Hands up if you want to awaken in this lifetime and fully realize your potential as a human being, transcend suffering and attachment and help make the world a more compassionate place? Keep your hands up if you are able to do a 3-month retreat once a year where you can live in silence and engage in formal meditation for 20 hours a day. For those who still have their hands up: happy meditating! For the rest of us, there is another path to unfoldment and awakening: The Path of Karma Yoga. This path requires much less time on the cushion and gives us the ability to leverage the busy-ness of our modern lives into a tool for transformation. Doug Duncan, meditation master and dharma teacher, awakened through the path of meditation, but also received extensive training in the path of service (aka Karma Yoga). He and his partner, Catherine Pawasarat, currently teach extensively through this path. They have developed one of the world’s pre-eminent KY training facilities at their retreat centre, Clear Sky, in the BC Rocky Mountains. What is Karma Yoga? Doug calls Karma Yoga, “The Path for the Western Mind”. The typical westerner is so fully in and of the world that while silent retreat work is therapeutic and important, the chances of spending enough time silently watching the mind is unlikely to lead to a major breakthrough on its own. Rather than try to rely fully on the 10% of our time we are “away” from […]

Join Doug Duncan Sensei in Calgary for a special talk on Monday night at the Dharma Hub.  Doug calls Karma Yoga, “The Path for the Western Mind”. The typical westerner is so fully in and of the world that while silent retreat work is therapeutic and important, the chances of spending enough time silently watching the mind is unlikely to lead to a major breakthrough on its own. Rather than try to rely fully on the 10% of our time we are “away” from the world, why not try to also fully leverage the 90% of our time we spend engaged in activity? Karma Yoga embraces this activity and transforms it into the ultimate mindfulness activity: by shifting our relationship with our work, we unlock its ability to produce insight and to clear unwholesome karma. About the Teacher Achariya Doug Duncan has been teaching the Buddhist path to awakening for over three decades. In 2005, Duncan founded Clear Sky Meditation Center in Cranbrook, BC. He continues to travel around the world leading retreats and classes with his partner and co-teacher Catherine Pawasarat. Known for his direct and compassionate engagement with students, Doug embraces the full spectrum of the various traditions he employs in order to mentor beings to a more awakened state. His great sense of humour, caring attitude and sometimes very direct involvement makes him an effective catalyst for opening the shadow, for very practical application of the teachings, for humorous and gentle relief when tensions mount and through […]