Greatwoods Zen Community

This special day of mindfulness invites you to step away from the pace of everyday life and return to a slower, more attentive rhythm—guided by breath, nature, and the quiet wisdom of plants.

We’ll begin by gathering in circle with a short meditation to arrive in the body and settle into presence. After brief introductions, we’ll move into a silent, mindful walk through nature, allowing the senses to open and awareness to gently deepen. As we walk, we practice listening—to the wind, the earth beneath our feet, and the subtle ways the natural world communicates.

Returning from the walk, we’ll enter a guided sensory meditation with a selection of herbal allies. Through touch, scent, and direct experience, each participant will be invited to intuitively choose the herbs that feel most resonant, creating a personal tea blend.

Together, we’ll craft our teas and sit in a simple tea ceremony as the herbs steep. We’ll share about the medicinal and traditional qualities of the plants, and the long-standing role of herbal tea as both nourishment and gentle medicine. As we sip, we’ll close in reflection and gratitude for the plant world and the practice of slowing down enough to listen.

What to expect:
• Short sitting meditation to arrive and ground
• Silent, mindful nature walk
• Guided sensory meditation with herbs
• Intuitive tea blending (you’ll create your own blend to enjoy)
• Tea ceremony and shared reflection

No prior experience is needed. You are welcome exactly as you are—come with curiosity and a willingness to slow down.

Our “Roots of Buddhism” is our new series at Greatwoods Zen in which every two months, we will dive into the deeper and more nuanced teachings of Buddhism. These are not merely intellectual or philosophical explorations; rather, we will inquire and discover how these teachings apply to the most important questions and meaning of our every day lives and practice.

As a complement to the joyous and social nature of our community, these days of mindfulness will be practiced in noble silence, where we will have an opportunity to touch the deeper threads of our practice individually and collectively. Have you ever tried a whole day in silence in community? It is a real treat, a retreat!

Our theme this month will be on the Buddha’s teachings on emptiness. The Sanskrit term for emptiness in Buddhism is śūnyatā, derived from the root word śūnya, meaning "empty" or “hollow”. When you hear the word “emptiness”, does that touch the seed of fear in you, even a little bit? Deep within us, we have our existential fears. “When we die, do we change from something to nothing?” “Is the nature of life and death merely nothingness?” In Buddhism, the teaching on emptiness is not the same as nothingness. Rather, the Buddha’s teachings on emptiness cut through both the ideas that we are something fixed and solid, as well as the ideas that we are made of nothing. They are intended to free us from the notions of being and nonbeing, of birth and death, of moral absolutism and moral nihilism, so that we are not caught in extremes of notions, and can touch the true nature of life which is the reality of interbeing.

Emptiness here means empty of a fixed, separate self. Our ideas and the meanings we ascribe to things are empty, meaning that we can continue to free ourselves from perceptions and stories that no longer serve us. Because we ourselves, including our body, heart, and mind, area also empty of a separate self, we can inter-be with everything else in the Universe, including the sun, the moon, the rivers, the trees, our grandparents (those alive or passed away), our children (those born or yet to be born), the dog poop that smells in your front yard, and the Carolina jasmine that is blooming in your yard. The teachings on emptiness are a portal to understanding the nature of no-birth and no-death, how we exist in others, and how others exist within us, both right now, and throughout space and time.

Please bring: lunch for yourself, and a little something to share with others (if you want).

Please register in advance.

Suggested donation: $10–40.

A virtual space to slow down, listen inward, and let your body become your guide.

We welcome you to come experience our weekly Day of Mindfulness. Nestled next to nearly 1,000 acres of blooming wilderness, right in the heart of Charlotte, we will find ourselves together in the present moment. Come recharge, reconnect with yourself and others while basking in the Spring glow of the forest. We will sit, walk, breathe and share the beauty of the budding Reedy Creek Park. Also, although this meditation group (Sangha in Sanskrit) is based in the teachings of Vietnamese Zen Buddhist Master Thich Nhat Hanh of the Plum Village tradition, people of all faiths and those with no spiritual tradition are welcome.

We offer this event in the spirit of Dana (generosity of the heart), and there is no expectation for a donation. However, as we do have rent and bills to pay, everyone is welcome to donate money, food for the potluck or just help with washing up or cleaning up so that we can continue to offer this as a place of refuge for the whole community.

If you’d like to support the continuation of this space, you’re invited to register with a sliding scale contribution ($15–$45).