FREE ONLINE TALK
EMBODIED WISDOM: THE INHERENT MINDFULNESS OF THE BODY
with René Fay & Susan Layden
Thursday, May 14th, 2026 | 6:00pm – 7:30pm ET
REGISTER NOW
Many of us experience stress, anxiety, or physical tension without fully understanding its source. These patterns often show up first in the body as tightness, fatigue, or unease.
When our meditation practice includes awareness of the body, our experience begins to shift. We start to recognize the patterns that shape our reactions and learn how to stay present with what arises. Over time, the body becomes a reliable anchor, even when discomfort or difficulty arises.
Join meditation teachers Susan Layden and René Fay for a free online event exploring how embodied somatic awareness can deepen our meditation practice and teaching. Both teachers bring decades of advanced training in embodied disciplines, including Buddhist meditation, yoga, and martial arts, and will share practical ways to work with the body as a source of insight and stability in practice.
You will also get an inside look at the upcoming eight-week The Body of Meditation: Cultivating Embodied Wisdom course, including how to integrate mindful movement, body scans, nervous system regulation, and inclusive language into practice and teaching, starting June 25th.
Whether you teach meditation or want to develop a more embodied practice yourself, this session offers a clear introduction to an approach that supports emotional regulation, resilience, and a deeper connection between body and awareness.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
René Fay
René is the Community Director for Dharma Moon. They are a certified mindfulness meditation teacher and death doula, they studied comparative religion and gender studies, and they earned their black belt at 17. René’s career has a long and extensive history of advocacy, with a focus on collaboration with, support of, and focus on: at-risk youth; queer communities and people; intimate partner violence/sexual assault prevention and intervention; and grief and crisis counseling. René is passionate about making meditation and dharma teachings radically accessible and has personally used meditation to transform their relationship with their own anxiety and chronic health issues. Outside of work, they're likely to be knitting while trapped under a cat listening to podcasts.
Susan Layden
Susan is a senior teacher with Dharma Moon, serving as the coordinator of the 100hr Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Training programs and a close senior student of David Nichtern’s for over 10 years. She received her 100hr meditation teaching certificate from David Nichtern and Kaia Yoga. She is a yoga and meditation teacher and a 500hr E-RYT and a YACEP (continuing education provider- with yoga alliance) and holds a 100 certification to teach mindfulness and yoga to children.
Susan is a 4th degree Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do and Hapkido. She has studied and taught under Grand Master Ik Jo Kang for over 20 years and is registered under Tae Kwon Do Jidokwan in Korea. She is the mother to three precious adult daughters.
Susan is committed to her practices, her family and giving back to her community. She has been in recovery for over 30 years.
JOIN THE DHARMA
MOON EMAIL LIST
Add your info below to get news, free content, and special offers from the Dharma Moon team.
