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A Basic Set of Buddhist Meditation Practices

1/15/2026

Beginning- and intermediate-level practices for protecting, taming, training, edifying and opening the ordinary mind. Two or three sessions will be spent discussing various implementations of each emphasis, after which we’ll shift to a comparison of these methods with Buddhist ritual and recitation-based practice. The discussion should be accessible to anyone, regardless of background and religious/secular orientation.

Taught by: Steven Tainer
Dates: Jan 21 - May 13, 2026
Time: Wednesday, 7:30-8:45pm (Pacific Time)
Online Only Zoom Link: Join Here (Meeting ID: 898 3648 6671 / Passcode: 842649)

Avatamsaka Sutra Lecture by Martin Verhoeven

1/12/2026

7:30 - 8:15 pm Meditation
8:15 - 9:00 pm Lecture / Q & A
Class starts Jan 30, 2026

Join Online: DharmaRealmLive

The class will examine the practices and path set forth by the Avatamsaka Sutra, or Flower Ornament Sutra, which describes a cosmos of infinite realms upon realms, mutually containing one another.

The text touches on various topics such as the Bodhisattva path, the interpenetration of phenomena (dharmas), the visionary powers of meditation and the equality of things in emptiness.

For more details such as how to access the live broadcast link and the speaker bio, please visit the class link.

Event: What Is a Buddhist Education? And Why Does It Matter?

9/17/2025

Title: What Is a Buddhist Education? And Why Does It Matter?
Speaker: Professor Martin Verhoeven
Date: Thursday, September 25, 2025
Time: 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. PT
Website: https://www.drbu.edu/event/what-is-a-buddhist-education-and-why-does-it-matter/
Registration Link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/what-is-a-buddhist-education-and-why-does-it-matter-tickets-1670558568649?aff=BBM

Join Prof. Martin Verhoeven of DRBU as he illuminates an approach to education that fosters a mind of wisdom and a heart of compassion.

Description:
In a world overflowing with information but lacking in wisdom, how do we come home to true understanding? We have become experts at looking outward—to our screens, to data, to external validation—while losing touch with our own innate clarity and compassion. This talk explores one solution to this challenge by answering the question: What is Buddhist education?

Join us for an evening with Professor Martin Verhoeven of Dharma Realm Buddhist University (DRBU) to discover an approach to education, as well as to life, centered not just on learning information but on awakening the inherent wisdom within each person. We will explore how this timeless tradition, based on the core pillars of morality, concentration, and wisdom, provides the tools for genuine self-knowledge and freedom. If you are seeking an anchor for humanity in the digital age or wondering how to discover a mind of wisdom and a heart of compassion for yourself, then this talk is for you.

A Q&A will follow the talk, so bring your inquiries and your curiosity.

Ullambana Ceremony (Sep 13, 2025)

9/11/2025

Date: Sat, Sep 13, 2025
Time: 9:00-11:00am
Location: Berkeley Buddhist Monastery (in-person)

11:00-12:30pm: Community Lunch

To attend online:
Zoom Link: Register Here for Zoom Link
(If you did not receive the Zoom info by email, please register again.)
Youtube Link: DharmaRealmLive

Ullambana is an opportunity to join the monastic Sangha in dedicating merit to our current (and former) parents. We will recite the Ullambana Sutra, a story of how Venerable Maudgalyāyana rescues his mother from suffering, as well as the mantra for repaying the kindness of parents.

Recitation Text for Ceremony (PDF)

If you would like to make an offering to the monastery, please visit the donations page or contact us at [email protected].

Urban Lotus: American Buddhist Folks Songs Vol. 2 – Available July 13

7/13/2025

We are excited to announce the release of Reverend Heng Sure’s newest album: Urban Lotus: American Buddhist Folk Songs Vol. 2.

Urban Lotus is our second go at setting the Buddha’s Dharma teachings to Western melodies, played on six- and twelve-string guitars, banjos, and an octave mandolin. The title of the album references how Venerable Master Hsuan Hua opened monasteries in the heart of major urban cities along the West Coast and highlights the nature of the Buddhist symbol: the lotus flower. Lotuses are rooted in the mud but their blossoms stand above the mud and water, pure and undefiled.

Listen to previews of the songs and learn more about Reverend Heng Sure’s newest album on the Urban Lotus page.
Urban Lotus is available on Bandcamp and all major music platforms: Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube Music and more.

Saturday Night Avatamsaka Sutra Lecture (In Person: May 10, 2025)

5/12/2025

Also available via live streaming (webcast) from Berkeley Monastery
Lecturer: Rev. Heng Sure (or DRBA monks and nuns)

Sat, May 31, lecture will not be in person at Berkeley Buddhist Monastery. It will be streamed online. If you wish to join in person, you can come to the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas.

Every Saturday night, the Berkeley Monastery community gathers to listen to a lecture on the Flower Adornment Sutra. We investigate the sutra text line by line and endeavor to bring its ancient wisdom up to date for our modern lives in the 21st century.

For more class info: Please Click Here.

Daily Silent Meditation at Berkeley Buddhist Monastery

5/11/2025

Join us for daily silent meditation at the monastery—a quiet and sacred space for personal practice.

