Course dates: May 12 through June 2, 2023
This free, four-week interactive course is designed to accompany Month 3 in the yearlong online program “Embracing Life with Wisdom & Compassion.” Open to all.
Advances in technology allow us to be more connected than ever before. Yet, feelings of isolation and loneliness are pervasive in our children as well as adults. Loneliness takes a significant toll on our physical and emotional health and well-being. During this month-long course, we offer opportunities to join with others in guided practice, to find support to reflect upon personal experiences of loneliness, to open into these experiences with guidance and collective support, and to share the benefits of doing so. With practices that support each of us to connect with our innate capacity for wisdom and compassion, we can heal, transform, and discover that the imprints of isolation and loneliness we carry can loosen and release, allowing our natural capacity for kindness and compassion to emerge.
Each weekly session will include a guided practice and time for reflection and sharing in small and large groups. There will be materials to support daily practice between sessions.
The course follows three other free online offerings on the same theme of “Embracing Loneliness, Cultivating Connection”: a teaching and guided meditation with Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche on Thursday, May 4, at 12 noon New York time; the continuous 24-hour Full Moon Practice session, which begins at 10 a.m. on May 5 and ends at 10 a.m. on May 6; and a science & spirituality dialog, “Spacious Embrace: When Feeling Lonely, Find the Friend Within,” on Thursday, May 11, 12 noon NY time,
Course size is limited to 21 participants to support a sense of warmth, connection, honesty, and safety. There is no fee to attend. Each group member is asked to make a commitment to show up fully with a clear intention to benefit others, and between the weekly group sessions to engage in daily meditation practice, both formally and informally. An additional weekly small-group session is offered to further the sense of group connection and support.
Classes take place via Zoom on four consecutive Fridays, beginning May 12, 2023. Each 90-minute class begins at 12 noon New York time and is held in English. To register please complete the form below. You will receive an email from aleezesattarmoss@gmail.com and be asked to respond to confirm your participation in the program.
Access other offerings of the yearlong program, both live and recorded, at this link.
About the Instructor
Aleezé Sattar Moss, Ph.D., is the associate director of the Myrna Brind Center for Mindfulness at Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia. She is a certified mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) teacher and teaches mindfulness to the public, patients, health care professionals, medical students, and employees in corporate settings. In addition to receiving extensive training in teaching mindfulness, Aleeze completed the 9 month-long Three Doors Compassion Project in 2016. She continues to deepen her own practice and teaching through ongoing trainings and retreats. She has a doctorate in anthropology and conducts qualitative research on the effects of MBSR on physical and psychological health and has published in peer-reviewed journals. She is deeply passionate about sharing the benefits of mindfulness and meditation.