6-week LIVE Online Course
JUNE 18 - JULY 30, 2024 *
TUESDAYS 9:15 – 11:00AM PT / 12:15 – 2:00PM ET
offered By Donation
*Skips Tuesday July 16
The first session of this course has already happened, but you may still register until 12pm ET June 25th.
Communication sits at the heart of our lives – personally, professionally, and spiritually. This six-week online course offers training in the foundations of an integrated approach to communication.
Drawing upon the Buddha’s teachings on the Noble Eightfold Path, mindfulness and Right Speech, plus the modern disciplines of Nonviolent Communication and trauma healing, the curriculum offers concrete tools to hold one’s own while still hearing others, and to engage effectively and efficiently in collaboration. You will learn to:
Engage in effective dialogue
Feel more confident in conversation
Strengthen your capacities for empathy and resilience
Identify and stay focused on what really matters in any interaction
Through a combination of mindfulness practices, guided reflections, and interactive exercises, you will develop a stronger sense of presence, greater access to compassion, and more versatile, clearer communication. This class is appropriate for both experienced and newer students, therapists, school teachers, chaplains and other helping professionals.
Questions? This donation-based course is sponsored by the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies. If you have questions, please contact BCBS here.
Donations This course is offered freely at no cost. If you would like to donate to support Oren's work and the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies, you can do so here or via the button below.
About the course
EACH LIVE 1-HOUR-and-45-minute SESSION INCLUDES:
Teachings on a key aspect of meditation and communication
Expert instruction on integrating meditation into conversation
Guided meditations on cognitive, emotional and somatic aspects of communication
Illustrative examples of the intersection between spiritual practice and relationship
Meetings will be recorded and uploaded within 24-36 hours for those who cannot attend.
What Else You Receive:
Live interactive Q&A with the teacher (during classes)
Weekly practice assignments and journal topics
Optional weekly calls with a practice buddy
Lifetime access to course recordings (audio and video)
Who’s it For?
This course is appropriate for those newer to Buddhist meditation and/or Nonviolent Communication, as well as for experienced practitioners seeking to deepen their skills. Past students include: psychologists, therapists, doctors, nurses and healthcare practitioners, chaplains, teachers, writers, artists, life coaches, lawyers, police, engineers, civil servants, and many more.
Cost: By donation
The Barre Center for Buddhist Studies is honored to be able to offer this course free of charge. BCBS and the those who teach its programs depend on donations to continue their work. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation when you register to support our programming.
About the Teacher
Oren Jay Sofer is a nationally recognized teacher of meditation, mindfulness and Nonviolent Communication. A member of the Spirit Rock Teachers Council, he holds a degree in Comparative Religion from Columbia University, is the author of Say What You Mean: A Mindful Approach to Nonviolent Communication, and the forthcoming book, Your Heart Was Made For This. of Teaching Mindfulness to Empower Adolescents. Oren is also a husband, father, and the founder of Next Step Dharma, an innovative online program that helps meditators integrate their retreat experiences into daily life.
Assistant Trainers
Passionate about healing – ourselves, intergenerationally, and the world – Ranjana (Ranji) Ariaratnam has shared NVC with families, teachers, activists, schools, and social service organizations via workshops, retreats, and mediation since 2009. Ranji worked for years overseas in humanitarian aid with people displaced by conflict. Now she brings together approaches that are very healing in her own life – NVC, painting and writing, somatic practices, and Vipassana meditation – each addressing different layers of our being. She lives on Vancouver Island.
David Johnson spent years overseas as a humanitarian aid worker. A few years after being introduced to NVC he returned to North America and immersed himself in the study of NVC as part of his exploration of practices that address the roots of violence and suffering. He has seen how NVC supports him as part of a couple and in all aspects of his life, and has shared NVC with families, schools, activists, and social service organizations via workshops, retreats, and mediation since 2011. He now lives on Vancouver Island.
This donation-based course is sponsored by the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies (“BCBS”). Registration is being handled by BCBS. If you have further questions, please contact BCBS here.
