Brief Class Details
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( B ) Brief ClassSUMMARY♦Here's All You Need to Know
Our TABLE of CONTENTS is for the rest of this whole enchilladaof a very rich, expanded-site.
Especially for YourOwn informative, easy READING & LEARNING about Buddhism & Meditation.
On the Table of Contents you'll find much more expandedfuller sections to read about 'Class-Details',
and 'Meditation' itself ~ and about 'Buddhist Thought' that may be very 'enlightening' for you as to some of
what we call 'Buddhism' is all about. It is recommended that you read here First – this really distilled down
summary of Class-Details is all right here ~or~ be welcome to go check out the Table of Contents sections.
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~ currently ~
please still always phone to confirm
which is the OPEN Class Evening of the week
Mondaysonly till Jan 09
The “BUDDHISM” Class
Vipassana Insight Meditation
“The PATH OF NO EXPECTATIONS”
A Path of Abundant ‘Practice Opportunities’
• OPEN Weekly Evening Class withAkasa Levi
• LIMITEDStudy-Group Nite for core-students
7:30 - 9:30 PM • Santa Monica • 310-450-2268
Best phone times – on any day – Noon to 6pm
•Join our OPEN Ongoing Classes at Any Time •
"Just the Rational
Deeply appreciatingthe Mystical,
and the Mystical
Deeply flavoring the Rational."
~ Bhante Ananda Maitreya
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The Buddha of Inner-Strength: a Study in Compassion & Clear Comprehension
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"Like a handsome tree –
Come to Meditation slow
with the heart of youth
and grow slowly into it.
Why are you impatiently
in such an irritable hurry?
'Results' are simply a useful illusion.
An illusion of 'Appearances' none the less."
Buddhist Meditation ~the power of much more inner-silence
BUDDHISM WITHOUT ANY BELIEFS: A BUDDHIST STUDY-SITE on AWAKEN.MENT
An Ongoing Study-Series for a Maverick Spirited Inner-Quest & Deep Inquiry into Self.
Silent Sitting Meditation as you increasingly cultivate your own Dharma 'Informed' Mind.
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OVERVIEW ~ please hand-scroll & read very slowly ~slow is good~
The LAUGHING BUDDHA SANGHA offers a very eclectic “Inquiry into Self” practice,
combining the cool, calm 'observation' approach of traditional Vipassana Mindfulness
Meditation – with the 'crazy wisdom' irrationality of Zen Non-Duality realizations which
short-circuits the obsessive self-involved, self-absorbed, self-identified ego-mind.
" One easily-made, very common mistake is to think that 'your reality’ is THE Reality.
You must always be prepared to bravely leave your reality for a greater one."~ Meeraji
NEWCOMERS:Beginners are very welcome! You will be very, very patiently guided.
You are asked to inquire by phone - n’ let's see if this group is possibly even for you.
This Sitting & Study Group encourages highly inquisitive, progressive-minded people,
with a natural, deep love of learning - who relish the abstract, and even the absurd –
and have a genuine taste for the indefinable 'existential' stuff. Buddhism is playful too.
" . . ever noticed, that it'sAlwaysNOW " ~ Alan Watts ~ suggests you repeatedly keep noticing this
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"BUDDHA: The JOYOUS ICONOCLAST"♦'Buddhism Without Any Beliefs Whatsoever'.
Buddha was a total Iconoclast ~ A Quietly Joyous 'Radical', a Quietly Maverick Ole' Monk !
Our core-practice is solidly informed by the earliest traditional Pali Theravada Sutras to
insure Buddha’s original Insight-Process – without any cultural-beliefs or add-ons for a clean,
'un-decorated' clarity of view – that is 2500 years old – plus some of Zen's later contributions.
" Every community needs a group of angelic troublemakers " ~ Bayard Rustin, black social activist
The "BUDDHISM" Class: What we offer is a 'Buddhist Classroom' where you may continually
refineyour Beginning 'Practice' of Silent Sitting Meditation and a clear-cut understanding of
'What IS Buddhist Philosophy?' or is it a psychology? – and 'What DID the Buddha Teach?'
