Mission and Values

About Us

Insight San Diego is a community of practitioners in the Buddhist Vipassana tradition. We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, all-volunteer organization with a Board of Directors as central governing body. The work of the Board is supported by a number of committees and a generous group of volunteers. The Board and all committees follow a core value that the Dharma guides us in our decisions.

Insight San Diego hosts a number of meditation and study groups. These groups are peer-led, by which we mean they are facilitated and organized by laypersons. The facilitator and group members collaboratively select study topics and work on other aspects of the group’s activities. We are appreciative of the many experienced Dharma teachers that have, and continue to, lead our retreats, classes, and other more formal offerings.

Mission Statement

We provide opportunities for meditation and learning the dharma to new and experienced students from diverse backgrounds. Our intention is to cultivate mindfulness, wisdom, and compassion for the benefit of all beings.

Vision Statement

Insight San Diego is a flourishing physical and virtual center offering a path to freedom from suffering and the causes of suffering for all beings seeking liberation through direct experience.

Who We Serve

We serve the greater San Diego community of Insight Meditation practitioners and open our doors to all races, genders, sexual orientations, ages, people with disabilities, as well as people of different faiths and practices.

Values and Guiding Principles

  • We strive to provide an open, safe, and welcoming environment.
  • We aspire to practice and embody loving kindness for all beings and the environment in which we all live.
  • We hold community as a priority in all of our decisions.
  • We honor the richness of differences in our community – differences in people, and in opinions and styles.
  • We attempt to embody a balance of wisdom and compassion in all our activities, and we listen to the wisdom of community members.
  • We hold the belief that all beings have the potential for awakening. We respect each individual’s path.
  • We value the teaching of the Buddha and use his teachings to guide us in our decisions.
  • We rely upon each other as peers to cooperate and lead us.
  • We value generosity – generous giving, generous listening, generous kindness, and generous sharing.
  • We actively encourage inclusivity and diversity through concerted efforts to cultivate broad participation by welcoming all races, genders, sexual orientations, gender identity or expression, ages, people with disabilities, as well as people of different faiths or practices. We will follow this principle as we attract participants, select programs and teachers, and in recruiting candidates for the Board and other volunteer positions.