Sangha Night | Tuesdays 7:30pm – Bristol Buddhist Centre

Sangha Night Theme – for early autumn 2022

During the first half of our autumn term we will be following our theme of wisdom by looking at the Buddhist teaching of the Middle Way.

The Buddha called his teaching the Middle Way, but what does this mean? And how does understanding this Middle Way distinguish Buddhism from other spiritual teachings, or ways of viewing life?

In this exploration we will look at different sources from the Buddhist tradition, at what the Buddha himself had to say about the Middle Way as well as exploring the words of the Heart Sutra that we recite in the 7-fold puja. We will also be touching into ideas we may of heard about such as ‘non-duality’, and ‘form and emptiness’.

In addition, we will look at some apparent polarities in spheres of human exploration in the light of Buddhist teaching, such as Buddhism and Science, The Spiritual and the Psychological.

During the second half of the autumn we will be dedicating Sangha Night to a series of practice evenings.
At the end of last year we conducted a survey into what elements of the centre life people would like more of. One aspect that many people commented on was wanting to have more opportunities for collective practice.

These evenings will be a chance to come together for meditation (of various kinds) as well as ritual. There will also be longer tea breaks, giving people the opportunity to socialise and become acquainted with other Sangha members.

Punctuated between these six-week blocks of teaching and practice we will have special one-off nights where we can come together for different events. These might include such things as singing workshops, ethics cafes, dance events. They will generally be lighter and more fun, giving us a chance to come together with others in the Sangha in different ways.

Be the Revolution

This coming year the overarching theme that will be opened out through many different approaches is ‘Be the Revolution’. Our intention is to show that transforming our personal vision through engaging with Buddhist wisdom and practice is a potent means of generating individual, social and environmental change from the inside out. We will be offering an exciting number of short courses, events, retreats and festivals drawing out this message.

Sangha night begins with a six week course to help us look into the mirror of the Wheel of Life. This lays out the territory that we need to know deeply before rushing forward into action. It is an inspiring and challenging image not for the armchair Buddhist. It draws out personal reflection and self-knowledge. It shows us where to start the process of transformation.

Following on will be courses in ethics in relation to living questions. Meditation courses on the means to build resources of stability and clarity in relation to awareness. A series focusing on the revolutionary act of turning towards beauty. Evenings devoted to seeing deeply into the qualities of the Buddha Mandala that break us free from limited views and so much more. Conversations, social events, communication and celebration.

So this year, come and transform your mind, your heart, your very being, alongside others. Help build a community through which the path that ends suffering can be rediscovered by seeing deeply into our own deluded minds and our innate wisdom, rediscover our deep interdependence with each other and the natural world. The invitation is to step forward and be willing to wholeheartedly turn up into your life alongside others, and be the revolution so that liberation from suffering can, some day, become a reality for all.

All our classes are run on donations which means everyone, regardless of income, can learn about Buddhism and meditation. To keep this revolutionary approach going, please do give what you can!

If you’d like to catch up with what’s been happening at Sangha Night, subscribe to our YouTube channel for all the latest ones or our Listen Again pages for material from 2020 and before.

Sangha Night is for the community (anyone who has done the intro course, or has been to the introductory classes for a number of months) to get together to talk, meditate, hear the teachings of the Buddha and discuss them.

Find out what’s happening at Sangha Night on our events page. We would love to welcome you.