
Enlightened Intimacy: An Interview with Dr. Robert Thurman on Buddhism and Relationships (Part 2)
It isn’t just trust in the relationship; it’s the person developing a trust in reality. They themselves have a heart and their own heart connects to reality because everyone is reality. It’s the person developing trust in a Buddha-nature reality, such that they are ready for any relationship. —Robert Thurman
We present Part 2 of Robert Thurman’s interview (see Part 1), and this time he gets into some specific aspects of Buddhism and relationships, including “healthy attachment,” trust and repairing feelings of violation. In person, Bob talks fast, introducing his thoughts with boldness and a singular focus, and at the same time there is the twinkle of good humor behind his words. I enjoyed not only the breadth of his knowledge but also the dynamic and jovial manner in which he presents his ideas.

Volunteer Opportunities at City Center
We are currently looking for volunteers in three specific areas:
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Thich Nhat Hanh’s Impromptu Visit to City Center
Photos by Shundo David Haye
Thich Nhat Hanh arrived at City Center Friday morning, October 25, with a delegation of monks and nuns as they approached the end of a teaching tour of North America. Traveling with him was the honorable Sister Chan Khong, author of Learning True Love. Read more

At-Risk Youth Offer Artful Evening at City Center
Art Reception and Performance
Friday, November 1, at 7 pm
City Center Art Lounge
Free admission
A reception with the youths (18-24 years old) in the Art Program of Larkin Street Youth Services will feature visual arts as well as performances of both poetry and music. These young people are the featured artists for the month of November. Read more

An Evening of Poetry on November 22
with Norman Fischer, Jane Hirshfield, Genine Lentine, and Zubair Ahmed
Friday, November 22, 2013, 7:30 – 9:30 pm

Enlightened Intimacy: An Interview with Dr. Robert Thurman on Buddhism and Relationships (Part 1)
Enlightenment is intimacy with all things. —Eihei Dogen
Robert Thurman’s reputation precedes him, and in this interview he does not disappoint. A scholar and writer by trade, the recipient of an endowed chair in Buddhist Studies at Columbia University, and a former student and enduring close friend of the Dalai Lama, he brings decades of Buddhist scholarship to bear on a very personal and universal topic, intimacy. Read more

Three People in a Room: Dr. David Bullard on Couples in Therapy
Interview conducted by Sachico Ohanks, SFZC Communications Coordinator
Dr. David Bullard, a licensed psychologist and licensed marital and family therapist, has been practicing individual psychotherapy and couples therapy in San Francisco for over 30 years. A clinical professor at UCSF in both medicine and psychiatry, he acknowledges among his teachers renowned Tibetan-Buddhist scholar Dr. Robert Thurman and poet David Whyte. He co-leads the SFZC workshop Anger and Intimacy: Paths to Healing with Zesho Susan O’Connell, and in this interview he speaks of the struggle and growing that can come from intimate relationships. Read more

Your Body Is a Refuge: An Interview with Beata Chapman on the Sanctuary in Bodies That Change, Age and Suffer
by Jay Pennington, Sangha News Editor
Centuries ago, Zen master Dogen said, “in attachment, blossoms fall.” Today, Beata Chapman may be one of the best people to remind us, with the greatest sensitivity and tenderness, that this applies to our aging bodies, and to point us toward taking a helpful view of that. Read more