In his own training, Soryu Forall has explored this big question that may trouble many of us who want to serve the world. Amidst the natural sounds of early spring, he shares a story from the Abenaki, a tribe local to Vermont that teaches the wisdom of nature and all living things. This tale about a bear and a brown squirrel (which you might never have seen) can guide us in our own exploration.

This is an excerpt from a talk that was given at a silent retreat in May 2020. This is a time for the MAPLE community to focus exclusively on awakening. It references the Fifth Stage in the Ten Stages from the Avataṃsaka Sutra, but knowing the text is not necessary.
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The Monastic Academy is a training center dedicated to creating wise, powerful, and loving leaders who are an unstoppable force for social and environmental peace on Earth.
If you're interested in learning more, go to our website monasticacademy.org

We are accepting applications for 2-3 month-long apprenticeships. The training will provide you opportunities to dive deeply into mindfulness practice in community, working, and dedicated sitting periods. The apprenticeship is FREE with room and board provided.
Learn more here: www.monasticacademy.org/apprentice

Change The World Or Leave It Alone? - Soryu Forall

In the modern age, we often encounter views that are more insidious than they first appear, such as: 
"Who knows what's actually bad?" 
"There's nothing you can do that matters." 

They're reasonable responses given the incredible amount of pain and ignorance in the world. Nonetheless, they disable our capacity for compassion and clarity, and stem from unwillingness to face the pain and insecurity, and pay attention to the outcomes of our actions. If we want to be of service to the world, we need to cut these views out of our hearts. 

This excerpt is from a talk that was given at a silent retreat in May 2018. This is a time for the MAPLE community to focus exclusively on awakening.
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The Monastic Academy is a training center dedicated to creating wise, powerful, and loving leaders who are an unstoppable force for social and environmental peace on Earth.
If you're interested in learning more, go to our website monasticacademy.org

We are accepting applications for 2-3 month-long apprenticeships. The training will provide you opportunities to dive deeply into mindfulness practice in community, working, and dedicated sitting periods. The apprenticeship is FREE with room and board provided.
Learn more here: www.monasticacademy.org/apprentice

Dangers of Thinking "Nothing Really Matters" - Soryu Forall

When we encounter challenging situations in life, we have certain choices in how to respond: complain about it, or throw ourselves in. Our teacher Soryu Forall had to make this choice when he was training at Sogenji in his late teens, and was confronted with the seemingly unreasonable requirement to meditate outside at night after each long arduous day. As his choice shifted from one to the other over time, he came to realize that complaining led to hardship, while throwing himself in led to a deep peace and happiness, in which the true struggles can emerge and be resolved. 

This excerpt is from a talk that was given at a silent retreat in April 2021. This is a time for the MAPLE community to focus exclusively on awakening.
-----
The Monastic Academy is a training center dedicated to creating wise, powerful, and loving leaders who are an unstoppable force for social and environmental peace on Earth.
If you're interested in learning more, go to our website monasticacademy.org

We are accepting applications for 2-3 month-long apprenticeships. The training will provide you opportunities to dive deeply into mindfulness practice in community, working, and dedicated sitting periods. The apprenticeship is FREE with room and board provided.
Learn more here: www.monasticacademy.org/apprentice

Choices In Response To Challenges - Soryu Forall

To realize that the basis of happiness is virtue can be a joyful adventure, but it's not easy. We can see for ourselves it takes a lot of trial and error, doing all kinds of stupid things and learning from them. Like us, the fully awakened Gautama Buddha had to do the same. While his former life was that of a prince, his path might have started long before that. More important than whether tales of his past lives truly happened is the question: can they teach us something true that can guide us in our own path?

This excerpt is from a talk that was given at a silent retreat in May 2021. This is a time for the MAPLE community to focus exclusively on awakening.

Humble Beginnings of the Fully Awakened One - Soryu Forall

As Siddhartha Gautama continued his endeavor to fully awaken, Māra returned with his myriad of terrifying armies. We may all be more familiar with them than we'd expect. How did the yet-enlightened bodhisattva survive their attacks?

