What we’re about
Are you searching for meaning in your life?
Have you ever felt happiness in your life...
...never lasts?
This Buddhist group has a great positive, multi-cultural atmosphere that helps people search for the answer to life's biggest questions.
Through the teachings of Buddha and historical Pure Land Buddhist teachers we understand better the direction our life needs to take in order to find the purpose of life.
We offer video lectures and have meetings to discuss how to obtain an absolute form of happiness.
I hope you'll stop by and attend a meeting when you have a chance! Below, you'll find some more information about what Buddhism is all about as well as our contact info and location.
In Buddhism, we learn that there are two kinds of joy.
Relative Happiness
All the happiness we know is called Relative Happiness.
Money, status, fame, wealth, family, friends, and our loved ones are all included in this category.
Politics, economics, medicine, and the arts also try to provide us with Relative happiness.
We seek for this type of happiness day in, day out hoping we can attain true satisfaction from it.
Absolute Happiness
We are all seeking for a happiness which will truly last.
This kind of happiness is called Absolute Happiness.
The purpose of life is to attain it as quickly as possible while still alive.
Learn more at our meetups and check out some of our topics:
The Law of Cause and Effect
Six Good Deeds that Bring Happiness
Mirror of Truth
Dark Mind is the Root Cause of Suffering
Upcoming events (4+)
See all- Book Club: Radical Acceptance, Embracing Your Life With the Heart of A BuddhaLink visible for attendees
Hello our Dharma friends,
Hope this message finds you well. As one of the most active Buddhism groups online, we often get so many questions such as the following:How to be accepting of our fate specially when bad things happen?
How to surrender to our fate? Or do I need to constantly strive to change it?
I'm trying to be kind to myself but why is it not easy?
I suffer feeling I’m constantly struggling; why do we live life?Compassion in Buddhism means removing suffering and enabling joyfulness. When Siddhartha Gautama reached the enlightenment of a Buddha, he taught us the 4 Noble Truths, the first of which is life is suffering. But he also taught the second Noble Truth, which is there is a cause to suffering. And the third Noble Truth: the cessation of suffering & the 4th Noble Truth: the way to the cessation of suffering.
To the extent we understand the root cause of our sufferings, we can gain confidence in living life and supporting others as well. That adds to our joyfulness and vitality in life!
In our meetups, we talk about the 4 Noble Truths and in this book club gathering, we'd like to go over how karmic seeds we knowingly and unknowingly plant, which cause our sufferings. Then a way to resolve those karmic entanglements come to our view: we move from a state of resistance to a state of embracement.
We're going to read Tara Brach's book Radical Acceptance, Embracing Your Life with a Heart of a Buddha and have discussions about it. From page 9, "When I touched genuine peace and openheartedness, my inner critic continued to assess my level of purity. I mistrusted myself for the ways I tried to be positive when underneath I felt lonely or afraid."
Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life With the Heart of a Buddha https://a.co/d/7zgKXe6
How does self-judgement, fear of inadequacy, or rejection impact your experiences?
Radical Acceptance offers a pathway to inner freedom through personal stories and case histories along with a fresh interpretation of Buddhist tales.
March 2025: Pages 1-35 Awakening from the Trance
April 2025: Pages 36-65 The Sacred Pause
May 2025: NO BOOK CLUB GATHERING IN MAY
June 2025: Pages 66-98 Coming Home to Our Body
July 2025: Pages 99-121 Radical Acceptance of Pain
August 2025: Pages 122-153 Radical Acceptance of Desire
September 2025: Pages 154-185 Opening Our Hearts in the Face of Fear
October 2025: NO BOOK CLUB GATHERING IN OCTOBER
November 2025: Pages 186-212 Awakening Compassion for Ourselves
December 2025: Pages 213-243 Widening the Circles of Compassion
January 2026: Pages 243-263 Widening the Circles continued
February 2026: Pages 264-292 Recognizing Our Basic Goodness
March 2026: Pages 293-324 Awakening Together
April 2026: Pages 324-350 Realizing Our True NatureOur classes are free for the first 5 sessions. After 5 sessions, if you see the value in joining, please consider offering a contribution.
