Stewardship & Practice Opportunity Inquiry

Reflections:

An Invitation into Sacred Service

Are you being called to live your practice more deeply?

Sangha House NOLA is welcoming inquries for our Stewardship & Practice Opportunity—a 3-month immersive period of sacred service, spiritual companionship, and communal care.

The Ground We Tend

Rooted in the historic 7th Ward on the sacred land of Bulbancha (New Orleans), we live and serve in rhythm with the land, ancestors, and one another.

Stewards work closely with Venerable Clear Grace Dayananda and core group members, offering 25 hours per week of service (not including Sangha activities, practice periods, or personal care of shared spaces) in areas such as administration, communications, temple care, meal preparation, gardening, and more, while engaging daily in practice, self-reflection, and shared community life.

Your Stewardship & Practice opportunity is a complete practice period with its own beginning and end. This is a mutual offering rooted in generosity not a paid position. Your service is met with shared living space, nourishing meals, guidance in practice, and the wealth of teachings and community life we tend together.

X/Twitter

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Name(Required)

First Last

Email(Required)

Phone(Required)

Age(Required)

Yes, I have read and understand the Stewardship & Practice Guide.

What is drawing you to this opportunity?(Required)

What does sacred service mean to you?(Required)(Required)

What are your accessibility needs ? Any medical or health issues you’d like to share with us ?(Required)

Why Sangha House NOLA specifically? What about our vision and practice resonates with you?(Required)

Describe your experience with meditation, spiritual practice, or contemplative living.(Required)

Sangha House NOLA is a Buddhist temple and retreat center, and during your stewardship you will be practicing alongside us sitting, participating in our daily rhythm, and engaging in Buddhist practice as part of communal life here. You do not need to be Buddhist.(Required)

Have you practiced Buddhism or studied Buddhist teachings? If so, in what tradition(s), and for how long? If not, what has your own spiritual or contemplative practice looked like?

Have you lived in intentional community or shared living spaces before? If so, describe your experience. If not, what draws you to this way of living?(Required)

This stewardship requires 25 hours per week of stewardship work (administration, cooking, garden care, temple maintenance, and similar tasks). This is separate from Sangha activities and practice periods (gatherings, meditation, monthly events, and other Sangha events), as well as your own responsibility for keeping shared spaces clean.(Required)

Is something you can commit to?

Daily life here moves at the pace of the practice and quiet rhythm. Noble Silence is held as a full sacred container from 9 PM to 8 AM daily. When necessary, mindful speech carries through the day. Phone and video calls are kept to a minimum in designated places.(Required)

How do you feel about entering into this rhythm and way of being as a shared practice for three months?

As a steward, you are asked to follow the Five Precepts during your time here: to refrain from harming living beings, from taking what is not given, from sexual misconduct, from false speech, and from intoxicants that cloud the mind.(Required)

Are you willing to hold these as your practice for the three months of your stewardship? Is there a precept you anticipate finding challenging, and if so, which one and why?

Stewards make a sincere effort to participate in all weekly Sangha gatherings/events. Does this align with your availability and commitment to practice? (Required) Yes
No
I have scheduling conflicts I need to discuss

Conflict Resolution

Conflict is part of the work, and part of why we come together to practice in this way. We do not avoid it, smooth it over, or treat it as a sign that something has gone wrong. When approached with honesty and vulnerability, conflict deepens the trust needed to realize a shared vision, rather than something to be feared. As we practice together, we recognize that conflict and difficulties are part of our shared human experience. When concerns surface, we approach them directly and with mindfulness.

The process:

First, seek resolution directly. A one-on-one conversation will be held to address the matter with clarity and care, as soon as possible. Do not let concerns linger or accumulate; find the right time to have the conversation. This allows space for honest dialogue, accountability, and mutual understanding. You may also bring concerns to your weekly conversations with Venerable, where feedback and guidance are shared.

If it is discerned that a more intricate approach is needed, such as when a situation involves multiple people or impacts the collective rhythm of community life, a circle may be called to support deeper reflection, communication, and resolution. In such cases, Venerable Dayananda and at least one core group member (more when available) will be present to help guide the process in alignment with our shared practice and values.

Our intention is always to meet conflict with awareness, honesty, and care, creating conditions for understanding, reconciliation, and continued harmony within the Sangha.

How do you typically respond to feedback, especially when it's difficult to hear?(Required)

Are you open to listening to feedback with an open mind and a willingness to look internally, and take the necessary actions to ensure conflict doesn’t have the potential to reoccur?(Required)

This stewardship is essentially an invitation to practice to look deeply at your own mind, your habits, your attachments, and the wishes you carry. It is not a place to avoid boundaries, triggers, or vulnerability, but a place for transformation and healing.(Required)

What are you currently working to see more clearly in yourself why is this important to you?

This is an unpaid internship sustained by mutual generosity. How do you plan to support yourself during your 3-month stay?(Required)

This stewardship is unpaid and held in the spirit of mutual generosity. We provide housing and shared meals, but you are responsible for your own personal expenses during your three months here.(Required)

How do you plan to support yourself financially during your stay?

Anything else you'd like us to know(Required)

Can you commit to the full 3 months? (Required) Yes, I can commit to 3 months
No, I need a shorter commitment
I'm unsure and want to discuss

Preferred Start Date(Required)

References

Please provide two references - people who can speak to your character, reliability, and ability to live in community.

Name(Required)

First Last

Relationship

Phone(Required)

Email(Required)

Name(Required)

First Last

Name(Required)

First Last

Relationship

Phone(Required)

Email(Required)

Thank you for the depth and honesty you brought to these questions. Reflecting on your own mind, your motivations, and your relationship to this land and community is no small thing, and we don't take it lightly that you took the time to sit with it.

If this feels aligned, we will follow up to schedule a virtual meeting with Venerable Clear Grace Dayananda and a core group member for mutual discernment. Following that conversation, core group members will discern whether this is the right fit. If so, you will be asked to complete a more detailed registration application.

You can expect to hear from us within 3 weeks of submitting this inquiry. Not every inquiry becomes a stewardship, and that is alright — we trust that whatever comes of this, your reflections here have value.

Boundless Love in Action · Liberation in Practice