To hear more, go to Part 3: https://soundcloud.com/monasticacademy/better-to-die-than-live-defeated-soryu-forall-part-3-of-3/
Part 1: https://soundcloud.com/monasticacademy/better-to-die-than-live-defeated-soryu-forall-part-1-of-3/
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The Monastic Academy is a training center dedicated to creating wise, powerful, and loving leaders who are an unstoppable force for social and environmental peace on Earth.
If you're interested in learning more, go to our website monasticacademy.org

We are accepting applications for 2-3 month-long apprenticeships. The training will provide you opportunities to dive deeply into mindfulness practice in community, working, and dedicated sitting periods. The apprenticeship is FREE with room and board provided.
Learn more here: www.monasticacademy.org/apprentice

Better to Die than Live Defeated - Soryu Forall (Part 2 of 3)

When Siddhartha Gautama committed himself to not get up until fully awakened, he was challenged by a formidable and cunning foe who didn't want him out of their grasp. How did the yet-enlightened bodhisattva prevail? Soryu retells this most epic part of the Buddha's life story. 

This is Part 1 of 3, which stands well on its own. To hear more, go to Part 2: https://soundcloud.com/monasticacademy/better-to-die-than-live-defeated-soryu-forall-part-2-of-3/
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The Monastic Academy is a training center dedicated to creating wise, powerful, and loving leaders who are an unstoppable force for social and environmental peace on Earth.
If you're interested in learning more, go to our website monasticacademy.org

We are accepting applications for 2-3 month-long apprenticeships. The training will provide you opportunities to dive deeply into mindfulness practice in community, working, and dedicated sitting periods. The apprenticeship is FREE with room and board provided.
Learn more here: www.monasticacademy.org/apprentice

Better to Die than Live Defeated - Soryu Forall (Part 1 of 3)

Soryu Forall guides us in finding relaxation and cultivating energy in the body, then exploring how they are complementary for deepening our practice. 

This guided meditation was given at a silent retreat in March 2021.
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The Monastic Academy is a training center dedicated to creating wise, powerful, and loving leaders who are an unstoppable force for social and environmental peace on Earth.
If you're interested in learning more, go to our website monasticacademy.org

We are accepting applications for 2-3 month-long apprenticeships. The training will provide you opportunities to dive deeply into mindfulness practice in community, working, and dedicated sitting periods. The apprenticeship is FREE with room and board provided.
Learn more here: www.monasticacademy.org/apprentice

Relaxation and Energy - Guided Meditation by Soryu Forall

What are you willing to do anything for? What is so precious that it's worth giving this life for it? 

These are the questions our teacher Soryu Forall urged us to answer for ourselves. In the last retreat before he leaves MAPLE for a few months, he reminded us in the most uncompromisingly honest way the dire need of truly answering with clarity.

This excerpt is from a talk that was given at a silent retreat in June 2021. 
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The Monastic Academy is a training center dedicated to creating wise, powerful, and loving leaders who are an unstoppable force for social and environmental peace on Earth.
If you're interested in learning more, go to our website monasticacademy.org

We are accepting applications for 2 month-long apprenticeships. The training will provide you opportunities to dive deeply into mindfulness practice in community, working, and dedicated sitting periods. The apprenticeship is FREE with room and board provided.
Learn more here: www.monasticacademy.org/apprentice

What Is Your Precious Life For? - Soryu Forall

Auto-Think Day Long Retreat

Shinzen Young - Day Long Retreat at CEDAR - August 19 2017 - Auto-Think - 2 Of 3

Shinzen Young - Day Long Retreat at CEDAR - August 19 2017 - Auto-Think - 1 Of 3

Soryu Forall discusses what is often contentious and controversial, especially within the context of spirituality, "Romantic Relationships as a Sacred Practice."