Our classes & sangha are sustained completely by the dana gratitude contributions of people like you!Dana gratitude donations for our classes are gratefully accepted on Venmo @Bita-Enayati
If you don't have Venmo, please email me at bitadharma22@gmail.com
so you can offer your contribution through PayPal or Zelle
Suggested donation for the event is $5 - $20.For one on one sessions by offering a contribution, please email me a bit about your spiritual journey so far at bitadharma22@gmail.com
One on one sessions help us understand our karmic entanglements and move past the hurt of traumas. It does take time to see the big picture but good things come to people who wait.Our zoom password is 426646
Thank you for reading until the end and hope to see you soon! Please don't be discouraged by the few RSVPs on this page as friends join us from other venues as well. Stay kind.
- Book Club: Radical Acceptance, Embracing Your Life With the Heart of A BuddhaLink visible for attendees
Hello our Dharma friends,
Hope this message finds you well. As one of the most active Buddhism groups online, we often get so many questions such as the following:How to be accepting of our fate specially when bad things happen?
How to surrender to our fate? Or do I need to constantly strive to change it?
I'm trying to be kind to myself but why is it not easy?
I suffer feeling I’m constantly struggling; why do we live life?Compassion in Buddhism means removing suffering and enabling joyfulness. When Siddhartha Gautama reached the enlightenment of a Buddha, he taught us the 4 Noble Truths, the first of which is life is suffering. But he also taught the second Noble Truth, which is there is a cause to suffering. And the third Noble Truth: the cessation of suffering & the 4th Noble Truth: the way to the cessation of suffering.
To the extent we understand the root cause of our sufferings, we can gain confidence in living life and supporting others as well. That adds to our joyfulness and vitality in life!
In our meetups, we talk about the 4 Noble Truths and in this book club gathering, we'd like to go over how karmic seeds we knowingly and unknowingly plant, which cause our sufferings. Then a way to resolve those karmic entanglements come to our view: we move from a state of resistance to a state of embracement.
We're going to read Tara Brach's book Radical Acceptance, Embracing Your Life with a Heart of a Buddha and have discussions about it. From page 9, "When I touched genuine peace and openheartedness, my inner critic continued to assess my level of purity. I mistrusted myself for the ways I tried to be positive when underneath I felt lonely or afraid."
Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life With the Heart of a Buddha https://a.co/d/7zgKXe6
How does self-judgement, fear of inadequacy, or rejection impact your experiences?
Radical Acceptance offers a pathway to inner freedom through personal stories and case histories along with a fresh interpretation of Buddhist tales.
March 2025: Pages 1-35 Awakening from the Trance
April 2025: Pages 36-65 The Sacred Pause
May 2025: NO BOOK CLUB GATHERING IN MAY
June 2025: Pages 66-98 Coming Home to Our Body
July 2025: Pages 99-121 Radical Acceptance of Pain
August 2025: Pages 122-153 Radical Acceptance of Desire
September 2025: Pages 154-185 Opening Our Hearts in the Face of Fear
October 2025: NO BOOK CLUB GATHERING IN OCTOBER
November 2025: Pages 186-212 Awakening Compassion for Ourselves
December 2025: Pages 213-243 Widening the Circles of Compassion
January 2026: Pages 243-263 Widening the Circles continued
February 2026: Pages 264-292 Recognizing Our Basic Goodness
March 2026: Pages 293-324 Awakening Together
April 2026: Pages 324-350 Realizing Our True NatureOur classes are free for the first 5 sessions. After 5 sessions, if you see the value in joining, please consider offering a contribution.
