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Dharma Talk: “The Eightfold Path and Tribal Spirituality” with Karen Waconda-Lewis

Thursday, May 22nd |  5:30–7:00 PM
Meditation begins at 5:30 pm MT, followed by the Dharma Talk (teisho) at 6:00 pm MT.
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You are invited to join us for an evening with Karen Waconda-Lewis at Mountain Cloud Zen Center’s zendo, where she will be leading the Dharma Talk. Karen will discuss how the Noble Eightfold Path connects with Tribal spirituality. This hybrid event is free and registration is not required. Please arrive five to ten minutes ahead of the scheduled time.

To participate online, please click on the zoom link below.

sit.mountaincloud.org
Passcode: mountain22

Trouble logging on to our online sits? Click here for guidance. Need help with time zone conversion? Use the World Time Buddy .

If you miss a dharma talk, you can find it on our YouTube channel within one to two weeks.

Kindly consider contributing dana (a traditional Buddhist offering) to express financial gratitude to our visiting teacher. Dana to Karen can be made through Venmo (@KAREN-WACONDA-LEWIS) or through Apple Cash (@Karen Wacondaca). 

Karen Waconda-Lewis is a tribal native of the Isleta and Laguna Pueblos. After her initiation into Native Medicine, she introduced traditional healing practices into an urban American Indian health clinic in Albuquerque, NM. She continues to expand this program into local hospitals, the Indian Health Service, the VA Hospital, and surrounding organizations. Karen integrates Western medicine with Native healing in preventive health, mental health, and overall well-being. She is the founder and director of the Center for Native American Integrative Healing, LLC, located in Albuquerque, where healers from various tribal nations practice their traditional medicine and extend their services to the community.

Karen is a Spirit Rock Community Dharma Leader program graduate and has been practicing mindfulness from a young age, guided by her grandparents in her traditional tribal practices of caring for the land, gardening, cooking and animals. She regularly provides dharma teachings incorporating Native teachings in her community and nationally. She has intertwined Native teachings with Vipassana meditation, incorporating these practices into ceremonies, sweat lodges, and her community at Laguna Pueblo. At Laguna Pueblo, the ancestral teachings of mindfulness have complemented the Buddhist teachings at the Detention Center, providing insight and wellness to inmates and their families. Additionally, Karen co-founded the Annual Indigenous and Native Healers Silent Retreat and the Albuquerque People of Color and Allies Sangha. She has also been appointed volunteer faculty at the University of New Mexico’s School of Medicine, where she guides faculty and staff on tribal health issues and wellness support to medical students and residents.

In her personal life, Karen enjoys spending time with her family, including her daughter and two grandchildren. She manages the family ranch and loves spending time with ancestral lands and caring for its inhabitants.

Dharma Talk often referred to as a “teisho” in Zen Buddhism, is a discourse or lecture given by a teacher to convey teachings on Buddhist philosophy, principles, and practice. During a Dharma talk, the teacher may explore various aspects of Buddhist doctrine, share insights from personal experience, and offer guidance to the audience on how to apply these teachings in their lives. The purpose is to deepen understanding, inspire contemplation, and support the development of mindfulness and wisdom among the practitioners.

Date
May 22, 2025
Time
5:30 pm - 7:00 pm
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