Through Insight in Action, our outreach program, we have started to work with a non-profit called Firefighters Down that supports firefighters who are physically or psychologically injured in the line of duty.
We are in the process of planning retreats at the Canyon for firefighters and their spouses to teach Buddhist mindfulness and compassion practices for coping with the traumatic effects of being first responders.
Captain Mike Henry, cofounder of Firefighters Down, invited Soldier Bear, a Lakota chief and elder from Pine Ridge to come and bless the land at the Canyon to honor the indigenous people who once inhabited it and also in preparation for these retreats for firefighters.
We had the great fortune to have the Canyon blessed in a sacred ceremony by Anam Thubten, a Tibetan Buddhist Rinpoche, a number of years ago. Tibetan Buddhism has strong shamanic elements from the indigenous Bon religion that preceded Buddhism in Tibet.
Our vision for the Canyon continues to be a place to find inner and outer peace and be a blessing for all beings, a refuge for all.
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