We offer the opportunity to sit a deeper meditation with an American Buddhist teacher, a
real former ordained-monk who lived for years in Asia – and trained in this multitude of often
unfamiliar Eastern transformative-practices. And why & how they work within your very Being.
There are already Meditators out therenow who are ready – and really seeking to do a
much deeper questioning into the False-Belief in a 'Self' - a de-mystifying, open-minded,
caring 'conversation' into Wisdom, Empathy & Spiritual Reality in our Western life-style - plus
some poetry & laughing! Meditators with already more consistent 'sitting experience' -
or some background in a teacher-led practice, actual retreats, etc. - are always welcome
to come sit & join in with us at anytime. And ~ please ask about the Core Study Group.
Here's an Informal Study Seriesoffering a much more way Outside-the-Box-Buddhism.
Heart-filled 'heresy' for a more Maverick Spirited Inner-Quest - nourishing your evolving
'Iconoclast Intelligence' and Compassionate Critical Thinking, with a tender, caring
heart – through some refreshing, yet even 'radical' spiritual 'new' considerations of Reality
empathically ‘de-constructioned’ - as you cultivate your very ownDharma 'Informed' Mind.
" What is accepted by the majority of people ~ does not mean it is Real "~ The Buddha
WHEN to START? Sincere Beginners may enter our Ongoing Classes At Any Timethat
works for you. You do NOT have to be 'book-smart' or very intellectual to 'get' it. Just like
to ask lots of questions. If you're willing to give it a try - you'll catch up & catch on quite fine.
WHICH EVENING? Phone us to inquire which weekly evening is the OPEN Class Evening.
CLASS DATES:You choose. Well, since you may join our Ongoing Classes At Any Time –
You can freelychoose the most suitable dates for yourself. That’s when your6-Week
Beginners Class begins. Phone us to confirm WHICH current OPEN Class Evening of
the week it is: It may change. So IF you doneed to set a class-start or end-'Date' for
yourself, to fit in with your other plans – there really aren’t any. Please Phone us first
– a week or a few days ahead at least, please – with enough lead time to phone tag.
You'll also need to check n' see if we're taking 'beginners' at this time – or will be in
just a short time down the line. "Everything is freshly approached with a Beginner's Mind".
•Also we'd like to personally connect with you ‘live’ about this class - so we can talk a bit
– to really see if this 'odd' class is even for you... a cautionary maybe, or just maybe not.
And of course, class is 'Off' during certain hiatus periods & major Holidays. 310-450-2268
“There are No Answers” Our practice, as Rilke says:
is "To Love the Questions themselves! "
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7:30-9:30 pm Meditation Weekly Evenings Include:
♦ INSTRUCTION & SITTING - a 35-40 minute Silent Sitting Meditation, cushion or chair.
Dharma Talk or Text study with Q&A Satsang-Dialogue - Metta-style 'Loving-Kindness'
meditation or sacred poetry or mini-ritual to conclude at 9:30. Your individual, personal
access to the teacher is easily available. Nothing ever aloof here – just unconventional.
♦ First-Timers: come 15 minutes early for some instructive-pointers for a couple of weeks.
Everybody: please BE M I N D F U L of TIME ! ! Sittingbegins at 7:30pm prompt~ thanks
"Please Arrive On The Early Side of Your Nature" – so you have generous time to settle-in.
"True ‘generosity’ towards the Future - is to give everything now - to the Present."~ Camus
♦ WHAT to BRING:Bring your Willingness ! Bring your Bravery ! Always Bring your Open Heart !
We sit mostly on chairs. If you really like to floor-sit, we have a few firm sitting-cushions, or bring
your own meditation Zen Zafu cushion, Back-Jack chair or Meditation Bench. Bring your own
Bottled Water, Pen and Notebook, have Shoes that slip on & off easy. You may want to bring
a Light Blanket or Shawl to cover your lap or legs or wrap your body – try it, you'll like it.
Wear loose clothes so nothing binds, so breath & body-tensions can fully relax and fall away.
♦ CLASS FEE: Meditation Classes are voluntarily & totally $upported by your Gift of Kindness.
