Joan Halifax facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Joan Halifax |
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Halifax in February 2008
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| Religion | Zen Buddhism |
| Lineage | Zen Peacemaker Order White Plum Asanga |
| Education | Harriet Sophie Newcomb College University of Miami School of Medicine Union Graduate School |
| Personal | |
| Born | July 30, 1942 Hanover, New Hampshire, U.S. |
| Senior posting | |
| Based in | Upaya Zen Center |
| Religious career | |
| Teacher | Seung Sahn, Bernard Glassman, Thich Nhat Hanh |
Joan Jiko Halifax (born July 30, 1942) is an American Zen Buddhist teacher. She is also an anthropologist, ecologist, and civil rights activist. Joan Halifax has written several books about Buddhism and spirituality. She is currently the leader and main teacher at Upaya Zen Center in Santa Fe, New Mexico. This center is a Zen Peacemaker community that she started in 1990.
Joan Halifax learned from Bernard Glassman and the Korean Zen master Seung Sahn. She founded the Ojai Foundation in California in 1979. She led this foundation until 1989. As a socially engaged Buddhist, Joan Halifax has worked a lot with people who are dying. She created a special program called "Project on Being with Dying." She is also on the board of directors for the Mind and Life Institute. This group explores how science and Buddhism are connected.
Contents
About Joan Halifax
Joan Halifax was born in Hanover, New Hampshire in 1942. When she was four years old, a serious virus made her legally blind. She got her eyesight back two years later. In 1964, she finished college at Harriet Sophie Newcomb College. This college is part of Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana. While in college, she became involved in the American civil rights movement. She also took part in protests against war.
After college, Halifax moved to New York City. She started working with a famous researcher named Alan Lomax. By 1965, she was reading books about Buddhism. She also began to teach herself how to meditate. She worked at Columbia University from 1964 to 1968. Later, she went to Paris and worked at the Museum of Man. She earned her Ph.D. in medical anthropology and psychology. She also worked at the University of Miami School of Medicine. She traveled to Mali to study the Dogon tribe. In the 1970s, she went to Mexico to study the Huichols.
Founding Centers
In 1979, Joan Halifax started the Ojai Foundation. This center was for education and different faiths. In 1990, she founded Upaya Zen Center in Santa Fe, New Mexico. This center offers Zen training. It also has classes and retreats on topics like engaged Buddhism. This includes caring for people who are dying.
Author Sarah Buie described Upaya as a "residential and teaching center." It is located outside Santa Fe. Joan Halifax had a clear vision for the center. She wanted to connect the mind with the space around it. She thought about how everything is connected. This included ties to ancestors, natural cycles, and the land. She also considered how indoor and outdoor spaces relate. Caring for the land has always been important in developing the center.
Work with the Dying
Joan Halifax has spent much of her career working with people who are dying. Professor Christopher S. Queen wrote about her work. He said she teaches how to "be with death and dying." She teaches this to patients, doctors, nurses, and families. She speaks calmly and with knowledge.
In many cultures, death is often ignored or hidden. But Joan Halifax physically connects with the dying. She holds them, listens to them, and comforts them. She helps ease their suffering in any way she can. She shares their thoughts and fears. She is there for their last breaths. She can go to churches, hospitals, or hospices. She shares techniques and training from Buddhist traditions. She does this in a way that fits different cultures and beliefs.
In March 2011, she became a special visiting scholar. This was at the John W. Kluge Center at the Library of Congress.
Books and Media
Books
- Halifax, Joan (2008). Being with Dying: Cultivating Compassion and Fearlessness in the Presence of Death. This book helps people learn how to be with someone who is dying. It teaches compassion and courage.
- Halifax, Joan (2018). Standing at the edge: finding freedom where fear and courage meet. This book explores how we can find freedom when we face fear and courage.
Other media
- Audio
- Video
See also
In Spanish: Joan Halifax para niños
