Thanks for this post, Maia. I’d like to see the grounds during the day, so I wonder if the center is open to the public other than for the Wednesday night meditations?
There are also meditation periods open to the public every day at 7 am, 12 noon, and 5:30 pm. If you'd like to simply walk the grounds, I'd suggest calling the office at (505) 986-8518 to see if that would be okay. While it is a welcoming place, I'm sure you can imagine that it would be considerate to check in ahead of time.
Wow, Maia, I wish I'd known about this place when I was lost and alone and wandering through Santa Fe in 2000 (although even if I did, I probably would have been too shy to enter).
One day I was hiking around Santa Fe at dusk with my backpack on, looking for a place to sleep. I decided it would be kind of cool and courageous of me to sleep in a church doorway, so I settled down onto the concrete at the entrance of the Catholic Church near the base of Canyon Road. Unfortunately, within an hour I began to feel unsafe so I wondered up Canyon Road in the moonlight and then off to the right into those hills there. I spent a beautiful and memorable night atop one of them.
Oh I know exactly the Catholic Church you're talking about -- Cristo Rey. I once went there for mass on Ash Wednesday. Just a stone's throw from Upaya, well, if you have a good arm.
What a memory that must be! That is such a gorgeous area, and the nighttime sky and stars are spectacular. Maybe there's an essay in there somewhere, Don?!
Lately, so many little quips like that have been coming to me as possible essays. I started one the other day about all the interesting and strange characters I met hanging out at the Taos Cow cafe in Arroyo Seco. 😊
Love to! I don’t think I mentioned this to you, but one day while hanging out at the Taos Cow, I was recruited to be an extra on the set of the Stephen Spielberg mini-series, Into the West. I appear twice, very briefly, in Episode 6. What an experience!
Maia, Thanks for this tour of Upaya Zen Center. I deeply appreciate Roishi Joan Halifax and her work blending the two worlds of Zen and social action. I loved the glimpse of the sense you gave of this place as an intimate yet spacious sanctuary.
I was hoping one of your postcards, someday, would feature Upaya and Roshi Joan. LOVED THIS! At some point, I do plan to attend a retreat there. I had the honor of sitting a daylong retreat and lecture with Roshi Joan when she was in Seattle debuting her book Standing At The Edge. What a Soul and dharma treasure is she.
Maia, your writing resonates deeply with me, especially when you describe the landscape of New Mexico. I harbor a profound love for the landscapes of New Mexico, South Utah, Arizona, and parts of Nevada. There's something about the vastness, the rock formations, and the quiet power of those places that feels like home to me. It's no surprise that my own landscape, the Canyon, reflects these very elements.
I practice Vipassana, but I’ve certainly heard of Roshi Joan Halifax. In fact, her concept of a "Strong Back, Soft Front" was the foundation of my December post, *The Brave Tender Ground* (https://wildlionessespride.substack.com/p/the-brave-tender-ground?r=1sss7q). Her words have deeply influenced my own journey of balancing strength with vulnerability. There’s a sacredness in creating a place where vulnerability and resilience coexist, much like the delicate yet powerful landscapes you describe. I believe this is what makes Upaya such a profound refuge—a place where heart and mind are nurtured together in the sacred embrace of the land. Thank you for sharing such a beautiful reflection.
Hi Maia, this is where I met you. My husband and I took a course called The Ease and Joy of Mornings with you at Upaya. It was a beautiful time. Love your Substack here!
Thanks for this post, Maia. I’d like to see the grounds during the day, so I wonder if the center is open to the public other than for the Wednesday night meditations?
Hi Eric,
There are also meditation periods open to the public every day at 7 am, 12 noon, and 5:30 pm. If you'd like to simply walk the grounds, I'd suggest calling the office at (505) 986-8518 to see if that would be okay. While it is a welcoming place, I'm sure you can imagine that it would be considerate to check in ahead of time.
Wow, Maia, I wish I'd known about this place when I was lost and alone and wandering through Santa Fe in 2000 (although even if I did, I probably would have been too shy to enter).
One day I was hiking around Santa Fe at dusk with my backpack on, looking for a place to sleep. I decided it would be kind of cool and courageous of me to sleep in a church doorway, so I settled down onto the concrete at the entrance of the Catholic Church near the base of Canyon Road. Unfortunately, within an hour I began to feel unsafe so I wondered up Canyon Road in the moonlight and then off to the right into those hills there. I spent a beautiful and memorable night atop one of them.
Oh I know exactly the Catholic Church you're talking about -- Cristo Rey. I once went there for mass on Ash Wednesday. Just a stone's throw from Upaya, well, if you have a good arm.
What a memory that must be! That is such a gorgeous area, and the nighttime sky and stars are spectacular. Maybe there's an essay in there somewhere, Don?!
Lately, so many little quips like that have been coming to me as possible essays. I started one the other day about all the interesting and strange characters I met hanging out at the Taos Cow cafe in Arroyo Seco. 😊
maybe you can have a guest post on Postcards from New Mexico! I'd welcome that ; )
Love to! I don’t think I mentioned this to you, but one day while hanging out at the Taos Cow, I was recruited to be an extra on the set of the Stephen Spielberg mini-series, Into the West. I appear twice, very briefly, in Episode 6. What an experience!
Seems like a beautiful place.
It is! Come for a visit!
Maia, Thanks for this tour of Upaya Zen Center. I deeply appreciate Roishi Joan Halifax and her work blending the two worlds of Zen and social action. I loved the glimpse of the sense you gave of this place as an intimate yet spacious sanctuary.
Hope you have a chance to visit here one day, Sandra!
I was hoping one of your postcards, someday, would feature Upaya and Roshi Joan. LOVED THIS! At some point, I do plan to attend a retreat there. I had the honor of sitting a daylong retreat and lecture with Roshi Joan when she was in Seattle debuting her book Standing At The Edge. What a Soul and dharma treasure is she.
yes she is!
Maia, your writing resonates deeply with me, especially when you describe the landscape of New Mexico. I harbor a profound love for the landscapes of New Mexico, South Utah, Arizona, and parts of Nevada. There's something about the vastness, the rock formations, and the quiet power of those places that feels like home to me. It's no surprise that my own landscape, the Canyon, reflects these very elements.
I practice Vipassana, but I’ve certainly heard of Roshi Joan Halifax. In fact, her concept of a "Strong Back, Soft Front" was the foundation of my December post, *The Brave Tender Ground* (https://wildlionessespride.substack.com/p/the-brave-tender-ground?r=1sss7q). Her words have deeply influenced my own journey of balancing strength with vulnerability. There’s a sacredness in creating a place where vulnerability and resilience coexist, much like the delicate yet powerful landscapes you describe. I believe this is what makes Upaya such a profound refuge—a place where heart and mind are nurtured together in the sacred embrace of the land. Thank you for sharing such a beautiful reflection.
Hi Maia, this is where I met you. My husband and I took a course called The Ease and Joy of Mornings with you at Upaya. It was a beautiful time. Love your Substack here!
Hello Roxane! That's wonderful that we crossed paths at Upaya! I used to love leading those Ease and Joy of Morning programs. Thanks for saying hi!
Thank you, Maia. My wife and I attended a weekend retreat several years ago at Upaya with Fleet Maull.
Fleet is a gifted teacher. I had the privilege of sitting in on many of his classes for the Upaya Buddhist Chaplaincy Training Program.
I have used his presentation on the Drama Triangle when teaching literary narrative quite a bit.