UPCOMING EVENTS
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online summit | Lion’s Roar | Barre, MA | October 12–16, 2023
Death, Love & Wisdom Summit |
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in-person conference | American Academy of Religion | San Antonio, TX | Monday, November 20, 2023 | 9am Central Time
Listening to the Buddhists in our Backyard: Pedagogical Experiments in Experiential Learning
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in-person retreat | Barre Center for Buddhist Studies | Barre, MA | May 17–20, 2024 (Friday to Monday)
Story and Song: Learning and Living with Buddhist Chant (four-day retreat) |
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in-person retreat | Barre Center for Buddhist Studies | Barre, MA | August 2–6, 2024 (Friday to Tuesday)
Roots and Refuge: An Asian American Buddhist Writing RetreatThis experimental, participatory gathering brings together Asian American Buddhists writers—broadly defined—for a retreat to support and deepen our spiritual and creative practice. Over the course of our five days together, we will participate in peer-led ritual and meditation, write on our own and in peer-organized groups, and dialogue as a community.
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PAST EVENTS
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online event | Santa Barbara Zen Center | Sunday, September 24, 2023 | 11:00am–12pm Pacific Time
Sunday Dharma Talk: one long listening and Be the Refuge감사합니다 to SZBC board president Rebecca Waldorf—fellow Sakyadhita Seoul conference-goer and marvelous conversation partner on long bus rides through the Korean countryside—for the invitation to deliver this Sunday Dharma talk. Warm thanks also to the SZBC sangha for your stories and questions on shakuhachi, hybrid identities, appropriation, and inclusivity.
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online event | Brooklyn Zen Center | Brooklyn, NY | Wednesday, September 13, 2023 | 7:00–8:30pm Eastern Time
Be the Refuge: BZC Book Club Discussion with Kaishin Victory Matsui
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online event | Natural Dharma Fellowship | Sunday, August 27, 2023 | 10:00–11:30am Eastern Time
Speaker Series: Confronting Race & Injustice on the Path to True Freedom
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in-person retreat | Barre Center for Buddhist Studies | Barre, MA | August 11–15, 2023 (Friday to Tuesday)
Roots and Refuge: An Asian American Buddhist Writing RetreatDeep bows of gratitude to the Frederick P. Lenz Foundation for American Buddhism for generously funding the inaugural Roots and Refuge retreat; to Rima Vesely-Flad and William Edelglass for their support in dreaming this gathering into being; to BCBS for hosting us for five magical days; and to all thirty-two Asian American Buddhist writers who made this roots-deepening, refuge-making experience possible. You’ll find a reflection about R&R by Ryan Lee Wong here.
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in person event | 18th Sakyadhita International Conference | Seoul, Korea | Tuesday, June 27, 2023
Listening to the Buddhists in Our Backyard: Engaging Youth in Community-Based Learning |
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hybrid (in-person & livestream) | Brooklyn Zen Center | Brooklyn, NY | Saturday, June 17, 2023 | 11:20am–12:20pm Pacific Time
one long listening: A Conversation with Ryan Lee Wong |
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hybrid (in-person & livestream) | California Institute of Integral Studies | San Francisco, CA | Thursday, June 8, 2023 | 6pm Pacific Time
Buddhist Perspectives on Grief and Renewal: A Conversation with Jun Wang真心感谢 to Jun Wang, Associate Professor and Core faculty of Asian Contemplative and Transcultural Studies (ACTS) in the Department of East-West Psychology at CIIS, for plumbing the depths of one long listening with stunning brilliance, unparalleled attentiveness, and a deep-rooted understanding of Chinese religion and language. Dialoguing with Prof. Wang as we sat cross-legged in our chairs on the stage of Namaste Hall, receiving questions and reflections from the audience that brought tears to my eyes... I can think of no better way to end the Bay Area book tour for my memoir. A recording of our evening together is available here.
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in-person event | Buddhadharma Sangha at San Quentin State Prison | San Quentin, CA | Sunday, June 4, 2023
Listening for Refuge: A Celebration of Spiritual Friendship |
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online event | Buddhist Community at Stanford | Saturday, June 3, 2023 | 11:00am–1:00pm Pacific Time
one long listening Book Discussion with the BCAS Community |
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online event | Chaplaincy Innovation Lab | Wednesday, May 24, 2023 | 11am Pacific Time / 2pm Eastern Time
Chaplaincy Innovation Lab: one long listeningJoin me for this hourlong event with the Chaplaincy Innovation Lab, whose wealth of free resources includes an insightful (and hialrious) conversation with author Ellen Cooney on her novel One Night Two Souls Went Walking. Special thanks to Michael Skaggs for making this event possible. Registration is available here.
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online event | Insight Meditation Society | Thursday, May 18, 2023 | 7:00–8:15pm Eastern Time
IMS Book Club: one long listeningEach month, the IMS Book Club brings together authors and readers for a facilitated discussion on the featured dharma-book-of-the-month. I’m honored to be part of the lineup for the first half of 2023, which includes authors yung pueblo, Ruth King, John Teasdale, Kimberly Brown, and Mark Coleman. I hope you’ll join us in May for a conversation on my forthcoming memoir, one long listening: a memoir of grief, friendship, and spiritual care. You can register here for this free event.
