Open Circle Center
Open Circle Center
Open Circle Events:

Loch Kelly ~ Direct Inquiry: The Power of How

ÒLoch Kelly is one of the clearest expressions of authenticÊawakened freedom and love that I know. He offers wise, loving medicine and direct,Êpractical guidance which evolved from LochÕs vast experience and deepÊcommitment to help others awaken to spiritual freedom.Ó

~ Adyashanti, from Shift Into Freedom

The two most common approaches of direct awakening are 1) the do nothing or resting method and 2) the looking or inquiry method.

The Direct Inquiry approach begins with a looking method of awareness of awareness. However it does not stop with pure awareness but continues to untie knots of confusion to abide and live an awakened life. ÊThis natural unfolding moves from Waking up — from small self, Waking as—the ground of awake awareness,Ê Waking in —Ê awake awareness arises simultaneously as energy, love and embodiment, Waking out — to create and relate from embodied, loving, awake consciousness.

How do we recognize our True nature if it canÕt be done by the seeker, ego, doer, self, will, attention or a meditator? Our already awake awareness can intentionally unhook from being identified with our small self-center.

In Zen direct inquiry is described as Òtaking the backward stepÓ In the Toasist book, The Secret of the Golden Flower, the secret is Òturn the light of awareness around.Ó In Tibetan, the word ÒrecognitionÓ, is translated as Òlooking back at your own face.Ó In Mahamudra, it is described as Òchild awareness returns to mother awareness.Ó ÊOnly then do we have the capacity to unburden traumatized parts of us and reveal flourishing positive qualities.

Awake awareness is not ultimately passive but has intelligence and intentionality which allows us to live an awakened life. Direct Inquiry becomes the power of how to awaken when local awake awareness is discovered to be a reliable tuner.

Please join Loch in this experiential opportunity to learn how to access local awake awareness to intentionally glimpse and live from embodied open-hearted awareness.

Loch Kelly, M.Div., LCSW is an author of the award winning book The Way of Effortless Mindfulness. He is a licensed psychotherapist and recognized leader in the field of meditation and awakening. Loch is the founder of the non-profit, Open-Hearted Awareness Institute and has worked in community mental health, established homeless shelters and taught meditation to first responders in NYC during Covid-19. Loch graduated from Columbia University where he received a traveling fellowship to Sri Lanka, India and Nepal. Loch is known for his warm sense of humor, and his trust that awakening is the next natural stage of development. He teaches the advanced, yet simple, nondual pointers and direct methods of effortless mindfulness, informed by psychology and social justice. Loch collaborates with neuroscientists at Yale, UPenn and NYU in the study of how awareness training can enhance compassion and wellbeing.

www.effortlessmindfulness.org

Suggested donation: $15 to $25

No one turned away for lack of funds.

Please register early if you can.

The event will be recorded and emailed to participants within a week.

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Our online events are always recorded and the recording is sent to all registrants via email within a week, usually sooner. The recordings remain available for at least 1 year. We also occasionally record and/or livestream our in-person events. If that’s the case, you’ll find it noted on the given in-person event page.
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We offer our events by donation or sliding scale with scholarships available to make them as accessible as possible. We still however have many expenses to pay and therefore we ask that you contribute as much as you can comfortably afford for an event. Most of the funds are paid directly to the teacher. The remainder goes towards Open Circle’s expenses so that we can keep our platform in operation. Your generosity also helps cover any scholarships we offer to those unable to pay within the sliding scale.
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You’ll find an overview of the nature of our events, including the common types and formats, in our About Events page.
Most events consist of a guided or silent meditation, a talk by the teacher, and time for questions and sharing. There may be other practices such as somatic exercises, movement practice, dyads, etc. Each teacher chooses the format freely according to what they feel supports their message best, so formats may vary.
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Most of our in-person events require advance booking. However we do offer some events where you can just show up. Please check the event page relating to your event. We will clearly state there if advanced booking is required. If in doubt, you can always email localevent@opencirclecenter.org to double check.
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