INTERSPIRITUAL MEDITATION

A Seven-Part Process from the World’s Spiritual Traditions
Online Course: February 20 – April 23, 2012

Click Here for an Application Form

General Description

InterSpiritual Meditation is being offered as an online course from February 20 to April 23, 2012.  It will be preceded by an in-person weekend retreat in Santa Barbara at La Casa de Maria on February 10-12, 2012.

Our primary audience for this online course are students who aspire to deepen their own contemplative practice individually and in community with others.  Certificate Level students are those who are motivated to first learn and then mentor others in the theory and practice of this inclusive, universal form of meditation that at the same time compliments the practices of their chosen tradition.

InterSpiritual Meditation is a universal process drawn from the world’s spiritual traditions.  It is designed to help each individual to develop a practice of contemplation and meditation for health, happiness, gratitude, transformation, love, compassion, tranquility, focus, wisdom, and service in the world.  Its seven-step process enables people of diverse spiritual practices to create engaged contemplative communities based on empathy, understanding, shared contemplative intentions, and compassionate service for the common good.

If (after reading the information below) you are interested in this course please click here for an application form. We will then contact you with final registration and payment details.

(20 Continuing Education Credits are available for the online course.)

Rationale:

Over the millennia the world’s spiritual traditions have created and handed down to us a marvelous diversity of meditative practices. These are our global spiritual heritage.  Practiced in concert with each other, these meditations provide us with internal ‘renewable resources’ for global peace, equality, and prosperity.  Together, buoyed by the diversity of these practices, we are of one heart and capable of solving the challenges of our times.

Today, countless numbers of people are attempting to develop and sustain a meditation practice. Our individual practices reflect the gamut of the world’s spiritual heritage. Often, we don’t have a local community to support our chosen practice and we must proceed alone. Yet to maintain our practice, it is helpful to be in a supportive contemplative community that can help nourish, support, and strengthen us – – a community that also reflects the vibrant spiritual diversity of our times.  InterSpiritual Meditation can help us to build communities of people with diverse practices.

Amidst the world’s variety of religious and scientific beliefs, contemplatives often share a common intention: to be engaged in the world based on an inner foundation of equanimity, wisdom, and compassion. From the ‘inside-out,’ and strengthened by our diversity, we can become the peaceful and positive change that we would like to see in the world.  This is the calling of our times and the purpose of this course.

Goal of Course:

The goal of this course is to help participants to:

• Create a personal meditation leading to health, happiness, gratitude, transformation, loving compassion, equanimity, mindfulness, wisdom, and service.
• Begin learning to mentor and facilitate diverse individuals and groups in InterSpiritual Meditation.
• Co-create and participate in a supportive community of people with diverse beliefs and traditions to help solve the critical challenges of our times.

Registration Process:

If you are interested in registering for this course, please follow this process:

1. To apply, click here for an application form
   
2. If accepted, you will receive a link for completing your registration and your student profile.
3. Formal registration, payment, and access to the course will take place as your complete your online profile and registration.
4. Course payment will be processed through a Paypal link provided during the registration process.
5. Once these tasks are complete, the online course will be available to you.

Teacher:

Ed Bastian, Ph.D. is President of the Spiritual Paths Institute. His Doctorate is in Buddhist Studies and Western Philosophy from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Bastian studied for nearly a decade with Buddhist Monks in monasteries in the U.S., India and the Himalayas. As a Fulbright Scholar, he studied Indian philosophy at Banares Hindu University and translated Buddhist scriptures from Tibetan and Sanskrit sources. At the Smithsonian Institution, Bastian served as Director of programs on BioDiversity and Intellectual History, where he taught courses and moderated conferences on Buddhism, world religion, and Tibetan human rights. He has lectured, presented scholarly papers and his films in the U.S., England, Japan and India. Bastian is the Executive Producer of television programs on Asian religion for the BBC, PBS, and the National Endowment for the Humanities.  He is the author of the award winning “Living Fully Dying Well,” and “InterSpiritual Meditation.”  (Click here for more information on Ed Bastian.)

Class Elements:

Each of our 10 weekly classes contains the following elements:

1. Selected readings from “InterSpiritual Meditation.”
2. Selected readings from “Meditations for InterSpiritual Wisdom.”
3. Daily individual meditations.
4. Guided audio meditations.
5. Weekly live audio-video classes.
6. Supplementary written, audio, and video resource materials
7. Audio-video presentations on each of the topics.
8. Online discussions with classmates on major topics and subtopics.
9. Private online discussions with the teacher.
10. General forum for open discussions within the class.
11. Audios and videos of great teachers describing the theory and practice of meditation in their tradition.

Two levels: Auditor and Certificate

Certificate Students

Following are expectations of Certificate Students:

• Complete all assigned weekly readings.
• Actively participate in the class reflections and discussions.
• Be present and participate in weekly live classes.
• Communicate privately with teacher as needed.
• Create a written private journal of their personal meditation in each of the seven steps.
• Write a five page reflection paper incorporating the journal entries, and then review the paper in a live telephone or in-person conversation with the teacher.

Auditors

Following are expectations of Auditors:

• Complete all assigned weekly readings.
• Actively participate in the class reflections and discussions.
• Listen to the weekly live classes.
• Create a written private journal of their personal meditation in each of the seven steps.

Application Process

To apply, click here for an application form. Once your application has been reviewed, we will email you with registration instructions.

Registration Process
Once your application has been accepted, you will proceed to the class website, fill out your student profile, pay the course fees, and be admitted directly into the course.

Course Fees
· Online Course – Certificate Level: $325
· Online Course – Auditor Level: $250
· 20 CE Credits for Online Course: $35 (Certificate Students Only)

Payment of Fees
All fees for the online course and CE credits will be processed through PayPal. This Paypal option will be easily available during the registration process and allows students to pay with their regular credit cards.  (Note: using Paypal enables Spiritual Paths to minimize administration costs for offering its courses.)

Books:

1. “InterSpiritual Meditation: A Seven Part Process from the World’s Spiritual Traditions”

2. “Meditations for InterSpiritual Wisdom: Practices and Readings Drawn from the World’s Spiritual Traditions”

Class Schedule:

This ten week online class will begin on February 20 and will end on April 23, 2012.  Each week there will be a live presentation and discussion.  The time of this weekly live class will be set once the cohort is formed and we discern the best time for the most people.  Following is a list of weekly themes.

Formal registration, payment, and access to the online course is between December 1 and February 15, 2012.  After receiving your completed student information form, we will notify you of final details before completing your registration.

Schedule and Topics

Week	Dates	Topic
1	2/20/12	Defining our Terms: Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation,Religion, Spirituality, InterSpirituality
		The Process of InterSpiritual Meditation
		Guidelines for InterSpiritual Discussions
2	2/27/12	Step 1: Motivation – “May I be Healthy & Happy”
3	3/5/12	Step 2: Appreciation – “May I be Grateful”
4	3/12/12	Step 3: Transformation – “May I be Transformed”
5	3/19/12	Step 4: Intention – “May I be Loving and Compassionate”
6	3/26/12	Step 5: Mindfulness – “May I be Mindful through My Breathing”
7	4/2/12	Step 6: Meditation – “May I become Wise through Meditation”
8	4/9/12	Step 6: Meditation – “May I become Wise through Meditation”
9	4/16/12	Step 7: Dedication – “May I be in Service to All Beings”
10	4/23/12	Course Review

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, EMAIL ed@spiritualpaths.net.