Early on the morning of Monday 27th May 2019 three of our Wild Geese took the 14 Mindfulness Trainings and were ordained as Lay Members of the Order of Interbeing – they became Brown Jackets. Congratulations to Andrew (True Steadfast Transformation), Gill (True Steadfast Inclusivity) and Sally (True Steadfast continuation/connection)! The names are appropriate. Sally’s can be translated from the Vietnamese two ways. Continuation and connection overlap in meaning.

We now have five ordained members of the order in the Edinburgh Sangha: Andrew, Bill, Gill, Roger & Sally. This is probably one of the highest in Sanghas in the UK.

The Wild Geese led the regular Sunday service at St Marks on 12th May. The service included a lovely talk from Pete Smith. If you missed it you can enjoy the talk now or read a transcript below.

Talk for Unitarians 12 May 2019 PDF

We are starting morning walks for all you early birds. From 8.25am to 9am on Tuesdays and Thursdays starting in May and continue probably till the festival starts but possibly forever. Please come along and join us. It is free.

Whether or not you can make it you can help to spread the word by mentioning the walks to your friends in person or on social media. If you can think of somewhere to put up a poster that would be doubly helpful.

Download PDF of poster to print and share.

We have been planning our summer schedule and have the opportunity to run two Mornings of Mindfulness in June and July.

• Saturday 1st June 2019 a Morning of Mindfulness facilitated by Bill on the theme of Mother Earth.
• Saturday 6th July 2019 a Morning of Mindfulness facilitated by Gill – theme TBC

Save those dates in your diary for rest and recharge at St Marks.

If you aren’t on our mailing list please fill in the contact us form and we will add you. You’ll then receive notification of these events are they come up.

Just a quick update of what’s coming up in the near future – there’s a lot about to happen!

• Our friends at the Touching the Earth Sangha in Banchory are organising a retreat at The Burn, Edzell, Angus (pictured) in the third weekend in September. For more information download the booking form: Mindfulness Retreat Invitation and Booking Form 2019 copy.
• Jon, Pete and Sally will be leading the Sunday service at St Marks Unitarian Church on 12th May.
• Our Friday morning sit is looking to expand as Sitting@Dawn. Watch this space for a further announcements.
• A group of us are going to start regular mindfulness walks from the labyrinth in George Square. These will be at 8:30am for half an hour and begin after Easter. Details to follow.
• We will now be finishing by 9pm each Monday at Santosa rather than 9:30pm. Earlier to bed.
• I (Roger) am running contemplative walking workshops called Two Feet, One Mind at the botanics on three Tuesday evenings in May. This is not an officially Wild Geese event but part of the Royal Botanics Garden Edinburgh education programme. It is based on Thay’s teachings though 🙂
• Anything missing? Let us know through the contact form.

Fresh

So how can I meet

these familiar faces

in this familiar place

day after day

as freshly

as though this were the first time

we had met

and as tenderly

as though this really could be

the last time

i see you

alive?

We finished with Mary Frye’s 1932 poem “Do not stand at my grave and weep“

For the 15th successive year we are happy to be able to facilitate a mindful peace walk at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh as part of the Edinburgh International Festival of Middle Eastern Peace and Spirituality EICSP.

NB: A slightly later start time than previous years.

Venue: Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, John Hope Gateway, Arboretum Place, Edinburgh, EH3 5NZ.
Date: Sunday 24 March 2019
Time: 10am for 10.15am ends by 11.15am. Meet at West Gate entrance to the John Hope Gateway, Arboretum Place. Introduction to mindful walking at 10.00am. Walk begins at 10.15am.
Cost: Admission Free. Just come along on the day.

This silent walking meditation is an open event. It will be led by the lay members of the Edinburgh Sangha of the Community of Interbeing, who follow the practice and teachings of Zen Buddhist Master, Thich Nhat Hanh. The walk begins at the John Hope Gateway of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Before the walk begins there will be a brief introduction to mindful walking as meditation practice. This is not a protest or a campaigning event, so please do not use any banners. Children are welcome when accompanied by adults. Please remember to wrap up warmly – last year it was snowy!

You may be interested in a mindfulness morning at St Mark’s on the Saturday following the walk.

‘We walk just for walking. We walk with freedom and solidity, no longer in a hurry. Let us enjoy every step we make.’

Thich Nhat Hanh.

This session will continue our gentle exploration together of the Sutra on the Full Awareness of Breathing.

Exercise 13 is the first of the four breathings covering ‘objects of mind’ and it brings us to the contemplation of impermanence. As a way to try to bridge the gap between the notion of impermanence and the living insight of impermanence we will learn from each other by sharing our own experiences of change in small deep listening groups.

Although things constantly change they continue in other forms, so we will also explore the ways in which we are continued by our thoughts, words and actions.

The session naturally follows on from previous ones in this series but we hope the session will also work as a stand alone session and all are welcome. It will include guided meditation, walking meditation, readings and sharing in small groups.

NB: Please note that this not specifically a workshop on death, but is about all kinds of change. Participants will be able to choose for themselves which aspect of the topic is most alive for them and share (if they wish) at whatever level feels comfortable for them.

We will also have a mindful lunch together so please bring a little vegetarian or vegan food to share. Tea will be provided. Cushions, mats and blankets are available at the venue, but you are welcome to bring your own if you prefer.

When: Saturday 30th March 2019 – 9:30am to 1:00pm (Please try to arrive a little earlier so that we can start at 09:30)
Where: St. Marks Unitarian Church, Castle Terrace
Booking: Just turn up.
Bring: Small amount of vegetarian food to share if that is easy.
Cost: By donation – to cover the cost of hiring the venue etc. Suggested: £10 (£5).

You may be interested in joining us on our annual mindful peace walk at the botanics on the Sunday before this mindfulness morning.

Amongst practitioners with many years experience in mindfulness and meditation, it is all too easy to build a routine mind around our practice and, in so doing, lose touch with the present moment without even realising it. This can further lead to us losing faith in the practice as we inadvertently mistake the habitual mind developed around the practice for the practice itself.

In this mindfulness morning, we will explore together a mind free from our perceptions of practice – seeking the original motivation and enthusiasm which brought us to meditate. Beginners welcome.

The morning will be lead by Keith.

When: Saturday 19th January 2019 – 9:30am for 10am to 1:00pm
Where: St. Marks Unitarian Church, Castle Terrace
Booking: Just turn up.
Bring: Small amount of vegetarian food to share if that is easy.
Cost: By donation – to cover the cost of hiring the venue etc. Suggested: £10 (£5).