Category: Engaged Buddhism

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March 18, 2024 – Talk on “Climate change and the Dharma” by Oscar Balaguer and Diana Cassady

Practice Talk given by Oscar Balaguer and Diana Cassady on March 18th, 2024 – (Audio Version: 13.3MB, 58 min).

Oscar Balaguer

Oscar Balaguer

Senior Student

A longtime Zen practitioner and member of Valley Streams, Oscar was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson.
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October 16th, 2023 – Civil Rights Pilgrimage with Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah and Malia McCarthy (Part 2)

Dharma Talk given on Monday, October 2nd, 2023 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah and Malia McCarthy (7.6 MB, 33 min).

Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah

Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah

Practice Committee, Teachers

Serves as Ino,  or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.
Malia McCarthy

Malia McCarthy

Board of Directors

Malia is a member of the Valley Streams Board of Directors and serves as secretary.  She recently retired from the practice of child and adolescent psychiatry.  She has two daughters in college and lives in Davis with her husband.  She feels very fortunate to have been able to practice with Valley Streams since 2019
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October 2nd, 2023 – Civil Rights Pilgrimage with Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah and Malia McCarthy

Dharma Talk given on Monday, October 2nd, 2023 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah and Malia McCarthy (16.4 MB, 1 hr 7 min).

Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah

Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah

Practice Committee, Teachers

Serves as Ino,  or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.
Malia McCarthy

Malia McCarthy

Board of Directors

Malia is a member of the Valley Streams Board of Directors and serves as secretary.  She recently retired from the practice of child and adolescent psychiatry.  She has two daughters in college and lives in Davis with her husband.  She feels very fortunate to have been able to practice with Valley Streams since 2019
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January 16th, 2023 – Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration, led by Sarah O’Gara

Talk given on Monday, January 16th, 2023 by Sarah O’Gara (13.6 MB, t8 min).

Sarah O’Gara

Sarah O'Gara

Board of Directors, Other Sangha Leaders, Practice Committee

Sarah has practiced in several different Buddhist traditions including Nichiren Shoshu’s Soka Gakkai, the Chan lineage of Master Sheng Yen and, since 2007, in the Soto Zen lineage of Shunryu Suzuki Roshi.  She shares her avocation for botany and the natural world leading hikes for the Sacramento Valley Conservancy and volunteering at the Cosumnes River Preserve.   She is a retired IT professional and former camp cook for Forest Service backcountry work crews.  In addition to serving on our Board of Directors and Practice Committee, Sarah edits our events calendar and creates Eventbrite invitations.
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September 12th, 2022 – “Reflections on Engaged Mindfulness” – A Talk by Rhonda V. Magee

Practice Talk given by Rhonda V. Magee on Monday, September 12th, 2022 – (Audio Version: 17.9MB, 1 hr 13 min 10 sec).

Rhonda Magee, MA, JD

Rhonda Magee, MA, JD

Visiting Teacher

Rhonda Magee, MA, JD is an internationally recognized educator, author, and practice leader, focused on integrating mindfulness into social change.  She draws from Buddhist teachings, law and legal history, weaving together storytelling, poetry, analysis and practices.  A trained mindfulness teacher, Rhonda Magee demonstrates the merit of embodied meditation. Professor Magee has dedicated her life to healing and teaching that inspire personal, interpersonal and collective transformation.  Professor of Law at University of San Francisco since 2004, her teachings support compassionate conflict engagement and management, holistic problem-solving to alleviate suffering, presence-based leadership and humanizing approaches to education.
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September 5th, 2022 – “Social Identities as a Cause of Suffering” – by Paravrtti Doralee Grindler-Katonah and Sarah O’Gara

A program presented by Paravrtti Doralee Grindler-Katonah and Sarah O’Gara in preparation for the September 12th program with Rhonda V. Magee, MA, JD. Recorded on Monday, September 5th, 2022 – (Audio Version: 16.0 MB, 1 hr 6 min).

Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah

Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah

Practice Committee, Teachers

Serves as Ino,  or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.
Sarah O’Gara

Sarah O'Gara

Board of Directors, Other Sangha Leaders, Practice Committee

Sarah has practiced in several different Buddhist traditions including Nichiren Shoshu’s Soka Gakkai, the Chan lineage of Master Sheng Yen and, since 2007, in the Soto Zen lineage of Shunryu Suzuki Roshi.  She shares her avocation for botany and the natural world leading hikes for the Sacramento Valley Conservancy and volunteering at the Cosumnes River Preserve.   She is a retired IT professional and former camp cook for Forest Service backcountry work crews.  In addition to serving on our Board of Directors and Practice Committee, Sarah edits our events calendar and creates Eventbrite invitations.
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August 13, 2018 – “My Journey Discovering White Privilege: Learning to Practice in the Gap” – Dharma Talk by Doralee Grindler Katonah

“My Journey Discovering White Privilege: Learning to Practice in the Gap” – Dharma Talk given on Monday, August 13, 2018 (10.7MB, 41 minutes).

Note – the talk was edited at approx 36 minutes 10 seconds of the lecture to remove silence during which time the sangha performed an exercise requested by the lecturer. The recording resumes at the commencement of the question period after the exercise.

Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah

Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah

Practice Committee, Teachers

Serves as Ino,  or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.

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January 2, 2017 – “On the theme of ‘Othering’ and our Diversity Statement.” -Practice Talk by Doralee Grindler Katonah

January 2, 2017 (6.7 MB; 53 min.)
On the theme of “Othering” and our Diversity Statement.

Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah

Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah

Practice Committee, Teachers

Serves as Ino,  or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.