FIRST Gathering (April 23, 2006 from 5-7pm)

Practitioners of Color Meditation Group in San Diego
facilitated by practitioners in the Zen tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh and Deer Park Monastery

“Only compassion can liberate us. With deep understanding, compassion will arise and embrace not only ourselves but everyone who is still living in darkness, in ignorance, and in discrimination.” -- Thich Nhat Hanh

THIS GROUP will provide a warm and inviting space for people of Native, African, Latina/o, Chicana/o, Hispanic, Asian/Pacific Islander, Caribbean and Middle Eastern ancestry to be supported in their practice of mindful living. Emphasis will be placed on learning and practicing ways to develop mindfulness, compassion and loving kindness in all aspects of our daily lives. This group is open to all people of color interested in this supportive space of practice, learning and community. Beginning and experienced practitioners are invited. You don't need to consider yourself a Buddhist and you can come on a drop-in basis.

·WE MEET the third Sunday of every month from 5:00 to 7:00 PM at UC San Diego Cross Cultural Center (http://ccc.ucsd.edu).
· The first gathering is APRIL 23rd, 2006 (the 4th instead of the 3rd Sunday of April because of Easter).
· We will practice sitting meditation, have a short presentation of the Dharma followed by group sharing.
· Please bring your own sitting cushion, though chairs are provided for those who prefer them.

DIRECTIONS to UC San Diego Cross Cultural Center are available at: http://ccc.ucsd.edu/contact.html.
The CCC is located between the Literature Building and Visual Arts Facility, off Lyman Lane on the UCSD Campus. The Cross-Cultural Center is building 720 on the UCSD Campus Map. For a UCSD Campus Map go to http://maps.ucsd.edu.

DRIVING DIRECTIONS: From I-5 South, exit and turn left on La Jolla Village Drive OR from I-5 North, exit and turn right on La Jolla Village Drive. Turn Right on Villa La Jolla Drive (At the top of the hill if you straight instead of turning right on Gilman Drive, there is s a parking structure in front of you. The Campus Parking Office is located on the ground floor.) Turn Right on Gilman Drive. Turn Left on Voigt Drive. Turn Left on Lyman Lane. You can park in lot 403 which will be on your right side. OR you can continue driving on Lyman Lane. It will make a 90 degree turn to the right. At the end of the street, there will be metered parking spots and the Cross-Cultural Center will be on your right side. It is a two story beige and light green building. Parking during the weekend is free in metered, red, green and yellow parking spaces.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact facilitators at 760-484-0833 or colorsofcompassion@yahoo.com
For updates, visit: www.colorsofcompassion.blogspot.com

DEER PARK MONASTERY is in Escondido, 45 minutes northeast of San Diego, CA. On 400 acres of rocky mountain, sage brush and ancient oak groves, there are quiet hiking trails and spacious valleys. We offer year-round retreats in the art of mindful living, healing and transformation. We also offer annual retreats for People of Color. This September 1st to the 5th, we will offer our third retreat for People of Color, titled The Soul of Gratitude. Please see our website for more information: http://www.deerparkmonastery.org/

THICH NHAT HANH is one of the best known and most respected Zen masters today. He is a poet, peace and human rights activist and a monk. Over the past twenty years, he has offered retreats for Vietnam veterans, mental health and social workers, prison inmates, ecologists, businessmen, police officers and members of Congress. He has founded two monasteries in Vermont and California. In addition, numerous lay practice communities practicing in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh meet regularly throughout the United States and around the world. He has offered two retreats for people of color at Deer Park Monastery.

"...this gentle Buddhist monk from Vietnam...is a scholar of immense intellectual capacity. His ideas for peace, if applied, would build a monument to ecumenism, to world brotherhood, to humanity."
--Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in nominating Thich Nhat Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967