The usual 'suggested' donation of $15-$20 is for a full evening class - and does feel quite fair
and reasonable to ask for any evening class –AND– No one is ever turned away for lesser or
lack of funds. We so appreciate your mindful-experience of 'Dana' ( Practice of Generosity )
that we all work toward integrating more mindfully into our overall everyday life-meditation
practice – sometimes unprompted & sweetly willing, at other times with some resistance.
Notice it all. Donations help cover our class expenses. ~ We thank you
♦LOCATION for OPEN CLASS in Santa Monica may be at a Sunset Park private residence.
To insure maximum privacy ( web-sites dogo world-wide, ya’ know ) the Exact ADDRESS, Driving
Directions & Parking info - will gladly be emailed to you when you do decide to attend a 1st Class.
Please inquire by phone. Please, openly Ask us about ANY other Details that may concern you.
310-450-2268. Best phone times are Noon to 6 pm – Mon/Fri. We thank you for your understanding.
Please Read Onward . . .
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♦IMPORTANT –for the motivated beginner for a sturdy, strong start,
a Once Weekly Beginner's“Practice Class-Commitment” of 6 weeks
for a reasonable, steady 'CONSISTENCY' of Practice is SincerelyRequested of you.
“Commitment”for some, it’s a Difficult, Big Loaded Word . . . yet it affects everything
we do as human beings – be it a satisfying ‘relationship’, or to an art, or your life’s-work,
or to good health, or to cello lessons. In the Sanskrit sacred-language of India, one major
word for the "idea' of commitment" is 'Yoga' – which means 'uniting-with', 'come to one with'
– be it Hatha Yoga-asanas (postures) or advanced Jnana or Raj Yoga-realization through
the Advaita-philosophy. 'Yoga' means an effective, expedient means or 'mode of practice'.
YOGA of the MIND:Please Read this very Important partfor your optimized learning.
Of course, you are welcome to come for a One-Time Visit. Attend OneClass.
Then after a first visit - You decide if this ‘growth-setting’ - this challenging, off-beat, oddly
unorthodox Buddhist class is possibly even for you.This Weekly Class is a small, intimate,
salon-style, in-depth Buddhist meditation and study group. Just come & see if you like it.
" You don't have to see the whole staircase – just take the first step in faith " ~ M.L.King
Beginnersare encouraged to be sincere & very steady attendees - committed & willing
to being present each week for an initial6 Week Class-Commitment– that’s not a lot.
It's highly recommended to give Initial Meditation Practice about 2 months. For a new
sincere 'Beginner', that's quite reasonable to ask –AND we understand that , you may
occasionally, miss your class due to other important plans. Always class can be made-up.
Beginners-Sorry,butfor a first go, this can not be just a drop-in meditation group for you.
But AFTERyour'beginner-status' is over – after having immersed yourself in steady weekly
attendance doing this ‘Yoga’ of the Mind – then of course you are most welcome & certainly
may want to continue to practice meditation with us ongoing AT ANY TIME thereafter – purely
on your own terms & schedule – with NO class commitment. The door is simply open to you
– you simply come when you want. So come to our Meditation Boot Camp to start meditating.
"Arriving with 'The Gift ofGood Intent' toward your own Success"~ Old Irish Blessing
And along with your cultivating your ownsteady'Home Practice' – frequent sitting Meditation
‘Practice’ becomes gently integrated into your life - as your own special 'Quiet-times', along
sideyourweekly Dharma Group Night – as you start toreally build-inyour own sense of
“Meditation-Practice-Opportunities” that are all around you & within you - coming to class
to practice whenever you choose. A motivated Meditation takes a willingness to ‘practice’.
It is an IMPORTANT sense of personal 'satisfaction' for your own learning-curve efforts,
to responsibly attend to your "Meditation Class Commitment" for a steady 6-weeks - or as
you've pre-arranged with the teacher. Asolid 'Consistency' of practice can be a very warm,
hearty & hardy, necessary 'working-virtue' for establishing the steady continuity of insight &
comprehension - that is so necessary for seeing Truth. Along with a steady practice there
develops a deeper integrated experience of Compassionate Insight of one's very own 'self'.