Mornings: 6:15–7:15am (doors open at 6:00am), weekdays only
Evenings: 5:15–6:15pm (doors open at 5:00pm), everyday

All are welcome to come and go quietly at any time during the session. These are open periods of silent sitting without instruction, offering a calm and supportive environment to deepen your practice.

Redwood Vihara Website & Newsletter

4/17/2025

Berkeley Buddhist Monastery is branching out and establishing a monastery in the redwoods! Visit our new Redwood Vihara Website.

Read our first Redwood Vihara newsletter here. If you are interested in getting news and updates, please sign up for our Redwood Vihara newsletter.

Master Hsu Yun's Pictorial Biography Lecture by Rev. Heng Sure (Fri 6:30-7:30pm)

1/5/2025

Date/Time: Fri, 7:30-8:30pm (Pacific Time)
Speaker: Rev. Heng Sure

Rev. Heng Sure gives stories and lectures on the Pictorial Biography of Master Hsu Yun. The lecture will be in English, with Chinese and Vietnamese translation.

To sign up: [email protected].

Ten Transferences Chapter Lecture on Sunday by Rev. Heng Sure

1/4/2025

Come learn how Bodhisattvas creatively dedicate merit to all living beings from the "Ten Transferences" chapter in the Avatamsaka Sutra.

Speaker: Rev. Heng Sure
Date/Time: Sundays 7:30 – 9:00 pm

English Zoom link：Join Here (ID: 929 8519 9033 / Passcode: 95482)
Vietnamese Zoom link: Join Here (ID: 879 7769 2844 / Passcode: 922407)
YouTube: https://youtube.com/live/QEM_3BhT8IA?feature=share

Morning and Evening Ceremonies Streaming Online

1/3/2025

In the morning and evening, please join us in our daily ceremonies, where the ancient chants connect us to ourselves and all living beings.

5:00-6:00am Morning Ceremony
6:30-7:30pm Evening Ceremony

YouTube Channel: DharmaRealmLive
Register Here to Join on Zoom

Insight Meditation Gatherings with James and Eve (In-Person and Online)

9/1/2024

Meditation practice, Teachings, and Community
With James Baraz and Eve Decker
Thursdays 7:30-9pm PT

We will meet in person the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month. In-person gathering at the Berkeley Buddhist Monastery, 2304 McKinley Ave., Berkeley. Or, people can join us online using the usual Zoom link.

More information at www.insightberkeley.org.

Come Join Our Chinese Music Ensemble at the Monastery!

4/24/2024

Have fun learning and playing music in a Chinese ensemble! All instruments are welcome (strings, plucking, woodwind, percussion). Please bring your own instrument. No experience needed, although preferred. We can help you get started on an instrument. Sessions are free. All ages are welcome.

Dates: 1/25, 2/22, 3/29, 4/26, 5/31, 6/7 (Last Saturday)
Time: 1:00-3:00pm
Location: Dining Hall, Berkeley Buddhist Monastery

Interested? Please email: [email protected].

First Tuesdays with Abhayagiri Monks

4/1/2024

Date: First Tuesday of the Month
Times: 5pm (Tea Time)
7:30pm - 9:45 (Dhamma Talk)
Speakers: Abhayagiri Monks

On break until May 6, 2025

Please join us for a Dhamma evening with the Monks from Abhayagiri Buddhist Monastery. At 5pm there is an informal time to ask questions of the monks over tea, and then at 7:30pm, there will be chanting, meditation, followed by a Dhamma talk. All are welcome.

Great Compassion Mantra Dedication of Merit

2/5/2024

Next Date: TBD
Time: 6:30-7:30am
YouTube: Dharma Realm Live Channel
Zoom: BBM Online (register for link)

Please join us in dedicating the merit of our recitation of the Great Compassion Mantra to all living beings, especially those suffering due to the pandemic. This Dedication of Merit Ceremony is only once a month. Our regular daily practice consists of meditation and Three Steps, One Bow. See BBM Online schedule.

If you would like to sign up to recite the Great Compassion Mantra on your own throughout the month, please do so here: Great Compassion Mantra Recitation Form (link)

Vietnamese Translation Available
Zoom link: Join Here
Meeting ID: 879 7769 2844
Passcode: 922407

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Classes & Events

Daily Practice
Meditation
5:15-6:15pm

Wednesday
A Basic Set of Buddhist Meditation Practices
by Steven Tainer
7:30-8:45pm (Online)

Thursday
Insight Meditation Community
7:30-9:00pm

Friday
Online Talk
by Rev. Heng Sure
6:30-7:30pm

Avatamsaka Sutra Lecture
by Martin Verhoeven
7:30-9:00pm

Saturday
Avatamsaka Sutra Lecture
by Rev. Heng Sure
7:30PM to 9:30PM
Click here for live broadcast

Retreats (Ukiah, CA)

7-Day Retreats in a Contemplative Setting

Blogs, Videos, Podcast

Rev. Heng Sure's Blog
DharmRealmLive TV on YouTube
Avatamsaka Sutras on Podcast

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