About Us

Downtown Meditation provides an environment where individuals come together to practice and study Insight Meditation.  The heart of Insight Meditation is the practice of mindfulness, as explicated in the Buddha’s teaching on the Four Foundations of Mindfulness.  Downtown Meditation offers a refuge, a place to cultivate skillful qualities, concentration and discernment in New York City.

The Insight Meditation teachings offered at Downtown Meditation come from the Theravada tradition. Theravada practice is derived from the core teachings of the Buddha, as found in the Pali Canon, the earliest surviving record of what the Buddha taught. Within Theravada Buddhism there are various streams, lineages. At Downtown Meditation, we practice primarily in the style of the Thai Forest tradition. The teachings of Ajaan Lee, a 20th century Thai meditation master, and Thanissaro Bhikkhu, abbot of Metta Forest Monastery, provide the inspiration for dhamma practice at Downtown Meditation.

All who are interested are welcome to attend our programs and be part of our community. Downtown Meditation is dedicated to creating a space that welcomes all people regardless of cultural and religious background, race, socio-economic class, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, education, physical ability, or ability to pay.
 

It is our vision to

• Provide an opportunity for students to develop in their practice of Insight Meditation through a close, ongoing teacher-student relationship, as well as a relationship with other students. Downtown Meditation offers a developmental program of practice and study, allowing students to deepen their skill of meditation and cultivate skillful qualities.
   
• Help students to integrate mindfulness practice in their day-to-day lives. Since we are householders, with jobs, relationships, families, etc., it is essential that we learn to develop skillful qualities, concentration, and discernment in all the facets of our lives.
   
• Establish a community of likeminded people, committed to dharma practice. Having a secure base, a community that embodies trust, care, kindness, and joyful companionship, we are able to make a wholehearted effort to alleviate our suffering and find greater happiness in our lives.