About

About the Still Water Mindfulness Practice Center

The Still Water Mindfulness Practice Center’s mission is to nurture all who wish to practice mindfulness. We are part of a world-wide network of communities inspired by the teachings and practices of Thich Nhat Hanh, a widely-known Vietnamese Buddhist monk, author, and activist. We are also incorporated as a religious non-profit corporation in the state of Maryland.

Members of the Still Water community come together to sit quietly in meditation, to learn mindfulness practices (from sitting meditation to walking and eating meditation), and to support each other in our lives’ journeys. On Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday evenings there are community gatherings that include sitting meditation and a program focused on mindfulness in everyday life. Each weekday morning members of the Still Water community gather together to practice sitting and walking meditation before beginning their daily pursuits. Newcomers and experienced practitioners are always welcome.

In addition to our regular program we regularly offer workshops, retreats, and other special events. The best way to stay informed about our activities is to subscribe to our email newsletter, which provides information about each Thursday’s program as well as other events in our community and in the area.

Almost 60 years ago Paul Reps published a picture poem in Zen Telegrams:

When we drink tea with mindfulness we resist the busyness, materialism, and alienation of our modern world. We practice mindfulness for ourselves, to become calmer, more alive, more genuine. And we practice mindfulness for the world – to create a world in which there is greater understanding and compassion, a world in which our essential oneness is embodied in thought and action.

Still Water Mindfulness Practice Center: Our Vision

Our Core Values

Mindfulness: To be fully present and awake in our own lives and to be aware of the inextricable connectedness of life.
Compassion: To have the intention and capacity to relieve and transform suffering.
Community: To live and grow being supported by and supporting others.

Our Core Purpose

To nourish the seeds of mindfulness, compassion, and community in individuals, families, and the larger society.

Our Community Practice

Just as a home is enriched when there is a room or place set aside for meditation, breathing and calming, so too a community is enriched when there is a center where people can come to learn and practice the art of mindful living. As a nurturing and supportive practice community in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh, the Still Water Mindfulness Practice Center offers programs of sitting and walking meditation, classes in the traditions and practices of mindfulness, retreats, service projects, and social and family events. The community joins with other faith communities in promoting understanding and compassion in our daily interactions and in the interactions of communities and nations.

Our Goals

Supporting practice: encouraging and nourishing the daily practice of mindfulness, compassion, and community through events and actions such as on-going meditation and discussion groups, community gatherings, classes and workshops, retreats, website and email announcements, online communities, and personal interactions and spiritual friendships.
Creating community: cultivating a welcoming and diverse community in which members can embody their understanding and love for each other, share deeply, maintain nurturing spiritual friendships, support each other through difficulties, and celebrate accomplishments and milestones.
Building an effective and resilient organization: developing an appropriate organizational structure and culture that allows the Still Water MPC mindfully to set goals and objectives in support of our core purpose, make timely decisions, implement meaningful programs, foster commitment and participation, and meet the community’s financial obligations.
Contributing to love, peace, and justice in the world: encouraging community members to live mindfully in the world, aware of the consequences of their actions; and as a community supporting events, programs, and institutions that bring, love, healing, and joy to our neighborhoods, regions, and planet.