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in-person book launch | Bay Area Book Festival | 2120 Allston Way, Berkeley, CA | Saturday, May 6, 2023 | 11:30am–12:30pm Pacific Time
one long listening: A Habit of Love, a Memoir of Offering Care with Faith AdieleThanks to the fabulous audience who came out on a drizzly morning for this conversation with Faith Adiele, author of the fabulous memoir Meeting Faith: The Forest Journals of a Black Buddhist Nun, for this Bay Area Book Festival event in Berkeley. You can read more about the festival in this 48 Hills article.
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in-person book launch | Elliott Bay Book Company | 1521 10th Ave, Seattle, WA | Tuesday, April 25, 2023 | 7:00pm Pacific Time
one long listening Seattle book launch with Jane WongIt was truly an honor to return to Elliott Bay—this time in person—to celebrate the release of my memoir one long listening with the luminous Jane Wong, a fellow Hedgebrook alumna and a brilliant poet and now memoirist (pick up a copy of Meet Me Tonight in Atlantic City if you haven't already!). Thanks to everyone who took an hour out of a beautiful spring evening to listen to us talk nonlinearity, family, and other manners of deliciousness (like the 粥 in Jane’s memoir that my memoir would love to eat).
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online book launch | Klingenstein Center, Columbia University | Wednesday, April 19, 2023 | 7:30–8:45pm Eastern Time
Talking about Listening: A Conversation with Nicole FurlongeJointly hosted by the Klingenstein Center at Columbia University and the Tang Institute at Phillips Academy Andover, this dialogue centered the themes of listening, learning, leadership, and loss. A huge thank you to Andrew Housiaux, the Currie Family Director of the Tang Institute, for dreaming up this event and moderating our multistranded conversation. As ever, my dialogue partner, Dr. Nicole Furlonge—Director of the Klingenstein Center and author of Race Sounds: The Art of Listening in African American Literature--is an inspiration for all of us striving to deepen our praxis of civically engaged listening. To quote Claudia Rankine as Dr. Furlonge does in Race Sounds: “All living is listening for a throat to open –/ The length of its silence shaping lives.”
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in-person (with livestream) book launch | Green Apple Books on the Park | 1231 9th Ave, San Francisco, CA | Wednesday, April 12, 2023 | 7:00pm Pacific Time
one long listening and Until Nirvana’s Time: A Joint Book Event with Trent WalkerIt’s not every day that you get to do a joint book event with your spouse! Trent and I are grateful to the incredibly warm and thoughtful audience for this memorable evening in celebration of our two kindred books.Until Nirvana’s Time is a groundbreaking translation of Cambodian Dharma Songs and one long listening is the memoir of a Buddhist chaplain-in-training, yet both are homages to sound, silence, and the tenacious threads of interconnection. Trent and I will be moving to Michigan this summer, so it was a special treat to spend this evening with old friends and new at this most beloved bookstore. Special thanks to Kar Johnson for hosting the event with such thoughtfulness and care, leaving no detail unattended to (the marquee!).
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online book launch | Barre Center for Buddhist Studies and Institute of Buddhist Studies | Tuesday, April 11, 2023 | 5:00 pm Pacific / 8:00pm Eastern Time
Grief, Translation, and the Wonder of Friendship: A Conversation with Paula Arai
A huge thank you to everyone who joined us for this book launch celebration of one long listening: a memoir of grief, friendship, and spiritual care. It was, as always, a heart-opening experience to be in dialogue with Dr. Paula Arai, whose numerous books have transformed my own relationship to writing, chaplaincy, and scholarship and whose forthcoming The Little Book of Zen Healing is a gem. Special thanks to Dr. Nancy Lin for her generous introduction, and William Edelglass for moderating Q&A for this intimate evening of conversation, storytelling, and companionship with the unknown. You can find a recording of our conversation here.
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in-person retreat | Barre Center for Buddhist Studies | Barre, MA | March 30–April 2, 2023 (Thursday to Sunday)
Story and Song: Learning and Living with Buddhist Chant (four-day retreat)Trent Walker (author of Until Nirvana’s Time) and I were honored to chant and learn with this year’s Story and Song sangha—an intergenerational group from one-year olds to septuagenarians. We’re especially grateful to Sarah Benko for managing our program with such skill and care, and to William Edelglass, Director of Studies at BCBS, for enlivening this year’s retreat by bringing his delightful twin daughters and initiating a game of frisbee and football on the lawn.
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online event | Theological Education Committee of the AAR | Wednesday, March 15, 2023 | 2:00–3:30pm Pacific Time
Buddhist Theological Education: A Conversation with José CabezónThanks to everyone who tuned in for this conversation on Buddhist theological education, sponsored by the Theological Education Committee of the AAR and moderated by Dr. Namdrol Miranda Adams, Dean of Education of Maitripa College. I was honored to be in conversation with Prof. José Cabezón of UC Santa Barbara, a longtime Buddhist studies scholar and former president of the American Academy of Religion. A recording of our hourlong event is available here.
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online event | Tacoma Buddhist Temple | Saturday, June 25, 2022 | 2:00–4:00pm Pacific Time
June SeminarSpecial thanks to Rev. Tadao Koyama for this special invitation to speak at Tacoma Buddhist Temple.
