Welcome!
Won Dharma Center is an open and culturally diverse community focused on cultivating mindfulness through meditation and training in spiritual practices.
Teachers, students, neighbors, visitors, young and old, from all faiths, genders, and belief systems gather here to make a commitment to lessen and eventually eliminate individual and societal forms of suffering that affect us all.
It is our mission is to provide a safe and ecologically friendly environment for wholistic living, and a calm and deeply nurturing center for spiritual growth.
Our kyomunims (Won Buddhist ministers) and staff offer retreats, meditation services, yoga and qigong classes, and special workshops for all, whether you are a serious practitioner or simply curious.
Our volunteers are your neighbors and friends who cheerfully donate their time and energy to make your visit or stay a joyful and welcoming experience.
We invite groups and individuals to host events/retreats at our facility and enjoy our 426 acres of rolling hills and fields offering panoramic views of the majestic Catskill Mountains. We provide nutritious meals utilizing the freshest natural and local ingredients – some from our own organic gardens.
Mission Statement
The mission of the Won Dharma Center is to create a world free from suffering. To realize that goal, in this era when human minds are enslaved by materialism, the Won Dharma Center is creating a sangha where people from all walks of life study dharma, practice and work together. Regardless of their faiths, they can develop their spirituality through enlightening their minds. The Won Dharma Center is a refuge where people can restore their true selves through faith in universal truth and practical spiritual training, based on the teachings of Sotaesan, the founding teacher of Won Buddhism.
Objectives
- Nourish individuals’ understanding of their own inner beauty and intrinsic goodness, called Buddha Nature
- Build an ideal spiritual community
- Maintain, nurture, and strengthen meditation and mindfulness practice
- Offer compassion, spiritual guidance and service to the people in our community
- Promote inter-religious and interfaith understanding and cooperation
- Cultivate the use of loving kindness in one’s personal and professional life
