A mindfulness community
About Insight Denver
How We Practice
We Offer a Refuge
In a 2022 talk, given at the beginning of the Russia–Ukraine war, Jack Kornfield recalled his time studying with Ajahn Chah, a highly respected Thai Buddhist meditation master, during the Vietnam War. Some Westerners who had traveled to the region to oppose the war visited the Buddhist monastery where Kornfield was practicing and questioned why the monks were not actively fighting the injustices unfolding around them. Ajahn Chah invited them to stay and practice with the community for a few days. When they raised the question again, he replied, “This is a living library of what is possible.” At Insight Denver, we uphold the spirit of Ajahn Chah's message, recognizing that demonstrating how humanity can live in peace and harmony is just as important as actively working to rectify injustices in the world. For two hours on a Sunday night, we offer refuge from the near-constant deluge of information about the state of the world that reaches us through our phones, news sources, communities, friends, and families. We come together to practice, cultivating and reminding ourselves of the inner happiness and freedom that are possible, even in a world that sometimes feels impossible.
We Uphold the Five Precepts
When attending, we encourage practicing the five ethical precepts for laypeople in the early Buddhist tradition, namely: valuing life and non-harming, valuing integrity by not stealing, refraining from causing harm with sexual energy, speaking honestly, and refraining from intoxicants that cloud our minds. When interacting with others, please practice listening deeply, and take care when speaking. You can refer to our Group Agreements for more guidelines on how to interact with others. Foremost, our Sangha is a refuge where we come to connect with more intention than we typically do in our daily lives.​
​
We Cultivate Compassion
While mindfulness meditation is fundamental to the Buddhist path, so too are the heart practices known as the Brahmaviharas.
The four heart practices are:
-
metta (lovingkindness)
-
karuna (compassion)
-
mudita (appreciative joy)
-
upekkha (equanimity)
These four qualities support and enrich the whole process of training the mind. At Insight Denver, we integrate cultivating these qualities with mindfulness and insight meditation, which could be called Metta-Vipassana.
According to a traditional Buddhist story, when the Buddha sent 500 monks into the forest to meditate, they came back a few days later frightened—not only by tigers, elephants, and snakes, but also by spirits to whom they attributed suspicious noises, foul smells, and general mischief. Undaunted, the Buddha taught them the Karaniya Metta Sutta and sent them back into the forest, grounded in metta: an attitude of goodwill, non-harm, and kindness that they extended toward all the beings of the forest. According to the traditional story, the forest spirits no longer troubled the monks and instead welcomed, protected, and cared for them in return.
When we approach our practice with this friendly, attentive, and benevolent attitude of mind, we often find that meditation becomes deeper, more wholehearted, more joyful, and more pleasant. We develop greater trust in ourselves, in the spiritual path, and in life itself. Metta brings a sense of ease to our practice, encouraging us to return to our practice as we learn to become our own best friend.