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in-person event | Buddhist Action Coalition | Wednesday, June 1, 2022 | 7:00–8:30pm Eastern Time
Be the Refuge New York Book LaunchA huge thank you to everyone who braved the rain and came out for the NYC book launch of Be the Refuge. It was a joy to be in conversation with Buddhist Action Coalition member Belinda Ju, to meet all of you. Special thanks to Union Theological Seminary and Buddhist Council of New York for co-sponsoring this evening conversation between me and BAC member Belinda Ju.
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special event (in person) | Tang Institute, Phillips Andover | Wednesday, May 25, 2022 | 1:30–3:30pm Eastern Time
Listening to the Buddhists in Our Backyard: In-Person SymposiumThank you to the dozens of people who joined us in person for this interactive event. The students of this “Listening to the Buddhists in Our Backyard” project were especially delighted to host several local community members whose generosity have deeply shaped their learning this spring: Dr. Tham Tram and three members from the Chùa Tường Vân Lowell youth group, and Prof. Robert Forrant of UMass Lowell. Photos, slides, and the program from this symposium are available here.
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special event (online) | Tang Institute, Phillips Andover | Tuesday, May 24, 2022 | 1:00–2:30pm Eastern Time
Listening to the Buddhists in Our Backyard: Online ConferenceThank you to everyone who joined us for this culmination of “Listening to the Buddhists in Our Backyard,” an experimental spring-term course that I’ve been co-teaching with Andy Housiaux at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. We began the term by visiting eight Buddhist temples in the Merrimack Valley along with several communities in Cambridge. In the subsequent weeks, the six students in this project continued to meet with and learn from local Khmer, Vietnamese, Thai, Chinese, and Lao Buddhists as well as scholars. The recording, slides, and program for this stellar presentation are available here.
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online event | Cambridge Insight Meditation Center | Cambridge, MA | Wednesday, March 30, 2022 | 7:30–8:45pm ET
Nothing Self, Everything Kindred: On Listening, Chaplaining, and WritingMuch gratitude to CIMC for hosting this Wednesday Evening Dharma talk, and for the high school students of Listening to the Buddhists in Our Backyard who shared their perspectives as part of this event.
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in-person retreat | Barre Center for Buddhist Studies | Barre, MA | February 18–22, 2022 (Friday to Monday)
Story and Song: Learning and Living with Buddhist Chant (four-day retreat, co-led with Trent Walker)Thank you to everyone who joined us for this four-day residential retreat in snowy Massachusetts. I cherish the memory of our time together: sitting in a circle in the Dharma hall, voices joined in chant, reflecting on family and ancestors—the power and beauty of this shared silence, song, and story brought tears to my eyes. What a blessing to have the opportunity to connect with Buddhist poetry from Cambodia, and to explore these poems from two perspectives: as sounds, shaped by traditional Khmer practices of singing and chanting, and as stories, crafted by Buddhist authors for the sake of unsettling our attachments and deepening our aspirations.
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hybrid (in-person & livestream) | Moiliili Hongwanji Buddhist Temple | Honolulu, HI | Sunday, October 17, 2021 | 9:00am Hawaii Time
Dharma MessageFor those of you in Honolulu, I’ll be giving a short Be the Refuge–inspired dharma message at the Zoom Sunday service at Moiliili Temple.
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hybrid (in-person & livestream) | Hongpa Hongwanji Hawaii Betsuin | Honolulu, HI | Saturday, October 16, 2021 | 9:00am–1:00pm Hawaii Time
22nd Annual Bloom-Futaba Memorial LectureThe Bloom-Futaba Memorial Lecture Series was founded by Dr. Alfred Bloom in 2000 to honor his mentor, Professor Kenko Futaba. I’m humbled to have been part of this annual lecture series, not least because Dr. Bloom was the founding Dean of the Institute for Buddhist Studies, my alma mater. Mahalo to Dexter Mar and Dave Atcheson for navigating the logistics of livestreaming from the Hawaii Betsuin, and to Dr. George Tanabe for serving as a discussant for my two talks, “Be the Refuge: Challenges and Aspirations of Young Adult Asian American Buddhists” and “May We Gather: Roots and Connection in Buddhist Asian America.” A recording is available here.
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online event | Nomadic Press and North Atlantic Books | Saturday, July 17, 2021 | 3:00–4:15pm Pacific Time
Liberatory Libations Series: A Conversation with Sharline ChiangFeeling the East Bay love and delighted to have been in conversation with Sharline Chiang for this second event in the Liberatory Libations Series, hosted by Nomadic Press in partnership with North Atlantic Books. Special thanks to Aaron J. Lee’s family for making this final event of Be the Refuge’s unofficial virtual book tour so meaningful, and to Tim McKee, Publisher at NAB, for the invitation to share excerpts from my next book in a setting that really did feel like an intimate dinner party.
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online event | East Bay Meditation Center | Saturday, July 10, 2021 | 10:00–11:30am Pacific Time
EBMC Panel Discussion of Be the RefugeThank you to D Han, Ann Uyeda, Jessy Zapanta, and moderator emiko Yoshikami for participating in this meaningful panel discussion. emiko is featured in the book, D and Jessy are teachers at EBMC, and Ann was co-leader, along with Dorothy Imagire, of EBMC’s Be the Refuge book club for Asian/Asian American sangha members.
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special event | Thursday, June 24, 2021
May We Gather: Honoring 100 DaysTo commemorate the 100th-day memorial of the Atlanta-area shootings, this ten-minute video features highlights from May We Gather: A National Buddhist Memorial for Asian American Ancestors. We hope the video can be promote reflection and dialogue in sanghas, classrooms, and other communities.