Our classes & sangha are sustained completely by the dana gratitude contributions of people like you!Dana gratitude donations for our classes are gratefully accepted on Venmo @Bita-Enayati
If you don't have Venmo, please email me at bitadharma22@gmail.com
so you can offer your contribution through PayPal or Zelle
Suggested donation for the event is $5 - $20.For one on one sessions by offering a contribution, please email me a bit about your spiritual journey so far at bitadharma22@gmail.com
One on one sessions help us understand our karmic entanglements and move past the hurt of traumas. It does take time to see the big picture but good things come to people who wait.Our zoom password is 426646
Thank you for reading until the end and hope to see you soon! Please don't be discouraged by the few RSVPs on this page as friends join us from other venues as well. Stay kind.
- Buddhism 101: How can we create good karma?Link visible for attendees
Hi, our Dharma friends!
Welcome to the gateway to Buddhism 101 for all! Our Karma Lab meeting is a friendly get-together of like-minded people to learn about karma in Buddhism.
Our weekly “intro to Buddhism” meetup group is open to all! No experience in Buddhism is necessary. Each week we prepare a Dharma presentation for you all on that week’s Buddhism topic, followed by Q&A. We kick off each meeting with some introductions and short ice-breaking so that you get to know the other members of our sangha community! We have a good mix of regulars and newbies each meeting.
The first 20 minutes I'd like to get to know who is joining our zoom session so please have your camera on. Please note we’re planning to record our zoom session and upload to YouTube for access by our YouTube Premium Members. There will be a notification from Zoom about recording. Thank you for your understanding.
Our classes are free but our classes & sangha are sustained completely by the dana gratitude contributions of people like you! Dana gratitude donations for our classes are gratefully accepted at https://donorbox.org/purelandschooldonation. Suggested donation for the event is $5 - $20.
Check out our YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@right-view-lab !
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To better explain the philosophy behind Karma Lab (our weekly Wednesday events, focusing on Karma):
It is not unusual for people to ask themselves;- Why do bad things happen to me?
- Or simply, "why me?"
Often these questions come up when things are not going well, or when they fall apart. In these moments we may feel like we're confined to a small bubble, and it feels like there's no solution to our problems.
Buddhism does not state that there's some supernatural being that causes bad things to happen or some ancestral curse that shapes it. Rather Buddhism says to practice good deeds and refrain from bad. This does seem like common sense but there's a difference there.
There are two reasons why this applies to our lives.
One reason is that karma has energy. Not only is it invisible, somewhat like a virus which can't be seen, but it also has strength, and it shapes our future. This strength or power has an influence on our daily lives. Buddha said: "Bad karma creates bad consequences and good karma creates good consequences."
Also, when bad things are happening to us, it's an opportunity for us to practice self-reflection and make extra effort to practice simple good deeds such as cleaning, showing a smile to people, and giving gifts to our friends and family.
It's human nature for most people to blame others at times for our unfavorable outcomes or difficulties in life. It's harder to stop and look more closely at ourselves.
So, it is therefore important to regulate our minds because they are the parent, our speech and actions being the children. That is why the Buddha taught us about the Six Paramitas – six types of daily practices.
With patience and practice of these teachings, we will undergo a complete transformation. In addition, our lives will improve. We are all encouraged to practice kindness and compassion, the act of which is always at the top of the list.
Stay well and let's go forward towards the light of unconditional goodness together! We have about 10-20 people join us each week, including the regulars, so hope you don't get discouraged by seeing the few RSVPs here on this page. See you soon too!!!
If you're interested in learning Buddhism but have a schedule conflict, please write to me for a one on one session!- Also please note that we're going to livestream this zoom session on YouTube for later access by our premium members. There will be an announcement from the Zoom app when it starts.
- We would appreciate it if you use the same name as your Meetup account so that the host of the meeting will easily recognize the participants.
- Please make sure you RSVP 30 minutes prior to the start of the meeting.
- Our classes are free but our classes & sangha are sustained completely by the dana gratitude contributions of people like you! Dana gratitude donations for our classes are gratefully accepted at https://donorbox.org/purelandschooldonation . Suggested donation for the event is $5 - $20.
