sit upon a zafu (meditation cushion), a meditation bench or in a chair. We ring three bells to signal the beginning of each meditation period and two bells to signal the end of each period. In addition, we ring bells at other times as a reminder for us to return to the present moment. We bow at various points in our practice to deepen our mindfulness and to offer gratitude.

A program usually follows meditation from 8:00 until 9:00 p.m. Programs range from Dharma talks by our teacher, Eileen Kiera, to videos of Thich Nhat Hanh, discussions about various topics of practice or ceremonies in the tradition of Mindfulness Meditation.

You can view the Current Practice Schedule here.

Days of Mindfulness

Days of Mindfulness offer us an opportunity to deepen our practice and build Sangha together. Days of Mindfulness begin at 10:00 am and continue until 3:00 p.m. We generally begin with three periods of sitting and walking followed by a recorded Dharma talk by Eileen Kiera or Thich Nhat Hanh.  We then share a meal in mindfulness followed by outdoor walking meditation or a Dharma discussion. The Day of Mindfulness ends with sitting meditation. Please bring a vegetarian potluck item to share. We also host Days of Mindfulness at Mountain Lamp. Please check the schedule to see the date of the next Day of Mindfulness.

 

Retreats and Other Information

Our sister Sangha in Seattle, The Mindfulness Community of Puget Sound, sponsors week long retreats led by Eileen Kiera in January each year. The retreat take place at a beautiful camp at the edge of Puget Sound. Practitioners may attend the retreat for the entire week or for the weekend only. The weekend portion sometimes has a children’s program and families are encouraged to attend.

Eileen and her husband, Zen Roshi Jack Duffy, live in the mountains about 45 minutes east of Bellingham at Wild Rose Farm, a rural retreat center of the Mountain Lamp Community. Eileen and Jack co-founded Mountain Lamp and the retreat center at Wild Rose Farm as a place of refuge. Mountain Lamp holds Days of Mindfulness and retreats of various lengths throughout the year, including weeklong retreats during the summer. For more information about Mountain Lamp contact the Mountain Lamp guest master at 360-592-0600. Visit the Mountain Lamp community website here,

Our weekly practice and some Days of Mindfulness takes place at the Anything Grows building, which is located at 100 E. Maple St (see map), near the corner of Cornwall and Maple Streets in downtown Bellingham. Our use of the practice space is supported by membership in the Bellingham Mindfulness Community (see member application).

 Gathas for
Sitting and Walking Meditation

To practice mindfulness in our daily activities, we focus our mind on a gatha or short poem to deepen our experience of simple acts we often take for granted, such as dishwashing, driving or waking up. We also use gathas to deepen our experience of sitting and walking meditation. You may wish to use the following gathas to support your meditation practice. Recite the first line of each pair silently on the in-breath and the second line silently on the out-breath. Additional gathas can be viewed here.

Gatha for Sitting Meditation

Breathing in, I know I am breathing in
In

Breathing out, I know I am breathing out                     
Out

Breathing in, I feel my breath becoming deep
Deep

Breathing out, I feel my breath becoming slow
Slow

Breathing in, I calm my body and my mind
Calm

Breathing out, my body and my mind are at ease
Ease

Breathing in, I smile
Smile

Breathing out, I release all tension in my body and my mind
Release

Breathing in, I dwell in the present moment
Present Moment

Breathing out, I know this is the only moment
Wonderful Moment  

 

Gatha for Walking Meditation 

I touch the earth,

The earth touches me

 

I love the earth,

The earth loves me

 

I am the earth,

The earth is me

 

last updated January 12, 2008
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