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online event | Insight Meditation Society | Thursday, June 24, 2021 | 7:00–8:30pm Eastern Time
IMS Book Club with Yong OhDeepest gratitude to Albert Karcher for coordinating this final IMS monthly book club before the summer recess. It was a gift to be in dialogue with Yong Oh, whose expansive presence gave us all permission to dwell in indeterminacy and steep in questions. Thanks to everyone who joined us for an event that felt to echoed the wild and generous embrace of Jeong Kwan’s temple garden. A recording is available here.
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online event | San Jose Insight Meditation | Wednesday, June 23, 2021 | 7:30–9:00pm Pacific Time
Virtual Sangha Visit: SJIMThis evening was a lovely reminder of how close-knit the Buddhist community can be. Special thanks to Rev. Beth Goldring (a pivotal figure in my Buddhist journey, as readers of Be the Refuge know) for introducing me to SJIM teacher Berget Jelane, and to audience members who shared about their personal connections to Aaron Lee.
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online event | Access to Zen | Monday, June 21, 2021 | 7:00–8:30pm Pacific Time
Virtual Sangha Visit: A2ZA deep gassho to Rev. Liên Shutt and A2Z sangha members for embarking on a months-long study of Be the Refuge and inviting me to speak on “Tension to Solidarity.” A recording is available here.
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online event | University of Southern California | Tuesday, June 15, 2021 | 11:00am–12:00pm Pacific Time
Virtual Classroom Visit: Introduction to Buddhism (with Prof. Lori Meeks)I’m grateful to Dr. Lori Meeks and her students for the opportunity to share about Be the Refuge and May We Gather as part of the “Buddhism Comes West” section of their Intro to Buddhism summer intensive class at USC. Mindfulness, relationality, appropriation, plurality—we covered a lot in our time together!
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online event | Buddhist Peace Fellowship | Saturday, June 12, 2021 | 11:00am–12:30pm Pacific Time
Buddhism & Belonging among Asian Americans (with Kazi Adi Shakti, An Tran, and Chika Okoye)Deepest bows to my phenomenal co-panelists, Kazi Adi Shakti and An Tran, as well as our moderator Chika Okoye, for this magnificent conversation on hybrid identities, queering binaries, and mystery + magic + miracles! Our panel was part of The Dharma of Pose, a series of talks and workshops featuring Drïan Juarez, Katie Loncke, Lama Rod Owens, La Sarmiento, Jasmine Syedullah, Adaku Utah, and Fresh Lev White.
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online event | Green Apple Books | Thursday, June 10, 2021 | 6:00–7:00pm Pacific Time
Be the Refuge Meets Afrikan Wisdom: A Conversation with Arisika RazakThe first bookstore I stepped foot in during pandemic times, in March 2021, was Green Apple Books in San Francisco, so it was a treat to return for this online event. My original conversation partner for this event, Breeshia Wade, unfortunately was not able to make it, but it was wholly a delight to talk about braided identities, cross-racial solidarity, embodiment, translation, and more with Arisika Razak, one of the contributors to the collection Afrikan Wisdom: New Voices Talk Black Liberation, Buddhism, and Beyond.
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online event | Zen Peacemakers International | Wednesday, June 9, 2021 | 12:00–1:30pm Eastern Time
Be the Refuge: Insights from Asian American Buddhists (with Myoshin Moto-Sanchez)I was happy to ease into June with this online visit to ZPI, an organization based in New York whose members hail from the world. I appreciated the opportunity to hear from all the voices in this cozy circle, and to share about Be the Refuge and May We Gather. Much gratitude to Myokei Moto-Sanchez for organizing this event and celebrating the ichi-go ichi-e nature of our time together. Here’s a short of our event, and here’s the full recording.
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online event | San Francisco Zen Center | Saturday, May 29, 2021 | 10:15–11:30am Pacific Time
Roots, Refuge, Generations (with Rev. Dana Takagi)It was a joy and honor to share the Dharma seat with Rev. Dana Takagi for this Saturday morning talk at the San Francisco Zen Center. Many thanks to Prof. Takagi for guiding this conversation with such depth and clarity, and to the SFZC leaders and members for your heartfelt questions. What an auspicious occasion for the final Be the Refuge book event of AAPI Heritage Month!
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online event | Virginia Interfaith Center | Friday, May 28, 2021 | 3:00–4:00pm Eastern Time
Faith, Race & Truth: A Conversation with Dora MuhammadBlessed are those of us who have a chance to connect with Dora Muhammad, whose warmth and integrity are beacons for anyone engaged in interfaith work. I was honored to be the third guest on Dora’s Faith, Race & Truth Virtual Reflection Series. A recording of our dialogue is available here.
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virtual visit | Seattle University | Thursday, May 27, 2021 | 6:30–8:00pm Pacific Time
Virtual Classroom Visit: Emergent Dharma (with Prof. Sharon Suh)What a treat be in conversation with Dr. Sharon Suh again, less than four months after our evening Elliott Bay Books. And what a privilege to meet the students in this senior capstone course on the intersections of Buddhism and racial healing: thank you for your challenging questions on proselytization, language, mindfulness, and more!
