Cultivating Our Garden of Love: A Day of Mindfulness with Brother Michael Nguyen (Chan Phap Uyen)

Cultivating Our Garden of Love: A Day of Mindfulness with Brother Michael Nguyen (Chan Phap Uyen)

Sat, August 1

Sat, August 1, 9:00 am4:00 pm

Sat, August 1, 9:00 am – Sat, August 1, 4:00 pm

Brother Phap Uyen's path to monastic life is unusual. Born in Vietnam, his family came to the US as immigrants when he was two years old. Thirteen years later, in 1989, he met Thich Nhat Hanh at a retreat and took the five mindfulness trainings. However, two years later, rather than moving in the direction of spiritual practice, he took his life in a different direction and joined the Navy. He served in Iraq during Desert Shield/Desert Storm, from 1991-1995.

His return to civilian life was difficult. As mentioned in a Huffington Post article about him, “when he went to sleep he returned to the combat zone, battling ghoulish enemies in dreams that were so intense that while he was sleepwalking he would punch out the walls of his bedroom. ‘I would be constantly fighting, kicking, screaming, swearing, having to patch up my walls pretty much every single week.’” Suffering from PTSD, it was difficult for him to keep a job or maintain a relationship.

Eventually, he found his way back to a spiritual path, attending a retreat at Plum Village in France in 2002 and staying on to ordain as a monastic. Phap Uyen received full ordination in 2007, and has been a Dharma teacher since 2010. He currently resides at Plum Village's Magnolia Grove Monastery in Batesville, Mississippi.

In recent years, with the encouragement of Thich Nhat Hanh, he has focused his teaching on working with veterans and their families, sharing mindfulness and trauma releasing exercises they can use each day. He was the primary organizer of a 2014 veterans retreat at Blue Cliff Monastery in New York called "Welcome Home, How to Truly Come Home."

During our Day of Mindfulness, in addition to guiding our sitting, walking, eating meditation, Br. Michael will share about his own transformation and his work with Veterans. Two practices he would especially like to offer are:

  • The Touching the Earth prostrations which allow us to release our worries, suffering, and anxieties, and,
  • TRE Trauma Release Exercise/Tension Release Exercise, which is especially helpful for veterans and others suffering from deep trauma.

We will gather in the sanctuary of the Seekers Church (276 Carroll St NW, Washington, DC 20012), which is one block from the Takoma Metro Station.

The suggested dana (donation) is $40-$70. Dana is a gift from the heart that supports the community and the teachings. Please feel free to contribute less or more according to your circumstances. Please wear comfortable clothesand and bring:

a bag lunch and snacks for yourself, and maybe a treat to share with a few others
a mat and cushion if you would like to sit on the floor (however, there are lots of chairs at Seekers Church)
a yoga mat or blanket for total relaxation
Register now. If you have questions, please please contact our registrar, Gene Klinger: gklinger@verizon.net or (240) 731-3732. For directions to the Seekers Church go to www.seekerschurch.org

We hope you can join us. Please pass this notice on to friends or groups you think might be interested in joining with us.

Brother Michael will also be joining the Still Water community on August 2nd for its annual day Lotuses, Food, and Mindful Friends event.

Seekers Church

276 Carroll St NW

Washington, DC 20012

seekerschurch.org

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