COVID Policy (Effective Sept 8, 2021)
Tuesday Evenings - Hybrid In-Person (temporarily On Hold due to COVID levels) & Online Sangha. Effective September 8, 2021, the Hybrid/In-Person format of our Tuesday night sangha (7:00-9:00 PM) has been suspended until further notice. We apologize for this change, but do so out of an abundance of caution at this time. If you are interested to attend via ZOOM, please complete the Contact Form and our Orientation Team will contact you with details.
The Monday night South Hills Sangha (formerly meeting in Carnegie) is now online, via ZOOM, each week from 6:30 - 8:30 PM. Laughing Rivers Sangha will be adhering to current CDC and Pennsylvania Health Department guidelines for social gatherings. We encourage our members and friends to continue to make choices that support our individual and collective safety and well being. Laughing Rivers Sangha’s meditation sessions will continue to be accessible via Zoom, so if you are feeling sick, have a fever or believe you may have been exposed to someone with the coronavirus, or if you don’t feel safe attending, please join us remotely. You can also join us via ZOOM on Monday evenings; please see our website: www. laughingrivers.org/join-us-html.
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If you would like to practice with Laughing Rivers Sangha, we invite you to contact us to arrange for an introductory session before your first visit. Click here: http://www.laughingrivers.org/join-us.html
The introduction is designed with both beginners and more experienced meditators in mind and provides an opportunity to learn about our tradition and its specific practices. Introductions are usually scheduled on Tuesdays before our weekly practice period. To schedule, please contact Cheryl at: hawthornecheryl@gmail.com
Mindfulness is the practice of dwelling fully in the present moment, to be deeply in touch with what is going on within and around us so that we can cultivate greater awareness and be more alive in our daily existence. Laughing Rivers Sangha is one of hundreds of communities worldwide that practices mindfulness as taught by Vietnamese Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. Our sangha, or community, has been in existence in Pittsburgh since 1991. Laughing Rivers Sangha meets weekly to practice mindful sitting and walking meditation as a community. After our meditation period, we usually listen to a reading or a Dharma talk, which is followed by Dharma discussion (group sharing). Once a month we recite the Mindfulness Trainings together. We also gather regularly throughout the year for Days of Mindfulness and social gatherings to deepen our practice and build community. Twice a year we organize weekend retreats with an ordained Dharma teacher from Thich Nhat Hanh's Order of Interbeing.