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online event | Oregon State University | Wednesday, May 26, 2021 | 6:30–8:00pm Pacific Time
Recentering Asian Americans in Our Understandings of Buddhism and Mindfulness (with Holly Hisamoto)What is lost when American Buddhist sanghas and meditation centers decenter our Asian heritage? This event, hosted by OSU’s Contemplative Studies Initiative and presented in partnership with the Hundere Endowed Chair in Religion & Culture and Grass Roots Bookstore in Corvalis, Oregon, offered a space for an open exploration of this question as we considered what it means to be a refuge for oneself and others. It was truly a gift to be in conversation with Holly Hisamoto, whose wise perspectives are woven throughout Be the Refuge and whose chaplain’s presence made the evening a blessing for all. A recording of our dialogue is available here.
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online event | Young Buddhist Editorial | Saturday, May 22, 2021 | 10:00am–3:00pm Pacific Time
Building Buddhist Communities: A Retreat Inspired by Be the RefugeYBE’s first-ever half-day online retreat featured interactive sessions with Funie Hsu, Tanny Jiraprapasuke, Wanwan Lu, Dedunu Suraweera, Mihiri Tillakaratne, Juliet Bost, Cahron Cross, Elaine Lai, David Woo, and Devon Matsumoto around the four parts of Be the Refuge (Trailblazers, Bridge-Builders, Integrators, and Refuge-Makers), as well as chanting by Felix Lam, and KK Nodohora. Thank you to everyone who attended the retreat for your wholehearted presence and moving stories. Kudos to the young organizers of YBE, who are showing us how vibrant, connected, and intersectional the future of American Buddhism can be!
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online event | Harvard Buddhist Community | Thursday, May 20, 2021 | 7–8:30pm Eastern Time
Reimagine: A New Generation of Asian American Buddhists (with Dr. Nalika Gajaweera)For this special event in celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, I was joined by anthropologist Dr. Nalika Gajaweera for an exploration of identity, karma, generosity, rebirth, grandmas, and other topics. We especially appreciated the many questions and insights raised by the audience. Deep bows to the fabulous organizing team—Keila Franks, Liem Nguyen, Chantal Sanchez, Eva Seligman, and Xavier Sayeed—for bringing us Radical Re-Orientation: The 2021 Buddhism and Race Speaker Series, featuring Larry Yang, Rhonda Magee, Duncan Williams, Ann Gleig, Shanté Smalls, and Katie Loncke. A recording is available here.
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video conversation | Buddhist Church of Oakland | Published Sunday, May 16, 2021
Gotan-e ServiceA Dharma talk conversation with Rev. Harry Bridge, in a special service commemorating the birth, youth, life and teachings of Shinran Shonin. Our dialogue, which you can watch on BCO’s YouTube channel, begins at the 17 min 20 sec mark in the video.
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online event | Buddhist Church of Oakland | Saturday, May 15, 2021 | 2:00–4:00pm Pacific Time
Be the Refuge Virtual Book Discussion with Funie Hsu and BCO Junior YBA MembersIt was an inspiration to be in conversation with my dear friend Funie Hsu and a stellar group of high schoolers from BCO’s Junior YBA (Young Buddhist Association). Buddhism in America will be in good hands with this next generation. Special thanks to Hondo Lobley, BCO Vice President of Buddhist Education, and to Rev. Harry Bridge, BCO Resident Minister, for hosting and moderating.
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online event | Making Visible | Wednesday, May 12, 2021 | 4:00–5:30pm Eastern Time
Building Community with Be the Refuge: Recentering Asian American BuddhistsHuge thanks to everyone who joined me for this journey of connecting the dots in retrospect. This was my first time showing photos and videos related to the May 4th gathering, the past three months of book events, a pandemic year marred by racial violence and buoyed by racial solidarity, my years of working on my manuscript in SE Asia, and the people and friendships who helped Be the Refuge come to fruition. This event is part of a three-month speaker series with David Woo and An Tran that aims to counter the marginalization, erasure, and stereotyping of Asian American Buddhists by celebrating the diversity of this group as indispensable stewards and shapers of American Buddhism. A recording is available here.
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online event | Asian American Pacific Islander Sangha Los Angeles | Tuesday, May 11, 2021 | 7:00–8:30pm Pacific Time
Virtual Sangha Visit: AAPI Sangha LAWhat sweet refuge to sit and talk with this group of AAPI/Desi/Asian diaspora–identified practitioners. After leading an opening meditation, Noel Alumit dove right in with a dynamic series of questions. (Readers may recognize Noel as the “first-gen” American Buddhist whose interview inspired the structure of Be the Refuge.) I was deeply moved by the unflinching honesty and unwavering kindness that manifested in our time together. Special thanks to Donna Keiko Ozawa for designing a flyer that perfectly reflected the friendliness and intimacy of this gathering,
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online event | Insight Meditation Community of Charlottesville | Tuesday, May 11, 2021 | 7:00–8:30pm Eastern Time
Virtual Sangha Visit: IMCCIt was a pleasure to be in conversation with the IMCC community of Charlottesville, Virginia, and a happy surprise to learn that so many sangha members attended the May We Gather ceremony on May 4th and had already read Be the Refuge. Thank you to IMCC for choosing my book as their inaugural All-Sangha Big Read, hosted by IMCC guiding teacher Liz Reynolds, who also moderated our event this evening. A recording is available here.
