Current Practitioners Group Descriptions

Practitioners groups are on-going groups for CSS members who want to dedicate themselves to practicing the teachings of the mystics from the major religious traditions. These groups meet once a week starting in October and ending in the summer. For exact meeting dates, times, and locations, please see the CSS calendar. Practitioners may sign up for multiple groups. The Foundation Studies course or Distance Studies Course is a prerequisite to attend other practitioners groups.

Practitioners groups are not "drop-in" groups. To attend a group, you should register in the Fall when making your membership pledge. If you need to take a leave of absence from a group, or need to be absent, please let the teacher know in advance. In addition to these on-going year-long practitioners groups listed below, CSS teachers may also offer shorter duration classes, workshops, or seminars, which last a few days or a few weeks.

 

2025-2026 Practitioners Groups

 (All times below are US Pacific time unless otherwise noted)

Foundation Studies Class

See the Foundation Studies Class page for details.

 

Distance Studies Course

The distance studies course is a self-directed course of study following a set curriculum, with guidance from a CSS mentor. This is an alternative to the Foundation Studies Class. For details, see Distance Studies Course.

 

Practitioners Group (Todd)

Location: CSS Meeting Hall with hybrid Zoom
Days and Times: Wednesdays from 3:00 - 4:30 PM Pacific, October 1 through June 10
Description:  In this group, we’ll be reading and discussing excerpted, short manuscripts from a number of different authors, chosen to help us guide attention back into our intrinsic wisdom nature of love and compassion. The tentative list of manuscripts for this year is as follows:

  • Pema Chodron on Loving Kindness, from her book Comfortable with Uncertainty.
  • Ken Mcleod an introduction to thefour immeasurables: Equanimity, loving kindness, compassion and joy, excerpted from his book: Wake Up To Your Life.
  • Dzigar Kongtrul: excerpts on Compassion from his book Uncommon Happiness.
  • And again, Ken Mcleod providing concise instructions on cultivating Attention- fromhis book:Wake Up To Your Life.
  • Rodney Smith offers insights into the nature of self-identity,from his book Stepping out of Self-Deception.
  • Elizabeth Namgyel offers insights into precise investigation of naked experience in this manuscript excerpted from herbook, The Logic of Faith.
  • And finally, Ken Mcleod, from his 2016 book, A Trackless Path, offers profound practice insights through a poem by Tibetan sage Jigm’e Lingpa.
  • Beyond these, if we have time, we may also look into a short manuscript by Allan Watts on Emptiness excerpted from his book, The Way of Zen, and an excerpt from Anam Thubten’s book, Embracing Each Moment.

I will be sending all readings out via email attachments to all participants, so there is no need to purchase texts.

 

Practitioners Group (Andrea)

Location: Zoom
Days and Times: Mondays from 6 - 8 PM, Sept. 30 through summer.
Description: This class will be a continuation of our study of 37 Practices of a Bodhisattva (a being who is on the path of awakening). This year Andrea will share excerpts from Alan Wallace and Eva Natanya’s  new book "Samatha Vipassana”. These excerpts will assist with details of our practice. All are welcome.

 

Practitioners Group East (David)

Location: Zoom
Days and Times: Tuesdays 5:00 - 6:30 PM Pacific (7-8:30 Central)
Description: This group provides support and fellowship among spiritual friends with conversation about spiritual teachings and spiritual practices. We begin each meeting with a 10 minute meditation, after which the activity may vary. Sometimes we share quotes or read excerpts from spiritual texts to inspire inquiry and dialogue. We occasionally invite guests to join us to share their spiritual experiences.

 

Practitioners Group West (David)

Location: Zoom
Days and Times: Thursdays 6:30 - 8:00 PM Pacific (8:30-10 PM Central)
Description: This group is reading and discussing the book “That Which is Before You” by CSS teacher Matt Lowes. In a typical meeting, we meet & greet, meditate for 10 minutes, and then ask for any new topics for discussion.  If there aren't any, or after the new topics finish, someone reads from the book aloud and we pause frequently for discussion -- it’s not unusual for the group to read a paragraph or two and engage in a lively discussion for the duration of the meeting.