" Whatever the Question ~ Love and Kindness is the Answer!" ~ The Dalai Lama
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So Please – do not feel intimidated or ‘shudder’ at the mere mention of 'commitment' –
or by the reasons, the clarifications & encouragement about ‘why’ we do a class-commitment.
Some people struggle with the difficulty of ‘commitment’.Others simply relax and just hang-in.
We wish to maintain maximum 'attendee-continuity' – at it's best optimum-level of learning.
"Tradition should be a guide, not a jailer."
~ W. Somerset Maugham “The Razor’s Edge” 1931
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Already some Experience with meditation sitting-practice?Now may be an opportunity
to re-connect with a group-sitting practice or to further develop your training in The Dharma.
You are always welcome to come and do 'sittings' with us and join in the Dharma discussion
with us at anytime without any 'class commitments'. This is also true for our Sangha-posse of
"Irregular-Regulars" who have previously attended frequent meditation classes & sittings on
a regular basis in the past. You might also ask about the Core Study-Group Nite, usually
limited to more 'practiced' students – or those few folks who've got a Dharma-background.
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Some Experience ? So – come renew, refresh, review, revive . . .
or even challenge your current meditation practice – or maybe you've been hibernating ...
Impasse: Stale? Stymied? Sleepy? Stumped? Slumped? Stuck?
The very best way to ‘maintain’ real, progressive continuity of mindful Insight Practice –
is to be in stillness & silence with silent group support - and maybe the presence of a teacher.
MoreExperienced Meditators who are now seeking to do a much deeper questioning into
the False-Belief in a 'Self' - a de-mystifying, open-minded, caring 'conversation' into Wisdom,
Empathy & Spiritual Reality. Meditators with already more consistent 'sitting experience' or
some background in a teacher-led practice, actual retreats, etc. – are always very welcome
to come sit & join in with us at anytime. Already some experience with meditation ? Come.
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♦For a more extended discussion of ‘COMMITMENT’ for those who need to explorethis further or
review this issue for yourself, please do see Commitment Archive- last item onTable of Contents.
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so please be encouraged !
" You began as a ‘creation’.
Now become a Creator.
Never just wait at a barrier "
Mawlana Jalal-ad-Din Muhammad Balkhi Rumi ( 1207–1273 )
13th century Persian poet, mystic, Islamic jurist and theologian
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" Good timber does not grow with ease.
The stronger the wind ~ the stronger the trees."
~ Willard Marriot
" Eighty percent of success is just showing up! "
~ Woody Allen
" The Greatest Risk Is Not Taking One "
"While one person hesitates because they 'feel' inferior & ‘think’ insecure thoughts –
the other is just busy making mistakes a p l e n t y - and becoming quite superior"
the other is just busy making mistakes a p l e n t y - and becoming quite superior"
~ The Tao
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Question!
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Akasa Levi ~was one of the few Americans of the Sixties 'counter-culture' generation that lived
a full decade in Asia during the 1970's - to be directly with the last living spiritual teachers of the
pre-global era. He was a Vipassana Buddhist forest monk for six years – trained and ordained
into the Theravada monastic lineage by the revered Maha Nayake Ananda Maitreya of Sri Lanka.
Originally a Vajrayana initiate of Lama Thubten Yeshe and Zopa Rinpoche at Kopan in Nepal –
And later, a Vipassana student of Sri Anagarika Munindra and S.N. Goenka in Bodhgaya, India –
and practicing Non-Duality Advaita in satsang with Nisargadatta Maharaj in Bombay. Akasa at 68,
is a Bodhi-Acharya 'lineage-holder' of the Theravada teaching-transmission. He is known for his
spontaneity and wry unpredictable humor. He also offers private therapy & counseling sessions.
For the whole enchilada version of Akasa’s bio please see Table of Contents # 12.
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♦LITTLE or BIG HUGE QUESTIONS? or HESITATIONS? – FIRST-TIMER-NEWCOMER-BEGINNER
INDIVIDUAL PERSONAL QUESTIONS ? COMMENTS ? EXPERIENCES ? DOUBTS ? CONFUSIONS ?