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online event | San Jose State University | Thursday, May 6, 2021 | 7:00–8:15pm Pacific Time
Be the Refuge Virtual Book Event with Dr. Tamara HoI was thrilled for this chance to be in conversation with Dr. Tamara Ho, Associate Professor in Gender and Sexuality Studies at UC Riverside. This special event in celebration of Asian Pacific Island Desi American (APIDA) Heritage Month was co-sponsored by the SJSU Humanities Department, the Chao Te Lin and Avatamsaka Education Fund, the SJSU Mosaic Cross Cultural Center, and the APIDA Task Force. Deep thanks to Profs. Todd Perreira and Funie Hsu—both of whom are featured in Be the Refuge—for moderating the many vibrant questions from our wonderful audience.
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online event | Insight Meditation Society | Thursday, May 6, 2021 | 11:00am–12:30pm Eastern Time
Be the Refuge Virtual Book Event with IMS Teachers in TrainingIn this first book event after May We Gather, I had the joyous privilege of dialoguing with the most diverse IMS Teacher Training Program (TTP) to date. In this final module of the TTP, we shared reflections on May 4th and Be the Refuge, as well as aspirations for the future. Congratulations to the twenty teachers for completing their four-year training, and blessings for the journey ahead!
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special event | Tuesday, May 4, 2021 | 1:00pm Hawaii Time / 4:00pm Pacific Time / 7:00pm Eastern Time
May We Gather: A National Buddhist Memorial for Asian American Ancestors
This historic event brought together Asian American and ally Buddhist leaders in a response to anti-Asian violence. The 90-minute ceremony powerfully manifested our resilience and interconnectedness. Marking the 49th day after the Atlanta shootings, the service was hosted at Higashi Honganji Buddhist Temple in Los Angeles, livestreamed to an audience of over 1,700 people, and viewed by thousands more afterward. You can watch the video and learn more at www.maywegather.org.
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online event | Eastwind Books and University of California Berkeley | Wednesday, April 28, 2021 | 2:00–3:00pm Pacific Time
Centering Asian American Voices in American Buddhism: Anger, Refuge, Solidarity (with Dr. Carolyn Chen)What fun to return to Berkeley (even if virtually) for this lively conversation with Dr. Carolyn Chen. A huge thank you to Eastwind Books for hosting this event, and to the following units at UC Berkeley for co-sponsorship: Program in Asian American and Asian Diaspora Studies, Program in Asian American and Asian Diaspora Studies, Asian American Research Center, Berkeley Center for the Study of Religion, and the Center for Buddhist Studies. We couldn’t have asked for a better audience—thank you all for your support! A recording of this event is available here.
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virtual visit | Maitripa College | Monday, April 26, 2021 | 1:00–3:00pm Pacific Time
Virtual Classroom Visit: Theories and Methods in Buddhist Studies (with Prof. Leigh Miller)Deep appreciation to Dr. Leigh Miller for the opportunity to be in conversation with MA and MDiv students at Maitripa College in Portland, Oregon. Over the course of a spacious afternoon, we covered everything from the nuts and bolts of interviewing to eclectic writing inspirations to grappling with rage and sorrow in the face of injustice. Here’s hoping that we’ll continue to wrestle with these topics together, in community.
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online event | Ancient Dragon Zen Gate | Sunday, April 25, 2021 | 10:10–11:30am Central Time
Be the Refuge Virtual Book Event with Howard Ruan Around the time I began researching Asian American Buddhists, I took a class on the Lotus Sutra with Dr. Taigen Dan Leighton (a class I still remember with fondness and appreciation). I’m grateful to Rev. Leighton, ADZG’s Guiding Dharma Teacher, for the opportunity to speak with his Chicago-based sangha. Special thanks to Howard Ruan, leader of ADZG’s Hyde Park group, for asking such thoughtful questions on two Buddhisms, chaplaincy, practice, and privilege. Deep bows to everyone in attendance for staying engaged, even when the topics felt like a hot rock in our hands! An audio recording of our conversation is available here.
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online event | Banyen Books | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 | 7:00–8:00pm Pacific Time
Be the Refuge Virtual Book Event with Dr. Jessica MainThank you to the attendees from far and wide—Canada and the USA as well as Australia, Brazil, China, Germany, India, Korea, Mexico, Sweden, and Taiwan—for attending my first international virtual event, hosted by Banyen Books in Vancouver, Canada and co-sponsored by UBC’s Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Program in Buddhism and Contemporary Society. Many thanks also to Dr. Jessica Main for our stimulating conversation and to audience members for asking such insightful questions. A recording is available here.
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online event | University of the West | Thursday, April 8, 2021 | 4:00–5:30pm Pacific Time
NextGen Buddhism: A Conversation with Dr. Drew BakerProf. Jane Iwamura, UWest’s Chief Academic Officer, conceived of and moderated this conversation on the intersections of Be the Refuge and Dr. Drew Baker’s book Converting American Buddhism: Second-Generation Buddhist Americans, Orientalism, and the Politics of Family Religion. A recording of our discussion on the confluence of race, age, discrimination, and religious belonging in American Buddhism is available here.