Sunday Sit - Romantic Relationships As A Sacred Practice - 3.04.2018

Audio from the Monastic Academy's August 2018 Retreat with Shinzen Young

Day 5 Group Process

Day 4 Group Process

Day 3 Group Process

Day 3 Dharma Talk

Day 2 Group Process

Day 1 Group Process

Day 1 Dharma Talk

Day 0 Orientation

Audio from a special mindfulness retreat with Shinzen Young, The Monastic Academy, and Bodhi Neurotech.

This was the 2nd retreat in 2018 with Shinzen Young at the Monastic Academy in Lowell, VT.

This retreat was perhaps the first ever public retreat offering Neuromodulation with tDCS devices via Bodhi Neurotech's Zendo E-Meditation systems and took place Nov 9-15, 2018.

Day 5 Group Process - 11.14.2018

Day 4 Group Process - 11.13.2018

Day 3 Group Process - 11.12.2018

Day 1 Group Process - 11.10.2018

Day 0 Intro - 11.09.2018

Christopher 'SanShin' Russell has been enthusiastic (and wary) about technology-assisted meditation for the past decade.

On 01.06.2018 He led a talk, guided meditations and Q&A on technology and meditation.

Elements of the 1st guided meditation were inspired by links below, and the 2nd guided meditation featured sounds also listed below, created by Jogen Salzberg of Great Vow Zen Monastery


Sunday Sits https://www.centerformindfullearning.org/sundays/
Bhante Sujatha http://www.bhantesujatha.org/love-in-action/
Blue Lotus Temple http://www.bluelotustemple.org/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_meditation
http://www.shoyeido.com/product/kyoto-autumn-leaves-kyo-nishiki/daily-incense 
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18041606
https://store.heartmath.com/
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/shinzen-week-long-retreat-november-neuro-mindfulness-tickets-48673088518#
https://www.shinzen.org/
https://education.musc.edu/MUSCApps/facultydirectory/Short-Edward
https://www.bodhineurotech.com/
https://e-meditation.com/
https://choosemuse.com/
https://www.brightmind.com/
http://homepracticeprogram.com/
https://www.lifepracticeprogram.com/
https://biohackersummit.com/2016/10/15/dr-rhonda-patrick-health-benefits-of-sauna/
http://www.hannesbend.com/index.php?/current/myndful/
http://www.hannesbend.com/index.php?/bs/eclipse/
https://www.chacmc.org/technology

Cell Phone Meditations
https://www.mindful.org/simple-mindful-cell-phone-practice/
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2016/11/the-binge-breaker/501122/
https://www.mindful.org/simple-mindful-cell-phone-practice/
https://www.mindful.org/addicted-to-your-phone-try-this-practice-phone-in-hand/
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-art-now/201410/cell-phone-meditation
https://www.tujawellness.com/a-meditation-for-cell-phones/
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/18/well/mind/how-to-be-mindful-with-your-phone.html#commentsContainer

https://www.zendust.org/about/bios/jogen-salzberg-sensei
https://www.mixcloud.com/jogen-adam-salzberg/

https://www.sciencealert.com/how-blue-wavelengths-light-affect-retinal-cell-tissues-eye-disease?fbclid=IwAR1OJ5IVDFBxxbqku20_PTtmPesW3vZ7fnPU9gH4N6JxvkflD0QiJpxyk4c

https://www.wimhofmethod.com/

https://www.amazon.com/Science-Enlightenment-How-Meditation-Works/dp/1591794609/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=CHVHX68XNKZW8YYSPT80
https://repository.upenn.edu/mapp_capstone/155/
http://mikeysiegel.com/
https://www.jaysanguinetti.com/

Sunday Sit - Cellphone Samadhi (Technology And Meditation) - Christoper SanShin Russell - 01.06.2019

A talk on Loneliness and the importance of Community by Soryu Forall in Oakland, CA on June 20, 2019.

