879 Somerset Street West, Ottawa

On this Saturday course, we will be looking at Buddhist meditation practices that help to eliminate negativity, distractions, bad feelings, and heaviness from within our mind.

In particular, we will be learning about the law of cause and effect or karma.  It is the ripening of our negative karma that is the main cause of all our suffering and problems.  Fortunately, there are powerful methods to purify our negative karma so that we don’t have to experience future suffering.  The most powerful purification practice in Buddhism is the practice of Vajrasattva, the Buddha of purification, through which we can purify and release our mind from all its negativity. Through this practice we will find we will naturally become happier, our mind more flexible, and that our meditation practice in general will become more effective.

We will discover the causes of our negativity, our negative karma, and how to avoid creating negativity through controlling our mind.  We will explore subjects such as karma, and past and future lives. The course includes traditional Kadampa Buddhist prayers and meditations.

On Sunday there will be an opportunity to be guided through the meditations on purifying negativity in a special one-day retreat, with teachings by Gen Thekchen. An optional vegetarian lunch is available on Sunday for purchase (vegan & gluten-free options too).

Schedule for Detox the Mind Course and Sunday Guided Retreat: 

Saturday December 13 - Detox the Mind Course

10am-11.15am:  Teaching and meditation
11:15-11:45am:   Tea/coffee break
11.45-1pm:  Teaching and meditation 

Sunday December 14 - Guided Retreat with teachings

9-10.15am: Session 1 - Guided meditation
11am-12:15pm:  Session 2 - Guided meditation 
Lunch onsite - $15
1:45-3pm:  Session 3 - Guided meditation

This course will be taught by Resident Teacher Gen Kelsang Thekchen, who is a Kadampa Buddhist monk & senior Teacher in the New Kadampa Tradition. He has been a Teacher under the guidance of Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche for more than 30 years. Gen Thekchen has taught widely in Canada and in the UK, and is now the Resident Teacher at Kadampa Meditation Centre Ottawa. He is well known for his ability to present Buddha's teachings in a practical, profound and often humorous way, making them very accessible and easy to practise in everyday life.

Click below to sample Gen Thekchen's teaching.