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online event | Kenyon College | Tuesday, April 6, 2021 | 7:00–8:30pm Eastern Time
Asian and Middle Eastern Studies TableThe AMES Table, a regular gathering of students and faculty at Kenyon, offered a warm and welcoming space for discussing Be the Refuge. I am grateful to Prof. Joy Brennan for guiding us through an exploration of the skillful use of anger, the intertwined dynamics of language and immigration, and the co-constitution of Buddhism and race.
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online event | Northwestern University | Monday, April 5, 2021 | 9:00–10:30am Central Time
Department of Religious Studies Brown Bag SeminarThis brown bag seminar was my first chance to have a substantive discussion with graduate students and faculty in religious studies about Be the Refuge. Special thanks to Ray Buckner for facilitating such an energizing conversation. I particularly enjoyed the chance to talk with PhD students about the transformative process of writing a hybrid work.
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virtual visit | University of California Berkeley | Thursday, April 1, 2021 | 10:00–11:00am Pacific Time
Virtual Classroom Visit: The Second-Generation Asian American Experience (with Prof. Carolyn Chen) When writing Be the Refuge, I harbored the hope that college students would find it readable and relatable. I was touched to hear that students in Dr. Carolyn Chen’s class on second-generation Asian Americans found this to be the case. It was a privilege to engage with their reflections and questions on the book.
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online event | Insight Meditation Community of Washington Asian Sangha | Sunday, March 28, 2021 | 3:00–4:30pm Eastern Time
Virtual Sangha Visit: IMCW Asian SanghaThis gathering was a treasured opportunity opportunity to dialogue with other people of Asian descent about grief and fear, anger and action, food and celebration, culture and belonging. As one of our group members beautifully put it, “It’s a resource to have this diversity—I love our togetherness.”
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online event | Insight Meditation Community of Washington | Thursday, March 25, 2021 | 7:30–9:00pm Eastern Time
Be the Refuge: A Celebration of Asian American Buddhist VoicesThank you to everyone who attended this special program. Mongolian-born artist Urana Heart opened and closed our evening with hauntingly beautiful music; La Sarmiento (Guiding Teacher of IMCW’s BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ Sanghas) moderated my conversation with Luana Long, Anna Johns (Co-Founders of IMCW’s Asian Sangha), and Trisha Stotler (IMCW Executive Director of Programming); and Léo Guillemin lent his tech wizardry making our evening possible.
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virtual visit | University of Michigan | Monday, March 22, 2021 | 2:30–4:00pm Eastern Time
Virtual Classroom Visit: Buddhism in America (with Prof. Benjamin Brose)Thank you to Prof. Benjamin Brose for the opportunity to center Asian American Buddhist histories and voices in this guest lecture and Q&A session with the undergraduate students in his “Zen Masters, Dharma Bums, & Drag Queens: Buddhism in America” course. It was poignant to connect Be the Refuge with the anti-Asian violence that weighs heavily on many of us during this time.
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online event | Barre Center for Buddhist Studies | Sunday, March 21, 2021 | 7:00–8:30pm Eastern Time
Buddhism, Race, and American Belonging: An Asian American ViewIn the wake of the tragic mass shooting in Atlanta that killed eight people, including six women of Asian descent, I drew solace from this dialogue with Prof. Duncan Ryuken Williams on the themes of names, ritual, pain, and storytelling. We ended the evening with a ceremony in honor of lives cut short by anti-Asian violence. A recording of the event is available here.
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online event | Zen Center North Shore | Thursday, March 11, 2021 | 7:15–8:30pm Eastern Time
Be the Refuge Virtual Book Event with Rev. Joan Amaral and Dr. Kate FarringtonWhat a gift to tap into not only the painful and challenging portions but also the playful and creative aspects of Be the Refuge at this this virtual book event. Thank you to ZCNS Founder Joan Amaral, Asian Art and Philosophy Professor Kate Farrington, and everyone who attended. A recording is available here.
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online event | Southeast Asian Service Leadership Network (SEALNet) | Saturday, March 6, 2021 | 6:00–7:30pm Pacific Time
Be the Refuge through a Southeast Asian LensThough this might be easy to overlook at first glance, Be the Refuge is indebted to the region and diasporas of Southeast Asia. It was a great joy to join SEALNet members for this multi-stranded conversation on “AsAm Buddhist” and “SE Asian” as identities-in-the-making, majority/minority dynamics in SE Asia and in diaspora, finding belonging in comfort and challenge, and the karma of our creations.
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online event | Ho Center for Buddhist Studies at Stanford | Thursday, March 4, 2021 | 7:00–8:30pm Pacific Time
Be the Refuge Virtual Book Event with Dr. Jane IwamuraIt was a delight to be speak with Professor Jane Iwamura, since her insights from her scholarship are woven throughout Be the Refuge. Thank you to Professor John Kieschnick for moderating the Q&A, to audience members for your excellent questions, and to Dr. Irene Lin for organizing this HCBSS event. You can watch a recording of the conversation portion of the event here.
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online event | San Mateo Buddhist Temple | Wednesday, March 3, 2021 | 7:00–9:00pm Pacific Time
Be the Refuge Book Discussion with Juliet Bost, David Chin, Hailey La Monte, Michiko Mukai and others It was a privilege to hear Hailey La Monte, Juliet Bost, David Chin, Michiko Mukai, and others share about their Buddhist journeys in this intergenerational event with members and friends of the San Mateo Buddhist Temple. Special thanks to Rev. Henry Adams for inviting me to take part in SMBT’s longstanding tradition of hosting Institute of Buddhist Studies alumni to speak about their publications.