Soryu Loneliness Talk at OAK (Oakland, CA) 6.20.19

We tend to question the validity of texts such as the Avataṃsaka Sutra, that can be so unfamiliar that they seem meaningless. Yet we don't often question the world we live in, one largely made up by the human mind. It's a world where, for instance, nature is being turned relentlessly into money—the real turned into the imaginary. It can be hard to see clearly that we are giving up our power to this story of money. With even just one breath, we can cut through extraneous thinking and stories to be with what's real again.

This talk was given at a silent retreat in April 2019 on Easter. This is a time for the MAPLE community to focus exclusively on awakening. It references the First Stage in the Ten Stages from the Avataṃsaka Sutra, but knowing the text is not necessary.
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The Monastic Academy is a training center dedicated to creating wise, powerful, and loving leaders who are an unstoppable force for social and environmental peace on Earth.
If you're interested in learning more, go to our website monasticacademy.org

We are accepting applications for 2-3 month-long apprenticeships. The training will provide you opportunities to dive deeply into mindfulness practice in community, working, and dedicated sitting periods. The apprenticeship is FREE with room and board provided.
Learn more here: www.monasticacademy.org/apprentice

Real Or Imaginary? - Soryu Forall

Through a personal story involving a challenge to eat a dozen donuts, Soryu Forall shows how the stories we tell and the ways we talk to ourselves have an enormous impact on how we live. 

This is part of a talk that was given at a silent retreat in February 2019. This is a time for the MAPLE community to focus exclusively on awakening.
-----
The Monastic Academy is a training center dedicated to creating wise, powerful, and loving leaders who are an unstoppable force for social and environmental peace on Earth.
If you're interested in learning more, go to our website monasticacademy.org

We are accepting applications for 2-3 month-long apprenticeships. The training will provide you opportunities to dive deeply into mindfulness practice in community, working, and dedicated sitting periods. The apprenticeship is FREE with room and board provided.
Learn more here: www.monasticacademy.org/apprentice

We Live the Stories We Tell - Soryu Forall

How can we keep doing all this inner work that can be so challenging and confronting? Soryu Forall offers guidance and inspiration from the life of the great Chinese Zen master, Seppō (aka Xuefeng in Chinese), who was also one of the most hopeless cases in Zen history. 

This is part of a talk that was given at a silent retreat in December 2019. This is a time for the MAPLE community to focus exclusively on awakening.
-----
The Monastic Academy is a training center dedicated to creating wise, powerful, and loving leaders who are an unstoppable force for social and environmental peace on Earth.
If you're interested in learning more, go to our website monasticacademy.org

We are accepting applications for 2-3 month-long apprenticeships. The training will provide you opportunities to dive deeply into mindfulness practice in community, working, and dedicated sitting periods. The apprenticeship is FREE with room and board provided.
Learn more here: www.monasticacademy.org/apprentice

All You Need Is To Not Give Up - Soryu Forall

We may become so attached to certain patterns—conditioned ways of being—that we resist suggestions to change. Oftentimes we're pushed to change anyway by suffering, but sometimes, we may be pushed by love. Thus was the case for Khemā, who attained full awakening through the help of those who loved her. Though she herself had believed that she'd rather stick with the deluded love of patterns, it could not stand against the real love of liberation.

This is part of a talk that was given at a silent retreat in February 2020. This is a time for the MAPLE community to focus exclusively on awakening.
-----
The Monastic Academy is a training center dedicated to creating wise, powerful, and loving leaders who are an unstoppable force for social and environmental peace on Earth.
If you're interested in learning more, go to our website monasticacademy.org

We are accepting applications for 2-3 month-long apprenticeships. The training will provide you opportunities to dive deeply into mindfulness practice in community, working, and dedicated sitting periods. The apprenticeship is FREE with room and board provided.
Learn more here: www.monasticacademy.org/apprentice

Real Love Sets You Free - Soryu Forall

A Modern Monastery (Mindfulness & Leadership Training Center) in Lowell, Vermont https://www.monasticacademy.com/

Monastic Academy

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