Search
Close this search box.

New to Meditation?

Welcome to the Seattle Insight Community

This six week course teaches the fundamentals of insight or mindfulness meditation and is highly recommended before attending other classes and events. It’s designed to help you establish a regular home practice.

Upcoming Intro Classes

Introduction to Meditation Class

This is a basic meditation instruction course. It is a 2 hour class that meets weekly for six weeks. This course centers around the Buddha’s teachings on mindfulness meditation. It’s designed to help you establish a regular home practice.

Our regular classes and events do not teach meditation techniques. Basic meditation instruction is highly recommended to people new to meditation before attending other offerings.

Dates to Be Aware Of

Your registration includes attendance at a Day of Mindfulness on the Saturday following the 6th evening class.

Please note that registrations are accepted up through the second class. After that, registration is closed. SIMS registration volunteers are available until the event’s start time. Registration closes at the start of the event.

The class includes:

  • Guided Meditations
  • Sitting and walking meditation
  • Meditation posture and techniques
  • Talks and guidance on understanding the principles of meditation
  • Group Discussions
  • Weekly homework and practice suggestions

This introductory meditation class meets weekly for 6 weeks from 7:00 – 9:00 PM, Pacific Time. It meets in a hybrid setting, both In-Person and Online simultaneously.

When you register, you will be required to choose between In-Person and Online.

Class registration includes a Day of Mindfulness the Saturday after the last class, May 18th. Please see dates to be aware of below.

About Insight Meditation

Insight meditation also known as mindfulness or vipassana meditation comes from the Buddhist tradition. It aims to free the mind from the distortions of self-centeredness, negativity, and confusion. Seeing life as a constantly changing process, one begins to accept pleasure and pain, fear and joy, and all aspects of life with increasing balance and equanimity. This balanced awareness, grounded in the present moment, leads to stillness and a growing understanding of the nature of life. Out of this seeing emerges wisdom and compassion.

It is a moment-to-moment investigation of the mind and body process. Our experience is explored from a balanced and spacious awareness which allows the heart to flower in love. During these six weeks there will be meditation instructions, talks about the philosophy of the practice, homework assignments, and time for discussion and questions.

 

What is Insight Meditation?

Tim Geil describes what Insight Meditation is and gives an introduction to learning meditation.

What is Insight Meditation?

Insight meditation (vipassana in Pali, the language of the original Buddhist teachings) is the simple and direct practice of moment-to-moment mindfulness. Through careful and sustained observation, we experience for ourselves the ever-changing flow of the mind/body process. This awareness leads us to accept more fully the pleasure and pain, fear and joy, sadness and happiness that life inevitably brings. As insight deepens, we develop greater equanimity and peace in the face of change, and wisdom and compassion increasingly become the guiding principles of our lives.

The Buddha first taught insight meditation over 2,500 years ago. The various methods of this practice have been well preserved in the Early Buddhist tradition, and the offerings at SIMS are all rooted in this ancient and well-mapped path to awakening.(from Insight Meditation Society website)

Why We Meditate?

Meditation aims to free the mind from the distortions of self-centeredness, negativity, and confusion. Seeing life as a constantly changing process, one begins to accept pleasure and pain, fear and joy, and all aspects of life with increasing balance and equanimity.

This balanced awareness, grounded in the present moment, leads to stillness and a growing understanding of the nature of life. Out of this seeing emerges wisdom and compassion. Insight meditation practice is a moment-to-moment investigation of the mind and body process. Our experience is explored from a balanced and spacious awareness which allows the heart to flower in love.

More info

If you’d like to talk with someone to learn more about how SIMS works or the programs offered, please email webmaster@seattleinsight.org

Check this page or the calendar for new & upcoming classes. We look forward to seeing you there!

Scroll to Top