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virtual visit | Phillips Academy Andover | Tuesday, March 2, 2021 | 4:30–5:30pm Eastern Time
Virtual Classroom Visit: Asian Religions (with Andy Housiaux)What an inspiration to speak with Andy Housiaux’s class on Asian religions! Our lively conversation covered Buddhist teachings, race and religion, ecological justice, writing as spiritual practice, and the sharing of merit. I was wowed to see high school students from around the world engaging so energetically with the themes in Be the Refuge.
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online event | Insight Meditation Center | Sunday, February 28, 2021 | 1:00–2:30pm Pacific Time
Open House & Be the Refuge Book Discussion with Ying Chen and Lilu ChenThe Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City, California was one of the first sanghas I attended as an undergrad who was just beginning to explore Buddhism, so it was very meaningful to be part of this book discussion and open house, hosted by IMC’s Asian Dharma Circle. I especially appreciated hearing people’s perspectives on the importance of creating refuge and practicing in culturally engaged ways.
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online event | Buddhist Community at Stanford | Saturday, February 27, 2021 | 10:00–11:30am Pacific Time
Be the Refuge Book Discussion with the BCAS CommunityAs someone who first joined the Buddhist Community at Stanford when it was a much smaller organization during my undergraduate days, it was a joyful homecoming to connect with the diverse, tight-knit, and now much larger BCAS community for an intimate dialogue around Be the Refuge. Thank you to everyone for reading the book in such an engaged way, and for asking such perceptive questions.
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online event | BOCA Youth Group | Saturday, February 20, 2021 | 4:00–5:30pm Pacific Time / 7:00–8:30pm Eastern Time
Building Asian American Buddhist Community with Wanwan Lu and Andy SuIt was a dream come true to be part of this panel with filmmaker Wanwan Lu and educator Andy Su, both of whom are featured in Be the Refuge. We were deeply touched by the dozens of participants who zoomed in from New York to Hawai‘i, including interviewees from Be the Refuge and the parents of our late friend Aaron J. Lee. Thank you all for sharing your stories with such openness and care. Many thanks to John Gill of the BOCA Youth Group in Rosemead, California for helping to organize this special event.
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virtual visit | Developing Virtue Secondary School 培德中學 | Friday, February 19, 2021 | 11:15am–12:00pm Pacific Time
Virtual Classroom Visit: DVSS Girls SchoolThanks to Bhikshuni Jin Jr for the invitation to speak at DVSS, the first Buddhist high school founded in the United States. We discussed why race matters to Buddhists, how to bridge generational gaps with our elders, why some of us have kept our Asian names, how to lift Asian American Buddhist perspectives in solidarity with other BIPOC voices, and more. Meeting with this group of Gen Z students has this old millennial feeling hopeful for the future.
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online event | Books & Books | Thursday, February 18, 2021 | 7:00–8:00pm Eastern Time
Be the Refuge Virtual Book Event with Dr. Ann GleigWhat a joy to talk autoethnography, race, intersectional Buddhism, purple sweaters, and more with Professor Ann Gleig at this online event hosted by Miami’s Books & Books. Dr. Gleig’s work in and beyond academia are an inspiration to me, and it was a delight to celebrate Be the Refuge together. You can watch recording of our hour together here, and read a condensed version of our conversation on Tricycle.
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online event | Asian Dharma Circle, Insight Meditation Center | Sunday, February 14, 2021 | 1:00–2:30pm Pacific Time
Virtual Sangha Visit: Asian Dharma Circle, Led by Ying Chen and Lilu Chen Thank you to the members of IMC’s Asian Dharma Circle for welcoming me to their bimonthly online group. Our discussion of safety, trust, and refuge felt fitting for a time of both fear (with violence against Asian Americans in the news) and hope (as we usher in the year of the ox).
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online event | Elliott Bay Book Company | Tuesday, February 2, 2021 | 7:00–8:30pm Pacific Time
Be the Refuge Virtual Book Event with Dr. Sharon Suh Deep bows of gratitude to Rick Simonson and Karen Maeda Allman of Elliott Bay Book Company for hosting this event, Dr. Sharon A. Suh for being such a thoughtful and honest conversation partner, and everyone in the audience for your heartfelt questions and comments. This virtual event was co-presented by Seattle University College of Arts and Sciences. You can watch a recording here.
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online event | Institute of Buddhist Studies | Thursday, January 28, 2021 | 1:00–2:30pm Pacific Time
Be the Refuge Virtual Book Launch with Dr. Scott MitchellA huge thank you to everyone who joined us for Be the Refuge’s virtual book launch, hosted by the Institute of Buddhist Studies in Berkeley, California—my alma mater and the birthplace of this book. If you missed my conversation with IBS Dean Scott Mitchell, moderated by Rev. Harry Bridge, you can read about the event on the IBS blog and view the video here.
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online event | After Hope, Asian Art Museum | Thursday, October 22, 2020 | 5:30–6:30pm Pacific Time
Building Sanctuary, Being RefugeIt was an honor to be in dialogue with Zen priest and author Zenju Earthlyn Manuel at this online event, moderated by Dr. Padma Maitland and hosted by the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco’s After Hope program. You can listen to an audio recording of our conversation here. Read more about the incredible After Hope program in this Hyperallergic article by Emily Wilson.
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