The Buddha was a subversive revolutionary in his own time.

His enlightened point of view opposed the norms of his day and ran “against the stream” of unconscious patterns of human behavior. Buddhism teaches present-time awareness as the path to directly accessing the wisdom and compassion within each one of us. Mindfulness is the tool to uncover that wisdom. In this world, where greed, hatred, and delusion are the norm, our natural human tendency is to cling to pleasure and push away pain. Mindfulness allows us to break the habitual reactive tendency of clinging and serves as an act of inner and outer rebellion.

This urban retreat offers a day of mindful sitting and walking meditation in the service of awakening. By practicing in an urban environment, we awaken and integrate that mindfulness into our worldly and mundane experience. Explore the Buddhist path as the ultimate form of antiestablishment action, serving both personal and social transformation.

Noah Levine, MA, author of Dharma Punx and Against the Stream, is a Buddhist teacher, author, and counselor. He was trained to teach by Jack Kornfield of Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, California. He teaches meditation classes, workshops, and retreats nationally as well as leading groups in juvenile halls and prisons. Levine holds a master’s degree in counseling psychology from CIIS. He has studied with many prominent teachers in both the Theravadan and Mahayanan Buddhist traditions. He lives in Los Angeles.

LECTURE
The Buddha Was a Social Activist
Thursday, November 1
CIIS Main Building
$15

WORKSHOP
Saturday, November 3
10am–5pm
CIIS Main Building

6 CEUs (MFT, LCSW, RN)

To request a program catalog or for more information contact:

CIIS
attn: Public Programs
1453 Mission St.
San Francisco, CA 94103
415.575.6175
publicprograms@ciis.edu