Last but not least– the Zoom passcode is 426646.
We’re looking forward to meeting you!
Bita and Yuichi Asakura - Buddhism 101: What is the purpose of life?Link visible for attendees
Hi, our Dharma friends!
Welcome to the gateway to Buddhism 101 for all! Our Purpose Lab meeting is a friendly get-together of like-minded people to learn about “What is our life’s purpose and meaning?” in Buddhism.
Our weekly “intro to Buddhism” meetup group is open to all! No experience in Buddhism is necessary. Each week we prepare a Dharma presentation for you all on that week’s Buddhism topic, followed by Q&A. We kick off each meeting with some introductions and short ice-breaking so that you get to know the other members of our sangha community! We have a good mix of regulars and newbies each meeting.
The first 20 minutes I'd like to get to know who is joining our zoom session so please have your camera on. After that, we will record our presentation and Q&A and upload to YouTube for the public. Thank you for your understanding.
Our classes are free but our classes & sangha are sustained completely by the dana gratitude contributions of people like you! Dana gratitude donations for our classes are gratefully accepted at https://donorbox.org/purelandschooldonation. Suggested donation for the event is $5 - $20.
Check out our YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@right-view-lab!
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To better explain the philosophy behind Purpose Lab (our weekly Friday events, focusing on our life’s purpose and meaning):
In Buddhism, our life’s purpose is a long-term mission.
- We all have our purpose in life, which energizes us to move on.
- Our ultimate goal is different from our short-term goals or mid-term goals in life, such as marriage, landing a job, forming a family, or retirement.
- If we think about our mortality and impermanence of life, minor issues become less important, and we feel an urgency to accomplish our real purpose.
- It is helpful to have friends and family members who can support us as we travel through this Saha world of suffering toward our destination.
- Practicing compassion and kindness to such good people is important.
- We all have shared imperfections, and sometimes we hurt each other because we are human and are fallible. Self-reflection can help us move through such troubled times. Remember, we’re all in this together, we are all struggling, and we are all suffering.
- Buddha said the purpose of this journey is to find genuine happiness that overcomes life’s sufferings.
- The eight universal sufferings taught by the Buddha are: birth ( life), aging, sickness, death, separation from the beloved, encountering the despised, and being of the flesh (our body). This last suffering contains all the other sufferings.
- When we practice Six Paramitas (our daily practices), our good efforts will be rewarded. Good people will be drawn to us and be a source of support. It might take some time but no effort is wasted. Some seeds take time to bear fruit.
- When we know our purpose – self transcendence – we can overcome our limitations, the obstacles in our way, and the pain we suffer on our journey.
- Self transcendence is to forget the desire for instant gratification and remember those people who will benefit from our effort, and to be grateful for the people who have been supporting us.
- If you don’t have such people please make an effort to find at least one such person. And of course, by coming to this meet-up you will be a part of our sangha community!
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If you're interested in learning Buddhism but have a schedule conflict, please write to me for a one on one session. Thank you very much for reading this till the end.- Also please note that we're going to livestream this zoom session on YouTube for later access by our premium members. There will be an announcement from the Zoom app when it starts.
- We would appreciate it if you use the same name as your Meetup account so that the host of the meeting will easily recognize the participants.
- Please make sure you RSVP 30 minutes prior to the start of the meeting.
- Our classes are free but our classes & sangha are sustained completely by the dana gratitude contributions of people like you! Dana gratitude donations for our classes are gratefully accepted at https://donorbox.org/purelandschooldonation . Suggested donation for the event is $5 - $20.
The Zoom meeting passcode is 426646. We have about 10-20 people join us each week, including the regulars, so hope you don't get discouraged by seeing the few RSVPs here on this page. See you soon too!!!
We are looking forward to meeting fellow truth-seekers such as yourself, interested in the path to discovering their life’s purpose and meaning!
Bita and Yuichi Asakura