HESITATIONS ? CONFIRMATIONS ? JOY ? REALIZATIONS ? EPIPHANIES ? ANYTHING at all ?....
"Doubts & Hesitations"- Those too are ALL a major, major part of your 'Meditation' practice path".
We call it “THE PRACTICE of GREAT DOUBT” - from a Buddhist perspective, that's a verygood thing !
We encourage you to examine & question absolutely everything! (Not like other ‘religions’, huh ? )
Dragging your feet about your coming ??? Class will also be fun ! We laugh a lot while deeply
considering some very serious issues of ‘living’ & ‘dying’ & ‘existing’ & ‘suffering’ & ‘transcending’
the Ego-Life of the Mind. More Questions?- be very welcome to Phone us during the afternoons.
( no email-dialogues: it really gets too laborious ) Talk with us about anything spiritual or 'religious'.
You can runstuff by us. We'll tell ya' what we know – "cause we been around the block before you".
You can runstuff by us. We'll tell ya' what we know – "cause we been around the block before you".
Best phone times: Noon~6pm any day ~ 310-450-2268 ~ Please, really don't hesitate to call. FREE.
"If they ask you where you heard that, tell 'em you bumped into the Rabbi on the street." ~ I.B.Singer
There is never any fee, no obligations at all for any meditation class-related topics or issues.
We’ll just help you figure it out some more, when you get here the first time, or even every time !
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ultimately . . .
" All philosophies are 'mental fabrications'.
There has never been a single philosophy
by which one could enter the True-essence of things."
~ The Buddhist Yogi Nagarjuna ( India, 1st century AD )
BOOKS – "A PATH WITH HEART"by Jack Kornfield - is ourcore class hand-book, our gold
standard meditation reference-guide, an ongoing, working-'manual' for all classes we offer. This
is the onlyRequired'must-read' Book for our classes. Newcomers:Please Wait till after your
first class to purchase it. One otheradditional purchased bookmay or may not be read for each
class-season. We’ll read most of this One book & parts of 2 FREE online booklets. That’s it !
All other reading is entirely optional. See the Expanded Book-List at Table of Contents #14.
You might also ask about the weekly CoreStudy-Group Nite limited to more practiced students.
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WISDOM-GNOSIS ~ WISDOM KNOWS
Wisdom really likes Wisdom. It thrives on it.
Wisdom when Awakened likes to stay Awake !
Wisdom when Awakened prefers Wisdom to my old EgoSelf.
Wisdom when Awakened begins to replace my neurosis & inner-noise.
Wisdom when Awakened expands and multiplies ! Wisdom changes me.
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PS: If you know someone else in your life
who just may also benefit by our offerings,
be very welcome to put them in phone
contact with us.
See "On Bringing a Friend"
Go to Table of Contents see section...
( 13 )The Big DETAILS on Evening Programs
This is a much fuller version than the Brief Summary.
Please try n’ inquire only by phone: 310-450-2268
Emails to us tend to get lost in the stack, the phone
is still really the best. Best phone-timeNoon to 6pm,
Mon-Fri – or leave a Voice Mail if we don't pick-up.
If you wish to leave your email address, speak slowly,
clearly, then we can email Directions to you.
Let's talk by phone n' see if this 'odd' class
is even possibly for you.
Thank You ~ This is the END of the not-so-brief Summary,
Be most welcome to visit . . . maybe we'll C Ya'
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If you can create the 'reading-time',
go to the Table of Contents – and
choose the much more expanded
full sections to read on 'Meditation'
~ and about 'Buddhist Thought' ~
that may be very 'enlightening' for you as to
what some of 'Buddhism' is really about.
Some surprising stuff !
It may be very helpful for your in-depth or
overall understanding - as your relationship
with Buddhist Practice begins to develop.
BTW: Noneof this big site's readings
are required or necessary for attending
our Weekly Meditation classes.
Read steady - or graze just what you want to,
in any order that flows for you . . . enjoy
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Most of the above Summary can also be found compacted on our Buddha.BLOG
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