In the month of July, three Venerables of the Texas Buddhist Association will share their knowledge and wisdom with the sangha. We begin the month with two talks by outside speakers, both of them bring a multitude of experience and compassion to the English Dharma Group.

• GOM – Calm your mind with Tibetan Buddhist Meditation | July 2 | Amy Hertz. GOM, or concentrated meditation, brings with it clarity, serenity, and a deeper understanding of the world in which we live. Based on Gelek Rimpoche’s commentary on attaining zhi nay (shamatha, or calm abiding), this talk will be an overview of 14th century lineage master Je Tsong Khapa’s approach to the practice and development of a calm and stable mind. Amy Hertz has been a student of Tibetan Buddhism for nearly 30 years. In her various positions at HarperCollins, Penguin and Random House, she has been the editor and publisher of some of the bestselling Buddhist books for a general audience including the Dalai Lama’s bestseller The Art of Happiness, and several books by Thich Nhat Hanh. Time 10:15 am in Kwan Yin Hall
• The Noble Eightfold Path in Every Day Life | July 9 | John de Castro . The Eightfold Path is a guide to peace and lasting happiness, one of the Buddha’s most important teachings, an answer to overcome the barriers of dissatisfaction, suffering and unhappiness. John is the former Dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Sam Houston State University, now Director of the Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies and an annual speaker at the English Dharma Group. Time 10:15 am Kwan Yin Hall.
• The Eight Realizations Sutta | July 16 | Venerable Hung I. The Venerable, VP of the Texas Buddhist Association continues his series on the sutta. This month the Venerable will speak on the Sixth Realization, the “awareness that poverty creates hatred and anger, which creates a vicious cycle of negative thoughts and actions. When practicing generosity, bodhisattvas consider everyone – friends and enemies alike – to be equal. They do not condemn anyone’s past wrongdoings or hate even those presently causing harm.” (Excerpt Discourse on the Eight Realizations of the Great Beings by Thich Nhat Hanh) Time: 10:15 am Kwan Yin Hall.
• The Buddha, his Life and his Teachings | July 23 | Venerable Katapunno. We continue our study on Buddha’s teachings and his life, following Venerable Narada Mahathera’s book “The Buddha and His Teachings.” The in-depth and interactive study/reading group is enjoyed by seasoned practitioners; beginners are always welcome. A free PDF is available on our website under Free Downloads and allows you to re-visit previous chapters or read a chapter prior to joining the program. Feel free to come with lots of questions. This Sunday, the class will start Chapter 30 page 382 on the concept of “If there be no soul, can there be any moral responsibility?” Time: 10:15 am Kwan Yin Hall.
• The Objects in Learning the Buddha’s Teachings | July 30 | Venerable Shiou Huey. The Venerable will share with us that to aspire lasting happiness from a Mahayana Buddhist view point, we want to focus on two objectives. That is working towards ending the cycle of birth and death, called samsara. And secondly, after gradually overcoming our negative minds, and developing positive minds such as love, compassion and wisdom through which we experience lasting peace and happiness, we then can pass this knowledge on to others so they too can enjoy the same benefits. Time: 10:15 am Kwan Yin Hall