Mission Statement of Sankhodae

We should not look far for happiness in our lives. We must learn to take care of this very moment. How can we propagate peace in our homes and communities if we cannot find peace in our hearts? How often has the current moment eluded us due to our busy minds, worrying about the past and creating anxiety over the future? When was the last time you could sit quietly and listen to the hum of the world and know we are intimately connected with all other life? What do you do to find peace in your life?

Do not let this very moment elude you. Learning to find presence and balance in our lives can be attained by all who come with a sincere heart and a willingness to help themselves regardless of their situation. Finding time for silence in most of our busy, fragmented lives takes work. However, the rewards are well worth the effort. Learning techniques that help us pay attention to our breathing and concentration begin to help harmonize the mind and body, allowing us live more fully in the moment.

Our greatest practice is to care for others more than ourselves. Our communities of practitioners learn to trust in themselves and the greater community they serve, becoming beacons and spreading the Dharma light to all that are willing to embrace mindful living. Through skillful means we can be present and bare witness to those who suffer and allow them the space to awaken when the time is right. We must learn the skills to lean into our fears and to develop skillful means in dealing with the uncertain world in which we live, learning to rest in, and embrace, the ambiguity of this current existence. We do not have to live a life in retreat away from society. We must move away from the notion of immunizing ourselves from others and move towards finding community, which leads to greater peace. By introducing and reinforcing good habits that expand and create flexibility of body and mind, we begin to turn what once were walls into bridges; we become a little more equipped as change agents in our homes and social activist for peace in the greater communities we serve.

We must be awake and care for others more than ourselves. We must learn to find joy in others' happiness, to be present and lean into those areas in our lives were we may have become stuck. Through each other, regardless of our faith, we can focus on our own commonalities, finding community and peace with all sentient being.

Teacher, Student, Healer, Sankhodae

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