Insight Meditation South Bay

Dedicated to the liberating teachings of the Buddha

Insight Meditation South Bay offers meditation instruction in Silicon Valley, California, serving San Jose, Los Gatos, Mountain View, Los Altos, Palo Alto, Cupertino, Sunnyvale, Saratoga, and Menlo Park, and also online programs. We provide guidance, and support for contemplative practices that develop clarity, joy, and inner peace in the midst of everyday living. Whether you’re just curious about meditation, an experienced practitioner, or anywhere in between, we welcome you!Our practices are firmly grounded in the three pillars of Buddhist training—virtue, mental clarity, and wisdom. We show you how to apply them to your life, right here and right now. While the context of our programming is the Buddha’s teachings, the practices we teach are universal: whatever your faith or belief system, you are welcome at our events as we cultivate mindfulness, happiness, and compassion.Insight Meditation South Bay (IMSB), is a Buddhist meditation center in Silicon Valley with programs in San Jose, Mountain View, Los Altos, Palo Alto, Saratoga, and Menlo Park. We encourage the development of direct insight through meditation, concentration, mindfulness, and daily life practices.

Our founding teacher, Shaila Catherine, and guest teachers offer a wide range of courses and retreats for beginning and advanced meditation practitioners.The IMSB community (sangha) is a diverse group of people who practice to integrate the Buddha’s teachings on wisdom, virtue, and meditation into their daily lives. We are helping to develop a culture and community of practitioners who see freedom from suffering as a real possibility and who support each other on the path to liberation.

Everyone is Welcome

Insight Meditation South Bay welcomes newcomers, beginning meditators, and seasoned practitioners. We value the presence of new and old friends. Newcomers are especially welcome to explore mindfulness meditation by dropping in to our San Jose-Saratoga and Mountain View meditation groups.

Our Vision for Growth

We are simultaneously expanding our online offerings and seeking to establish a dedicated facility that will enable the expansion of our programs in the south bay area of Silicon Valley. With a place of our own we will be able to offer a wider range of programs, and nurture an even stronger community of practitioners. To help IMSB find a place to call home, please contact centerAddress_at_imsb.

The Practice

The heart of Insight Meditation, also known as Vipassana, is the clarity of awakening. We use mindfulness-based meditative approaches for spiritual awakening and require no adherence to religious dogma. Freedom is the essence of this meditation training. Attachment is the problem that meditation is designed to solve. Wisdom, peace and calm awareness pervade the silence of formal meditation and also the business of active daily life. We train our minds through meditation and contemplation and apply that clarity to our complex daily interactions where we rest in profound happiness or extract the seeds of suffering.

Our principal teacher, Shaila Catherine, is particularly adept at concentration and jhana practices. Those who wish to develop mastery in jhana meditation can read the Concentration and Jhana FAQ page for more information.