Many volunteers were named and celebrated at the opening last June.
Photos by: Cheryl Marland.

After more than 25 years of renting spaces in churches and office buildings around the Seattle area, Seattle Insight Meditation has planted its roots in a more permanent home.

Situated within Seattle’s University District, our newly renovated sanctuary has been lovingly transformed into a space for hearing, practicing, and deepening in the dharma.  With the establishment of a long-term physical “home,” we gain not only a gathering place, but also the opportunity to expand our programs.

Seattle Insight, often referred to as SIMS, offers a widening range of practice opportunities-– including drop-in sits, dhamma talks with discussion, weekend retreats, and affinity groups for those who identify as BIPOC or LGBTQIAS+. 

The transformation of the lower level of the University Friends Meeting House took more than two years. It was made possible through the immense generosity of hundreds of volunteers, teachers, and donors, who together raised over $175,000 and dedicated countless hours to help make the new center a reality.  Though finishing touches continue, the new center officially opened last June. 

“What a journey it’s been,” said Cubba Reese, board president of Seattle Insight.  “Skyrocketing real estate prices, Covid, supply chain challenges: we sometimes wondered if we would ever live in a new home.  And yet, here we are.  I’m very grateful to University Friends, and to the commitment of so many in our sangha who gave their money, their time, and their expertise.  I am deeply humbled.”

With a new entrance through a garden courtyard and an open foyer, Seattle Insight’s center offers the quietude of an urban sanctuary but also the convenience of an accessible location. It’s just north of the University Bridge and the Burke Gilman trail, and is blocks from the Sound Transit Light Rail University District Station.

The SIMS main hall accommodates 90 people, and is adorned with the vibrant blessing cards created for the center’s opening ceremony. The space is bathed in natural light, equipped with eco-friendly heat pumps, and fitted with audio-visual technologies that facilitate both online and in-person interactions. Down the hall, the new “North Room” houses a re-growing library, additional space for walking meditation, and is a gathering place for small groups and social events like potlucks and celebrations. 

Nina Laboy is a local dharma leader at Seattle Insight, referring to a group of people trained  to offer talks and other dharma support to the sangha.

“Upon entering the new space I was so delighted to discover what I could not imagine possible-– for I had worked in those exact rooms for years with the American Friends Service Committee,” Laboy said. “The space has been transformed into a lovely grand hall, a welcoming entryway and a spacious community room. I just love it.”

The design of the new center honors Seattle Insight’s strong foundations and long history in the Northwest dharma community, while also addressing the evolving needs of the sangha. Because a large number of people now attend events regularly online, having a central space in which hybrid events can happen in a meaningful way is crucial. 

For instance, every Monday night Temira Lital, a local dharma leader living in the Columbia Gorge area of Oregon, greets people online before the teacher at the center begins the meditation. 

The North Room will also provide ample space for community groups to meet in person. A new “parenting as practice” group, and a reconvening teen circle, are both currently in the works. 

This new year also ushers in a new era for Seattle Insight, with an expanded leadership team. Last fall, 16 practitioners from the Seattle area and well beyond, reflecting a rich tapestry of backgrounds and identities, graduated from the yearlong training program to become local dharma leaders. This training came through the guidance and mentorship of guiding teachers Tim Geil and Tuere Sala.

The new cohort has joined a seasoned leadership council of co-teachers and assistant teachers, who have been engaged for many years. The trainees have already begun leading groups, classes, and daylong retreats at the center.

“The local dharma leader training has been a truly transformative experience for me,” said Nana Gyesie, who is also a new member of the Seattle Insight board.  “It has stretched my understanding of practice beyond the cushion, deepening my desire to live the dhamma and to share what has been so generously and freely given to me.  I feel deeply honored to support Seattle Insight, and excited to help nurture a center where others can find refuge, growth, and awakening.”

The identity of Seattle Insight has shifted over the past decade.

What was for many years a single large weeknight gathering, has expanded to include a weekly “Thursday night” group that began in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood, a bi-monthly group on the “Eastside” area, and the opportunity to hear the dhamma from a variety of voices.  For many people, the intimacy of the smaller groups can provide a greater sense of safety, as well as a chance for deeper connections and meaningful discussions about how to live the dharma in everyday life. 

The BIPOC group, which meets monthly, just celebrated their third anniversary.  Facilitators Shawn Holmes, Takaaki Okada, and Nina Laboy shared their hopes for the group going forward. 

“We’d like to continue nurturing a space where BIPOC practitioners feel deeply seen, supported and empowered to explore the dharma community — cultivating resilience, joy and liberation, while honoring the work and wisdom of those who came before us, whose paths and teachings make this journey possible.” 

Sooz Appel, an assistant teacher who has been involved with the sangha from the beginning, and who co-leads the Sunday morning sits, is excited by the changes at Seattle Insight.  She reflected particularly on her experience with the smaller groups that continue to meet online.

“Sunday sits include yogis from all over the Northwest and beyond,” Appel said. “Even though we don’t sit right next to each other, those who come have deepened their connections with each other and built a solid foundation of trust.  I feel the love for the dharma that shows up every Sunday, and in the drop-in sits during the week. Meditating together and sharing the dharma has become a wholesome habit for a lot of people.”

Our dhamma roots and deepest intentions are at the core of what we do, even amidst all the changes.  At the opening ceremony, Guiding Teacher Tuere Sala traced the dharma lineage of Seattle Insight back to revered teachers in the Thai forest tradition: Ajahn Buddhadasa, who was a teacher to our founding teacher Rodney Smith; and Ajahn Chah, who was a teacher of many of our teachers at Spirit Rock and the Insight Meditation Society.  Sala mentioned the importance of honoring these roots, even as we expand the norms and forms of our sangha. 

Guiding Teacher Tim Geil added, “We are bringing the wisdom and meditation practices of the Theravada lineage into our modern lives as lay practitioners with relationships, jobs, and families. The very fabric of our lives becomes a rich practice of dharma, and an expression of compassion.”

This year, we are also privileged to be able to host several visiting teachers for evening talks and weekend retreats in-person—including Venerable Pannavati, Anam Thubten, Caverly Morgan, Gregory Kramer, Bhante Panna, and monastics from Parayana Vihara and Clear Mountain Monastery.  Rodney Smith and Phillip Moffitt will continue to offer retreats online. 

The overarching intention of Seattle Insight is to provide “a refuge in the heart of the city,” a welcoming place where people can learn about and practice the Buddha’s teachings on awareness and insight.  Everyone who enters – as they meditate, volunteer, and connect — plays a role in creating a space of care and belonging. 

“My hope is that the center becomes even more of a real refuge,” said Gyesie, “with practitioners who continue to model awareness and light, in these unprecedented times of great macro changes in our world.”

(Full disclosure: Northwest Dharma News Editor Steve Wilhelm also serves as an assistant teacher at SIMS.)